And they went to a place
which was called Gethsem'ane; and he said to his disciples, "Sit here, while
I pray." And he took with him Peter and James and John, and began to be
greatly distressed and troubled. And he
said to them, "My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and
watch." And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that,
if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. And he said, "Abba, Father, all things
are possible to thee; remove this cup from me; yet not what I will, but what
thou wilt." And he came and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter,
"Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch one hour? Watch and pray that
you may not enter into temptation; the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is
weak." And again he went away and prayed,
saying the same words. And again he came
and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy; and they did not know
what to answer him. And he came the third time, and said to them, "Are you
still sleeping and taking your rest? It is enough; the hour has come; the Son
of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at
hand." And immediately, while he was still speaking, Judas came, one of
the twelve, and with him a crowd with
swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders. -Mark
14:32-43
It’s been a tough week. Like Martha, I’ve been worried about many things
(Luke
10:41), and find myself physically and mentally exhausted (one result
of which is that I have posted very little on this blog this week). I had wanted to post something for the upcoming Triduum . . .but . . . nothing. Nothing insightful, interesting, or even
clever came to mind. As I fruitlessly
racked my brain (now there’s an interesting image!) up came an image of Jesus
in the Garden of Gethsemane, in agony (according to Steve Ray, to whom I was listening
on my car radio on the way in to work, many
scholars believe that Christ’s greatest suffering was in the garden, where he
felt the full weight of humanity’s sins).
Peter, John, and James doze off (three times!), too wrapped up in
themselves to attend to the Master who has asked for their support in his time
of supreme trial. That’s me, I realized: at the
holiest time of the year, as I should be focusing on The Lord suffering for my
sins, all I can think of is myself. It’s
sort of sad, isn’t it?
That being the case, I’ve resolved to turn
my focus to Jesus Christ as I take part in the observance of the Easter
Triduum. I’ll set aside my concerns and
worries (please, Lord, give me the Grace!); if the Holy Spirit gives me
something worthwhile to say I’ll say it, if not I’ll content myself to keep My
Lord company from the Cenacle to Calvary, and wait in Joyful Hope for his return
on Easter Sunday.
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