Tenebrae Homily on Suffering
Tenebrae – This too will Pass away, have faith in Jesus
Mk. 4:35-41" After have spoken in parables to his disciples, Jesus said to them, «Let us go across to the other side.» And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him.
" And a great storm of wind arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke him and said to him, «Teacher, do you not care if we perish?» And he awoke and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, «Peace! Be still!» And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. He said to them, «Why are you afraid? Have you no faith?» And they were filled with awe, and said to one another, «Who then is this, that even wind and sea obey him?» "
My dear brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ,
One day King Solomon decided to humble Benaiah, ben Yehoyada, his most trusted minister. He said to him, "Benaiah, there is a certain ring that I want you to bring to me. I wish to wear it for Sukkoth which gives you six months to find it." "It has magic powers, "If a happy man looks at it, he becomes sad, and if a sad man looks at it, he becomes happy." Solomon knew that no such ring existed in the world, but he wished to give his minister a little taste of humility. Spring passed and then summer, and still Benaiah had no idea where he could find the ring. On the night before Sukkot, he decided to take a walk in one of the poorest quarters of Jerusalem. He passed by a Goldsmith who had begun to set out the day's wares on a shabby carpet. "Have you by any chance heard of a magic ring that makes the happy wearer forget his joy and the broken-hearted wearer forget his sorrows?" asked Benaiah. He took a plain gold ring from his carpet and engrave something on it and gave to him. When Benaiah read the words on the ring, his face broke out in a wide smile. … King Solomon read the inscription. The jeweler had written three Hebrew letters on the gold band: _gimel, zayin, yud_, which began the words “This too shall pass." At that moment Solomon realized that all his wisdom and fabulous wealth and tremendous power were but fleeting things, for one day he would be nothing but dust.
Yes dear brothers and sisters all what we are facing now ‘This too shall pass away”.
Our Loving God who suffered for us and who is always with us in our suffering, calling us today to go to the other side of the lake. When we start going with him there will be always storm and wind across; don’t think because we are believers there won’t be any storm in my life, there will be temptation in our daily lives like St Peter to jump into the water when he saw Jesus walking on the water and then looked back or look down and go down to the water, Jesus is asking us to go to the other side of the lake; there our happiness joy and eternal life waiting for us. And surely the disciples must have been secure and confident in the fact that the Son of God was with them in their boat as they embarked. But the Lord's closest followers must have been not a little surprised and even confused when the waves rose and began to threaten. When we are ready to face all these storms and winds with Jesus and when we reach there at the other side of the Lake there we will enjoy the eternal life. Our Lord calls us to cross with Him over to the other side. While the Gospel speaks of the other side of the Sea of Galilee, we should always keep in mind our ultimate destination, which is none other than everlasting life. As Mark shows us, things can go wrong even when Jesus is in the boat. And when things go wrong, even terribly wrong, and the storms around us begin to rage, it may seem to us, or at least to others, that Jesus is fast asleep.
Crossing over to the other side- in the here and now- means moving from doubt to faith, from fear to calm, from 'brokenness' to wholeness, from mortality to immortality. And if the journey seems difficult, Jesus reminds us again and again throughout the Gospels that the reward is so great.
Most of us when we suffer wonder, why me. Why do I have to suffer? The meaning of life will be become clearer to us when we realize that we will find purpose in life when our search leads us from why to whom. Suffering does have a human face to it. We have only to look at our Lord Jesus crucified on the Cross and there we will find the meaning of our existence and the answer to our searching and longing. A widow was so upset with God for taking her son’s life away from her. She always complained to God where were you when my son died? One day God appeared to her in dreams and told her “He was in the same place wither son, as when His son Jesus was on the cross. He was right there, as He always is with all His children.
“Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me”. The cross, our personal cross or crosses which cannot be transferred to anyone else is an essential aspect to our walk with the Lord Jesus.
Too many of our contemporaries seek an easy life without suffering, without sacrifice, without renunciation, without mortification. Many people including me would like to stand under the cross of Jesus and cry out as did the jeering crowd on the first Good Friday, “Come down from the cross”. Save yourself and save me”. However, there is only one Jesus, and he is the crucified Jesus who rose from the dead. Christianity without the cross is not Christianity; only through the cross of Jesus have we gained salvation.
So, when we suffer, we should not consider our suffering a burden; rather we must look upon the cross we bear as an immense gift from God. Mother Theresa once said: “Suffering is a sign that we have come so close to Jesus on the cross that he can kiss us and that he can show that he is in love with us by giving us an opportunity to share in his passion”.
When we ask the question why, we need to look upon the crucifix. It is only there that we will find the meaning of suffering and the exact reason why we must carry our own cross.
One day one lady seeing a young man who lost his right leg and hand felt so sorry and expressed her deep sympathy saying “My goodness what a brave young man you are. I feel so sorry for your situation” To this he replied, “Lady; everybody has a cross to bear. You can just see mine.”
