Personal Reflection:
- Have I ever experienced betrayal? Is the hurt still in my heart?
- Have I ever denied someone to save myself? Has someone done that to me?
- Are my responses to injustice violent? Am I quick to “raise the sword” when in a conflictive situation?
- Do I feel guilty about running away from a difficult situation?
- Have I been silent and just part of the crowd when someone has been unjustly judged?
- What has been my response to the physical sufferings of others? To my own physical suffering?
- Have I ever felt abandoned by God?
Some Possible Actions:
Action 1:
Spend time reflecting on the Lord’s Passion. Walk and reflect on the Way of the Cross remembering that the Lord knows all your sufferings and is with you. Allow the Lord more deeply into your painful life-experiences. You are not and never have been alone. The Lord is with you.
Action 2:
Celebrate a special Holy Thursday meal with others. Pray together before the meal, asking God to nourish each of us with God’s love.
Action 3:
Go to the Good Friday celebration of the Passion and Death of the Lord, or at home before a cross, spend some time contemplating the Lord’s love for you. Is there anything you need to let-go of to embrace his cross and to receive his love? Write down the hurts, pains and disillusionments that you are still struggling to let-go-of and don’t feel capable of forgiving.
Action 4:
Go to the Easter Vigil. Take along your list of the most difficult pains you have – the ones you have not been able to forgive, even a little. Put them in the Easter fire. Allow the Lord to help you burn-away whatever has not let you live and love in the present. Light a small Easter candle and focus on the Lord who at this very moment is offering you a new life. Accept him, putting into his hands the pains in your life that only he can heal.
If you can’t go to the vigil, make your own little Easter fire and burn (or bury in your garden) the list of unforgivable pains and losses. Focus on the Risen Lord who is with you. Light a candle and use it as your prayer candle throughout the Easter season.
Group:
Have Easter dinner with others. Look around the table and discover the presence of the Lord.