The ultimate act of love

He did not open his mouth

Homily for the Passion of the Lord

Crucifixion is nasty business.  It’s a method of torture that still exists today, although we don’t hear much about it being employed.  It was the method of choice employed by Romans to inflict justice upon all those who dared to oppose them: an effective means of making their point.  Romans and non-Romans alike were very familiar with crucifixion, usually reserved for bandits, but the crucifixion we remember today was not inflicted upon a criminal – and that’s what makes this day, this act so memorable.

Since the time of the prophet Isaiah, and even before, the Jewish people have known that the servant of the Lord would be called to a life of suffering.  Belief in a God who speaks a promise of life in the face of death, belief in a God who speaks of mercy in the face of torture, belief in a God who speaks of love, even in the face of derision … belief in such a God has always been understood to bring with it a response of disbelief and challenge because a world that is based on competition and power is often threatened by the potential power of forgiveness.

Today is a day in which actions speak much louder than any words ever could.  He who had celebrated the Jewish Passover meal with his closest friends in the Upper Room, and then surprised them by washing their feet and speaking to them about love and forgiveness found himself having to model such behavior only hours later.  In the Garden of Gethsemane, he had prayed for strength, but even as he prayed, his captors were approaching.

Even today, more than two millennia later, the world in which we live is still struggling to proclaim a gospel that is afraid of love – a gospel that prefers individualism and competition, a gospel which at times ignores the needs of the elderly and the underprivileged, but Jesus suffered and died so that those who have no voice might know that they are heard, and better yet, that their plight is understood.

Tested in every way as we are, Jesus understands our weakness.  The liturgy of Good Friday gives us a glimpse into the heart of the man who had prayed so fervently the night before, daring even then to hope that his Father might take away the suffering that lay ahead.  When we find ourselves in situations where suffering is imminent, do we not also dare to hope that God might take it away from us?  Yet, Jesus accepted his suffering: thy will be done.

The startling part of the drama of Good Friday was not necessarily that a man had been condemned to death; many before him had suffered the same fate, and in fact two other criminals had also been sentenced to die that day.  What was truly remarkable was the fact that although he was innocent, he did not argue.  If you are looking for me, let these men go.  He did not even raise his voice. Am I not to drink the cup that the Father has given me?

Through all of the trials of that day, even when he was standing before the most powerful of the land, his words were serene.  It was as though he knew that the gifts he had entrusted to his disciples the night before were to be fulfilled by his sacrifice.  Because he did not open his mouth in protest, his suffering and death were made different from every other crucifixion that had ever happened before.  His acceptance of pain inflicted by the hands of humans transformed his sacrifice into a gift, and provided the witness of martyrdom on which the faith of the Church was founded.

On that first Good Friday, those who understood this sacrifice were able to strengthen their faith: a woman who watched her son die walked away with a new son; a disciple received a mother; a member of the ruling Sanhedrin took possession of the dead man's body and offered his own tomb for burial; a disciple who was in hiding came forward and offered to help with the burial.  Even as he was dying, Jesus was giving of himself in love.  The ultimate sacrifice of love calls forth love from all those who stand and watch.  Because of his sacrifice of love, the love of disciples, of martyrs, of believers hidden and known is still kindled today.  Because of his sacrifice of love, we too can love.  Because of his sacrifice of love, a sentence of torture and death was transformed into the ultimate act of love; we live in the light of this act of love, and he did not open his mouth.