As we head into the “home stretch” of Lent and enter into Passion week, I always find myself thinking of Dominic Cavallaro, a Marist Brother and my high school teacher, as well as someone who became my mentor and friend for over forty years. He has passed on to God now, and I miss being able to come to him, for it was to him I turned when I was hurt or dealt with unjustly.
Passion Week deals with that theme in such a central way – a week when so-called friends, colleagues, disciples (Today we call them “students”!), and even religious leaders turned on Jesus. They turned on Him and condemned Him unjustly, and they did this out of envy, jealousy, and hate, but most of all out of fear – afraid and intimidated by an authenticity, integrity, and a charismatic Power of the Spirit that was unnerving.
How incredible it still is for me every year to contemplate the steadfast and unconditional love of Jesus in the face of the unbridled hate, the sinister fury, and the calculated malevolence that was unleashed upon Him in the Passion. In the face of that fury, His words to this day bring me to my knees: “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.” Only the Son of God could respond like this to the Evil that assaulted Him – only the Son of God, only One Who could Love with a Love like only God could love.
Jesus told His disciples to expect the same to happen to them if they followed in His steps. Bro. Dom was one such disciple whose love was so genuine and palpable that he too endured the moments of Passion. He too endured the hate of people who feared the Light, and would not “…enter the Light for fear that their evil would be exposed.” (John 3:20) And like Jesus, Br. Dom endured that hate with Love, a Love like that on the Cross, a Love like only God can love.
So I would come to Dom whenever I was hurt or dealt with unjustly. It was a ritual for me really. I already knew what he was going to say, and I already knew what he would need to do before He said it. He would always take me to the Brothers’ chapel, and as he said the words he always said, he would look to the Cross, a Cross that had to have the corpus of Jesus upon it.
What was his repeated counsel to me in the face of life’s injustice and in the face of the malice of dishonest men? Pointing to Jesus crucified, Dom would urge, insist and even declare as a moral imperative that “You must always ask yourself, Doug, how much had those people been hurt, to become so mean?” “Reach out to them with the healing Power of Christ’s Love, not with revenge and malice.”
The words of a true Temple of the Holy Spirit… Yes, Dom was such a Temple. He taught me what it was to be a Temple of God’s Son. To do that he pointed me to Mary, the radiant Temple of God’s Son; Mary, who models for all of us what it is to be the dwelling place of God’s Spirit in this world. “Look to Mary!” Dom would say to understand what it is to be a Temple of God. “She will teach you that at the heart of the Temple there must be only God, and all must be Love. Only Grace must flow forth from the Temple to touch, heal, and transform the darkness and iniquity of this world.”
In the Passion, in the face of Hell’s fury, both the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary were pierced for Love. And when pierced it was seen that only Grace poured forth, only Divine Life and Love poured forth, only rivers of “Living Water”. Their hearts were filled with Love and belonged to God alone. There was no room for revenge, for hate, for malice.
May the same be said for us – that pierced by the malice of men, only Grace flowed forth from the Temple of God that is our heart.
God bless us abundantly with His Grace during the events of Paschal mystery…
Peace,
Doug +
P.S. Please visit our most expansive website at http://www.trinitycorministries777.net/
Passion Week deals with that theme in such a central way – a week when so-called friends, colleagues, disciples (Today we call them “students”!), and even religious leaders turned on Jesus. They turned on Him and condemned Him unjustly, and they did this out of envy, jealousy, and hate, but most of all out of fear – afraid and intimidated by an authenticity, integrity, and a charismatic Power of the Spirit that was unnerving.
How incredible it still is for me every year to contemplate the steadfast and unconditional love of Jesus in the face of the unbridled hate, the sinister fury, and the calculated malevolence that was unleashed upon Him in the Passion. In the face of that fury, His words to this day bring me to my knees: “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.” Only the Son of God could respond like this to the Evil that assaulted Him – only the Son of God, only One Who could Love with a Love like only God could love.
Jesus told His disciples to expect the same to happen to them if they followed in His steps. Bro. Dom was one such disciple whose love was so genuine and palpable that he too endured the moments of Passion. He too endured the hate of people who feared the Light, and would not “…enter the Light for fear that their evil would be exposed.” (John 3:20) And like Jesus, Br. Dom endured that hate with Love, a Love like that on the Cross, a Love like only God can love.
So I would come to Dom whenever I was hurt or dealt with unjustly. It was a ritual for me really. I already knew what he was going to say, and I already knew what he would need to do before He said it. He would always take me to the Brothers’ chapel, and as he said the words he always said, he would look to the Cross, a Cross that had to have the corpus of Jesus upon it.
What was his repeated counsel to me in the face of life’s injustice and in the face of the malice of dishonest men? Pointing to Jesus crucified, Dom would urge, insist and even declare as a moral imperative that “You must always ask yourself, Doug, how much had those people been hurt, to become so mean?” “Reach out to them with the healing Power of Christ’s Love, not with revenge and malice.”
The words of a true Temple of the Holy Spirit… Yes, Dom was such a Temple. He taught me what it was to be a Temple of God’s Son. To do that he pointed me to Mary, the radiant Temple of God’s Son; Mary, who models for all of us what it is to be the dwelling place of God’s Spirit in this world. “Look to Mary!” Dom would say to understand what it is to be a Temple of God. “She will teach you that at the heart of the Temple there must be only God, and all must be Love. Only Grace must flow forth from the Temple to touch, heal, and transform the darkness and iniquity of this world.”
In the Passion, in the face of Hell’s fury, both the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary were pierced for Love. And when pierced it was seen that only Grace poured forth, only Divine Life and Love poured forth, only rivers of “Living Water”. Their hearts were filled with Love and belonged to God alone. There was no room for revenge, for hate, for malice.
May the same be said for us – that pierced by the malice of men, only Grace flowed forth from the Temple of God that is our heart.
God bless us abundantly with His Grace during the events of Paschal mystery…
Peace,
Doug +
P.S. Please visit our most expansive website at http://www.trinitycorministries777.net/
