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“The Suffering, Sacrificing, Saving Servant” (Isaiah 52:13 – 53:12) “Behold, my servant,” says the Lord. Yes, behold him today. Behold the servant of the Lord serving in a most unexpected way: serving by suffering. Today on this Good Friday we behold Jesus Christ, the Lord’s faithful, righteous servant, suffering a death he doesn’t deserve. But because he does, you will receive what you don’t deserve. And that is good news on this Good Friday. So now behold Jesus Christ, “The Suffering, Sacrificing, Saving Servant.” “Behold, my servant shall act wisely; he shall be high and lifted up, and shall be...

Writing Straight with Crooked Lines - A Passion Week Meditation Msgr. Charles Pope • April 13, 2017 • During Holy Week, we ponder the events that led to Jesus’ death and resurrection. Among the things to reflect upon is a dramatic moment in the trial before Pilate, when the people present utter a curse upon themselves.When Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere, but that instead an uproar was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd. “I am innocent of this man’s blood,” he said. “It is your responsibility!” And all the people...

“The Catechism in Six Parts: The Sacrament of the Altar” Tonight we conclude our series on “The Catechism in Six Parts.” So far in the Catechism we’ve looked at the Ten Commandments, the Creed, the Lord’s Prayer, the Sacrament of Holy Baptism, and Confession. That brings us tonight to the Sacrament of the Altar--and fittingly enough, on Holy Thursday, the night in which this sacrament was instituted. Everything we want to say about the Sacrament tonight we find in the words with which Christ institutes this holy meal. These words: “Take eat; this is my body, which is given for...

Pope Francis is helping to open Cuba to the outside world, but that could change the influence of the Catholic Church in the long-isolated island nation. At Cuba's first major rock-n-roll concert Friday night, the Rolling Stones played to an estimated 500,000 Cubans, many of whom were lifelong fans. Some of these Cubans once risked re-education on a work brigade for secretly listening to pirated vinyls when the Communist government banned such music. "To me, this is a consecration," Juan Carlos Leon, age 57, told Reuters. "I've waited my whole life for this. The Stones are the greatest." One major...

“Not One of His Bones Will Be Broken” (John 19:31-37) It’s Friday, and darkness falls over the land. On a cross, a man who has been nailed there is dying a shameful and agonizing death. Yet this is no criminal. This is the most righteous and innocent man who has ever walked the earth. Indeed, this is the very Son of God, come in the flesh. Why is this happening? Why is God allowing this to happen? And couldn’t this man Jesus, who displayed such amazing power on other occasions--couldn’t he have stopped this? So was this one gigantic screw-up...

“Love One Another, as I Have Loved You” (John 13:1-17, 31b-35) “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.” So said Jesus to his disciples on the night when he was betrayed. “Just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.” So says Jesus to his disciples here on this night, as we are gathered in his name and he is here with us. Thus our theme for tonight, Jesus’ commandment to his disciples both then and now: “Love...

It is one of the oldest offices in the liturgy of the Catholic Church. It features some of the most beautiful music ever written. So why have so many of us never heard of it?Why am l completely in the dark about Tenebrae?During Holy Week and the Sacred Triduum, the three days leading up to Easter, English Catholics have a wonderful selection of Masses and services happening in the traditional rite across the country. Looking at the list though, l realised that Tenebrae — sung from ‘Spy Wednesday’ in Holy Week — has completely passed me and l suspect many...

It’s Holy Week and while no media is calling your attention to it, our Savior is calling to you to walk along the way with Him to Calvary It is Holy Week, the week leading up to the Passion of Christ, but don’t expect any media to draw your attention to it. They’re too busy drawing public attention to the Herods and the Pilates of the current day and even seeming to relish in it. Mainstream media hero President Barack Obama is in Cuba where pictures of him and his smiling family members travel the Internet even though dozens of...

Holy Week Guide - Walk with the Lord Each Day of This Holy Week Msgr. Charles Pope • March 20, 2016 • At the heart of our faith is the Paschal mystery: the Passion, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ. All of salvation history leads up to and goes forth from these saving events. We call this “Holy Week” because Jesus’ public ministry culminates with His suffering, death, and resurrection.What follows is a brief description of each day of Holy Week. I publish it every year, often adding a few details. I hope you will print out this...

“He Humbled Himself” (Philippians 2:5-11) Have you ever been humbled? Yes, humbled, brought low. Maybe you were humbled when you got beat really badly in a game of Scrabble. Maybe you won that game of Scrabble, and you got the big head, so God had to humble you in some other way. Or think about the March Madness that’s going on right now. Sometimes there is an occasional upset, but usually, when a #16 seed has to face a #1 seed in the opening round, it can be pretty humbling. To be humbled is not a pleasant experience. Often when...

