Meditating on the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary this Friday, I had a clearer notion of Christ’s personal situation during His Passion.

Everything Christ did during His life, and especially during those awful last hours, point to His great love for us. 

But our human notion of real love is sketchy at best. Only through examining love in action through Jesus can we grasp the real essence of love.

Stopping the Pain

God in His three Persons is almighty and all powerful. At any time throughout His torture, Christ could have said, “Enough!” and halted the process.

He could also have revealed Himself as the transfigured Christ – with all wounds healed.  Can you imagine how terrified and in awe of Him the Jews and Romans would have been had He done that?

Instead he endured being whipped repeatedly with steel tips, spat upon, hit, jeered at and mocked. He was clothed in a purple cloak which was then ripped off His back after the blood from His scourging had dried on the material.

Thorns were pressed into His head and He was forced to carry His own heavy cross, when he had no energy left. When had he last eaten or drunk? At the Passover meal with the Apostles. That was hours ago.  

The cross dug into his shoulder, inflicting even more pain, well before he was nailed to it and hoisted, naked, for all to sneer at while he took three hours to die of suffocation.

And at any point during this excruciating ordeal, He could have said, “Stop!”

But He didn’t.

Doesn’t that give us pause for thought? Do any of us love even one person enough to go through such agony for them, let alone the whole of flawed humanity?

It takes unbelievable humility to act as if you have no power over your persecutors.

That’s real love.

Makes one think, doesn’t it? 

He Descended into Hell for Us

I've often wondered what the phrase in the Creed ‘He descended into Hell’ means.

Hell is separation from God. No one can enter communion with God in Heaven if he or she is not pure. We must be purged in Purgatory of our remaining impurities before we can enter Heaven.

Christ took on all the sins of the world – past, present and future – when He let Himself be crucified. He became impure. For the first, last and only time, He was separated from God.

And not because of anything He had done wrong. Completely pure, He became impure out of love for us. He’d been one with the Father from the beginning of time, and now, because He wanted to save us, He agreed to be separated from His Father.

No wonder he cried out, “My God, why hast thou forsaken me?” The agony of being split from the Trinity must have been far worse than any physical pain. Even though He knew it was temporary and necessary to conquer death, it was going to be – well, Hell for Him.

And when we realize that He was fully aware that this horrible moment of separation was imminent, the Agony in the Garden takes on an added dimension, doesn’t it?

Yet Jesus did this out of love for us.

Another beautiful truth.        

Saved or Not?

He knew already in the Garden of Gethsemane just how many souls His sacrifice would save. He also knew the exact number of those who would spurn His sacrifice and descend into Hell.

Those latter souls will have refused to believe in God during their lifetime, only to discover His existence when they die. At the very moment when they believe in Him, they will be separated from Him.

Just when they desire Him above all things, it will be too late. They will never be with Him in Heaven. 

Imagine how the knowledge of these truths increased Christ’s agony! We can readily sympathize with His prayers to have the chalice removed from His lips. 

Yet He still went through His Passion out of love for us all. Even if only a few of us make it through that narrow door, Christ wanted to show us just how much He cared about every single human being, by dying a horrible death to give us all a chance to be saved.

Isn’t that another beautiful truth?  

So how are we going to show Him our appreciation of what He went through ‘for us men and for our salvation’?

When I recite the Rosary, my mind sometimes wanders off in totally unrelated directions. Sure enough, this Friday, while I was praying the first decade – the Agony in the Garden – my thoughts drifted to secular topics, which had nothing to do with Christ's  anguished beads of blood-sweat.

I looked for a new aspect of the event to get me back on track.

It occurred to me that Christ had just washed the feet of the man who - any moment now - would enter the garden and betray Him.

How did that feel?

How Did He Do It?!
Would we have washed Judas’ feet? Would we have performed such a humiliating task for the very person we already knew was going to hand us over to be scourged, hit, spat on, have thorns stuck into our head, and be forced to carry a heavy cross - so we could be attached to it with big nails driven through our hands and feet?

