Holy Saturday

We are in a period of mourning, on our knees, joyful yet silent, waiting in hope, waiting in tears, waiting in gratitude for what our Saviour has done for us. We await and keep Vigil in prayer, preparing to celebrate the Resurrection of our Lord.

And just as Our Lady wept at the foot of the cross, so do we, but our tears differ, for we weep in repentence, in deep sorrow for our sins, the blood of the Lamb on our very hands. We weep for ourselves, for without our Savior, we would be lost and our suffering would be definitive, eternal separation from God. We weep for those who have chosen to reject the God who loves them so dearly, and we weep for our own inability to return His love fully to him.

And we hope in our Savior, we trust in our Savior, and we find joy even in our tears because we know that the Heavenly Father sees us through the wounds of His Son, who stood in our place and bore the justice which should have been meted out upon us.

It is through the Holy Spirit that we see and understand what Jesus has done, for in and of ourselves, we cannot grasp the immensity of his deed. Jesus dies not only in abandonment that we could not withstand, but also so he could send us a permanent companion to unite us in his Body; He sends us the Advocate, the Holy Spirit.

Holy Saturday is a day of mourning, but not so much for the Lord for we know he rose and released us from death; but rather,for our willful separation from Him. But because of His Sacrifice, we rejoice in the Triumph of the Cross, eagerly awaiting his light to return to the sanctuaries, waiting to be reborn again with him; we all await the Resurrection.

When I look upon the cross, I see the hand of God holding not just Jesus, but the entire world. I see the work of the Holy Spirit who brought me home and placed me at the foot of the cross next to the Blessed Mother. and today, I weep with her for she has withstood the sorrow of all sorrows and in her motherly embrace, we may all find the comfort we so require, and the path through her heart into the most Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ.

We will never understand our salvation without first understanding sorrow, which leads us to an understanding of the love that gave us the redemption.

Soul of Christ, Sanctify me.
Body of Christ, Save me.
Blood of Christ, Inebriate me.
Water from the side of Christ, wash me.
Passion of Christ, Strengthen me.
Oh, good Jesus, hear me.
Within thy wounds, hide me
Suffer me not to be separated from thee
From the malicious enemy defend me.
In the hour of my death call me
and bid me come to thee
that with thy saints I may praise thee
for ever and ever. Amen.