Let us believe in Christ the Saviour.

Violence has always been, is, and will always be condemned by free people in all areas of life. Even if it sometimes seems that there is no success without violence, it is still necessary to stand up for the right view and opinion. History tells us that injustices and violence have also happened in the Church. Certain circles have waged so-called “holy” wars, even in the Church. Violence so understood is a hindrance, not progress. Also, the teachings of Christ delivered non-violently will surely attract more and also strengthen a person in the faith.

The personality of Nicodemus in the Gospel convinces us of the truth of this view. Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish high council, often visited Christ, but especially at night. In these meetings, the main topic was faith. Nicodemus became convinced that nothing is as essential for a person as faith. Christ explained to him that it is impossible to be like God without faith and that the victory in which the world triumphs is our faith. Nicodemus believed in Christ.

Today, the Church wants to point out to us the circumstances that should prepare us for a proper understanding of the truth of the death and resurrection of Christ. The Church wants us to be broken neither by suffering, by torture, nor by the end so that we may believe more in Christ, the Savior of the world.

We often read in the Gospels that Jesus, during his public appearances, usually demanded strong faith from his listeners. On this depended the way forward in following him. The Church wants to convince us of the significant role of religion in human life. It refers today to an event that once took place in the wilderness during the journey of the Jews from Egypt to their promised land (cf. Num. 21:5-9). On the way, they were attacked by poisonous snakes. It was then that the Israelites realized that this was a punishment from God for their grumbling. They begged Moses to beg mercy from God. According to God’s command, Moses made a brazen serpent, placed it on a pole, and declared that whoever looked at the snake with faith would be saved. And indeed he was. The brazen serpent mentioned in the Gospel is a picture and symbol of the hanging, dying man on the cross – Christ. His suffering and death cannot be the cause of our doubt or melancholy but, on the contrary, are meant to revive our faith and strengthen us in overcoming the difficulties that Christ must endure for us and so enter into his glory (cf. Lk 26:26).

As we reflect on the suffering and death of Christ at this time, we desire to be strengthened in our faith and to believe fully in Christ, and if we are supported in the conviction that God did not send His Son into the world that the world might perish, but that he who believes in Him might have eternal life. Thanks to Jesus Christ, we are saved by his suffering and death, which is not the dramatic end of his life, for it brings with it new life. He carries it to all who will believe in Jesus – willing to draw on his fruit, however painful. Let us look with faith to the cross of Christ on which, as the liturgy says, hung the salvation of the world.

As faith in the brazen serpent saved the serpent-bitten Israelites from death, today, that same faith will surely save us from eternal death and open the locked gate of redemption again. So let us believe! Let us, therefore, be in charge of our faith. Let us also realize today that faith is born in our human hearts, it develops in them, and like a bit of plant, it grows and matures. It may sometimes wither and fade with time, but it will never perish if it leans on Christ! The Church does not want to lead us by the hand of Christ so that we may see in Him the answer to the problems of our faith. We can say that the sufferings of Christ determine for us a kind of invitation to faith. It wants to lead us to reflect and propose that the righteous man lives by faith and that his faith is nothing other than a response to God’s call.

The liturgy of the Mass today shows us the despised and afflicted Christ bearing the cross for our sins and Christ falling beneath the cross for our weaknesses and saying: You must believe in this Christ! If you choose this faith, you will not commit an error, for it will be your testimony of maturity and inner spiritual strength. You will thereby present to the world a personal testimony that neither life, nor death, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor strength, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord (cf. Rom. 8:38-39). We can boldly say that the suffering of Christ does not cause us to fear. Our faith will not be an abandonment of reason; on the contrary, it will empower us. This agrees with what St. John wrote in his First Letter: “And our faith is the victory that has overcome the world.” (1 Jn 5:4).

In 1976 in Rome, Catholics met with murderers, Protestants in the spirit of ecumenism, whose predecessors had murdered John Ogilvie. Ogilvie was an Anglican, brought up in the Protestant-Calvinist spirit. His parents were upper class, and John was educated in France. Here he encountered Catholic teachings and converted at the age of 17. At home in Olomouc, he applied to join the religious order. In Brno, he did his novitiate. Then he returned to his homeland, where there was a substantial departure from Rome.

They were intoxicated by the spirit of the renegade Henry VIII. He suspects what awaits him here. He has prepared himself well, and under the protection of the Virgin Mary, he returns as a merchant to his homeland. Variously disguised, he teaches, administers the sacraments, and makes contact even with Protestants. Wherever he sets foot, he gains. He does much; he says little. Who can count what he has accomplished under the protection of Our Lady? The words of Scripture are actual of him, too: “No pupil is above his teacher, nor a servant above his master.” (Mt 10:24).

The hour of trial had come. John was caught. He was put through severe retraining, where he could not be broken by words, nor by promises, nor by flattery, nor by the dungeon. “No, I am not a traitor!” He was not concerned with politics but with his soul. For eight days, they investigated him in one stroke: where, what, how, why… John remained silent. When he couldn’t stand it, they tortured him. Finally – death by hanging. He dies at the age of 36.

Centuries later, his right path in life is revealed. Confirmed again: “Do not fear those who can kill the body but not the soul!” (Mt 10:28). We have believed in Christ; we are Christians, deepening our union with the suffering Christ. Constantine received the announcement: in this sign, you will overcome! It was the sign of the cross. He overcame. Only in the movement of the cross will we also overcome sin, ourselves, and the world.

There is only one point of exception that violence does not attract, does not entice, and that is in the words of Christ: Heaven is gained only by violence. By violence to oneself. By greater self-control, by control, by study, by personal witness.

 

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