By William Selvaraj csc –
Readings: Is 52:13-53:12; Heb 4:14-16, 5: 7-9; Jn 18: 1-19:42
On this day of Good Friday, we remember the tragic events of suffering, crucifixion, and death of our Lord Jesus, through which he brought salvation and reconciliation for the whole of humanity.
As we see in Jn 18:37, Jesus confesses courageously to Pilate, “For this was I born, for this I came into the world, to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.” A question to each of us is, are we ready to bear the truth, tell the truth even if it causes us to give away our life? If yes, then in every moment we tell the truth, we become ardent proclaimers of the Word of God by being a live witness to people around us.
Jesus is the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. Through his blood, our sins have been washed. As Prophet Isaiah foretold, Christ became a lamb that was to be slaughtered. He kept silent without saying a single word and bore the heavy pain for our sins. We also see in the letter to the Hebrews that we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weakness, but we have one who is in every respect tested as we are, yet without sin.
Today, Jesus invites me to embrace the cross which is the sign and expression of the supreme love of Jesus. We pray for strength to bear the daily cross faithfully embracing the values of truth, trying to bring justice to the poor, marginalized, and oppressed in society. Each one of us must carry the image of Jesus in our face and activities so that others may feel and experience the loving touch of God through our way of life.