Tuesday of Holy Week
March 31, 2015 6:30am
Today’s readings are a bit of a
contrast.
John’s gospel sets the scene for
the final events of Jesus’ life.
We hear Jesus foretelling the
betrayal by Judas and the denial by Peter.
At the same time, the prophet Isaiah
gives assurance that good things will happen.
There will be a servant of God who
will be a light to Israel and other nations as well.
So maybe the message of the two
readings, if we take them together, is that in all of human life, joy and
suffering walk side by side.
This week, Holy Week, we recall
the suffering and death of Jesus.
But we cannot do that apart from
our knowledge that Jesus is risen.
This coming Sunday and through
the Easter Season, we celebrate Jesus’ resurrection.
But we also cannot forget his
passion and death.
I think we know that in much of
human life, our laughter is often mingled with tears and our tears are often
softened with a smile.
For example, we worry and are sad
at the serious illness of a family member.
And yet, this is often tempered
by the closeness of family members and the care of neighbors in those moments.
We are delighted at the success
and accomplishment of a daughter or son.
And yet, that may be tempered by
the fact that our parents, their grandparents did not live to see this.
So maybe what I am saying is that
the experience of Jesus, shown in today’s readings, often mirrors our own human
experience.
This is why we can turn to Jesus
in prayer at any moment and in any experience of our lives.
He has been there and he will be
here with us in all the experiences of our journey.