A Guide To Understanding Holy Week Holy Week is the most important week in the Church year! It is a time when we celebrate in a special way the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. We remember his actions, reflect on his messages, and recommit to living as his disciples in the world today. This guide will help you understand and celebrate Holy Week more fully. Keep this guide in a place where you will see it during the week - perhaps on the dining room table. ·                 Review the guide before you go to church for the Holy Week liturgies...

Your soul, and the peace of mind that comes from using it to worship the Almighty, is all that will keep you going through turbulent times in which radical Islam flagrantly slaughters Christians and Marxist sympathizers continue to facilitate it There’s a donkey coming your way this Palm Sunday that has nothing to do with the ones that symbolize a certain political party. Palm Sunday’s donkey, like the One who rides it, has come back every year since bringing Christ into Jerusalem; the presage of a coming victory that continues to the end of time. Though you won’t hear about...

begins on Good FridayPledge to pray ... starting this Good Friday!If you'd like to view a video message from Father Pat, just click the link above. It is best viewed with a high speed Internet connection.Divine Mercy Novena  +  Divine Mercy ImageClick Here to pledge to pray the Rosary on Good Friday and the Divine Mercy Chaplet and Novena that begins on Good Friday! rayer is the most powerful force in the world.  Many of us are confused and discouraged by attitudes and happenings that seem beyond our control.  As we strive to have more and more possessions we see...

Finding the Good in Good Friday By: Msgr. Charles PopeWhen I was younger, and through my seminary years, I had usually seen the crucifix and Jesus’ suffering on the Cross in somber tones. It was my sin that put Him there, had made Him suffer. The Cross was something that compelled a silent reverence and suggested to me that I meditate deeply on what Jesus had to go through. I would also think of Mary, John, and the other women beneath the Cross mournfully beholding Jesus as He was slowly and painfully dying. These were heavy and somber notes but...

The Bread of Affliction: A Meditation on What Jesus Endured at the Last Supper By: Msgr. Charles PopeThe Last Supper is, strangely, a sad study in the kind of affliction the Lord had to endure from His own disciples. Of all the meals the Lord must have shared with them, this was the one that should have gone beautifully and perfectly; it did not. From one moment to the next the blows just got worse. There were inept responses, distractions, bullheaded debates, and rebukes directed against Jesus … and then of course betrayal. It was nothing short of a disaster. The...

Spy Wednesday and a Reflection on the Sins of the Clergy By: Msgr. Charles PopeWednesday of Holy Week is traditionally called “Spy Wednesday,” since it was on this day that Judas conspired with the Temple leadership to hand Jesus over. He would not accomplish his task until the evening of the next day, but this day he made the arrangements and was paid.One way to reflect on this terrible sin is to consider that Judas was among the first priests called by Jesus. We see in the call of the Apostles the establishment of the ministerial priesthood. Jesus called these men to...

“Eloi, Eloi, Lema Sabachthani?” (Isaiah 52:13 – 53:12; Psalm 22; Mark 15:1-47)“Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” This is one of the seven words from the cross, that is, one of the seven times Jesus spoke during his crucifixion. “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” This saying of Jesus is recorded for us in two of the four gospels, in Matthew and Mark, where it is the only word from the cross that is recorded. For the other words from the cross, we have to go to Luke and John. “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” I think what is so striking about this word from...

As Indiana peddles its "religious freedom" garbage, it's time to call the religious right's trash what it really is. Just in time for Holy Week, the State of Indiana has passed a new Religious Freedom Restoration Act. The law explicitly permits for-profit corporations from practicing the “free exercise of religion” and it allows them to use the “exercise of religion” as a defense against any lawsuits whether from the government or from private entities. The primary narrative against this law has been about the potential ways that small businesses owned by Christians could invoke it as a defense against having...

“Blood of the Covenant” (Exodus 24:3-11; 1 Corinthians 10:16-17; Mark 14:12-26)“Blood” and “covenant” go together in the Bible pretty much all the time. Whenever God establishes a covenant with people, generally it is sealed with blood. And tonight is no exception. In fact, tonight is the culmination of this connection between blood and covenant. It’s Holy Thursday, the night in which our Lord Jesus Christ establishes a covenant with us and says, “This is my ‘Blood of the Covenant.’” I suppose we should start by explaining what this word “covenant” means, biblically speaking. In the Bible, a covenant is a...

April 2, 2015Holy Thursday - Evening Mass of the Lord’s Supper    Reading 1 Ex 12:1-8, 11-14 The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, “This month shall stand at the head of your calendar; you shall reckon it the first month of the year.Tell the whole community of Israel: On the tenth of this month every one of your familiesmust procure for itself a lamb, one apiece for each household.If a family is too small for a whole lamb, it shall join the nearest household in procuring one and shall share in the lamb...