That’s what makes Jesus’ act of humility even more amazing. Not only was He performing a slave’s job for His followers. He already knew Judas was going to betray Him - “And you are clean, though not every one of you” (v. 10) - yet Jesus washed his feet, too! That demanded enormous love.

The article Jesus Washes His Disciples’ Feet reads: “For the love that is evident in the laying down of life at the crucifixion is also demonstrated in the laying down of life in humble service in the footwashing.”

Humble Re-enactment
On Maundy Thursday we witness the commemoration of that night as the priest washes the feet of twelve parishioners. And I always wonder why those particular twelve are chosen? What are the criteria for having your feet washed in church? (Thankfully I’ll never qualify - no one wants to see my sorry toes!)

One year our pastor called up twelve young men who’d expressed an interest in the priesthood. That was beautiful, and I appreciated the worthiness of those parishioners to be recognized in public.

But another priest recounted how he’d desperately not wanted to wash the feet of a particular church member, because the man was openly and loudly critical of him. For that very reason the priest’s spiritual director ordered him to include that man in the Maundy Thursday line-up.

It was very hard - humiliating and humbling – but the priest obeyed and bathed his enemy’s feet.

Now that's impressive!


Christ’s humility that night – washing all twelve disciples’ feet when He was aware that one of them would soon double-cross Him – is certainly something to recall when reciting the Agony in the Garden decade on the Rosary.

Isn’t ‘pondering’ a great word? Its synonyms include: contemplate, reflect, meditate and cogitate on. You can just imagine Mary by her newborn baby, looking at him adoringly and pondering in her heart on the huge significance of this first Christmas.

Such was my inner response to the unexpected blessings this Christmas brought.

‘Twas an Unfamiliar Christmas Eve  

Florida is where my family spent Christmas this year. I was unhappy to leave my beautifully decorated Maryland home, but it was the right thing to do.

My mother is in assisted living - in Sarasota, where my husband hopes to retire soon. She cannot travel to visit us anymore, having lost the use of her left side in a stroke and being wheelchair bound.  We had to fly out and visit her, because we're her only family in the States - everyone else lives in England. 

It upset me that the closest thing to midnight Mass locally was at 10:30 p.m. Back home we have a true 12 o’clock Mass, but I reckon the older generation couldn’t stay up that late!

Offer up your sadness, I told myself. I expect Mary was a tad dismayed when she saw where her baby was supposed to sleep! And I bet she didn’t give St. Joseph a hard time about it, either. She will have smiled through her disappointment and focused on the positive. 

When Christmas Eve dinner was over I reminded the family that I was going to ‘midnight’ Mass in half an hour.

My twenty-one year old son smiled. “Mum, I’ll come with you. It’s a tradition and it won’t feel like Christmas if I don’t.”

You can imagine how overjoyed I was to hear those words! Not wanting to set myself up for misery, I’d not even secretly hoped he would come. 

Although this would have been the first year without his company, I’d been careful not to bring it up. He is no longer a regular church goer, which I pray will change. But he's too old to have his mother tell him what to think and do.

He pulled out the ironing board, and pressed a clean shirt to wear to greet Our Lord at His birth.

Graces, Godsends & Gratitude

The church was twenty minutes away, and while he drove, my son talked to me about personal things which don’t usually get discussed in the hurried life we lead. Another blessing.  

I had forgotten about the carol service immediately preceding this Mass, and the parking lot was chock full. Yet we found a space and once in the building, were lucky enough to get two seats next to each other half way up the aisle.

The pews were just regular chairs, without any kneelers. During the times in Mass when Catholics would normally kneel, the congregation had to stand.

(I’ll skip over my aggravation - as soon as I’d sat down - at seeing a parishioner walk in with two large, takeaway cups of coffee. I deliberately looked no more in their direction, as I didn’t want to see whether or not they had the audacity to drink it during the service!! Judge not lest ye be judged, I told myself.)

My son remembered all the prayers and responses during Mass, which was another wonderful surprise. The priest then incensed the offerings, and after a short while that distinctive aroma reached us.

Ross beamed. “Ah! Now it’s Christmas!”

