Archives
April 30, 2010
The Mysteries of Sorrow
The Agony in the Garden
The Scourging at the Pillar
The Crowning with Thorns
The Carrying of the Cross
The Crucifixion
THE POOR
Our Lady will give us a deeper understanding of the poor through the five Mysteries of Sorrow.
”Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
Matt. 5:3
THE poor are a favorite theme with Jesus. “Do not lay treasures on earth,” He said in His first sermon; “and the people heard Him gladly,” because they were poor. He grieved openly over the rich young man, possessed by his possessions. He told the pointed tale of a fool who dreamed of bigger barns on his deathbed. He praised the widow who put her last penny into the Temple treasury. And what He preached, Jesus practiced. The night before He died, He renounced an army of glorious angels, His possession by right, and entered upon His Passion (as He had entered the world) poor in spirit.
In these meditations, dear Lord, help me to understand what I can do to help the poor in spirit.
II. THE SCOURGING AT THE PILLAR
”Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and decay destroy.”
Matt. 6:19
JESUS was a poor Man, but He did not despise men of wealth. As a Baby, He had received gifts of gold from the Magi. He befriended money-changers; one of them became an Apostle. “He looked upon the rich young man and loved him.” He dined with the well-to-do, with Simon the Pharisee, with Zacheus. A rich man, Joseph of Arimathea, was to have the privilege of burying Him. Clearly, the sun of His divine love shone upon poor and rich alike. But He did warn rich men not to rest in their riches, if they wish to rest in Him. The Kingdom of Christ is “out of this world.”
Jesus loved the rich young man in spite of his wealth; the rich young man left Jesus because of his wealth. Do I love the good life more than Jesus?
III. THE CROWNING WITH THORNS
”Jesus went around to all the towns and villages.”
Matt. 9:35
JESUS lived in poverty, but never in squalor. By force of circumstance, He was born in a cave, but Mary wrapped Him in immaculate swaddling-bands, and laid Him on fresh clean straw. Our Lord’s home in Nazareth was an average dwelling. Jesus’ plain rough robe did not embarrass Him in the presence of fashionable aristocracy. On the other hand, He avoided any affectation of elegance. “Don’t fret about your clothing,” He once said. Indeed, the only time He was royally dressed was in His Passion, when the jeering soldiers threw a scarlet cloak about His bleeding Body.
The spirit of simplicity avoids extremes. Jesus lived a simple life. Do I?
IV. THE CARRYING OF THE CROSS
”Do not weep for me; weep instead for yourselves and for your children.”
Luke 23:28
JESUS was a sorry sight as He dragged Himself along to Calvary. Here was a man who within a few hours had lost everything: friends, reputation, majestic bearing, commanding eloquence. His miracles might have apparently become a mere memory. He is the divine poor man, whose only possession is a cross. But Jesus does not want sympathy. He accepts His lot, because it is the way to bring His Father completely into this world. He tells a group of mourning women to save their tears for themselves and their children; when Jerusalem is destroyed, many of them will grieve.
Our world is full of poor people on their way to Calvary. They need more than my sympathy. Especially, they need my prayers.
V. THE CRUCIFIXION
”But seek first the Kingdom of God.”
Matt. 6:33
TWICE especially Jesus showed His great love for the poor: at His birth and at His death. A royal palace would not have been fine enough to welcome His august divinity. Instead, He chose to be born of poor parents outside the town of Bethlehem, in a stable. When He was dead, the world was saved and heaven opened, we might expect angelic splendor to shine about His body. Instead He was buried as He had been born - outside the city in another man’s cave.
When we die, we will bring before God only the wealth of our virtue. Am I rich in God’s eyes?