September 13, 2006
Isn’t it odd that Our Lord was often hindered and hurt not by rag-tag sinners, but rather by “spiritual types?” While we know the pagan Romans crucified Christ, it was religious people who persecuted Him and wanted Him crushed. Yes, the physical passion of Our Lord was painful, but what about the emotional passion? What hurts you more—an injection by a doctor or the rejection by a family member or friend?
The word persecute comes to us from a combination of two Latin words: “per” (by or through) and “sequere” (to follow—where we get the word sequence). Therefore, to persecute a person means that we follow them, watch them, and take note. Even if we don’t whisper a word, when we keep an eye on another only to see how and when they fall, we are their persecutors. The real or imagined faults, failures, and foibles of others are well noted and quietly kept in an invisible notebook for future reference.
We often forget that Our Lord had feelings. We almost imagine he couldn’t care less what others thought of Him. Yet, the Scriptures show us a God-man who exhibited deep emotions. Our Savior wasn’t a weak sissy-type, but a strong manly-type who deeply suffered because He deeply, deeply loved others—even His persecutors. Remember the story of the raising of Lazarus? In this account we read the shortest sentence in the entire Bible: “He wept.” He didn’t cry—He wept! This is what happens when you have a holy heart, which is like a sacred sponge that can’t help but soak up every drop of another’s blood, sweat, and tears.
While it is impossible for us to fully understand the inner workings of Our Lord, we can attempt to conform our inner workings to His own. Divine grace can make this possible—not only to feel with the heart of Christ, but to love with that holy heart. This is the difference between a “spiritual type” and a disciple. The first takes both note and pleasure in another’s fall, while the second feels for them, and then picks them up.
Fr. Glenn Sudano, CFR
(Note: reprinted from archives)
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