On Great and Holy Friday, we encounter Christ our Lord, as our servant, bearing our abuses, carrying out all the work needed for our salvation. He humbles Himself to serve us and save us. On Holy Friday we stand in awe of the God of humility and suffering, whose love knows no bounds. Poet Scott Cairns expresses our understanding so well:
“Bearing our curse, becoming sin,
You loose us from both the burden
of the law and from our lawlessness.
You bruise the serpent’s head,
and snatch us from its grip. You open
the way to resurrection, shattering
the gates of hell, You slay the one
who held death’s power, give comfort
to those who honor You. You give the holy cross
by which our enemy is slain, by which
our life returns to us abundantly.”
(Scott Cairns, Love’s Immensity, pp 31-32)
We should feel unsettled by the Cross – it is the price God pays to have us be with Him. It represents a depth of love which is hard to imagine. It reveals God to us in the most mysterious way. The cross of Christ reminds us of this truth, expressed by St. Theophan the Recluse :
“There is but one road to the kingdom of God – a cross, voluntary or involuntary.” (in The Art of Prayer: An Orthodox Anthology, p 231)
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