Meditate on God’s Word

1st Reading:             Isaiah 50:4-7
2nd Reading:           Philippians 2:6-11
Gospel:                     Luke 22.14 – 23.56 – The Passion of the Lord

The Cross of Christ

Today marks the beginning of Holy Week, the most important and solemn week of the Church’s liturgical calendar. In the Gospel this Sunday we are invited to reflect on the passion and death of our Lord Jesus Christ. The cross is the most recognizable symbol of our Christian faith. We see crucifixes hanging in Churches, schools, homes and even worn around many people’s necks. However, we can become so used to this constant presence of the crucifix that we become indifferent to what it signifies. Let us take a moment to grasp the beauty and truth found in the cross.

God became man and was willing to be crucified for the forgiveness of our sins. It is through the cross that Christ defeats Satan and triumphantly attains our salvation, allowing us to enter our heavenly home. The entire course of human history was dramatically altered because of the cross of Christ. As stewards, we should always view the salvation won through the cross as the greatest gift that God has bestowed on us.

As we approach the Holy Triduum, let us take some time each day this week to reflect on the passion of Christ. Many great saints strongly promoted this practice of calling to mind the
sufferings of Christ. We can do this in many ways such as praying the Stations of the Cross or the sorrowful mysteries of the Rosary, reading the passion narratives in the Bible or simply gazing upon a crucifix. Let us never fail to appreciate the sublime beauty of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross.

Summary

It is through the crucifixion that Christ defeats Satan and triumphantly attains our salvation, allowing us to enter our heavenly home. As we approach the Holy Triduum, let us take some time each day this week to reflect on the passion of Christ. We can do this in many ways such as praying the Stations of the Cross or the sorrowful mysteries of the Rosary, reading the passion narratives in the Bible or simply gazing upon a crucifix.

https://www.archtoronto.org/stewardship