Good Friday Daily Thoughts - 03/29/2013

Good Friday Daily Thoughts: I can remember as a teenager several Good Friday's I sat in my bedroom and played the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar from 12 noon to 3 pm. It was my way as a teenager to think of the events of Good Friday before going with my family in the evening to church to celebrate the liturgy of the Lord's Passion. I listen to the words of the songs and pictured the story of Jesus' passion and death. I thought about all the characters involved in the story. I listened to them explain their actions and express their struggles and sorrow. It was liturgy; it was prayer for me at that time of my life.

I am sure some people might cringe at my teenage Good Friday service, perhaps thinking Jesus Christ Superstar was just a musical fad of the 1970's, something that was disrespectful or irreverent to this great story, something that was another sign that this generation was not faithful to the tradition, we not faithful to what was holy, true and good. There was a lot of controversy around Jesus Christ Superstar especially when it came out as a play and movie. (A note of trivia the first authorized performance of the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar took place on July 11, 1971, in front of an audience of 13,000 people at the Civic Area in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.) Yet as a high school and college student it was a way for me to understand my faith, to experience my faith and to put my faith into the context of my own life, it was my liturgy of the Lord's Passion for me.

I think we all need to find our own way of connecting to the Passion story. We have to find our own way to understand, to feel, the mystery of Jesus' Passion. We have to make the connection with the characters, with Jesus. We might not understand but we need to make the connection, we need to feel the story. We need to find our own liturgy sometimes.

As a teenager Jesus Christ Superstar helped me to feel the story, to make the connection. I knew it was just someone's interpretation of the Gospels. I knew that the songs were not the real story. I knew that this is not how the events happened but for me at that moment of my life it was the best way to make the journey with Jesus. It was the way to feel connected. It was a way to pray. It was a way to honor and keep holy Good Friday.

At this point in life I keep holy Good Friday much differently. I am blessed and honored to be a Passionist and a priest so often I am privileged to lead a community in the liturgy of the Lord's Passion or like this year I have the honor of preaching, of sharing the Good News on this day. Yet even today my thoughts often go back to my days as a teenager sitting in my room or lying on my bed following the story, being touched by the music, being overwhelmed by God's love for me. Perhaps those Good Friday's long ago are the very reason why I am a Passionist, a priest, a man of faith today!

My friends however you remember the Lord's Passion of this Good Friday my prayer for you is that the Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ will always be in your heart!

Good Friday Daily Prayer: Today I offer you two simple little prayers to guide you through this day. The first comes from our Passionist tradition it is a simple prayer we utter each day - "May the Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ be always in our hearts!"

The second prayer was write by the great Jesuit theologian Fr. Karl Rahner, S.J. - "The Cross of My Lord, Be my Standard, Be my Comfort, Be the Answer to all dark questions, The Light of all nights, The Sign that You have chosen us, The mysterious and sure Sign that we are Yours for eternity. Amen." (Thanks for this pray goes to Fr. Philip Paxton, C.P. at St. Paul of the Cross Retreat Center in Detroit, MI)

Runner's Thought: If we truly want to be a spiritual runner then we must remember that with every time we run we embark  on a path were we can expect surprises, missteps, little jumps and sometimes great leaps toward a personal understanding of God.

Greetings everyone! I trust you had a blessed Holy Thursday and were able to find a little time to connect with God. I know many of you probably have to work today but hopefully you will be able to take at least a few moments of quiet to make holy this Good Friday.

I celebrated with the faith community at St. Barnabas Parish in the Bronx last night and had the honor of preaching the Good Word. It was a full church and a very prayerful celebration. Today I will return to St. Barnabas for their two Good Friday Services at 3 pm and 7:30 pm. Once again I will be preaching.

I send my prayers and I ask God's blessings upon all of you and your loved ones. May the Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ be always in our hearts! Peace in Christ's Passion today and always...Fr. Paul