The Imitation of the Life of Christ Includes Participation in His Passion and Death on The Cross

My sisters and brothers in Christ:

We are coming to the end of the Lenten season. A week from
today is Palm Sunday, the beginning of Holy Week. Throughout
these weeks we have been trying to get closer to God.

The readings of today’s Mass talk to us about the meaning of the
life in God for us. But it seems to me that first, we need to make
sure that we are willing to set the goal of our life in looking for
Christ as we see in today’s passage of the Gospel: “Some Greeks
who had come to worship at the Passover Feast came to Philip,
who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and ask him, ‘Sir, we would
like to see Jesus’”

Let’s ask for the grace to have this disposition in our lives. Not just
out of curiosity or because it sounds good or it is ‘convenient’ to
us. Let’s look for Christ with sincerity of heart and openness of
soul. With the only purpose of getting to know him and then,
trying to imitate him, because he is the only one who can fulfill the
desires and anxieties of the human person.

In today’s 1st reading, the Prophet Jeremiah announces to the
Jewish people that God will establish a new covenant with them,
and it will be written in their heart rather that on stone tablets. In
the new covenant, God will speak directly and personally to each
individual, forgiving sin and asking for a dying to self and a return
to God in faithfulness. God is requesting an obedience which
comes from the depth of one’s heart. ‘I will be their God and they
shall be my people’.

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The same obedience which comes from the heart is highlighted in
the 2nd reading form the letter to the Hebrews. The obedience of
Jesus to the Father’s will has made him the source of our salvation
for all who in turn obey him. Because of Jesus’ prayer for us and
his suffering and death, we are saved and can now see death as a
transformation into eternal life.

What is this obedience that the readings are talking about? The
answer is clear in today’s passage of the Gospel as Jesus talks
about the grain of wheat. It is the obedience to God’s Will of dying
to ourselves to be able to live the life of God. “Unless a grain of
wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat;
but if it dies, it produces much fruit’

The imitation of the life of Christ includes the participation in
his Passion and death on the Cross. It is a difficult aspect of
Christian life. We don’t like to think or talk about it too much, but
as we approach Holy Week, we have to reflect on it and try to have
a good understanding of it, that we can embrace it as the only way
to get to know Jesus.

This Lent, I am sure that sacrifice and penance has been more
present in our lives as we witness the horrors of war. It seems to
me that it is clear to all of us that life includes sacrifice, pain, and
suffering.

Lent has always been a time to intensify our participation in the
Cross of Christ. We usually give something up for Lent. We try to
have more discipline in our lives. We maybe go to Confession,
make the resolution to go to daily Mass or to practice some of the
works of mercy.

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We do that for a reason. To unite ourselves to Christ, to live the
life of Christ that includes his Passion and death on the Cross and
we know that after that there is the joy of the Resurrection on
Easter Sunday.

Most of the time sacrifice, penance, for us, will be in little
things, “We will normally find the Cross each day in the sort of
petty annoyances that may occur at work, and which usually
present themselves to us through people around us. It may be
something unexpected, the difficult character of a person with
whom we have to live, plans perhaps that have to be changed
at the last minute,... Discomfort ... misunderstandings ...” (In
Conv. II.2.2). And never forget that sometimes a smile can be the
best proof of a spirit of penance” FG, 138.

We cannot forget that Jesus’ Resurrection came after his Passion
and death on the Cross. Let’s try to prepare ourselves for Holy
Week and Easter Sunday contemplating the life of Christ and with
the help of his grace, trying to make his life our own life. Then we
can really celebrate the Resurrection on Easter Sunday.

In today’s Gospel we can also see that it was not easy for Jesus.
“I am troubled now. Yet what should I say? Father, save me from
this hour? But it was for this purpose that I came to this hour”

It is not easy to contemplate the Passion and death of Christ on the
Cross. It is not easy to understand the meaning of sacrifice in our
lives, but it is part of God’s infinite wisdom for us and it will help
us to “produce much fruit”, in our own personal life and in the life
of the Church and our society.

Let’s keep trying to get to know and love Christ as the Apostles
did, keeping in mind that real life is to live our human and spiritual
life to the full. Life that is one of the greatest gifts that we have
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received from God. The gift of life. Life that is worth living; life
that is driven by love, the Love of God.

Let’s finish going to the intercession of Mary, Our Blessed Mother,
who was there with Jesus at the foot of the Cross, “May the
Blessed Virgin obtain for us the grace of entrusting ourselves to
Christ, to continue joyfully on our Lenten journey and to review
our life sincerely in the light of the Gospel” (JP II, 2/16/97).