For Sunday, November 24, 2013 – Luke 23:33-43
One voice is sometimes all it takes to break through the chaos and realign the heart. Even in a time of crucifixion, in a place aptly named The Skull, a singular voice cries out, “Forgive!” and shatters any remaining thought of complacency or revenge. The abyss of death shifts, suddenly filled with the hope of a new world.
Oh, the voices of scoffing and mocking continue, but other voices, too, rise up from the lowliest of places, crying out for justice, for mercy, for an end to the machine of death. “This man has done nothing wrong!” the criminal shouts. It is never too late to awaken to compassion and discover one’s voice. From a cross, at the far edge of hope, this one voice, perhaps never before fully expressed or listened to, reverberates still, piercing our darkness and shifting our attention toward what matters: “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
As we end this church year and move once again toward the Advent of Love, don’t we long to hear such voices as these? Don’t we long to be one of the voices crying out forgiveness and solidarity, refusing to comply with injustice, turning toward compassion and truth? For this to happen, we must remember. Remember who we are, and what it is we are signing up for. Remember where this path with Jesus leads—an uphill climb, a long reach, a reckoning, a surrender.
In the coming darkness, we must listen anew to Jesus and his friends. “Jesus, remember me? Re-member me. Put me back together, Jesus. Help me become who I am, not scattered but whole.”
The holy one wants to make us wholly one. To welcome him, to walk with him, is not to wish for a safe and happy life. It is to begin to see, even in the cradle, the outline of a cross.
