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Today we celebrate the most extraordinary event of our Christian faith - the suffering and death of the Son of God. It is the climax of the Incarnation, when God came to live among us as one of us. He brings His sharing of our humanity to the deepest levels of suffering imaginable. In the second reading from Hebrews, the reality of that humanity is shown in the fear and revulsion that Jesus has towards the suffering He is to undergo. It was something which - like any human being - was extremely difficult to face and accept. It was only after long prayer and 'silent tears' that He accepted totally the will of His Father. The first reading from Isaiah speaks eloquently of the Suffering Servant, who shows His strength and dignity by His refusal to meet violence with violence. Let us follow the sad journey from the Garden to Calvary to the moment when Jesus bows His head in final Yes. And, as I watch, I remember that all this was done for me. Give us the strength, O Lord, to meet our sufferings in the same spirit as You did and let us place them together with Yours for the salvation of the world. |
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P R A Y I N G W I T H T H E C H U R C H
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For the ecclesial organisations and groups engaged in social
action, that in their testimony they may proclaim strongly and consistently
the Gospel of Love.
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It is the Church's desire that all social-charitable initiatives might
always be inspired, in their implementation, by the immutable principles of
the Gospel. There is danger, however, that professional organisations
engaged in the social field risk losing the fundamental motivation for their
existence: that is bearing witness to Christ's charity which the Church has
the duty to communicate and to share with others. In order to be effective, then, continual spiritual formation is needed for voluntary co-operators who wish to devote themselves to social action. All these initiatives tend to develop the awareness that the foundation and centre of our action is Christ, in whom the God of love revealed himself and gave himself to men and women. Consequently all those who welcome Christ follow him and answer the call to be faithful witnesses to it. This awareness must totally imbue the hearts and minds of individuals so that it also inspires the Communities they set up for organised action in support of underprivileged persons and communities suffering from material and moral poverty. Being thus imbued and formed it becomes necessary that volunteers pray to draw Christ into their midst and have him accompany them. | |
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