The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI) on Friday greeted men and women of good will all over India, as the Catholic Church approaches the celebration of the Holy Week, which begins with Palm Sunday, on 25th March, 2018 and will culminate with Easter Sunday on 1st April, 2018.
In his address, Bishop Theodore Mascarenhas, SFX, Secretary General, CBCI, “During the Holy Week, we reflect on the suffering, Passion, Death and Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. On Palm Sunday, we celebrate the triumphant entry of our Lord Jesus in Jerusalem. In keeping with his teachings of humility and service, he rides into the Holy City amidst acclamations from the people, riding on a donkey, an animal of service rather than on a horse, the symbol of royalty.”
“On Maundy Thursday, we celebrate the establishment of the Christian Priesthood and of the Holy Mass, commemoration of the Last Supper of the Lord with his chosen 12 Apostles. At this meal, he washed the feet of his disciples to teach them the real meaning of humility and service, becoming a slave for others. On Good Friday, we reflect on the sufferings, passion and death of Jesus – an innocent man taken to the slaughter. On Saturday night, in the Vigil Mass, and on Easter Sunday, we celebrate the Lord who is risen from the Dead – the victory of good over the powers of evil, the triumph of life over death, the vindication of the just man against the forces of injustice,” the Bishop explained.
He elaborated further, “Jesus, the Son of God, became man for our sake in all things but sin. He took our sins upon himself and taught us to love and forgive even unto death on the cross. His life and death is best described by Mahatma Gandhi in these words, “A man who was completely innocent, offered himself as a sacrifice for the good of others, including his enemies, and became the ransom of the world. It was a perfect act.”
The Bishop explained how Jesus paid the price for standing for the truth. When some Pharisees came to Jesus and said to him, “Leave this place and go somewhere else. Herod wants to kill you.”, he replied, “Go tell that fox, ‘I will keep on driving out demons and healing people today and tomorrow, and on the third day I will reach my goal” (Luke 13:31-32). He had the courage to drive out the merchants from the Temple premises telling them, “‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’ but you are making it ‘a den of robbers.’” Jesus got in the way of oppressors, hate mongers, manipulators and doers of evil and in the simple words of Archbishop Romero of El Salvador, a true follower of Jesus who himself was killed for the truth: “Those who get in the way get killed.” In a hostile world, we need to be prepared to take our stand and pay the ultimate price as Jesus did (John 10:31-32).
However, Jesus rose from the dead and his resurrection is the fountain of hope for us because in the end as the Sanskrit maxim says, “Satyameva Jayate” – truth prevails.
This Holy Week, we pray for our Country and its leaders cutting across the political and regional spectrums, that they may be guided by justice and truth. We lift up to God all the innocent, languishing in jails or suffering in their work places, or troubled by their oppressors and are crying out for justice. We implore God’s consolation and comfort for all those suffering from illness, from oppression and deprivation.
The Cardinals and Bishops implore God’s Blessings on each one of you. May the joy, peace and love of Jesus Christ be with each one of us.
“God bless us and God bless our beloved India,” the Bishop added.