HOLY WEEK HOMILIES
HOLY THURSDAY
A husband was feeling romantic one day. He tenderly asked his wife, “Do you love me?” The wife, too busy with the household chores, did not mind him. The man insisted, “We have been married for thirty years, and you rarely said you love me.” Again, the wife did not bother to answer him. The man was hurt. “Perhaps, you do not love me anymore because you do not want to say ‘I love you.” The wife stopped, looked at her husband in the face and said: “Every single day for thirty years, I cook your meals, I wash your clothes, I clean the house, I sleep with you, I take care of your children, and all these I do without pay. If this is not love, then what is it?”
The wife was right. She was expressing her love, not by words, but by action, and not only for a day, but every day for many years. On the other hand, the husband wanted to hear words of love. However, love is not an ordinary word; it is an action word. Without action, love remains an empty word.
In the Gospel of St. John, we read: “Jesus loved his own in the world and he loved them to the end.” On Holy Thursday, the day before he suffered and died, Jesus showed his followers the depth of his love. He just did not say it – he showed it; he proved it.
First, he gathered them in the Upper Room for supper. It was his last supper with them. He did not only eat with them; he fed them. He gave them food to eat. By experience, we all know that nourishment is the best expression of love. The mother nursing her infant at her breast is the perfect picture of this. But Jesus did not only feed his followers. He himself became the food and drink: Taking the bread, he said to them, “This is my body. Eat it.” And taking the cup filled with wine, he said, “This is the cup of my blood. Drink it.”
The Eucharist is the sacrament of God’s love for us. This love is not meant to remain in the confines of the Upper Room; it is meant to be shared. That is why at the Last Supper, Jesus gave a deeper meaning to the Eucharist when he rose from the table and washed the feet of his apostles – his second act of love that evening. He removed his outer garment and bent down to wash the feet of his disciples. And he instructed them: “If I, therefore, the master and teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash one another’s feet. As I have done for you, you should also do.” The love we receive in the Eucharist should move and inspire us to render humble service to one another.
On Holy Thursday, Jesus instituted the sacrament of the Priesthood when he instructed his apostles: “Do this in memory of me.” This is his third act of love that evening. It is through the priests, human instruments appointed by God that we receive the abundance of God’s love in the sacraments of the Church, especially the Eucharist. The priesthood and the Eucharist are intimately and essentially united. The Eucharist is continually offered by the ministry of the priesthood; and the priesthood gets its power and inspiration from the Eucharist. The one cannot do without the other.
Holy Thursday is a day of love – the day when Jesus showed us the depth of his love. He instituted the sacrament of the Eucharist where he gives us his own body and blood as our eternal food, and makes present to us in the here and now the eternal and one sacrifice he offered on the cross. And to make sure he continues to be with us as our eternal nourishment, he instituted the sacrament of the Priesthood. Through the ministry of priests, the Eucharist is celebrated until Jesus comes again in his glory. Finally, he washed the feet of the apostles to teach us by example that the love we receive in the Eucharist is meant to be lived in humble and loving service to one another, the essential fruit of the Eucharist and the mark of a true follower of Christ. Let every Eucharistic celebration arouse in us the irresistible desire to love and serve God and His people with the same love and service that Jesus has shown us.
GOOD FRIDAY
One of my friends from a different faith asked me: Why you Catholics keep the image of the Crucified Jesus in your Church. Is he not risen?
On this Good Friday, let us together reflect on the meaning and implication of the Crucifixion and death of Jesus. What does the death of Jesus really means? To have an understanding of the meaning and implication of Jesus sacrifice on the Calvary, we need to pay attention to the two extraordinary events that happened at the time of his death.
According to the Scripture, when Jesus died, the Temple Curtain was torn down into two pieces from top to the bottom. Jerusalem Temple had a curtain. The purpose this curtain veil was to prevent the unclean men from approaching the Holy of Holies. Sin separated us from God…The immediate effect of his death was the removal of that separation….The Holy of holy become accessible to humanity…Havens were opened for us. When Jesus received baptism, heavens were opened for him. From the cross, from the heart of Jesus, when water and blood flowed and bathed the universe, the holy of Holies became accessible to everyone. The heart of God was revealed to the Humanity. The centurion understood this and representing the sinful humanity, he acclaimed, “This is really Son of God”.
Secondly, according to the Scripture, while Jesus was giving up his self, a powerful earthquake shook the earth, graves were opened, and the dead came back to life. By dying our death, Jesus defeated the power of the world and death… So the death of Jesus brought a new hope to the world….Therefore, this is a Good Friday….A Friday that defeated the power of death and the principalities of the world; A Friday that recaptured the lost paradise.
Jesus, however, achieved this, not by the display of power and might. The devil that tempted Jesus in the desert was present at Calvary. He said,” If you are son of God come down from the cross and save yourself and us….But Jesus rejected that path. He achieved it through obedience to the will of God the Father, even though it cost his life…..Jesus said: Father into your hands I place myself.
The death of Jesus on the Cross-clearly tells us…..The only way to Life is conformity to the plan of God even if it demands a huge price….The thief realized that….He won the paradise…We have a choice… The way to life is narrow and the way to destruction is wide.
