The Crucifixion

The Fifth Sorrowful Mystery:
The Crucifixion of Our Lord

"There they crucified him and divided his clothes among themselves, casting lots to decide what each should take. People passing by shook their heads and insulted him, saying, "Aha! So you will destroy the Temple and build it up again in three days. Now save yourself and come down from the cross, if you are Son of God." In the same way the chief priests, the elders and the teachers of the law mocked him. They said, "The man who saved others cannot save himself. He trusted in God; let God rescue him if God wants to, since he himself said: I am the son of God." From midday darkness fell over the whole land until mid-afternoon. At about three o'clock, Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lamma sabbacthani?" which means: My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? As soon as they heard this, some of the bystanders said, "He is calling for Elijah." And one of them went quickly, took a sponge and soaked it in vinegar and, putting it on a reed, gave him to drink. Others said, "Leave him alone, let us see whether Elijah comes to his rescue." Then Jesus cried out again in a loud voice and gave up his spirit." - Matthew 27:35,39-43,45-50

A friend of mine asked me why I have to make these messages so bloody. And yesterday, when I asked my 17 year old twin brothers to pray the rosary with me and meditate on how Jesus was beaten, they complained and said, "ugh! We don't want to think about that!" But we do have to think about it. We have to imagine each wound, each blister, each drop of blood and each tear Jesus shed because He shed them because of our sins. When the prophet Isaiah foretold of the coming of Jesus, he wrote: He was pierced for our offenses, crushed for our sins… but the Lord laid upon him the guilt of us all (Isaiah 53:5,6). As bloody, horrible, and gruesome as it is, you must know that if our sins weren't that serious, such a violent death would not have been necessary! Because we constantly sin, do horrible things, and turn away from God, all that Jesus went through in His passion, all the blood shed, all the injuries sustained, was 100% necessary. That's how serious our sins are!

Upon the cross, Jesus cried out "my God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" Do you think He said that because He felt God didn't care? No, the reason He said that was because even when He was being crucified, there were people who wouldn't acknowledge or have respect for what He has done for us. Still, while dying on the cross, after all the good that He did, people wanted signs in order to believe. What other signs could you possibly want at this point? Don't be like these people and demand more proof from God in order for you to believe and give your life to Him. The proof is the cross and the blood shed for you is enough reason!

Today's Prayer:
Mary, mother of our Lord, I know you watched in immense pain as they killed your son. I also know you watched Him die, praying that the price He paid would be enough for all to believe in Him. It hasn't been enough, Mary. Pray for us sinners so that we may never take the cross for granted and live our lives following Him.

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.

O, my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell; lead all souls into Heaven, especially those most in need of Thy mercy. Amen.

Jesus Carries His Cross

Today we enter The Easter Triduum, the most important days in Jesus' suffering and our redemption from sin. If you can, please make the time to attend Mass this evening as the church remembers the washing of the feet and the last supper. Tonight, Jesus will find Himself in agony in the garden because in the next 24 hours, He will be put to death. Join Him in His suffering.

The Fourth Sorrowful Mystery:
Our Lord Carries His Cross to Calvary

"Bearing His own cross, Jesus went out of the city to what is called the Place of the Skull, in Hebrew: Golgotha." - John 19:17

Imagine our beaten, bleeding, crying Messiah walking through the streets toward His death, with His cross on His back. Can you see all the people laughing at Him? Some are crying. Some don't even care. His body must ache so badly after all He's been through. He hasn't even had anything to eat or drink. I don't even know how He managed to keep walking, but He did. He persevered because what He was going through, the cross He was carrying, was the work of God.

Our first reaction when we are given a cross to bear is that we don't want to and we don't deserve it. However, after sin entered the world, no one ever guaranteed us that life would be blissful and happy. On the contrary, while on earth we will deal with pain, suffering and all kinds of hurt and evil. That's why Jesus died, so that after death, we can enter Heaven and finally live in peace. But since we're still on earth, we need to bear the crosses we carry - caring for sick relatives, living with disease, dealing with financial trouble, coping with addictions, and doing the will of God by being good to others even when they don't deserve it. You see, it is ONLY in suffering, that we acquire strength and we grow. Those who don't suffer never build character. If we accept our lot in life and ask God for help, He will help us carry that cross and we grow closer to Him, earning our entry into Heaven.When I think of Jesus in His passion, I only feel sorry for the pain He was going through, but I know that during His passion is actually when He was the strongest! We don't look at suffering with the eyes of the body, but with the eyes of the soul which tell us that here, we are with God and we are more than conquerors against anything the devil throws at us. Pick up the cross you may be telling God to remove from you, and in the Name of Jesus Christ, carry it in victory for your God and for your soul.

Today's Prayer:

Mary, mother of God, pray for us so that we may see that it is only through suffering that we grow stronger in spirit and faith. Pray so that the Lord takes away our fears and we may join Him in His walk to Calvary.

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.

O, my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell; lead all souls into Heaven, especially those most in need of Thy mercy. Amen.