I was so grateful to God that my son still embraced Catholic tradition.  I pray this will lead him fully back to the Church one day.

After Mass, as we were returning our hymnals, he noticed that a free book was being handed. The title was on my ‘to buy’ list: Rome Sweet Home by Scott and Kimberley Hahn. Another unexpected bonus, which I voraciously read over the next three days.

Merry Christmas to Us, and to Us a Good Night 

Our cozy chats resumed during the trip back to the semi-darkness of my mother-in-law’s house, where everyone else had gone to bed.

Traditionally, after midnight Mass Ross joins me in a glass of mulled wine and we eat a minced pie each. Sadly, he was unable to do so this year, having been recently diagnosed with ulcerative colitis. God willing, he will share these things with me again next year.

Instead, we hugged and wished each other “Merry Christmas!” before he retired to bed.

Midnight Meditations

In a happy daze, I sat alone at the little breakfast table, sipping my hot spiced wine and munching on a minced pie - baked in Maryland for this very occasion - past the hour of 12 a.m.

My heart was full as I pondered this evening’s miraculous events and contemplated Mary’s wonder on beholding her child in the manger that first Christmas night.

Christmas is a great time to examine our feelings towards our enemies.

Advent, preparing for the coming of God in human form at Christmas, is the perfect time for examining our attitude towards our enemies.  Christ calls us to forgive them and to love our neighbor (which includes our enemies) as ourselves.

But it’s hard!

So how about trying this first step: praying for those who hate you?

Choose specific prayers - for example, a decade of the Rosary. If you set aside a few minutes each day to pray for the person (or persons) who hate you, for at least one month, you’ll gradually find yourself enjoying the following unexpected blessings.

What Makes Praying For Your Enemies So Powerful?

 1.      It gives you benevolent power

By doing something good for your enemies, you diminish their ability to hurt you.
Sending ‘good vibes’ their way blocks the ‘bad vibes’ they’re sending your way.
Love conquers hate: it’s that simple.

2.     It reduces their negative power

By praying for individuals who intensely dislike you, you allow them to occupy only a tiny time-slot during your day. Then you’re done with them: they no longer dominate your thoughts for hours on end.

No one likes anybody to hate them, and praying for enemies eliminates their power to upset you.

3.      You gain peace

The angels didn’t say “peace on earth and goodwill to all men”, as is commonly misquoted. They actually said: “Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.” Luke 2:14 New Living Translation.

God is pleased with us if we let go of resentment and do something good for those who hate us. That is the path to peace.

4.      You’ll feel good about yourself

I’m not talking about being a ‘goody-two-shoes’ here. I’m talking about the good and faithful servant who has done his duty, and can sleep at night because he has a clean conscience and wishes no one ill will.

5.      You’ll discover a hidden strength in yourself

As you experience the above benefits, you’ll learn that you are much stronger than you thought and see yourself in a new light.

It’s not just the saints who can overcome their animosity to those who hurt them. You, too, have the strength to start out on the path to holiness.

Avoiding a Potential Pitfall

When we begin praying for those who hate us, there is the danger of feeling superior to them.

A good way to avoid this is to examine the reasons for their dislike. The answers keep us humble and prevent us from thinking of them as ‘bad people’ and ourselves as ‘good people.’

Perhaps their circumstances are not as good as ours, and they are jealous of us? If so, we need to feel empathy, rather than animosity.

Maybe we’ve done something to hurt them – intentionally or unintentionally? Do we need to ask them for forgiveness? Even if we’re not yet ready to do this, being aware of the need to do so will keep us from feeling ‘holier than thou.’
 

Praying for our enemies brings many blessings. By exercising our benevolent power over them, we reduce their negative power over us.  We gain peace and feel good about ourselves in a humble way.

With the discovery that we do have the strength to become holier, we’ll approach baby Jesus on the day of His birth with confident trust that He will help us fulfill His commandments of love and forgiveness - towards those who love us and those who don’t.

 

 

Being a good Christian is difficult, especially these days.

It’s unfashionable to follow the precepts of a man who lived over 2000 years ago and doesn’t embrace the spirit of our times, which tells us to ‘eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die.'

