THE DEATH of Jesus on the cross should be seen as a source of life, love, and joy rather than sheer tragedy, UST Rector Fr. Richard Ang, O.P. said during the Mass of the Lord’s Passion at the UST Santisimo Rosario Parish on Good Friday, April 18.
Ang said in his homily that the cross is the strongest proof of Jesus’ sacrifice for humankind.
“The cross of Christ is life because it allows us to believe in what is incredible, to look for life forever in the face of suffering and death,” Ang said.
“The cross, therefore, is love. We are not alive simply because Jesus died. We are alive because he died out of love…The cross is joy in the gift of life, joy in His love, joy in His presence,” he added.
The cross has also become a ubiquitous symbol for Catholics, Ang said.
“As Christians, we glory in the cross. With the sign of the cross, we bless ourselves and one another. With the cross, we bless our food. With the cross, we bring a child into the Christian community. With the cross, we entrust the faithful departed to God,” he said.
Devotees participated in the Veneration of the Cross, which Ang described as a redemption of mankind.
“By your (Jesus) cross, you have set us free, you are the savior of the world. As we venerate the cross, let our tears be seasoned with joy because of our gratitude. Let us have gratitude for what the Lord has done for each and every one of us.”
The Mass was followed by the procession of Santo Entierro, or the Holy Burial of the image of the dead Christ, a tradition practiced in the Philippines since the Spanish colonial period.
Good Friday marks the only day in the liturgical calendar without a Eucharistic celebration, according to “a most ancient tradition” of the Roman Rite.
