Passion of Christ, Passion of the Church
By Plinio Corrêa de
Oliveira
Amidst the current sufferings of the Mystical Body of
Christ, our Holy Mother Church, presently under fierce attack from internal and
external enemies, let us follow some thoughts of Prof. Plinio Corrêa de
Oliveira, who always brought Our Lord’s Passion, an event of 2000 years ago,
into current focus during his Lenten lectures.
There is
often a defect in our meditations that diminishes their effectiveness. It is to
ponder episodes from the life of Our Lord without linking them to our lives and
to what happens around us. Accordingly, we are shocked at the inconsistency and
ingratitude of the Jews, when, shortly after having honored Jesus with a solemn
procession as Savior they crucified Him with a hatred many find hard to
understand.
The Jews of 2000 years
ago, when Our Lord walked the earth, are not alone in exhibiting this
ingratitude and inconsistency. Still today, in the hearts of so many of the
faithful, Our Lord must bear this recurring swing between adoration and
insults. And this happens not only in the unseen depths of the consciences. In
many countries, Our Lord has been successively glorified and offended in a
short period of time.
Let us
not spend our time only in horrified contemplation of the infamy of the deicide
people. For our salvation, it is far more useful that we contemplate our own
infamy. Trusting in God’s goodness, this is how we can truly amend our lives.
Reparation for today’s offenses against God
Everyone
knows that sin is an insult to God. The person who commits a mortal sin expels
God from his heart, breaks the filial relations he owes God as his Creator and
rejects His grace. Here we have a revealing analogy between the Jews who killed
Our Lord and ourselves when we commit a mortal sin. Yet, again and again, after
having ardently glorified Our Lord by good deeds or at least by going through
the motions, we commit a mortal sin and crucify Him in our heart!
There is
no doubt that Our Lord is gravely offended in our days. Let us become souls of
reparation. If we are not able to make reparation with the light of our virtue,
at least we can do so by the sincerity of our humility. Sincere humility is
intelligent, reasonable, and solid, not flowery words and emotional chest-beating.
During this Holy Lenten season our humility can make reparation before the
throne of God for the countless offenses committed against Him at every moment.
[Legionario,