HOLY THURSDAY
A husband was feeling romantic one day. He tenderly asked his wife, “Do you love me?” The wife, too busy with the household chores, did not mind him. The man insisted, “We have been married for thirty years, and you rarely said you love me.” Again, the wife did not bother to answer him. The man was hurt. “Perhaps, you do not love me anymore because you do not want to say ‘I love you.” The wife stopped, looked at her husband in the face and said: “Every single day for thirty years, I cook your meals, I wash your clothes, I clean the house, I sleep with you, I take care of your children, and all these I do without pay. If this is not love, then what is it?”
The wife was right. She was expressing her love, not by words, but by action, and not only for a day, but every day for many years. On the other hand, the husband wanted to hear words of love. However, love is not an ordinary word; it is an action word. Without action, love remains an empty word.
In the Gospel of St. John, we read: “Jesus loved his own in the world and he loved them to the end.” On Holy Thursday, the day before he suffered and died, Jesus showed his followers the depth of his love. He just did not say it – he showed it; he proved it.
First, he gathered them in the Upper Room for supper. It was his last supper with them. He did not only eat with them; he fed them. He gave them food to eat. By experience, we all know that nourishment is the best expression of love. The mother nursing her infant at her breast is the perfect picture of this. But Jesus did not only feed his followers. He himself became the food and drink: Taking the bread, he said to them, “This is my body. Eat it.” And taking the cup filled with wine, he said, “This is the cup of my blood. Drink it.”
The Eucharist is the sacrament of God’s love for us. This love is not meant to remain in the confines of the Upper Room; it is meant to be shared. That is why at the Last Supper, Jesus gave a deeper meaning to the Eucharist when he rose from the table and washed the feet of his apostles – his second act of love that evening. He removed his outer garment and bent down to wash the feet of his disciples. And he instructed them: “If I, therefore, the master and teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash one another’s feet. As I have done for you, you should also do.” The love we receive in the Eucharist should move and inspire us to render humble service to one another.
On Holy Thursday, Jesus instituted the sacrament of the Priesthood when he instructed his apostles: “Do this in memory of me.” This is his third act of love that evening. It is through the priests, human instruments appointed by God that we receive the abundance of God’s love in the sacraments of the Church, especially the Eucharist. The priesthood and the Eucharist are intimately and essentially united. The Eucharist is continually offered by the ministry of the priesthood; and the priesthood gets its power and inspiration from the Eucharist. The one cannot do without the other.
Holy Thursday is a day of love – the day when Jesus showed us the depth of his love. He instituted the sacrament of the Eucharist where he gives us his own body and blood as our eternal food, and makes present to us in the here and now the eternal and one sacrifice he offered on the cross. And to make sure he continues to be with us as our eternal nourishment, he instituted the sacrament of the Priesthood. Through the ministry of priests, the Eucharist is celebrated until Jesus comes again in his glory. Finally, he washed the feet of the apostles to teach us by example that the love we receive in the Eucharist is meant to be lived in humble and loving service to one another, the essential fruit of the Eucharist and the mark of a true follower of Christ. Let every Eucharistic celebration arouse in us the irresistible desire to love and serve God and His people with the same love and service that Jesus has shown us.
GOOD FRIDAY
One of my friends from a different faith asked me: Why you Catholics keep the image of the Crucified Jesus in your Church. Is he not risen?
On this Good Friday, let us together reflect on the meaning and implication of the Crucifixion and death of Jesus. What does the death of Jesus really means? To have an understanding of the meaning and implication of Jesus sacrifice on the Calvary, we need to pay attention to the two extraordinary events that happened at the time of his death.
According to the Scripture, when Jesus died, the Temple Curtain was torn down into two pieces from top to the bottom. Jerusalem Temple had a curtain. The purpose this curtain veil was to prevent the unclean men from approaching the Holy of Holies. Sin separated us from God…The immediate effect of his death was the removal of that separation….The Holy of holy become accessible to humanity…Havens were opened for us. When Jesus received baptism, heavens were opened for him. From the cross, from the heart of Jesus, when water and blood flowed and bathed the universe, the holy of Holies became accessible to everyone. The heart of God was revealed to the Humanity. The centurion understood this and representing the sinful humanity, he acclaimed, “This is really Son of God”.
Secondly, according to the Scripture, while Jesus was giving up his self, a powerful earthquake shook the earth, graves were opened, and the dead came back to life. By dying our death, Jesus defeated the power of the world and death… So the death of Jesus brought a new hope to the world….Therefore, this is a Good Friday….A Friday that defeated the power of death and the principalities of the world; A Friday that recaptured the lost paradise.
Jesus, however, achieved this, not by the display of power and might. The devil that tempted Jesus in the desert was present at Calvary. He said,” If you are son of God come down from the cross and save yourself and us….But Jesus rejected that path. He achieved it through obedience to the will of God the Father, even though it cost his life…..Jesus said: Father into your hands I place myself.
The death of Jesus on the Cross-clearly tells us…..The only way to Life is conformity to the plan of God even if it demands a huge price….The thief realized that….He won the paradise…We have a choice… The way to life is narrow and the way to destruction is wide.
Very nice post, Specially the topic of Without pay doing everything what is it???
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