Cross from El Salvador
Today is Good Friday, when we remember the death of Jesus. In my essay on Buried In Guatemala I point out that Good Friday, honoring the crucified Christ, is the major feast day in Central America, bigger than Easter and even Christmas. Looking at the repression, suffering and rejection the people of Haiti, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and other countries in Central America have endured I can better understand why this holy day is so celebrated.
The cross of Jesus is a paradox. It is a symbol of death, violence and torture. Yet in light of the resurrection of Jesus from the dead on Easter Sunday, the cross becomes a symbol of nonviolence and hope. From the resurrection of Jesus we know that life conquers death.
What we in the USA often forget and the people of Central America know so well, is that the cross comes before the resurrection. Those who suffer poverty, repression and rejection receive the blessings of the Resurrection. It is only being in solidarity with the poor and suffering that we can participate in the resurrection of Jesus. We often forget that Jesus died on the cross disgraced, betrayed, abandoned and denied, even by most of his own disciples. In the Gospel Jesus died on the cross rejected by all, except his mother, his youngest disciple and a few women followers.
A friend, who is behind the pledge drive No Moore Money For War, sent me the following quote which says how we all at times deny the Resurrection of Christ when we fail to see the suffering and oppression of others and by our silence allow more money for war spending to ruin earth and human lives. He writes:
”From Peter Rollins on ways in which he denies the resurrection … and so do we all:
“At one point in the proceedings someone asked if my theoretical position led me to denying the Resurrection of Christ. This question allowed me the opportunity to communicate clearly and concisely my thoughts on the subject, which I repeat here.
“Without equivocation or hesitation I fully and completely admit that I deny the resurrection of Christ. This is something that anyone who knows me could tell you, and I am not afraid to say it publicly, no matter what some people may think…
“I deny the resurrection of Christ every time I do not serve at the feet of the oppressed, each day that I turn my back on the poor; I deny the resurrection of Christ when I close my ears to the cries of the downtrodden and lend my support to an unjust and corrupt system.
“However there are moments when I affirm that resurrection, few and far between as they are. I affirm it when I stand up for those who are forced to live on their knees, when I speak for those who have had their tongues torn out, when I cry for those who have no more tears left to shed.” — Tikkun Daily Blog » Blog Archive » Spiritual Wisdom for Easter: Affirming the Resurrection
My friend followed this quote with another plea to take the pledge at No More Money For War and call Rep. Moore to ask her to stop her war spending votes.
Yet another friend wrote me and others today, Good Friday, falsely accusing and misrepresenting those of us trying to hold Rep. Gwen Moore, a past friend of the peace movement, accountable for war spending votes. I did not thank my friend who sent me this quote about how we deny the Resurrection, but I did write a note thanking my friend who made false accusations and denied the sincerity of our efforts.
Why I thanked one friend and not the other is probably because it is Good Friday when we remember that before the resurrection of new life comes the death and rejection of the cross.
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