Abel Francesco Gregory, Church of St Joseph KL
(REFLECTION FROM A YOUTH)
JESUS - VICTIM OR VICTOR?
Jesus the Victim
On the 1st day, creation begins. On the 6th day, God made man. On the 7th day, God rested, and on the 8th day, Adam and Eve betrayed God - death entered the world.
Christ enters Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, the 1st day of the week. On the 6th day, Jesus redeems the image of God. On the 7th day, Christ lays in the tomb and on the 8th day, Christ rises from the dead.
If the creation of man is the highest point of the old creation, then our redemption must be the highest point in the new creation. This is why the first reading reads: “Therefore I have not been disgraced;... and I know that I shall not be put to shame; he who vindicates me is near” And similarly echoed in the second reading: “And that every tongue should confess that the Lord Jesus Christ is in the glory of God the Father.”
Christ is not disgraced by the crucifixion but rather is vindicated by it. This is further echoed in the psalm:
“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me”
You may recognize this as the words Christ spoke on the cross. However, this is also a reference to Psalm 22 which details a prophecy of the crucifixion of Christ. The psalm begins as a cry for help, however towards its end, it is clear that the psalm is actually about triumph:
“All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord, And all the families of the nations will worship before You.” (Psalm 22:27).
Jesus the Victor
Christ is crucified at the place called the skull where the cross pierces the ground, with the feet of Christ standing atop the hill. This is a fulfillment of the prophecy in Genesis 3:15: “he will strike your head, and you will strike his heel.”
Christ strikes the head of the serpent/death, destroying it by gathering all things to himself, including death on the cross, thus transforming the cross into the image of eternal life. Christ is the victim and the victor.
HALLOW is an aid to recharge yourself to enter fully into a more spirit-filled engagement with the author of all life. Prayer helps us to come closer into an intimate relationship with God.
Daily seek God to enter more fully into his wonderful light so that we are ready to stand with confidence for his coming.
A refreshing video that encounters our senses of Sacred Scripture!
“Be who you were created to be, and
you will set the world on fire.”
.......... St. Catherine of Siena
For my days are vanishing like smoke.
my bones burn away like a fire.
My heart is withered like the grass.
I forget to eat my bread.
I cry with all my strength
and my skin clings to my bones. Psalm 101 V.4-6