Instead He exhorts us to "turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow me.” New Living Translation (©2007) Matt. 16:24

Where’s the appeal in that?

And does such a lifestyle guarantee admittance to heaven? Supposing we ‘take up our cross’ only to end up in the nothingness of the Universe after we die, instead of living in eternal happiness with God? We'll have missed out on so much!

Would it not be smart to have a Plan B – a back-up creed, as it were ─ just in case we’re wrong to believe in Christ and His teachings?

Napoleon’s Life Strategy

In his famous book ‘Think and Grow Rich,’ Napoleon Hill outlines principles for attaining earthly success and writes about the many men who’ve applied them.

A certain Edwin C. Barnes wanted to work with (not for) Thomas Edison. Mr. Hill writes:  “Barnes' desire was not a hope! It was not a wish! It was a keen, pulsating DESIRE, which transcended everything else. It was DEFINITE.”

Mr. Barnes was so determined to achieve his aim, that he was willing to “burn all bridges behind me, and stake my ENTIRE FUTURE on my ability to get what I want."

Barnes ‘did not say, "I will keep my eyes open for another opportunity, in case I fail to get what I want in the Edison organization."……“He stood by his DESIRE until it became the dominating obsession of his life ─ and ─ finally, a fact.”

In short, Barnes’ goal became an obsession, and everything he did was in order to achieve this one end. He succeeded. ‘Out of that business association (with Edison) grew the slogan, "Made by Edison and installed by Barnes."’

Christ’s Strategy

God demands the same ‘obsession’ from us, and warns against trying to be of this world and of God. We can choose only one.

The first commandment is unambiguous about this.  “I am the Lord your God…. You shall have no other gods before Me.” (My italics)
Exodus 20:2-17   

Jesus elaborates further on the level of commitment God requires of us.

'You must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.' Matthew: 22:37

We must guard against deep attachment to the things of this world for  only love of God makes us willingly obey His laws. And when we don’t obey His laws, it proves we don’t love or believe in Him.  

St. James admonishes those who can’t choose one or the other 'god,' and calls them ‘double-minded.’

“Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do.” James 1:8.  The New Living Translation (©2007)

Clarke’s Commentary on the same webpage explains it this way:

“A man of this (double-minded) character is continually distracted; he will neither let earth nor heaven go, and yet he can have but one.”  

St. James also makes it clear that such “people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord” unless their “faith is in God alone.” James 1:6-7

We can’t pray to God only when we want something and expect Him to give it to us, when we worship the pursuit of worldly wealth instead of Him the rest of the time.

If You Aren't For Me...

It isn't possible to love God and Mammon: love of one excludes love of the other. Either we are for God or we are against Him: there is no middle ground.

Christ is very clear about this: "Anyone who isn't with me opposes me, and anyone who isn't working with me is actually working against me.” Matthew 12:30 New Living Translation (©2007)

He also outlines the consequences of not being wholeheartedly Christian:

“If anyone is ashamed of me and my message, the Son of Man will be ashamed of that person when He returns in His glory and in the glory of the Father and the holy angels.” Luke 9:26 New Living Translation (©2007)

We can’t be successful in any undertaking if our commitment is lukewarm. The desire of true Christians is to get to heaven: their lives are lived solely in the hope of being with God when they die.

Hope Versus Hope

Christian ‘hope’ is completely different from worldly hope.

Jack Weaver defines this in his ‘Notes From a Retired Preacher.’

‘The Hope of Heaven is not a maybe — but an absolute and definite guarantee by the Word of the Truth of the Gospel.
 
‘“In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began.” Titus 1:2
 
‘Eternal life — guaranteed and promised by the God of the Universe. He cannot lie... Every true believer in Jesus Christ may look with confidence to the glorious appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ. (There is) No doubt!’
 
Christian hope is not wishful thinking: it is the absolute certainty of eternal life if we commit to Christ.
 
Do We Still Have Time?  

If we’ve been a doubting, ‘double-minded’ person, will Christ still accept our belated commitment to Him?

Absolutely!

