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An ancient tradition
says that Jerusalem means City of Peace. Through the centuries
Jerusalem has been anything but a city of peace. It has been
attacked, destroyed, and plundered on numerous occasions.
Today it is the eye of a storm that is causing death and
destruction.
Jesus rode into Jerusalem to become its messiah. He came not at the head of a
conquering army but riding on a donkey, the animal we refer to as an ass. He
came not to play God but to "empty himself and take the form of a slave." He came to face rejection: "With that, all deserted him and fled." Mark’s
picture of Jesus’ rejection is bleak. There are no disciples around at the
end, no relatives, not even God: "Why have you forsaken me?"
What will it take to make us understand the meaning of the cross, how Jesus made
peace possible by his own suffering and dying? We keep thinking that we will
bring peace by killing others in war; Jesus showed us that we bring peace by
dying for others.
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“That
earthly peace which arises from love of neighbor
symbolizes and results from the peace of Christ who
comes forth from God the Father. For by His cross
the incarnate Son, the Prince of Peace, reconciled
all men with God. By thus restoring the unity of
all men in one people and one body, He slew hatred
in His own flesh. After being lifted on high by His
resurrection, He poured the Spirit of love into the
hearts of men. For this reason, all Christians are
urgently summoned ‘to practice the truth in
love’ (Eph. 4:15) and to join with all true
peacemakers in pleading for peace and bringing it
about.”
Vatican
II, Church in the Modern World (1965) 78 |
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Now published in book form, To Love and Serve:
Lectionary Based Meditations, by Gerald Darring
This entire three year cycle is available at Amazon.com.
Copyright © 1994, Gerald Darring.
All Rights Reserved.
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Art by Martin Erspamer, O.S.B.
from Religious Clip Art for the Liturgical Year (A, B, and C).
Used by permission of Liturgy Training Publications. This art may be reproduced only by parishes who purchase the collection
in book or CD-ROM form. For more information go to:
http://www.ltp.org/ |
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