A favorite reflection of mine at this time of the year is Sister Thea Bowman’s piece entitled “Let Us Resolve to Make This Week Holy.” It is a litany of ways that we can act in our lives, making this week holy, rather than simply sitting back, and observing the most important days of our Christian faith. She calls us to participation – in the liturgies and spiritual practices of the week and in the sufferings, struggles and joys of our families and neighbors and the global community … the places where God is present today, where God is crucified and where the spirit brings hope and new life. The implication is that it is not really, of course, a holy week, if we choose not to act, to live our faith in concrete, practical ways.
At CRSM, we have heard Sr. Bowman’s reflection throughout this week for morning prayer and we have seen her words along with images of the Stations of the Cross projected on the monitors in the cafeteria:
Let us resolve to make this week holy by claiming Christ’s redemptive grace and by living holy lives …
Let us take time this week to be present to someone who suffers …
Let us sing, “Lord, have mercy,” and “Hosanna” …
Let us praise the Lord with our whole heart, soul, mind, and strength, uniting the suffering church throughout the world …
Let us break bread together, let us relive the holy and redemptive mystery …
Let us resolve to make this week holy by sharing holy peace and joy within our families … with the needy, the alienated, the lonely, the sick and afflicted, the untouchable …
Let us be practical, reaching out across the boundaries of race and class and status to help somebody, to encourage and affirm somebody, offering to the young an incentive to learn and grow …
During this Holy week, when Jesus gave his life for love, let us truly love one another.
And this is the central mystery of our faith. To love one another. With Jesus. With the God who accompanies us through our sufferings and seeks to bring us to new life. Our world is broken. We see that truth in so many ways around us. The Good News that we celebrate this weekend and, in the weeks, to come is that our world is also, at its core, beautiful and redeemed, and that God’s love and mercy triumph over death and darkness. God is good! In our Easter celebration we have reason for that belief.
Whether we realize it or not, we all live this mystery, day in and day out. And at CRSM, in so many ways, we are blessed to walk with one another and to be a part of Christ’s redemptive grace. This is centered on our students and families and includes our staff, of course, but also extends to all those who make it possible to live the mission – our board and benefactors, business partners and endorsing communities, and beyond. By our actions and choices and participation in the mission of Cristo Rey St. Martin, we make this week holy … along with every other week of the Christian life.
¡Cristo ha resucitado! ¡En Verdad ha resucitado!