Good Friday - Father Forgive Them

Good Friday - the day of Our Lord's Crucifixion - but what is Good about such a terrible death? What is Good about such suffering? What is Good about betrayal and torture and death?

"For God so loved the world, that he gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." - John 3:16

Good Friday - The Legend of the Dogwood

Two thousand years ago, few trees in the Middle East were large enough to use for building. However, one tree was valued for its thick trunk and fine, strong wood. When the Romans came to rule over Jerusalem, their government used this same wood to construct crosses for executing criminals.

One day, an officer of the Roman court came and said, "The King of Jews is to be put to death. Deliver an extra-large cross made from your finest wood." A fresh tree was cut from the forest of the trees with thick trunks and fine, strong wood. An extra-tall cross was quickly made and delivered.

The tree was distressed at being used in such a cruel manner. Sensing this, Jesus - with gentle pity - said to it:

"Because of your sorrow and pity for My sufferings, never again will your kind grow large enough to be used as a gibbet. Henceforth all will be slender, bent and twisted - and the blossoms will be in the form of a cross, two long and two short petals. In the center of the outer edge of each petal there will be nail prints, brown with rust and stained with red, and in the center of the flower will be a crown of thorns, and all who see this will remember."

Three days after the death of Jesus of Nazareth, the chief wood gatherer received alarming news.

"All of our finest trees are withering," the messenger whispered. The wood gatherer hurried to the forest and saw that it was true.

Several years later, the old wood gatherer heard that every spring people visited the forest that had once made his job so easy. Despite his advancing years, he set out to discover why. He saw the remains of forest, now like a wilderness, with only a few trees still standing tall - baked, lifeless and rotting.

But what was this? As he drew closer, his feeble eyes could make out the people walking among thousands of beautiful, flowering bushes. Seeing one of his own workers there, the old man said, "No one could ever make a cross out of this twisted wood. Our finest tree has gone to the dogs!"

And then he noticed the beautiful white flowers, each blossom looking as if it had been burned from the touch of a miniature cross...

Maundy Thursday - Mass of the Lord's Supper

Maundy Thursday - the Mass of the Lord's Supper - the beginning of the High Triduum of Easter. But what does it all mean? Why is Pope Francis washing feet? What is so special about this day?

"If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me."

Before the Passover Supper began, Jesus washed the feet of His disciples - the seeds of the clergy. He humbled Himself to serve, and to teach an important lesson about service. That is why the priest will wash the feet of his fellow priests, or others symbolizing various services within the Church, But Maundy Thursday is not really about foot washing - and even the foot washing is not really about foot washing...

Holy Week - Palm Sunday

On Palm Sunday - we rejoice - Jesus is coming!

"For I tell you, you will not see me again, until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’” - Matthew 23:39

On Palm Sunday, we are reminded that we - you and me - we sent Jesus to His cross. On Palm Sunday, we shout "Crucify Him!" - not some shadowy people from long ago...

When I was a child, this was the moment I found the most convicting, the moment that always and still brings tears to my eyes - the moment the parish cried out in one mighty voice, "Crucify Him!"

What is Repentance? Not what you might think!

During Lent, we are called to repent - but what is repentance?

REPENTANCE implies CONVICTION and A CHANGE OF HEART.

When we repent, we LOOK at what we have done or said or allowed, we accept responsibility, and we CHANGE. We STOP the grievous behavior. 

There is no REPENTANCE without CHANGE.

Weekend Reading, Feb 20 15

This week, I compiled a short Lenten list for Weekend Reading - sites I visit and that always leave me feeling nourished or convicted or thoughtful.

Ann Voskamp writes a compelling Call for the Next 40 Days: To the Nations and People of the Cross. Ann calls us to examine our place in this broken world, and to examine the Cross' place in this broken world. A must-read.

Catholic Relief Services has an app! They also have a great selection of videos that explain what Lent really is.  One year - many years ago - my mom encouraged us to do extra chores during Lent, and the money we earned would be placed in our CRS Rice Bowl. We were so excited to see how the money added up - and its a wonderful way for children to learn to ACT for the Body of Christ (as opposed to resenting giving up candy)!

Father Robert Barron shares daily inspiration with his Word on Fire program - sign up for free daily Lent emails in English or Spanish. Father Barron calls us to return to the basics, and fires me up with his emails.

