St Luke 23: 44 – 49
It was now about noon, and darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon, while the sun’s light failed; and the curtain of the temple was torn in two. Then Jesus, crying with a loud voice, said, ‘Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.’ Having said this, he breathed his last. When the centurion saw what had taken place, he praised God and said, ‘Certainly this man was innocent.’ And when all the crowds who had gathered there for this spectacle saw what had taken place, they returned home, beating their breasts. But all his acquaintances, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things.
Reflection
Watching.
The darkness. The torn curtain. Jesus’ final words. Jesus’ death.
Other Gospels offer additional observations.
Watching.
The centurion gives a non-Jewish perspective: Jesus was innocent, executed nonetheless.
Who was watching? The crowds, Jesus’ acquaintances, the Galilean women.
Watching.
Good Friday in the mid-1980s, the first time I saw “Jesus Christ Superstar” on TV. One moment drawn into the emotion of the drama and the music; the next moment, I’m being sold soap-powder and summer holidays. It jarred.
Watching.
Good Friday 2004. I went to the cinema to see Mel Gibson’s “Passion of the Christ”. Many folk brought their snacks into the auditorium. A lot of popcorn went uneaten that day. The film is 18-Certificate for a reason: the violence Jesus endured as portrayed on the screen is unrelenting for 2 hours!
Watching.
“The crowds who had gathered… they returned home, beating their breasts.”
“All His acquaintances, including the women… from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching…”
Watching.
How close was the crowd? How close were Jesus’ acquaintances? Close enough to hear Jesus’ cries as they nailed Him to the Cross? Close enough to hear His final words? Close enough to hear the centurion’s declaration?
Watching.
Good Friday is not easy, compared with…The Nativity play. The carol service. The Christingle. The mince-pies and mulled-wine. The presents. The festive food. Or: Easter eggs. Chocolate. Bunnies. Bright colours. New life.
Good Friday: Betrayal. Arrest. An unjust trial. Riotous crowds. Imperial power. Torture. Brutal execution. Excruciating pain. Death. Burial. Bereavement.
Good Friday is not easy.
Watching.
Jesus told the Disciples to watch and pray.
On this Good Friday, watching – what do we see?
Who are the innocent folk who need our voice to name the injustice they suffer?
What might we see that would cause us to beat our breast?
Watching.
In our hearts, the words are our own, and God in prayer gives them voice.
Watching.
We have seen Jesus breathe His last.
Now, we wait at the tomb…
Watching.
Prayer
Jesus,
when we survey Your wondrous Cross,
on which You, our Prince of Glory, died.
our richest gains, we count but loss…
We see Your head, Your hands, Your feet:
Your sorrow, Your love flows mingled down…
Were the whole realm of nature ours,
that were an offering far too small:
Your love is so amazing, so divine,
we give our soul, our life, our all. Amen.