Monday of Holy Week

Today begins our Holy Week journey to Easter. In the four Gospels combined, there are seven last phrases attributed to Jesus before his death. These are often used for sermons and devotions, so I thought I’d use six of them for our reflections this week.

“Abba forgive them. They do not know what they are doing.” (Luke 22:34, The Inclusive Bible)

Well, nothing like starting out easy (please note the sarcasm). Hanging from the cross, Jesus prays this to the people who have crucified him. Why? How?

Have you ever been betrayed? Or treated unfairly? Have you ever been crucified (metaphorically) because you spoke truth to power, or stood up for the underdog? I have, and let me tell you, forgiveness wasn’t exactly rolling off my lips.

When I’m in my hurt place, I want to lash out in anger, hoping to make some very salient points about how right I am and how wrong “they” were, maybe even tossing in some pain and humiliation for good measure (not pretty, not proud of that, but honest anyway). However, when I’m in my grounded, more enlightened, connected place, I feel completely different. From this much better spiritual place, I can remember that there is a much deeper reality beneath the surface of our grasping egos, our physical desires, and our emotional neediness. I think Jesus lived in this deeper reality 99% of the time.

So, from the standpoint of spiritual enlightenment, Jesus could offer forgiveness because he really could see what others couldn’t. I believe he understood that, because his adversaries weren’t as connected to the Divine, they let their fears, and their egos run the show. Because they didn’t deeply know the unconditional love of God, they couldn’t even see that their fear was unwarranted, that they didn’t need to name call, judge and condemn. Jesus was not a threat, he was the example, the way, the path, the model, the guide, the teacher.

The challenge for us when we are hurt, or when we’ve been stepped on, ridiculed or betrayed, is to take a deep breath and remember that all that really matters is living life with great love. Whoever has hurt us doesn’t get that. And then we can let go, because our souls know that all that crap won’t last anyway. Love lasts. It is the universal energy of eternity, the Essence of you, and me, and all that is.

I didn’t say it was easy.

Kaye