Jesus
said 'It is accomplished' and bowing his head he
gave up his spirit.
[John 19:20] |
At
this momentous instant in the history of
the universe, as Jesus yielded his spirit
into the hands of the Father, the majority
of the apostles had scattered in confusion
and fear. The words of the disciples on
the road to Emmaus mirrored the thoughts
of the followers of Jesus: "Our
own hope had been that he would be the one
to set Israel free." Their dreams,
their hopes, their longings and expectations
were shattered. |
|
In
divine terms, the reality was so different.
Jesus Christ, beloved son of the Father,
having lived perfectly in faith and trust,
had yielded his life in love for the salvation
of the world, thus allowing the power of
God to raise him up on the third day - and
bring the transformation of resurrection
and the power of the Spirit into the lives
of all who journey in faith. |
"Know
that I am
with you always;
yes, to the end of time."
[Matt.
28:20] |
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For
each of us the experience of death, sickness
and other trials can bring us great pain.
The moments when we experience confusion
about our life direction can be equally
painful. Here, like the apostles, we are
challenged to cling to the words of Jesus
and have faith in God’s power and
loving plan for us. Margaret Aylward experienced
the pain of apparent loss of direction when
she left religious life for the second time.
“She
moved to Dublin, most probably to avoid
the local gossip which inevitably followed
on her second failure in religious life.”
[Lady of Charity,
Sister of Faith - Margaret Aylward, Jacinta
Prunty]. She
continued to search, both in this experience
and during her imprisonment and found that
the Lord’s purposes for her were even
greater than she had imagined during her
trials. |
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| Resurrection |
To
believe in resurrection
is to believe in
someone who acts
in us and for us
with immense power,
capable of bringing
life from death
and of making old become new,
orienting us to a future
of huge dimensions. |
|
To
believe in the resurrection
is to believe
that no limit,
no barrier,
no difficulty,
nothing in this world,
will be able to kill
the life and hope
which were born in the heart
of God's people. |
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|
Carlos
Mesters, O. Carm |
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* |
Bring your longings, hopes, fears and expectations
to the Risen Lord. |
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* |
Open
yourself to God's transforming presence at this
moment in your life. |
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