 ‘“Yet even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; and rend your hearts and not your garments.” Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster.’ Joel 2:12-13 ESV

‘The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.’ Acts 17:30 ESV 

So now would be a good time. :)

Is There a Deadline?
 
Christ is the Merciful One during our lifetime. If we repent of our sins and ask for His forgiveness now, He will extend His infinite mercy to us.

This changes when we die.

Consider these words of Our Lord to Saint Faustina:

“Today I am sending you with My mercy to the people of the whole world. I do not want to punish aching mankind, but I desire to heal it, pressing it to My Merciful Heart. (1588)”

The moment we die, He becomes our Judge and His clemency is permanently over. 

“….after (the end times) will come the day of justice. While there is still time, let them have recourse to the fount of My mercy; let them profit from the Blood and Water which gushed forth for them. (848) (My italics)

“Before I come as a just Judge, I first open wide the doors of My mercy. He who refuses to pass through the doors of My mercy must pass through the doors of My justice... (1146)”

Now, Was That So Difficult?

Christ wants to save us, but we must humble ourselves and ask for His forgiveness. He cannot save us if we don't ask Him to. 

Catholics have to ask pardon for their sins out loud to a priest, which requires even more humility than a quiet acknowledgement of guilt to God alone.

But, however we do so, once we’ve admitted our faults and asked for forgiveness, a great burden lifts from us. Invited back into our hearts, Christ in His mercy walks with us again.

And as my former parish priest used to say, ‘Don’t look down or that’s where you’re going. Look up ─ at where you want to go!”

God must be the Alpha and Omega of our lives if we are to attain that for which He made us: eternal life with Him in heaven.

There is no Plan B for Christians. We don't need one.


Napoleon Hill quotes taken from:

Hill, Napoleon (2010-05-07). The Classic Napoleon Hill Masterpiece THINK AND GROW RICH [Illustrated & Annotated] (Kindle Locations 4470-4471). Northpointe Classics. Kindle Edition.(Available for 99c)

Or click here for free download.

St Faustina quotes taken from:

THE LIFE AND MISSION OF Saint Faustina APOSTLE OF THE DIVINE MERCY

Christ offers us salvation: are we smart (and humble) enough to accept it?

Sweating Blood

We as Christians are very familiar with the story of Christ sweating blood in the garden of Gesthemane. Wikipedia describes hematidrosis as ‘a very rare condition in which a human sweats blood,’ for example under the extreme stress of facing his or her own death.
 
Not only did Christ know that His torture and death were imminent, but He was fully aware of what he would go through. Being God, He had intimate knowledge of what He was about to endure.

We can well understand that Christ seated blood over His impending physical suffering.

Another Kind of Agony

But there was another powerful reason for His anguish.

Many souls would be saved through His Passion and death: this He knew. But what about the agony caused Him by the many others who would reject His incredible sacrifice, and refuse to be saved?

Christ sweated drops of blood thanks also to these ingrates, the 'great multitude of reprobates who would be damned for their sins.'* Their stubborn pride would prevent them from seeing their sinfulness and need of a Savior.

Rather than be grateful to Christ for enduring a horrible death to save their souls, ‘those hopeless, lost and unfortunate sinners’ would throw His sacrifice back in His face.

*Taken from the Fifth Prayer of the St. Bridget Prayers. http://www.preces-latinae.org/thesaurus/Filius/StBrigid.html

Heroism & Rejection

It’s hard enough to do something heroic when you know it'll be appreciated.
 
But how about undergoing torture for people who will laugh at what you’ve done for them? Who are too hard-hearted and self-absorbed to realize that you are offering them the supreme gift of a permanent place in Heaven?
 
Try enduring horrific suffering for souls who will exercise their free will to reject you, refuse everlasting life and instead choose eternal damnation!

Maybe knowing this was the hardest part of the Christ’s Agony in the Garden?

He was concerned with much more than physical torture.
 
Don’t let us be among the ‘lost and unfortunate sinners’ who increase Our Savior’s agony.  Instead, let's gratefully accept the precious gift of mercy and forgiveness He offers us.