And this is where you can Pope Francis' message to the faithful for Lent 2015 - an inspiring message of Holy Love overcoming Worldly Indifference. Many media outlets intentionally misrepresent the Pope - weaving their own narrative into their translations of his words - so I prefer to go to the source, which is often far more inspiring!

I hope you are as inspired as I was from these stories. Have a prayerful and fruitful weekend!

3 Questions for Lenten Self-Reflection

Lent - that holy time of repentance, self-reflection, mourning, penitence. We look at our lives, our actions, our thoughts - we see where we fall short. We take the time to REPENT, to TURN AWAY from evil thought, evil deeds.

Oh, my thoughts and deeds aren't really evil and sinful, right?

Ash Wednesday 2015

Today is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of a season of reflection, abstinence and penitence - the beginning of Lent, the holiest season in the Church.

Today I reflect upon my sins, I examine my life - and I am overcome with gratitude to my Father who will wash away my sins and imperfections.

Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned.

Second Sunday of Lent

Today is the Second Sunday in Lent. This Sunday, we are reminded to be strong, to persevere, to carry our own crosses in the knowledge that we are strengthened by Christ Himself...we are reminded that the Light and Joy of Easter is coming to all...

We are reminded in Genesis that God made a promise to Abraham, and that promise is fulfilled in Jesus. We are reminded in Matthew of the relationships between Moses, Elijah, and Jesus - and more promises fulfilled in Jesus.

First Sunday of Lent

Today is the First Sunday of Lent - a Sunday where my best friend and I shared joys and sorrows, prayed for the easing of burdens and for the healing of loved ones. A Sunday of coming together as true sisters in Christ.

This was a Sunday in which I was blessed to serve a friend, and was blessed in being served by her. It was a Sunday where temptations of various sorts were discussed...our own, and those of loved ones...

Lent 2014: Ash Wednesday - We are Dust

Remember, Man is dust, and unto dust you shall return.

Today is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of the Season of Lent, a season of reflection, abstinence and penitence. It is a recognition that each of us is a humble sinner, who requires the love and sacrifice of God to be redeemed. It is a season that prepares us for the celebration of Christ's sacrifice and resurrection on Easter morn.

We are dust...and to dust we shall return.

In 2002, when I received my ashes at St. Paul's Church in Lower Manhattan...the very air was filled with dust...dust of the dead...dust of renewal. It was particularly poignant to walk down dusty Broadway, to hear the non-stop roar of the operations at Ground Zero...and then to step into the hush of the Sanctuary. The minister intoned, "Remember, you are dust and to dust you shall return," as he brushed the sign of the cross on my forehead...it carried new layers of meaning as I stood there in my dust covered shoes, missing my younger brother, who had indeed returned to dust on that terrible day.

But "to dust we shall return" is not a threat...no! It is a promise...because this body and this earth? They are not my true home...they are not where I am meant to spend eternity.

We are dust...and to dust we shall return.

This is the beginning of Lent...a solemn time, yes...but with the JOY of Easter just ahead of us!

A Good Friday Gospel Study

My friend, James Pepper, created an informal Lenten study on Facebook - based upon The Gospel of John and concordance verses. It has brought a new depth my Bible readings over this Lenten period. Here is a brief sampling appropriate for Good Friday meditations - please click thru to see all of the posts!

Ash Wednesday

"Remember that thou art dust, and to dust thou shalt return." - Genesis 3:19 

Today marks the beginning of Lent - a time of repentance and a time of preparation. Many consider Lent to be a sorrowful counterpoint to Advent, but to my view the reward of Easter and the risen Christ is so very much greater!

My friend and I have created a study on Facebook based on often unused medieval and Renaissance concordances of the Passion according to John. It is titled "Lenten Reflections with James Pepper and Kathy Bowden" - please join us in this thought-provoking series of guided Biblical readings.

Happy Easter!

Today is not a day for blogging, but rather for rejoicing - celebrating the miracle of the Resurrection with our loved ones. God bless!

Good Friday

Today is the most solemn and serious day in the Catholic Liturgical calendar: Good Friday.

A day for prayer and fasting and meditation.

A day for reflection. 

As a child, I found Good Friday hard to comprehend. As an adult, I am certain of one thing: that my understanding is not as perfect as I may think, "for now we see through a glass, darkly".

