April
14, 2019 [ Palm Sunday]
Procession
Gospel: Luke 19:28-40
[_01_] ”Today
you will be with me in paradise.” With these words, Jesus transfers this
permission – “come on in …” – and invitation to the thief on the cross.
It is sometimes hard to do this
transfer. I’d like to give you an example.
Several
years ago, I happened to be on the same airplane and flight as a friend –
really the friend of a friend. On this particular flight, my friend had been
“bumped up” / “upgraded” given the great convenience of being able to fly
first-class, the front of the plane.
He also told me, that he had exactly had 1 first class
upgrade and, officially and technically, it was for him (his frequent flyer
miles) … so he went up to first class while his wife and the rest of his family
sat in economy class, in the “cheap seats” or not so expensive seats.
I’m sure none of you would do that.
Some things are not “transferable” …or not easily
transferable. The airline always wants I.D. before they let you take your seat.
[_02_] Is my
experience or my emotion or feeling, transferable to you, to another person?
I ask this because of the sacrifice
and suffering and pain which Jesus our Savior shares our pain, shares our
guilt.
Our sins were “transferred” to his account,
to his profile. He knew no sin was made sin for us. (2 Corinthians 5:21)
It’s similar to the way in which a
mother/father will feel/endure pain (or experience joy) that belongs originally
to a child, or spouses feel or endure pain (joy) to each other or for each
other. But there are limits to the charity and consolation we can extend to
each other, person to person.
[_03_] In the
Passion & Palm Sunday Gospel, we see Jesus willing to love us to the end –
to show us our precious value and worth in God’s eyes. He forgives 7 x 70.
Our trouble, our pain, our guilty is transferable
to Christ on the Cross who steps in and substitutes for our sins.
What the Lord wants us
to know – moreover –
is that our life – even with pain, anxiety, illness, physical illness, mental
illness – has value. Our lives are often not a paradise. And, isn’t this what
we want to teach our children (young people) that… even if a young person has
distress, anxiety, suffering – that his or her life has value … so much so that
God Himself – Jesus as human & divine – is willing to suffer and die for
our sins.
In this way, we teach them that life
is to be preserved, saved.
Sometimes,
we see contrary examples of this. One contrary example …
[_04_] Yesterday, the state of New Jersey passed a
legislative measure – a law – to permit the legalization of physician-assisted
suicide for the gravely ill.
Yes, I there are restrictions in the law. I
understand that. But our our lives are gift that we cannot measure
statistically or control scientifically. And, we are called to teach our
children that every life has value.
Moreover, is there not a danger this law –
and the law “teaches” – that we could be telling young people – and young
people have pitch-perfect ears for hypocrisy or pretenes – that their lives are
to be preserved, protected, saved at all costs despite distress, anxiety,
illness…. But that another person’s life can be ended due to illness, distress,
anxiety.
Jesus has mercy on us, in this life and in
the next life. He loves us so much that he dies for our sins.
[_06_] Mother Teresa put it more piously, “what you
can do, I cannot do. And, what I can do, you cannot do, but together we can do
something beautiful for God.”
Your life is valuable because you can
love, you can pray, you can act in a way that no one else has ever done before,
or will do so again. You can correct me in a way no one else can and can
correct me in a fault that I may not see myself. We need each other.
Jesus needs our sacrifices, even our
pain so that we can unite our pain to his. In this way, we untie ourselves and
unit ourselves to Christ. We cannot transfer our pain to others, but we can
give this up to God, over to God.
Jesus, I pray we recognize the value
of our lives, connected to yours and that your gain may be ours, our pain may
be yours. Jesus, remember me when you
come into your kingdom.
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