We all like to wear pearl Jewels if we get it .Most jewelry is fashioned out of precious metals and jewels that are found buried in the Earth, but pearls are found inside a living creature, an oyster. Pearls are the result of a biological process -- the oyster's way of protecting itself from foreign substances.
The formation of a natural pearl begins when a foreign substance slips into the oyster between the mantle and the shell, which irritates the mantle. It's kind of like the oyster getting a splinter. The oyster's natural reaction is to cover up that irritant to protect itself. The mantle covers the irritant with layers of the same nacre substance that is used to create the shell. This eventually forms a pearl.
Yes dear brothers and sisters try to convert our little suffering to a higher means to others to find the joy. Try to suffer our small pains with dignity and joy, which will allow many, even without notice, to come closer to God. Make our discomfort to a very costly pearl in our life. When we are in pain we search God thinking he is away from us, but the poet C.S. Eliot wrote, "And at the end of our exploring, we will return to the place where we began and we will know it for the first time." We will come full circle and know that this is what we are about.
Christ holds up for us the cross with this under-standing: If we embrace it with love, as he did, the cross can be redemptive. Into every life comes a cross. There’s no way to avoid the cross that each of us must carry. Some are simply “more visible” than others. Sometimes the cross comes in the form of aging, physical suffering, disease, disability. Other times it presents itself as a betrayal of a friendship, an abuse of a relationship. Our cross might simply be the struggle to live out the wondrous yet demanding promises to love, honor and support one another “all the days of our lives.” Whatever the cross, remember this too will pass away.
Let me end with the poem This too shall Pass away by Lanta Wilson Smith
When some great sorrow, like a mighty river,Flows through your life with peace-destroying powerAnd dearest things are swept from sight forever,Say to your heart each trying hour:"This, too, shall pass away."When ceaseless toil has hushed your song of gladness,And you have grown almost too tired to pray,Let this truth banish from your heat its sadness,And ease the burdens of each day:"This, too, shall pass away."When fortune smiles, and, full of mirth and pleasure,The days are flitting by without a care,Lest you should rest with only earthly treasure,Let these few words their fullest import bear:"This, too, shall pass away."When earnest labor brings you fame and glory,And all earth's noblest ones upon you smile,Remember that life's longest, grandest storyFills but a moment in earth's little while:"This, too, shall pass away."-Lanta Wilson Smith
Mk. 4:35-41" After have spoken in parables to his disciples, Jesus said to them, «Let us go across to the other side.» And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him.
" And a great storm of wind arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke him and said to him, «Teacher, do you not care if we perish?» And he awoke and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, «Peace! Be still!» And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. He said to them, «Why are you afraid? Have you no faith?» And they were filled with awe, and said to one another, «Who then is this, that even wind and sea obey him?» "
My dear brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ,
One day King Solomon decided to humble Benaiah, ben Yehoyada, his most trusted minister. He said to him, "Benaiah, there is a certain ring that I want you to bring to me. I wish to wear it for Sukkoth which gives you six months to find it." "It has magic powers, "If a happy man looks at it, he becomes sad, and if a sad man looks at it, he becomes happy." Solomon knew that no such ring existed in the world, but he wished to give his minister a little taste of humility. Spring passed and then summer, and still Benaiah had no idea where he could find the ring. On the night before Sukkot, he decided to take a walk in one of the poorest quarters of Jerusalem. He passed by a Goldsmith who had begun to set out the day's wares on a shabby carpet. "Have you by any chance heard of a magic ring that makes the happy wearer forget his joy and the broken-hearted wearer forget his sorrows?" asked Benaiah. He took a plain gold ring from his carpet and engrave something on it and gave to him. When Benaiah read the words on the ring, his face broke out in a wide smile. … King Solomon read the inscription. The jeweler had written three Hebrew letters on the gold band: _gimel, zayin, yud_, which began the words “This too shall pass." At that moment Solomon realized that all his wisdom and fabulous wealth and tremendous power were but fleeting things, for one day he would be nothing but dust.
Yes dear brothers and sisters all what we are facing now ‘This too shall pass away”.
Our Loving God who suffered for us and who is always with us in our suffering, calling us today to go to the other side of the lake. When we start going with him there will be always storm and wind across; don’t think because we are believers there won’t be any storm in my life, there will be temptation in our daily lives like St Peter to jump into the water when he saw Jesus walking on the water and then looked back or look down and go down to the water, Jesus is asking us to go to the other side of the lake; there our happiness joy and eternal life waiting for us. And surely the disciples must have been secure and confident in the fact that the Son of God was with them in their boat as they embarked. But the Lord's closest followers must have been not a little surprised and even confused when the waves rose and began to threaten. When we are ready to face all these storms and winds with Jesus and when we reach there at the other side of the Lake there we will enjoy the eternal life. Our Lord calls us to cross with Him over to the other side. While the Gospel speaks of the other side of the Sea of Galilee, we should always keep in mind our ultimate destination, which is none other than everlasting life. As Mark shows us, things can go wrong even when Jesus is in the boat. And when things go wrong, even terribly wrong, and the storms around us begin to rage, it may seem to us, or at least to others, that Jesus is fast asleep.
