Good Friday Reflection

On Good Friday, Christians fix their eyes and place the center of heart on the Cross. 

Good Friday is the day to commemorate the agonizing death of Jesus on the Cross. But, why such a day of horrible suffering, gory death and deep sorrow should be “good” and be called “Good Friday”? 

Pondering upon this question can lead us into the depth of Paschal Mystery, to our realization of Jesus as Paschal (Pesach) Lamb, as well as, Agnus Dei, to reconcile God and us. 

The Cross shall remind us not only the passion and death of Jesus but also what has come out of the foot of the Cross. In fact, where the outcome of the events leading to the Cross and the event on the Cross are leading us, is a very important to think reflectively. In this it is very important to put our own life experiences, especially involving in injustice, suffering, struggle and difficult death, upon the passion and death of Jesus.

As Fr. Michael Garanzini, S.J., President of Loyola University Chicago, pointed out during his Good Friday homily, the suffering and death of Jesus remind us of our need for grace to know sorrow and grace to know confusion, meditated during the third week of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola. In fact, these two graces – grace for us to know sorrow and grace for us to know confusion – come from Jesus’ suffering and death. 

We have our own sorrows and confusions, involved in our sin and sufferings.  In response to our suffering and our own sinful actions, we experience sorrow and confusion. 

When we commit sins, our conscience puts us in regret, remorse and sorrow for those who are affected by our sins. But, sometimes, we find ourselves left in confusing dilemmas: “I know it was a bad thing to do and I am sorry”, and “But I still cannot think what else I could have done”. 

Now, these words of St. Ignatius of Loyola in the Spiritual Exercises help us reflect our need for grace for sorrow and grace for confusion, in experiencing the suffering and death of Jesus:

 “I ask for what I desire. Here it will be to ask for sorrow, regret, and confusion, because the Lord is going to his Passion for my sins” (SE no. 193).

Because it is not our desire to keep living our life in sorrow and confusion of our regrettable actions in the past, we seek grace to know our sorrows and grace to know our confusions in order to rise above – to transcend – our sorrows and confusions. 

In terms of sorrow and confusions about our regrettable acts…here is a very good reflection offered by Fr. Vincent Nagle, F.S. C. B., based on John 18:1-19:42 , Good Friday Gospel reading.

A woman is speaking about her abortion, about the terror she felt before the life within her.  About this life, despite its innocence, that threatened the world she had worked so hard to erect. Now, as she speaks years after the fact, she can easily acknowledge what she had done, but still cannot imagine how she could have done otherwise. The eruption of Jesus into the world is the same. As the procurator admits, “I find no guilt in him.” Nonetheless, fearing what might result from Jesus’ presence, Pilate “handed him over to them to be crucified.” Afterwards, he grimly has these words written down and placed above the innocent, dying Jesus:” Jesus the Nazorean, the Kind of the Jews.” He too knows his sin, but cannot imagine how not to do it. The logic of fear and power that controls Pilate exerts its pressure upon us as well. We cannot imagine how to resist. “If I cease to follow the world, “we think, “what will become of me?” Let us pray today to hear him on the cross as he says, “I thirst,” thirsting for him in turn. May our gratitude for him on his gory cross free us from our fear of our cross, so that by his wounds we might be healed. 

Merciful Father, you know that of ourselves we are helpless against Satan. Help raise our eyes to your Son hanging on the cross, and send us a scorching thirst for his presence.

From the Magnificat Lenten Companion 2013 book, p. 65

Fr. Garanzini reminded in his homily that we bring our heart, soul, together with our memories of suffering, sorrow, and confusion to the suffering and death of Jesus all the way to the Cross. It is also important to bring our memories of sufferings, sorrows, and confusions of those who are in isolation and marginalization. We can do this with our humility as our submission to suffering and dying Jesus all the way until he says, “It is finished”(John 19:30). This way, we are also submitting all our sufferings, sorrows, regrets and confusions to the Father, as Jesus totally submitted himself to his will through his suffering and death. 

As we memorialize the suffering and death of Jesus on Good Friday , while we bring up our own sorrows and confusions, we will transcend these as Jesus will transcend his suffering and death. 

When Jesus died, we also began to find grace of consolation emerging amidst grace for sorrow and grace for confusion at the foot of the Cross, as Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus took a good care of the body of Jesus. Also at the foot of the Cross, disciple John supported and comforted Mary in sorrow. 

As we bring our own sufferings, sorrows and confusions all the way to the Cross, while accompanying and staying with Jesus, we shall also find transcending grace to rise at the foot of the Cross. And, this transcending grace holds a very important key to deepen our understanding and appreciation of Paschal Mystery, especially in regard to Jesus’ passion and death just to commemorate Passover – as Paschal Lamb, as Agnus Dei. 

This transcending grace is what leads us to Easter. This grace rising out of the foot of the Cross is a window to our Easter hope, which fuels our conversion process – a process of turning our heart from sin to God, transforming our life from self-centered one to Christ-centered one. Therefore, though we are in sorrow and confusion, as Jesus have suffered and died because of our sins, we come to realize this transcending grace, which begins to remind of goodness of us in Christ. That is why it is called Good Friday. 

In these words of Blessed Peter Faber, there is no doubt that the faithful find this day to be good.

Jesus Christ, may your death be my life
and in your dying may I learn how to live.

May your struggles be my rest,
Your human weakness my courage,
Your embarrassment my honor,
Your passion my delight,
Your sadness my joy, in your humiliation may I be exalted.

In a word, may I find all my blessings in your trials.
 Amen.

Blessed Peter Faber, S.J. “From Death to Life”,   Hearts of Fire

To further reflect and contemplate on meaning of Good Friday, Peter Farber’s words certainly echoes with this Paul’s reflection of Christ’s words, 

“My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.” (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)

Not to mention, the first six words in the Paul’s reflection, “My grace is sufficient for you” invoke St. Ignatius of Loyola’s Suscipe prayer in the Spiritual Exercises.  

“Receive, O Lord, all my liberty. Take my memory, my understanding, and my entire will. Whatsoever I have or hold, You have given me; I give it all back to You and surrender it wholly to be governed by your will. Give me only your love and your grace, and I am rich enough and ask for nothing more.” (SE, no. 234)

As St. Ignatius of Loyola did in this prayer, we can also ask the suffering Jesus to take our memories as well as anything else we have held up to this point, with him as he is about to submit himself completely to the Father to transcend suffering and death…to transform us.
 

In bringing our memories of sorrows, regreats and confusions to the suffering and death of Jesus, as pointed in Fr. Garanzini's homily, let us ask Jesus to take these with him from us and bring them to the Father as he submit himself to the Father, in completing his Messianic mission.