Look into the mirror! Read the indictment!

Last updated on: March 23, 2008 at 5:49 pm by Morning's Minion

Look into the mirror! Read the indictment! 2008-03-23T17:49:39-05:00 Morning's Minion

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

The following is from a priest friend’s Good Friday homily (he wishes to remain anonymous). I thought it was so good that I received his permission to publish an extended excerpt:

“The Passion narratives in our four gospels, including the glorious one we’ve heard proclaimed today, hold up a mirror before our eyes in which we see ourselves as members of the sinful human race desperately in need of salvation, a salvation which only God could bring. Although our Savior suffered and died nearly two thousand years ago, we did this to him. We may say that we did this evil to him although he lived two thousand years ago because he chose to identify himself with all who suffer, in particular with those who are innocent and nevertheless are tortured and killed. These injustices and wanton cruelties happen everywhere today.

Our Lord made this identification clear when, after his Resurrection and return to glory, he manifested himself to the man known as Saul of Tarsus as Saul was en route to Damascusto persecute Christians and even have some killed. The risen Lord did not ask Saul why he was persecuting Christians; instead he asked, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” (Acts 9:4c) Jesus had made himself one with the victims of Saul’s persecution. He continues in our day to make himself one with all who suffer from our sinfulness, and then even with you and me as sinners in our misery that sin brings. By this identification Jesus asks the “Sauls” of this world – i.e., any one of us – to become another St. Paul.

Hence, we all are implicated in the evils that reached their apogee in the crucifixion of Jesus, the Innocent One. Some among us may even have been active in such evils. We see these evils all around us. Our world is filled with lies, often called spin. I for one feel guilty in this regard.

I recently overheard a conversation between a friend who accompanied me to a cancer treatment center and a woman. Although not engaged in the conversation, I heard everything. The poor woman’s insurance was running out. For a while she could mortgage her assets and make a stab at paying, but the stopgap would not last long. She’d run out of money soon, and treatments would end. Then she would simply be allowed to die prematurely. The injustice cut me to the quick. My insurance won’t run out. Why? How guilty am I for the manifest injustices of our health care system? How guilty are you? The narratives of the Passion hold a mirror up so that we can see what we’re implicated in. That woman should not die prematurely; she should not die without proper treatment.

What about war as we “celebrate” the fifth anniversary of the preemptive strike on Iraq? How many have been maimed? How many have died? And to what end? Is anyone guilty of anything? Who contributed politically to the preemptive war? Look in the mirror. Read the indictment. Hear the narrative of the Passion. Where is Christ in all this?

Are we stewards of God’s creation or destroyers of the environment? God did not give us this good creation to pollute and destroy. Are we implicated in the destruction? Does environmental degradation kill innocent people? Look in the mirror! Read the indictment!

Are we implicated in people losing their homes and savings? A person who gulled an unsophisticated person into purchasing a mortgage s/he could not possibly afford and who now is without a home should look into the mirror and read the indictment. Did any of us make money on these scams? Did investments that benefitted any one of us come from this mortgage chicanery? Do we believe ideologies that excuse this greedy and destructive behavior? Look into the mirror! Read the indictment!

The Sacrament of Matrimony is under siege in our culture. Look at the divorce rate. Have we contributed to this disaster by our sexual behavior making a mockery of the fidelity that authentic marriage requires perhaps especially in sexual matters? Do young people look at us and decide the way to go is sexual activity outside a sacramental union and without reference to such a union? Do we contribute to a sex saturated culture and endless advertisements about erectile dysfunction that have the subliminal message that successful sexual intercourse is essential to living successfully from the cradle to the grave? Does anyone think civilization can stand when holy matrimony is thoroughly undermined? Does anyone care about the consequent abortions? Talk about the slaughter of innocent human life that belongs to God. Then, does anyone help care for such life so that mothers may choose not to abort? Is anyone paying attention? Look into the mirror! Read the indictment!

How many among us were seduced by the sexual revolution and its psychological supporters? Certainly, the psychology that endorsed and justified this revolution influenced a substantial number of clergy and religious to exempt themselves from their commitments. God alone knows how many abandoned their commitments improperly (some left quite properly) because of this revolution and the ideologies that justified it. The number of priests who left priestly ministry during this revolution was greater than the number who left upon the rise of Protestantism. How many who stayed remember with sorrow and repentance their confusion induced by this revolution? God alone knows. God’s mercy is great. The mercy of others toward the confusion of clergy and religious (priests, nuns and brothers) has been paltry. Both those who have good reason to beg mercy and those who deny mercy need to hear God’s indictment. How else can any of us enter into God’s judgment at Easter?

