Good Friday

We pray through Good Friday and linger on the words from Saint John that Jesus loves his own to the end. We gaze at the cross, face the danger of indifference, and ask for hearts that stay with Christ in faithful love. 
• opening prayers that place the day in God’s hands 
• Saint John’s line “to the end” as the key to Good Friday 
• the cross as humiliation freely accepted for our life 
• Jesus’ perseverance through betrayal suffering and death 
• the danger of lukewarm indifference that makes hearts cold 
• learning to stay close like Simon Magdalene Joseph and Nicodemus 
• asking for mercy devotion and the grace to love to the end 
If you found this time of prayer and reflection fruitful and would like more opportunities to grow in your faith, consider joining the Cristeros and purchasing our publications now available on Amazon.com. The Cristeros app is available on the Apple app and Google Play Store. More information on the Cristeros can be found at theCristeros.org. 

Transcript

Good Friday Opening Prayers

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Good Friday. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. O God, come to my assistance. O Lord, make haste to help me. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. O Jesus, through the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I offer you my prayers, works, joys, and sufferings of this day, in union with the holy sacrifice of the Mass throughout the world, for the remission of my sins, for the intentions of my family and friends, and in particular for the intentions of the Holy Father. Amen. Last night in the Gospel, Saint John told us that Jesus, having loved his own who were in the world, loved them to the end. To the end. This is the phrase that catches my eye and strikes my heart. For today we see what to the end looks like. It looks like the completely humiliating and self-abasing cross. It looks like sacrifice and death so that others might have life. Think of the importance of this. Jesus didn't stop at any point before the end. He didn't stop short at the eleventh hour, but persevered to the very end of the race. He never said, It is finished until it was. He didn't let the incarnation suffice, or his preaching and teaching, or even his agony. He continued through the betrayal, the suffering, the torture, and the passion. He refused to take the vinegar which would have dulled his pain, and even allowed his heart to be pierced after death. And to the very last, as he was lifted up on the cross, he continued to love. He forgave his persecutors, showed mercy to the good thief Dismas, cared for his blessed mother and the beloved disciple, and to the end looked to his father so as to show us the way to heaven. Such a gift of self, such a selfless act requires a response. We cannot pass by this day without seeing the great sorrow of this moment, without taking note of the love which goes to the end. To do otherwise would be to show profound ingratitude, and such indifference is a great danger to our hearts, for it can turn them cold and bitter, even to the point of betraying him whom we profess to love. We can see this in the Passion today. Many there were in these events who stood far off like Peter outside the house, or who took no note, like those who gambled at the foot of the cross for our Lord's garment and completely disregarded the tremendous moment of salvation taking place right before them. They are not remembered kindly for this lack of love, and we know that God abhors such lukewarm indifference. If we can rouse but a tiny spark of love in our hearts today, however, or better yet, if we ask God to do so by the merits of the death of his son, we will not remain indifferent to love that goes to the end. Instead, we will remain with Jesus through it all. We will carry the cross with him like Simon, stay with him at the cross like Magdalene, gently remove him from the cross with Joseph, and bury him with compassion like Nicodemus. By showing such love, we too will learn to go to the end, holding nothing back, storing up no reserves, and in the end, we will receive the promised reward for such love. First, to be lifted up with Christ on the cross, and later to be lifted up in glory. This all begins right now, at the cross, when we gaze upon love crucified. Stay with him who loved his own in the world and loved them to the end. Lord Jesus, crucified for our sins out of love for us, our love is weak, and sin has made our hearts cold. As we adore you upon the Holy Cross, allow your precious blood to wipe away our sins and inspire within us new devotion. May we love you with your own love. May we go with you to the cross. May we love you now and always to the end. Amen. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter, no complaint from his lips against the evil done to him. He was given up to death, to give his people life. He surrendered himself to death and was counted among the wicked to give his people life. Father, look with love upon your people, the love which our Lord Jesus Christ showed us when he delivered himself to evil men and suffered the agony of the cross. For he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, God, forever and ever. Amen. All that I have and all that I am, I give to your hands, Jesus, through the heart of Mary, your blessed mother. Amen. Sacred heart of Jesus, have mercy on us. Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray for us. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. If you found this time of prayer and reflection fruitful and would like more opportunities to grow in your faith, consider joining the Cristeros and purchasing our publications now available on Amazon.com. The Christeros app is available on the Apple app and Google Play Store. More information on the Christeros can be found at the Christeros.org.