Short Reflection: The pain of being forsaken

A friend when you are in need is a friend indeed.
Jesus felt abandoned by nearly everyone he know.
He felt that terrible experience of abandonment,
of being rejected and forsaken by others,
feeling alone in his suffering,

He knew the apostles were weak and fearful.
Hw knew the authorities felt threatened and smelled blood - his. 
He knew the crowd were fickle and being manipulated.
Jesus felt every bit of this pain on Good Friday. His response was acceptance of His Father's will, and genarous forgiveness for others.
‘Forgive then father, they know not what they are doing.’

Jesus knew well that where there is lack of forgiveness two people are held in bondage. One closes the door on the inside denying access to the other. The other cannot enter the bolted door. He also knew that lack of forgiveness is like a cancer. It involves a playing and replaying of the same old tapes of real or supposed hurts. They fester, grow and intensify as long as the hand of forgiveness is withheld.

How can we change our heart if it is filled with bitterness and lack of forgiveness? There is a way. Praying sincerely for the person who has hurt you and wishing for them all God wishes for them often produces dramatic results. It is so hard to pray for a person and at the same time harbour bitterness and resentment towards them. It is good to know that Jesus is also pleading on our behalf
(Martin Tierney)

(PS: It has to be added here that Jesus was setting a standard here. This is not something that comes naturally or easy. Sometimes we can be so hurt that we need a lot of time, support, counselling, letting go etc before we can forgive hurts done to us or our children, relatives or friends. The process should never be rushed and skipped over lightly. Deep hurts leave deep wounds, healing is gradual. If it is rushed it may come back to haunt us later. Scars may cover wounds but all the venom has to be drawn away from the wound before we can consider it healed.)

Story: The thief who ‘stole' heaven 

There were three people executed that day on Calvary, the hill of execution.

Dismas' hands were roughly spread out on the wood, and held there. He could see the hammer rise and fall, and pain - pain such as he had never felt before - shot up his arm, into his head, and through his whole body, so that every nerve was screaming. A second nail drove his other arm also to the wood. A few seconds before, he had been thinking how sad it was that it had come to this, after years of thieving and petty violence.His companion in crime crucified opposite him shouted obscenities at the air and cursed everyone else for his lot.

The man in the middle Jesus seemed to be praying. He occasionally spoke a word to those beneath the cross. He seemed to forgive those who had crucified him.

Dismas muttered something to the man in the middle, and got this  reply,
'Today you will be with me in paradise.'

At once his pain seemed to decrease. After a lifetime of sin and shame, Dismas, the reformed thief had finally come to his moment of grace and peace - and it was sweet. At the very last moment, he stole heaven from the jaws of hell and became the first recorded thief to enter into heaven with his pal, Jesus - opening the way, thank God, for many more!
(John Murray, The Messenger Nov. 2005, www.messenger.ie)

Today’s prophet -: Joseph Mary Plunkett 1887–1916AD

Joseph Plunkett was an Irish nationalist with the rank of Commander General of the Irish Volunteers.  As a leader of the 1916 Easter Rising he was executed at Kilmainham Jail in Dublin but he was more than a patriotic martyr, he was also a visionary, a poet, a revealer, and our prophet for today. He saw all the things of natural beauty in a deeper supernatural way and reveals them here. One of his poems:

                                       I see His blood upon the rose, 
                                       And in the stars the glory of His eyes;
                                      His body gleams amid eternal snows,
                                      His tears fall from the skies. 

                                      I see His face in every flower, 
                                      The thunder and the singing of the birds
                                      Are but his voice; and, carven by His power, .
                                      Rocks are his written words.

                                      All pathways by His feet are worn,
                                     His strong heart stirs the everbeating sea;
                                     His crown of thorns is twined with every thorn;
                                     His cross is every tree.

A gentle call to action

Good Friday is meant to be a quiet day for reflection on life, values, hopes and faith. Some will spend the day in prayer, others in quiet walks and meeting with friends and family. Others will be cuting back on the TV, IT games, music, noise and excitement.

Some will spend time thinking and praying about forgiveness for themselves and others. There will be those people you might need to forgive
or from whom you might need to ask for forgiveness, Good Friday is a good day for that. Pray for all sinners today that they may truly see the evil of their ways and the consequences of their actions.

Of course many will be heading off to football matches, cricket, other sports events, or planning for the long holiday weekend. All the Church is doing by emphasing Good Friday is reminding us that we need to reach for the higher vision and that God loves us so much that on this day about 2,000 years ago, Jesus died for us to make us more human and caring.

The church has developed a special liturgy for today and many like to 'do' the stations in a church or some sacred space. In the Phoenix Park, Archbishop D. Martin is leading a two hour stations walk today at 12.00noon.

On our Lent for children section we have some activities for children on Good Friday.

Today is a day of Fast and Abstinence, our final preparation for celebration of the Passion, Death, Rest and Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus.
(If you forget the F&A you can always plan to do it on later day.)

Prayer

Dear Lord God, Father and Mother of us all,
by shedding his blood for us,
your Son, Jesus saved us from eternal death,
and gave us a sure hope of resurrection

In bad times give us the confidence and faith we need to live well.
In good times give us hope and perseverence to stay focused on the prize of eternal,
In  all times give us love.

Thank you Jesus,
Thank you, Father and Mother, God. Amen.

Prayer image of the Day

"He learned to obey through suffering
and became for all who obey him the source of eternal life".
...Hebrews 4:14f

 And when I think, that God, His Son not sparing;
Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in;
That on the Cross, my burden gladly bearing,
He bled and died to take away my sin.  

Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art.
Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, How great Thou art!
             .....Carl G. Boberg and R.J. Hughes