How many consider themselves guilty of murder for having purchased illicit drugs, the profits from which are supporting armed forces that kill our fellow Americans here and abroad? Afghanistan now has bumper poppy crops. There’s been a long, slow civil war in Colombia, largely over drugs. Who’s buying those drugs? Who’s using them in this community? How have drugs purchased in the U.S. corrupted Mexican law enforcement and the wider Mexican government? On and on it goes. Read the indictment! Gaze on what happened to Jesus, the Innocent One!

I believe I could continue for some time, but I think the point has been made. When we venerate the bare Cross and kiss it, we are kissing all with whom Jesus has identified himself. If we understand this, the “Saul” in each one of us may become a “St. Paul.” Without accepting the indictment, we do not come under the judgment. Accepting the indictment is called repentance leading to “the obedience of faith.” God’s judgment is mercy leading to peace and joy in this life and unimaginable joy in the Resurrected life a share in which is offered each of us. We celebrate the Resurrected life on Easter. Reject the indictment and one misses the judgment of mercy that is embodied in the Resurrection. God’s mercy is greater than all our sins put together. In sum, the Passion narratives in the gospels are not simply about Jesus; they’re about you and me. If we believe this and make it our own through repentance, we will be able to receive the mercy that is God’s Easter judgment!”

Morning's Minion

Previous Post

March 23, 2008

An Easter Poem

Next Post

March 24, 2008 The Potter and the Clay II: Made In the Image of The Divine Artist

