Good Friday
Viernes Santo
April 10, 2020
The Passion of Saint John doesn’t seem to
speak to me this year. Every year on Good Friday we read the Passion from
John’s Gospel, which is so very different from the Passion from the synoptic
Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke. In John there is no Agony in the garden,
there is no quiet Jesus before the Sanhedrin, no timid Jesus in front of
Pilate. There is no Simon of Cyrene, no Veronica no woman on the way to
Calvary. Jesus doesn’t fall once on his way to Golgotha. Jesus doesn’t cry out
“Eli Eli Lema Sabactani.” No, John’s passion is so very different.
When Jesus is in the Garden he is not
filled with agony he is defiant. He doesn’t ask God to take the cup from him.
No, in John’s Gospel Jesus, proudly says, “I am he. Let there’s others go.”
When Peter tries to protect Jesus, Jesus lashes out at Peter saying that he
willing drinks from the cup offered hm.
When Jesus is lead before the Sanhedrin. He
openly answers the charges that he is accused of. Jesus loudly asserts that he
is speaking the truth. When Jesus is lead before the Civil Authority he not
only questions Pilates power he boldly proclaims that he has more power, a much
greater Kingdom. He doesn't fear Pilate’s kingdom, because his Kingdom is not
of this world. When Jesus is in front of the angry mob he doesn’t cower in
shame or bow his head, no he mocks the crowd and asserts that the only power
they have is the power that his father has given them.
Jesus doesn't stumble on the way to
Calvary. The cross isn’t too heavy for him. He needs no help from anyone else.
No one is there to give him comfort. And when Jesus hangs upon the cross he
shows no concern for his suffering but rather he worries for his mother. He
asks the disciple whom he loves to take care of her. In an act of love Jesus
gives his mother to all of us. No, Jesus isn’t worried about the pain of the
cross. He is worried about our pain. In John’s gospel it seems that Jesus is
the one who choose how and when it would end. He asks for a drink, not because
he thirsts but to fulfill the scripture. And then he willing gives up his
spirit.
In John’s Gospel Jesus is in charge, Jesus
was always in charge. At the wedding feast of Cana he wasn’t worried about the
lack of wine, he knew what he would do. When he multiplied the loaves and fish
on the hillside he knew how he would feed the 5000. At the tomb of Lazarus he
knew that he would come out and as he hung upon the cross he knew that wasn’t
the end of the story.
A parishioner wrote me an e-mail this week
saying this is so hard because we don’t know how this pandemic will end. At
first they said March 29th, then they said Easter Sunday, April 19th,
April 30th. We don’t know. We don’t know when this pandemic will
end. We don’t know how many more will get sick. We don’t know if we will get
sick or even die. Unlike Jesus we are not in charge. He knows how it will end,
but we don’t.
This Good Friday is like no other, but this
Good Friday is like all the others. Jesus doesn’t need us at the cross, but we
need Jesus at the cross. We don’t know, Jesus knows. We are not in charge, he
is in charge. Jesus may not need me but I need Jesus. Jesus may not need us,
but we need Jesus.
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