Recovering from Blog Trauma
After the blog crash/recovery a few weeks ago I have been hesitant to invest time in posting articles...I guess I too needed to recover! In the midst of this blog adventure September 14 and 15 came and went. These are very important feasts for Passionists - The Exaltation of the Holy Cross and Our Lady of Sorrows. These were days to meditate profoundly on the Mystery of Redemption and our participation in it. They were also days of celebration here in the monastery.
Aspirant Elizabeth with the dessert she made for the Feast of the Exultation of the Holy Cross
Since Christian discipleship involves denying ourselves, taking up our crosses daily and following Jesus I wanted to share these consoling words with you...
Theodore the Studite (ninth century) wrote,
How precious the gift of the cross, how splendid to contemplate! This tree brings not death but life, not darkness but light. This tree does not cast us out of Eden, but opens the way for our return. This is the wood on which Christ, like a king on a chariot, destroyed the devil, the lord of death, and freed the human race from his tyranny. It is the wood upon which the Lord, like a great warrior wounded in his hands, feet and side, healed the wounds of sin that the evil serpent had inflicted on our nature. A tree once caused our death, but now a tree brings life.
God did not remove our suffering but came to earth to make it holy and life-giving. Alleluia.