AMDG
There is a phrase I learnt from a US Podcast on the series Lost – ‘it got a little bit dusty in the living room’ – when you are trying to blink back the tears watching a movie. I am a real softy when it comes to that – but when my eyes get a bit moist I pretend I have hay fever or something and am trying to get the pollen out! Well in The Passion of the Christ there is always a moment that gets a bit dusty for me – when Mary is trying to follow the Via Dolorosa of Jesus – as he carries his cross to Golgotha. Mary is pressing herself against the wall – in horror at how her son is being treated – not being able to watch but also not being able to tear her eyes away. The director, a certain Mr Gibson, masterfully intertwines this with a flashback of Jesus as a little boy. He falls and grazes his knee – and crying in pain – Mary does what all mothers would do, she drops her washing and runs over to him. Of course, cut back to the present and Jesus – the man – falls under the weight of the cross, at which point Mary appears at his side. “See mother – I make all things new” he croaks as he strains to get up….
The grace of the Third Week that Ignatius wants us to pray for is to ask for grief with Christ in grief, anguish with Christ in anguish, tears and interior pain at such great pain which Christ suffered for me. It is tough and very difficult to receive the graces – withouth being voyeuristic in some way. Of course we understand the throry – focus on the humanity of Jesus by pointing out how his divinity hides itself. Greater love has no one than the person who lays down one’s life for one’s friend…. Jesus does this for us individually to help us overcome our complicity with evil…. This is all fine – but how can we really share in that grief?
For me a key to this week is to witness the passion third hand…. i.e. watching Mary watching her son. Please keep us all in your prayers – the darkest hour is just before dawn.
Please leave comments – but don’t expect an instant response – I won’t be on-line till December. This post was written and automatically scheduled before I entered my month of silence!
Jesuit Priest from Liverpool, UK. Enthusiastic about too many things, Wilderness Seeker, Amateur Astronomer, LFC supporter and a bit lob-sided as you can see in my photo .
Schola Affectus 
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[…] So the event can be interpreted as being many different ways. It is a popular devotion – to non-Catholics it may seem superstitious . Having lived here for a few months with the privilege of sharing life with so many Phillipinos – in the slums, in mountain villages – having seen two devastating tornadoes – I have only admiration for their hospitality, warmth and cheerfulness. Their identification with the sufferings and resilience of Christ makes sense to me. This year organizers believe thousands of survivors of tropical storm Sendong will attend. But there is something of a frenzy about today’s event – in previous years people have died from stampedes. We were advised not to attend because of the dangers inherent – and also we are occupied most of the day – so I have taken a video clip from last years procession to give you a flavour. You will see people desperately trying to touch the statue – and also throwing handkerchiefs so that they may be rubbed on the statue and passed back. You will also see the crush, danger and discomfort that many of the ‘devotees’ voluntarily undergo. From a Western perspective – this is unsettling – and such religious fervour is challenging to witness. One of the ways to cope with this discomfort is to dismiss it as hysteria or superstition. But maybe there is something deeper at work….. the power of the incarnation ….. an almighty God who came down to Earth, renounced power and privelege – and entered into the reality of our suffering . […]
[…] So the event can be interpreted as being many different ways. It is a popular devotion – to non-Catholics it may seem superstitious . Having lived here for a few months with the privilege of sharing life with so many Phillipinos – in the slums, in mountain villages – having seen two devastating tornadoes – I have only admiration for their hospitality, warmth and cheerfulness. Their identification with the sufferings and resilience of Christ makes sense to me. This year organizers believe thousands of survivors of tropical storm Sendong will attend. But there is something of a frenzy about today’s event – in previous years people have died from stampedes. We were advised not to attend because of the dangers inherent – and also we are occupied most of the day – so I have taken a video clip from last years procession to give you a flavour. You will see people desperately trying to touch the statue – and also throwing handkerchiefs so that they may be rubbed on the statue and passed back. You will also see the crush, danger and discomfort that many of the ‘devotees’ voluntarily undergo. From a Western perspective – this is unsettling – and such religious fervour is challenging to witness. One of the ways to cope with this discomfort is to dismiss it as hysteria or superstition. But maybe there is something deeper at work….. the power of the incarnation ….. an almighty God who came down to Earth, renounced power and privelege – and entered into the reality of our suffering . […]