Today is Good Friday. The Gospel reading of today, the Passion of the Lord according to John, narrates the sufferings of our Lord from the betrayal of Judas in the Garden of Gethsemane to his death on the cross and subsequent burial. These events are clearly not “good”; when we have similar experiences of difficulties, pain and defeat, we would not consider these experiences “good.”
With faith and by God’s light and grace, we are invited to see and recognize the “good” that is truly manifested on Good Friday and also at times when we ourselves have difficult and painful experiences of difficulties and pain, of crosses and defeat.
Our Lord invites us to look into his heart in the midst of his suffering, pain and death. He invites us to look into our own hearts. When we ourselves have learned to love to the point of suffering much for the people we love, then we too will see in the suffering and death of our Lord how much he loved us: “There is no greater love than this, to give one’s life for one’s friends.” (Jn 15: 13)
