power in powerlessness
Holy Saturday is the day when we commemorate the sleep or the death of Christ, the three days of Christ in the tomb and his descent among the dead.
This is the most neglected day of the Holy week and in actual practice there are no celebrations today to mark this aspect of our faith. Thus it is also the most neglected part of our faith. Probably we can compare it to any well-meaning biography of a very important person.
The author described and put into writing what that person did, what he said all during his waking hours, but rarely and only in passing does the author describe what happened when the person was asleep. And yet this is the day when Christ completes his messianic mission. Today we enrich this day by the celebration of the tenebrae (which is usually done on Wednesday, Thursday or Friday) by reflecting on what Jesus did, not for us, but for those who came before him.
Probably it is good to start this reflection with a question. Where did the souls of the just go before Jesus came to reopen the gates of paradise? Where did the souls of Adam and Eve, the souls of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Miriam, Ruth and all the holy men and women of the Old Testament go before the coming of Jesus who was still to open the gates of heaven, closed by the sin of Adam and Eve? Where did they go since Christ has not yet died for our and their salvation?
Scripture refers to the abode of the dead or sheol. Deprived of the vision of God the souls of the just await the coming of the messiah whose death would free them and unite them forever with God. Here they waited for Jesus.
The first letter of Peter says that the gospel was preached even to the dead. This day, Holy Saturday, the descent among the dead Jesus brought the gospel message of salvation to complete fulfillment. This is therefore the day when Christ descending among the dead completed his messianic mission by coming into the abode of the dead so that the dead will also hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. This is the last phase of the mission of Jesus – the spread of Christ's redemptive work to all men and women of all times and in all places, for all who are saved have been made sharers in the redemption. The closing of the tomb of Good Friday which we heard in the gospel did not end nor did it put a period to the work of Jesus. It is still unfolding first to save those who have come before the messiah opened the gates of heaven again and then to bring us to that final and peak event in the redemptive work of Christ in his resurrection.
The silence of this day, the day when Christ stayed in the tomb is not without activity. The gospel is still being preached and souls are being saved. The darkness of this day is not without hope for the light is still burning brightly, slowly driving out the darkness even in the nook, crannies and tightest corner of the world visible and invisible. Such is the power of our God who has conquered death. Such is the activity of the God who hangs lifeless on the cross!
Never underestimate God in your seeming emptiness. Never underestimate God in your own naked powerlessness. Never underestimate the power of his light in what seems to be an overwhelming, all-encompassing darkness that envelopes your life. God is there, powerful and in control. God is there, full of activity in our inactivity, and his silence is deafening if only we could strain our ears to his. Do you believe this?
This is the lesson of this day, the day of great silence, the day of great stillness. And so we wait for God. We sit and persevere in our sitting in total darkness, when our lights, however little remains are continually being blown out. We will wait for the Light, we embrace our darkness, this holy darkness.
This is the most neglected day of the Holy week and in actual practice there are no celebrations today to mark this aspect of our faith. Thus it is also the most neglected part of our faith. Probably we can compare it to any well-meaning biography of a very important person.
The author described and put into writing what that person did, what he said all during his waking hours, but rarely and only in passing does the author describe what happened when the person was asleep. And yet this is the day when Christ completes his messianic mission. Today we enrich this day by the celebration of the tenebrae (which is usually done on Wednesday, Thursday or Friday) by reflecting on what Jesus did, not for us, but for those who came before him.
Probably it is good to start this reflection with a question. Where did the souls of the just go before Jesus came to reopen the gates of paradise? Where did the souls of Adam and Eve, the souls of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Miriam, Ruth and all the holy men and women of the Old Testament go before the coming of Jesus who was still to open the gates of heaven, closed by the sin of Adam and Eve? Where did they go since Christ has not yet died for our and their salvation?
Scripture refers to the abode of the dead or sheol. Deprived of the vision of God the souls of the just await the coming of the messiah whose death would free them and unite them forever with God. Here they waited for Jesus.
The first letter of Peter says that the gospel was preached even to the dead. This day, Holy Saturday, the descent among the dead Jesus brought the gospel message of salvation to complete fulfillment. This is therefore the day when Christ descending among the dead completed his messianic mission by coming into the abode of the dead so that the dead will also hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. This is the last phase of the mission of Jesus – the spread of Christ's redemptive work to all men and women of all times and in all places, for all who are saved have been made sharers in the redemption. The closing of the tomb of Good Friday which we heard in the gospel did not end nor did it put a period to the work of Jesus. It is still unfolding first to save those who have come before the messiah opened the gates of heaven again and then to bring us to that final and peak event in the redemptive work of Christ in his resurrection.
The silence of this day, the day when Christ stayed in the tomb is not without activity. The gospel is still being preached and souls are being saved. The darkness of this day is not without hope for the light is still burning brightly, slowly driving out the darkness even in the nook, crannies and tightest corner of the world visible and invisible. Such is the power of our God who has conquered death. Such is the activity of the God who hangs lifeless on the cross!
Never underestimate God in your seeming emptiness. Never underestimate God in your own naked powerlessness. Never underestimate the power of his light in what seems to be an overwhelming, all-encompassing darkness that envelopes your life. God is there, powerful and in control. God is there, full of activity in our inactivity, and his silence is deafening if only we could strain our ears to his. Do you believe this?
This is the lesson of this day, the day of great silence, the day of great stillness. And so we wait for God. We sit and persevere in our sitting in total darkness, when our lights, however little remains are continually being blown out. We will wait for the Light, we embrace our darkness, this holy darkness.
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