The Cross of Christ

"For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with the wisdom of human eloquence, so that the cross of Christ might not be emptied of its meaning. The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God." - 1st Corinthians 1:17-18


We live in a time where everything we say has to be measured. Obama, Clinton, and all the rest are saying the things they think people want to hear. They watch the polls, listen to their professional advisors and then speak. Religion and spirituality are the same nowadays. The majority of the population is so attached to their "freedom" that they only follow a religion that seems to fit what they are looking for. A religion or a belief that tells them that all they do is ok, they don't need to repent of anything or change their ways. Preachers and churches have to adapt just to keep the people coming. But this message from Paul fills me with so much conviction! It is not God that needs to change and cater to the morally decaying beliefs of our day, we are the ones that need to open our eyes and see that the truth is a bloody and violent one - Jesus Christ, our Lord, the Son of the Living God, was brutally beaten and killed to save us from the sins we would like to hold on to today! The truth of the cross, so that it is not emptied of its meaning, is that Jesus was handed over to death by His friends. He was spit on. He was laughed at. He was scourged with whips that had tied to them pieces of bone so that muscles and flesh would be ripped off in chunks with each lashing. On raw skin He was made to carry that cross to calvary and there He was nailed to it, gasping for air as the cool wind pierced His skin and the blood from the crown of thorns dripped down His face and pooled around His eyes. There He died so that you and I could be free… free of the hate, jealousy, addictions, gossip, and immoralities that we are so very attached to, as if what He did was not necessary.

We want to hear God loves us but not that we are called to holiness. We want to know that God listens to us when we need Him to, but don't want to listen to Him when He needs us to. Always, always remember the price Jesus paid for your life on the cross. The mystery of the cross is that it represents life and life is freedom from the pain and shame of the vices we hold on to. Freedom is NOT casual sex, occasional drug use, getting wasted and then covering up for those mistakes. The consequences of these things are what Jesus went to the cross for.

Today's Prayer:
Lord, forgive my arrogance in wanting to live my life in the way I see fit. You are my Creator and only You know how to give me what's best for me. Be with me as I struggle to keep Your cross before my eyes, and keep sin behind me. In Your Name we pray, amen.

The Difference Between Jay-Z and Jesus Christ

"Then Jesus gave a loud cry, 'Father, into Your hands, I commend my spirit.' And saying that, He gave up His spirit." - Luke 23:46

Weird title, but here's what went through my mind - I was listening to Kanye West's tribute to Jay-Z, Big Brother, and I thought to myself, "wow, Jay's really accomplished a lot in his career." I thought of his line about selling out the garden in a day and imagined how proud and accomplished he must have felt standing at the front of the stage, spotlight on him, and multitudes of adoring fans calling out his name. And then my mind turned to Jesus, and how His most crowning achievement was death upon a cross, dubbed a king by a mocking crowd and a crown of thorns placed on His head. When I thought of Jay, I pictured what it would be like to be him and look out at the crowd, but to imagine what Jesus must have felt looking out is a harsh reality check stressing our own sinfulness.

Be Jesus for a moment, and picture yourself looking down from the height of the cross, hanging there as a spectacle for all to see. Before you are people laughing at you, making fun of you, some feel quite proud of themselves to see you dying, while others, like your own mother, are at the foot of your cross in tears…your best friends aren't there - they've left ashamed of you, denying they even know you. All this you're looking down at while you slowly die. They're all before you but the excrutiating pain running through your body can't let you think straight. Your body shakes, absolutely trembling after the fever that's kicked in from the whipping. Flesh, muscle, and bone ripped off in shreds. Now you hang crucified with large, rusty nails hammered into your hands and feet. The position your body's in doesn't let you draw in air, and you want to push yourself up to let the air come in, but the weight of your body on your wounded feet is too much to bear so you have to endure the struggle for air. The wind is strong and stings against your bleeding flesh and your head hurts from the thorns sticking into the side of your head; the blood coming from those puncture wounds pool up around your eyes, mixing with your own tears, and you can hardly see a thing. Regardless, you know they're all down there - the sinners, the hypocrites, the poor, the rich, those who love you and those that hate you, all those you are literally dying to save, those you love so much, all of them. Yet, as weak as you are, as much as you have been beaten, mocked, hated on, spit at, hurt, embarrassed, laughed at, made to cry, this is your biggest achievement, your triumph over sin and over death.

It's awesome to be praised and rooted for when you're on top of the world, but only our Lord Jesus Christ is strongest at His weakest and dying on a cross.

Today's Prayer:
Lord Jesus, thank You for conquering death so that I may have eternal life in You. I never want to forget what You went through for me and I am honored You went to the cross for me. In Your Name we pray, Amen.

Putting Jesus Back on the Cross

"He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, 'Saul, Saul! Why do you persecute me?' And he asked, 'Who are you Lord?' The voice replied, 'I am Jesus whom you are persecuting.'" - Acts 9:4-6

Saul was a Jewish scholar that was so passionate about his beliefs that he persecuted, arrested and killed the believers of Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus appeared to him in a brilliant light that blinded him, and had the above conversation with him. From then on, Saul became Paul and worked to spread the message of Christ to all the pagans.

We know that Jesus died for our sins, but do we take advantage of His gift or by the sins we choose to keep on commiting keep on persecuting Him? It was because of our sins that He died so if we continue to choose to sin, we crucify Him all over. Next time you lie, cheat, or offend someone, truly consider that action as another nail you're hammering into Jesus' hands because you are wasting and throwing away the gift of life He has given you. Many people cried and cringed when they saw the Passion of the Christ, but when we put off rectifying the sins in our own lives, we're the ones that hold the whip, the crown of thorns and the nails in our hands to crucify Him all over.

Today's Prayer:
Lord Jesus, I am so sorry for my sins. Knowing better, I choose to follow my own desires and fall into sin. I know You died to give me life, help me to keep Your sacrifice before my eyes always so that I no longer persecute You but share You with others. In Your Name we pray, Amen.