A Personal Reflection for Holy Week


As I relive the events of Christ’s Passion and death during this holiest of weeks, I am reminded of my journey back home to the Church after a fifteen year absence. The journey began when I was visiting my parents (who lived out of state) during my Easter vacation. They invited me to join them for the liturgical services on Good Friday 1987. I had alienated myself from my faith for many years and my focus was on my career and other worldly matters. I had completely forgotten about the cross – about the deep love that Our Lord has for each one of us and about the promise of new life that He offers us. It’s hard to imagine my life back then – but the only way that I can describe it now is that there was an emptiness, a deep void which needed to be filled. There was a hunger and thirst for the spiritual. I didn’t realize any of this until that week.

When we entered my parent’s parish church on Good Friday, their deacon greeted us at the door and expressed so much care and concern for them that I was touched. When I witnessed a dramatic depiction of the Christ’s Passion and death reenacted on the altar, I was overwhelmed with love and gratitude for His great sacrifice. Then something struck me and opened up my heart even more. Each person in the congregation went up separately to the front of the church to venerate the large, life-sized cross. My dad pushed my mom’s wheelchair up to the front and I saw her practically leap out of her wheelchair to embrace and kiss the cross. My dad followed, his frail frame fell to the floor as he firmly grasped the cross and kissed the feet of Our Lord.

The seeds of faith were sown within me that spring only to be harvested in Christmas of that year. It was the love of my parents, their holy example and that of others, as well as the prayers of all that brought this prodigal daughter back home. Through them, I heard the voice of Christ calling me back to Him. This time of year is really a time of thanksgiving for me – a time of intense joy – a time to celebrate the miracle of new life – the gift of eternal life and love.
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Comments

  1. Kalona4/7/09, 11:28 AM

    Jean, how beautiful! Thank you. I hope to be the kind of example to my grown children that your parents were to you.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Jean Heimann4/7/09, 6:14 PM

    Thank you, Kalona!

    My parents were wonderful examples for me and so were the Catholics that I met along the way on my journey home. It's amazing how the little things we do to show our love for God can work so powerfully to influence the faith of others. I hope that I can witness to others the way they did through my actions.

    God bless you and fill your heart with joy this Easter season!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous4/7/09, 7:38 PM

    I consider myself a "revert", I am a cradle Catholic, but I too fell away from the church. I also had a hollowness within me that didn't go away until I came back to the church. I had a Franciscan Priest that "carried me back".

    God Bless you and I continue to pray for all people, especially fallen away Catholics.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Unknown5/15/09, 6:00 PM

    I think the protesting graduates should attend the graduation services, but they should turn their chairs backwards or at least stand with their backs to the president speaks. Why miss your own graduation? Also, they should ask for their degrees be handed them by someone other than the president.

    ReplyDelete

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