Holy week is the holiest time in our tradition. On Palm Sunday, we honored Jesus as King. We recognized him as the “one who comes in the name of the Lord” to make God known among us. Though king, Jesus humbled himself to make God known to us (Phil. 2:8). God reveals to us divine love through the people we encounter each day. God reveals himself through our loved ones and also uses us to bring love to others. As we spread palms and our clothes on the path of Jesus seated on the colt to take a ride of dignity and honor, let us also be mindful to treat one another with dignity and honor. We ask God to give us humility in our relationships with one another.
On Holy Thursday, Jesus gathered with his disciples to share the Passover meal and invite them to a life of service through the exemplary act of washing their feet. The Passover meal is our food of unity: we are united with Christ and we are united to one another by sharing at the Table of the Lord. We pray that “may we who share in the body and blood of Jesus Christ be united with the Holy Spirit and become one body and one spirit in Christ.” The Eucharist unites us with the mystery of our salvation such that each time we gather at the Eucharist table we are nourished for life in the spirit. As Jesus nourishes us in the spirit with the Eucharistic food, we too should share our food with the poor and bridge whatever divides us. Many of us will participate in the foot-washing ritual at our parishes. May this ritual of service fill us with the zeal to serve those who depend on our service to get through the challenges of daily living.
On Good Friday, we gather to remember the Passion of Christ –the Passion of our salvation. By the power of Jesus’ cross and resurrection, we have been set free from sin and death. The cross is a symbol of our freedom and victory from the powers that deny us the love of God. To embrace the cross of Christ is to accept to live in the freedom of the children of God. It is the freedom to love, the freedom to care, the freedom to forgive, and the freedom to hope. If we live in the freedom of the cross, let us share it with those around us. The world yearns for the freedom that comes from God. Let us commit to live in the freedom of God and lead others to the freedom of God’s children.
The ceremonies of Holy Week nourish our lives as God’s children. The power of the resurrection gives us hope to believe in what Christ accomplished for us because it is by hope that we were saved (Rom.8:24). It is this hope we desire to share with all the devotees of St. Jude at the National Shrine of St. Jude. Hope to trust in the power of God. It is the hope to trust that God has redeemed us and destined us for life in the spirit. We pray that with God’s help we will continue to live the life of the spirit in loving service to others. We pray that the grace of this season will help us live in unity with one another and give us the freedom to share our gifts with those around us.
Father Ferdinand Okorie, C.M.F.
National Shrine of St. Jude
Chicago, Illinois