Crossing over to the other side- in the here and now- means moving from doubt to faith, from fear to calm, from 'brokenness' to wholeness, from mortality to immortality. And if the journey seems difficult, Jesus reminds us again and again throughout the Gospels that the reward is so great.
Most of us when we suffer wonder, why me. Why do I have to suffer? The meaning of life will be become clearer to us when we realize that we will find purpose in life when our search leads us from why to whom. Suffering does have a human face to it. We have only to look at our Lord Jesus crucified on the Cross and there we will find the meaning of our existence and the answer to our searching and longing. A widow was so upset with God for taking her son’s life away from her. She always complained to God where were you when my son died? One day God appeared to her in dreams and told her “He was in the same place wither son, as when His son Jesus was on the cross. He was right there, as He always is with all His children.
“Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me”. The cross, our personal cross or crosses which cannot be transferred to anyone else is an essential aspect to our walk with the Lord Jesus.
Too many of our contemporaries seek an easy life without suffering, without sacrifice, without renunciation, without mortification. Many people including me would like to stand under the cross of Jesus and cry out as did the jeering crowd on the first Good Friday, “Come down from the cross”. Save yourself and save me”. However, there is only one Jesus, and he is the crucified Jesus who rose from the dead. Christianity without the cross is not Christianity; only through the cross of Jesus have we gained salvation.
So, when we suffer, we should not consider our suffering a burden; rather we must look upon the cross we bear as an immense gift from God. Mother Theresa once said: “Suffering is a sign that we have come so close to Jesus on the cross that he can kiss us and that he can show that he is in love with us by giving us an opportunity to share in his passion”.
When we ask the question why, we need to look upon the crucifix. It is only there that we will find the meaning of suffering and the exact reason why we must carry our own cross.
One day one lady seeing a young man who lost his right leg and hand felt so sorry and expressed her deep sympathy saying “My goodness what a brave young man you are. I feel so sorry for your situation” To this he replied, “Lady; everybody has a cross to bear. You can just see mine.”
We all like to wear pearl Jewels if we get it .Most jewelry is fashioned out of precious metals and jewels that are found buried in the Earth, but pearls are found inside a living creature, an oyster. Pearls are the result of a biological process -- the oyster's way of protecting itself from foreign substances.
The formation of a natural pearl begins when a foreign substance slips into the oyster between the mantle and the shell, which irritates the mantle. It's kind of like the oyster getting a splinter. The oyster's natural reaction is to cover up that irritant to protect itself. The mantle covers the irritant with layers of the same nacre substance that is used to create the shell. This eventually forms a pearl.
Yes dear brothers and sisters try to convert our little suffering to a higher means to others to find the joy. Try to suffer our small pains with dignity and joy, which will allow many, even without notice, to come closer to God. Make our discomfort to a very costly pearl in our life. When we are in pain we search God thinking he is away from us, but the poet C.S. Eliot wrote, "And at the end of our exploring, we will return to the place where we began and we will know it for the first time." We will come full circle and know that this is what we are about.
Christ holds up for us the cross with this under-standing: If we embrace it with love, as he did, the cross can be redemptive. Into every life comes a cross. There’s no way to avoid the cross that each of us must carry. Some are simply “more visible” than others. Sometimes the cross comes in the form of aging, physical suffering, disease, disability. Other times it presents itself as a betrayal of a friendship, an abuse of a relationship. Our cross might simply be the struggle to live out the wondrous yet demanding promises to love, honor and support one another “all the days of our lives.” Whatever the cross, remember this too will pass away.
Let me end with the poem This too shall Pass away by Lanta Wilson Smith
When some great sorrow, like a mighty river,Flows through your life with peace-destroying powerAnd dearest things are swept from sight forever,Say to your heart each trying hour:"This, too, shall pass away."When ceaseless toil has hushed your song of gladness,And you have grown almost too tired to pray,Let this truth banish from your heat its sadness,And ease the burdens of each day:"This, too, shall pass away."When fortune smiles, and, full of mirth and pleasure,The days are flitting by without a care,Lest you should rest with only earthly treasure,Let these few words their fullest import bear:"This, too, shall pass away."When earnest labor brings you fame and glory,And all earth's noblest ones upon you smile,Remember that life's longest, grandest storyFills but a moment in earth's little while:"This, too, shall pass away."-Lanta Wilson Smith
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