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category 2019 A Consistent Ethic of Life Aaron Weldon Abortion absurdity Abuse Scandal Academics Adoption Advent Africa agreement/disagreement with Church teaching Alexander Schmemann Alexham Alterity America Amnesty International Anarchism angels Anglicanism Animals Annual Statistics Anthony Anxietas Apocalyptic Apophatic Appalachia Aquinas Art Atheism Atonement Augustine Authority Baptism Beauty Bible biblical criticism biblical scholarship Bioethics Bishops Black Catholics Black Theology Blackadder Blogs Books Breastfeeding Brett Salkeld Buddhism Bush administration Byzantine Catholic Calvinism Canada Canon Law Capital Punishment Capitalism Caryll Houselander Catholic Blog Awards Catholic Blogging Catholic League Catholic Social Teaching Catholic Worker Movement Catholicity CFL Charity Children Chris West Christ and Culture Christian Democracy Christian Unity Christmas Christology Church Church Doctrine Church History Climate Change Cohabitation Colbert Collegiality Communion Communism Comparative Theology Competition Conferences conscience conscience rights Consequentialism Consistent Life Ethics Consumerism Contraception Contrition Conversion Converts Coptic COVID-19 Creation Critical Thinking Cross Cuba Culture Culture of Death Culture of Life Darfur David Cruz-Uribe David Wheeler-Reed Death Death Penalty Democracy Demons Desert Fathers Devil Dialogue dignity Disability Disarmament discernment Discipleship discrimination Dissent Distributism Division Doctrine Domestic Church Dorothy Day Double Effect Doubt Down syndrome Driving Early Church Easter Eastern Churches Ecclesiology Economics Economy Ecumenism Education El Salvador Election Election 2020 Ellul Embryonic Stem Cell Research Empire Energy Enlighenment Environmentalism Ephraim Radner Episcopal Church epistemology Equality Eschatology Ethics Eucharist Europe Euthanasia Evangelization Evil Evolution Excommunication F.X. Durrwell Facism Facts Fair Trade Faith Family Fashion Feddie Feminism Feminist theology Fertility Fetal Rights Fiction Film Finances First Things flags Folk Religion Food Foreign Affairs Forgiveness Frank Sheed Free Speech Freedom gay & lesbian persons Genocide George W. Bush George Weigel Gerald L. Campbell Girard/Mimetic Theory Global Warming Globalization Gnosticism Good Friday Grace Gratitude Greed Grey Cup 2009 Guadalupe Guest Post Guest Posts Gun Control Gustave Martelet Habitat for Humanity Hans Urs von Balthasar Harry Potter Hate Speech Health Health Care Healthcare Heather King Hebrew Bible Henri de Lubac Henry Karlson Herbert McCabe Heresy HHS Mandate Controversy History Holidays Holiness Holy Spirit Homiletics Homily Homosexuality Hope Hospitality How Far Can We Go? How Far Can We Go? Human Person Human Rights Humanae Vitae Humility Humor Hunger Hunting Identity Idolatry Ignacio Ellacuría Imagination Immigration In Memoriam Income Inequality Inculturation Indigenous People Individualism Inklings Intellect Interdependence Internet Interpretation Interviews Introduction Iraq War Islam Israel Jain James Alison James Martin Jazz Jesus Christ Jews Joe Biden Joe Hargrave Johann Baptist Metz John Allen John Henry Newman John Paul II John the Baptist John XXIII Jonathan Josef Pieper Joseph (the husband of Mary) Joseph Bernardin Joseph Ratzinger Josh Brumfield Journals Joy Judgment Just War Justice Kari Lundgren Karl Rahner Katerina Ivanovna Kenya Keynes Kingdom of God Kyle R. Cupp Labor Language Latin America Law Leanne Ogasawara Legion of Christ Leisure Lent Liberalism Liberation Theology Libertarianism Libya Lies Life life & dignity & responsibility of the human person Literature Little Way Liturgical music Liturgical Year Liturgy Living Simply Living Wage Local Church Lombard Lord of the Rings Louis Dupre Love M.Z. Magic Magisterium Mark DeFrancisis Mark Gordon Marriage Martin Luther Martin Luther King Jr. Martyrdom Marxism Mary Masculinity Matt Talbot Matthew Fish Matthew Levering McCain Media Memorial Day Mennonites Mental Illness mercy Michael Iafrate Middle East militarism Miroslav Volf Mitt Romney Modesty Moral Theology Morality Mormonism Morning's Minion Mother Teresa Music Muslims Natalie Nate Wildermuth Nationalism Native Americans Nature Nazis Neuhaus New Evangelization New York City News NFP nihilism Nonviolence Not Abortion Nova's Ordo Nuclear weapons Nuns Obama Occult Old Age Opus Dei Ordination ordination of women original sin Orthodoxy Oscar Romero Other Voices Pacifism Palestine Palin Papacy Papal Peace Messages Papal Social Encyclicals Particular Affections Partisanship Patriotism Paul Paul Ryan Paul VI Peace Pentimento persecution Personalism Phantastes Philosophy PKD Planned Parenthood Pluralism Poetry Policraticus Politcal Apathy Politics Poll Pope Benedict XVI Pope Francis Pope John Paul II Pope Leo XIV Population Postcolonialsim Poverty Power Prayer Preaching Predictions Predictions for 2012 President Barack Obama priestly formation & discernment Pro-Life Progress Prophetic Witness Proportionalism Public Diplomacy Public Policy Question Quotes Rachel Maddow Racism Radical Catholic Mom Radical Catholicism Raymund Schwager Real Catholic TV Real Presence Reconciliation Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange Religion religious freedom Responsibility Ressourcement Resurrection Rick Garnett Ridiculous Crap You Never Thought You'd See Robert Barron Roe v. Wade Roman Curia Rome Russia Sacraments Saints Salvation History Sam Harris Sam Rocha Same-sex Marriage Saskatchewan Roughriders Satire School of the Americas Science Scripture Seamless Garment Second Vatican Council Seeing Sex sexual violence Sexuality Sia Sin social justice Social Security Socialism Society of Jesus Sofia Loves Wisdom Solidarity Sophia soteriology Soutenus Spirituality Sports St. Dismas St. Joseph Stanley Hauerwas Statistics Stimulus Suffering Sunday Reflections Supernatural Supreme Court Symbolism Syria Taxing Technology Terrorism The State The Tea Party The Trump Administration Theological Anthropology Theology Theotokos Thomas Merton Throwaway Culture Tim Muldoon Tim Riley Tim Tebow Time Titian Tolkien Torture Toys Trade Traditionalism Transgender Transportation Transubstantiation Trinity Truth TV U.S. Affairs Uncategorized Unions unity among people who disagree US Catholicism USCCB Usury Utilitarianism Utopia Valentine's Day Vatican Vatican II Veterans Vicarious Suffering Video Violence Virgin Mary Vocations Voluntary Associations Voluntary Poverty Voting Vox Nova vox nova blog war War and Peace War Strategy Wealth Weirdness Welfare state Women Women Priests Work Woundedness Youth

Select a Month June 2026 May 2025 February 2025 January 2025 July 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 July 2023 March 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 November 2021 September 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

According to 2 Peter, what are believers partakers of?

Select your answer to see how you score.

God's kingdom Christ's sufferings Eternal glory The divine nature