But that in itself is comforting to me. I don't have to fully understand God's plan. I don't have to understand how He "perfects" our tragedies and our mistakes and our sinful actions to His will.

I can simply accept it. 

This Easter, dear friends are grieving: it is their first Easter after the loss of their children.  

All of their children. 

And I know they are not alone, for friends in Haiti have told me of similar stories: men and women bent in grief over the loss of beloved children. I know it is a bitter story repeated across our broken world.

Please pray with me that in their grief the Promise of the Resurrection will bring them a measure of peace and comfort.

Maundy Thursday

Holy (or Maundy) Thursday is the solemn observation of the Last Supper, of the heartbreaking betrayal of Judas, of the torment in the Garden of Gethsemane.

It is a time of prayer and meditation, and we personally will observe a simplified Seder this evening in remembrance. This year, the selected Gospel is Luke, and we will also be re-reading and meditating/praying the Passion this evening.

This evening's observances are the beginning of the Easter Triduum, consisting of Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and the Easter Vigil.

The Second Vatican Council, in restoring the Triduum to it's rightful place in the Liturgical Calendar urged us to remember: "Christ redeemed us all and gave perfect glory to God principally through his paschal mystery: dying he destroyed our death and rising he restored our life. Therefore the Easter Triduum of the passion and resurrection of Christ is the culmination of the entire liturgical year." (General Norms for the Liturgical Year and the Calendar, # 18)
 
Here are a few links for those who may wish to read more:

http://www.catholic.org/clife/lent/thurs.php

http://www.catholic.org/clife/lent/story.php?id=36022

http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/activities/view.cfm?id=1059

Remember, Man is dust, and unto dust you shall return.

Today is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of the Season of Lent, a season of reflection, abstinence and penitence. It is a recognition that each of us is a humble sinner, who requires the love and sacrifice of God to be redeemed. It is a season that prepares us for the celebration of Christ's sacrifice and resurrection on Easter morn.

We are dust...and to dust we shall return.

Here are a few links, for those wishing additional information about the observance of Lent:

Catholic.org has a very informative Lent section here.

Creighton University's Online Ministry has a wonderful "Praying Lent" page here.

Our Pope Benedict XVI has a Lenten Message, celebrating Divine Justice, here.

Beliefnet.com has a Lent Calendar and some interesting Lent links here. (NOTE - some of their website material may not be appropriate for children, I would always review their pages first)

A very blessed Easter to all!

Christ, the Lord, is risen today, Alleluia!
Sons of men and angels say, Alleluia!
Raise your joys and triumphs high, Alleluia!
Sing, ye heavens, and earth, reply, Alleluia!
Love's redeeming work is done, Alleluia!
Fought the fight, the battle won, Alleluia!
Lo! the Sun's eclipse is over, Alleluia!
Lo! He sets in blood no more, Alleluia!
Vain the stone, the watch, the seal, Alleluia!
Christ hath burst the gates of hell, Alleluia!
Death in vain forbids His rise, Alleluia!
Christ hath opened paradise, Alleluia!
Lives again our glorious King, Alleluia!
Where, O death, is now thy sting? Alleluia!
Once He died our souls to save, Alleluia!
Where thy victory, O grave? Alleluia!
Soar we now where Christ hath led, Alleluia!
Following our exalted Head, Alleluia!
Made like Him, like Him we rise, Alleluia!
Ours the cross, the grave, the skies, Alleluia!
Hail, the Lord of earth and Heaven, Alleluia!
Praise to Thee by both be given, Alleluia!
Thee we greet triumphant now, Alleluia!
Hail, the resurrection, thou, Alleluia!
King of glory, Soul of bliss, Alleluia!
Everlasting life is this, Alleluia!
Thee to know, Thy power to prove, Alleluia!
Thus to sing and thus to love, Alleluia!
Hymns of praise then let us sing, Alleluia!
Unto Christ, our heavenly King, Alleluia!
Who endured the cross and grave, Alleluia!
Sinners to redeem and save. Alleluia!
But the pains that He endured, Alleluia!
Our salvation have procured, Alleluia!
Now above the sky He's King, Alleluia!
Where the angels ever sing. Alleluia!
Jesus Christ is risen today, Alleluia!
Our triumphant holy day, Alleluia!
Who did once upon the cross, Alleluia!
Suffer to redeem our loss. Alleluia!