Good Friday

They went out and followed him,
those who had sat with him at the table.
He led them to a garden
where he prayed while they slept,
prayed while they slept,
prayed while they slept.

He was kissed,
and because he was kissed he was arrested,
and when he was arrested, his friends fled,
some to go into hiding,
one to stand beside a bonfire,
and say I never knew him,
I never knew him,
I never knew him…until a cock crowed.

He was brought before the religious authorities
and accused of the sin of blasphemy
and of threatening insurrection.
Having no power to deal with him,
they handed him over to the state governor,
who listened to the accusations
and then asked the accused:
what have you to say?
what have you to say?
what have you to say?
…to which the response was silence.

He said it all.

He was not found to be guilty of any criminal
charges,
but because he was an embarrassment,
it was decided
that his own people should determine his fate.
This they did shouting,
crucify him!
crucify him!
crucify him!

He was cursed and spat on,
whipped and humiliated.
And on his shoulders a gift was placed,
which he accepted with grace.
Under the weight of this gift,
he stumbled and fell
stumbled and fell
stumbled and fell…
all the way to Calvary.

On top of a garbage dump,
he was nailed to a cross of wood
and left to die,
while soldiers gambled,
critics joked,
religious leaders smiled with satisfaction
and his mother watched and waited,
watched and waited,
watched and waited…
until the end she saw a sign of the beginning.

Savior of the world,
what have you done to deserve this?
And what have we done to deserve you?

Strung up between criminals,
cursed and spat upon,
you wait for death,
and look for us,
for us whose sin has crucified you.

To the mystery of underserved suffering,
you bring the deeper mystery of unmerited love.

Forgive us for not knowing what we have done;
open our eyes to what we are doing now,
as, through wood and nails,
you disempower our depravity
and transform us by your grace.

AMEN.

(Source: Iona Community, Stages on the Way)