This week Christian churches and Jewish synagogues all over the world will engage in ancient traditions dating back 3500 years. Even non-practicing Jews and Christians will observe Easter, if only with matzo crackers, chocolate bunnies, and Easter eggs. Even the world of finance observes Good Friday by closing down stock markets and suspending all trading activity. For some, it is merely a quaint observance of the coming of Spring, but for devout Christians and Jews it is much, much more.
When God came to the aid of the Jews living in slavery under Egyptian rule, He sent the Angel of Death to strike down every first born child and animal, but “passed over” those who had put the blood of a sacrificial lamb over lintel of their doorways. Shortly thereafter, in the Sinai desert, God established a covenant with the Jewish people, a covenant which the people were unable to keep because of their sinfulness. Never the less, the Jewish people continue to celebrate the Passover and the establishment of that covenant 1500 years before the arrival of Christ.
On the night before His arrest, Jesus was celebrating the Passover meal when He established a “new and eternal covenant” by instituting the Eucharist. On behalf of humanity, Jesus entered into this New Covenant with God, offering Himself as the Paschal Lamb, so that we who follow Him might “pass over” death. Unlike the Sinai Covenant, this New Covenant is ongoing, eternal, and unbreakable because Jesus Himself has established it with God the Father, on our behalf. Moreover, Jesus and the Holy Spirit are immanently present to us because of Jesus actions and because He is physically and spiritually present in the Eucharist, making Himself accessible not only in Spirit but in Flesh and Blood.
Of course, the Jews do not belief this, nor do many Christians who have fallen away from belief in the Eucharist, viewing it as merely symbolic, notwithstanding Jesus explicit command that we are to eat His Flesh and drink His Blood in chapter 6 of John’s gospel. Holy Thursday commemorates the Last Supper and the institution of the Eucharist which was preceded by Jesus washing the feet of His apostles, and act meant to make it clear that His love is one of self-giving service to others. Just hours later Jesus would make the ultimate sacrifice and give His life so that the immense love of God could be demonstrated and the New Covenant sealed in the Blood of the Lamb. He died so that we might live and have new life as children of God.
The mystery of Jesus sacrificial death and resurrection is beyond our comprehension. It requires and act of faith, a conscious decision to believe the unbelievable: that God loves us so much that He would die for us, despite our sinfulness. This is the amazing “good news” of the gospel. We have done nothing to earn such gratuitous love and sacrifice, yet we are the beneficiaries of this perfect love. Coming to this realization should elicit a response of gratefulness and a desire to love in the manner of God’s love.
Belief in the Paschal mysteries should instill in us a desire to thank God and strive to increase our capacity to love, so that the love we have received from God can be shared with others in authentic human love. Our ability to genuinely love one another is enhanced by our acceptance of God’s love, and by His example of self-giving. Knowing that God loves us, and sacrificed Himself for us, despite our sinfulness and unworthiness, should inspire us to love others in the manner He loves us. Because God is merciful and forgiving, so too should we forgive others. Because God sacrificed Himself for us, we should be willing to make a gift of ourselves to those we love, even when we feel they may not “deserve” our love. Because God’s love is unconditional, so too should ours be. Others need not earn our love, or fear that we will stop loving them if they should fail to meet our expectations. This is especially important to children as they are growing up. They need the security of a loving home in which they are loved unconditionally, even as they test the limits of our patience and make the inevitable mistakes necessary for them to learn about life in all it’s complexity. Marriage is the union of two imperfect human beings. Both spouses will make mistakes and need forgiveness repeatedly, challenging the human love and patience of one another. The love and example of God in marriage, helps couples through those difficult moments in their relationship when unconditional love is needed.
All of this points to the importance of our faith. Without the Paschal Mysteries and the loving sacrifice, death, and resurrection of Jesus, we would not have our faith. We would not know or begin to comprehend the true meaning of love. If not for our faith and understanding of God’s love and sacrifice, what example would we look to for our marriage and family life? Perhaps we ourselves were raised in a loving family with parents and grandparents who served as examples, but where did they draw the strength and conviction that guided their lives? Where will we draw our strength and conviction?
The United States is still largely a Christian nation, and it is our faith and morality that has guided our country and its leaders through 236 years of democratic rule. It was the incorporation of our faith into our nation’s politics that ended slavery, that railed against Communism and the Nazis. It is faith in God that makes marriage and families strong in the face of rising divorce statistics and the attacks against the sacred institution of marriage. Europe is in decline precisely because they are losing their faith, becoming a secular society and denying their heritage as Christian nations. Not surprisingly, marriage rates have declined as have birthrates, while the rates of crime, depression and assisted suicide have dramatically increased. The U.K. has even resorted to allowing a ban on the wearing of a simple cross in the workplace. One British court referred to wearing religious jewelry as “theologically ignorant.” In its effort to eliminate faith from its culture, Europe is unwittingly damaging marriages, families and the very future of their cultural heritage. Like the Mayan civilization that mysteriously disappeared, anthropologists of the future are likely to question what led to the demise of the European culture, long after it is gone.
This week we celebrate God’s eternal covenant with humanity, as established by Jesus Christ on our behalf. He has given us the wonderful gifts of life, love, and liberty. Let’s not squander them by failing to recognize that the source of all life and all love is God Himself. He not only loves us unconditionally, but shows us how we too can live and love as He does, and in doing so, strengthen our marriages, our families and our country.
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