Tuesday Reflection written by Sr. Rosemary Finnegan, O.P.
Readings from: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/033021.cfm
The Jewish book of Wisdom, The Talmud, teaches that every person should wear a jacket with 2 pockets. In the one pocket, the Rabbis say there should be a note that reads: "I am but dust and ashes." This is read when one feels high and mighty. And in the second pocket, the Rabbis say, the note must read, “For me the universe was made. This note is for the times one feels depressed, lonely, and discouraged. Both slips of paper in one’s pockets not only recall and celebrate our uniqueness, (“For me the universe was made”), but also recognize one’s small place in a much bigger universe. ("I am but dust and ashes.")
This season of Lent functions for us like that jacket with two pockets because Lent reminds us on the one hand, of who we are, and who we are not. On the other hand, it also reminds us of who God is and who we are ultimately meant to be in God’s eyes. By reflecting on our failures, we can gain a deeper appreciation of how much we are loved by God. As Caesar Chavez, the advocate of farm workers, was fond of saying: “We must celebrate our failures.”
Failure must have been what it seemed like in our Gospel account of the Last Supper. Here Judas leaves to betray Jesus, and Peter promises to follow no matter what. Jesus knows better. As bad as that betrayal and that denial were, they didn’t take anything away from Jesus’ eventual glorification.
We are all trying to muddle our way through our Christianity.
- How many times each day do we fail to be as patient or kind as we’d like to be?
- How many times are we too preoccupied with what we have to do, or too tired or too engrossed in conversation to give someone the attention they need?
- How many times are we less understanding, encouraging or affirming than we might be?
When we realize, recognize, and accept those failures, however, they can become graced moments to celebrate a forgiving God whose love is not limited by our failures to love. Those failures, and the continual cycle of dying and rising, humble us into relying more and more on God.
As followers of Christ, we are a people grounded in a spirituality and folly of the Cross. It is the symbol of our faith, a symbol that expresses that Jesus was tortured, hung, and executed, abandoned and betrayed by His friends, and whose teachings were rejected and denied by many. This seeming symbol of failure is our hope, and next Sunday, Easter, is our ultimate celebration of victory.
