Jesus Suffered, Too

“My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?” – Psalm 22:1

Last Wednesday, two days after the horrific Nashville school shooting, our daughter in Pittsburgh got a text from her daughter’s preschool saying there was an active shooter nearby, and all schools and daycares within a mile radius were in lockdown. Thousands of parents could only stay put, pray, and wait for more news. About 30 agonizing minutes later they learned it had been a hoax. While on one hand that was a relief, it didn’t diminish the anger and helplessness that was felt by our daughter, son-in-law, and the other parents.

Saturday I drove to Pittsburgh to visit them for a few days. Sunday during Mass, Bishop Zubik addressed the terrifying events of Nashville, Pittsburgh, Ukraine, and the world in general. My granddaughter was whispering questions to me during part of the bishop’s homily (and I was happy to answer) so I didn’t hear everything he said, but what I did hear hit home:

The bishop reminded us that Jesus was both man and God; He was like us in all ways but sin. He felt physical pain and human emotions just like we do. On Calvary, the fact that Jesus knew He would rise from the dead didn’t take away His pain. He cried out from the cross, ‘My God, my God, why have You forsaken Me?’ The bishop remarked that those directly affected by violence surely could be crying out, ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’ 

I thought about this later: Jesus wept when His friend Lazarus died (John 11:35). He felt the sting of betrayal when Judas turned Him in. He felt abandoned when Peter denied Him and when the apostles fled in fear. He felt excruciating pain on the cross. 

You, too, may be crying out, ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’ Maybe you’re distressed by fear. Maybe your heart is breaking and you feel forgotten. Maybe you’re in extreme pain, and you feel ignored because you’ve begged Him for healing and the illness is still raging. Maybe you feel frustrated because He hasn’t come down and stopped all the violent madness. 

When these feelings overwhelm you, remember that Jesus knows what fear, sorrow, abandonment, and all the rest feel like. He experienced unimaginable physical pain, too. Let that reality comfort you. 

Pope John Paul II said, “As the individual takes up his cross, spiritually uniting himself to the Cross of Christ, the salvific meaning of suffering is revealed before him. He does not discover this meaning at his own human level, but at the level of the suffering of Christ.”

Jesus knows what suffering feels like. Ask Him, and He will give you His strength and His grace to get you through yours. 

“Lord, thank You for suffering out of love for me. Help me carry my crosses.”

Thank you for reading my reflection. © 2023 Gina Bedell     Comments are always welcome! 

Please share this with your friends by clicking on one of the icons below. Blogspot doesn’t have a ‘subscribe’ feature and so I appreciate your help in sharing my reflections. Thanks!

If you or someone you know would like to receive these writings directly to your inbox, please email me at ginabedell1@gmail.com and I will add you to my ‘BCC’ email list.

p.s.

We continue to pray for an end to the war. If you’d like to help the people of Ukraine through the Cleveland Maidan Association, you may use either PayPal or a credit/debit card here:

https://www.paypal.com/donate/...