Christ Defeats Way of World Through His Paschal Mystery

Holy Week reminds us of what our Lenten preparation was about. It wasn’t just giving up something. Instead, it was a way for us to strengthen our Catholic faith and to emulate Christ in everything that we do. Some may wonder what is so "good" about Good Friday.

The Easter Triduum is when his three years of ministry manifested into the great Paschal Mystery, in which Christ fulfilled what the prophets had foretold.

During the three days, Christ instituted the Eucharist and priesthood to his eleven apostles, who would go on to become the first bishops of his church. They would, in time, raise up men to carry on his ministry. He wept and prayed to do God’s will. He was betrayed by Judas (the first to leave Mass before the final blessing), as he handed him over to the Sadducees in the Garden of Gethsemane.

On Good Friday, he laid it all out for us all. He did it out of love. He forgave those who betrayed, were vile, and abandoned him. 

The Paschal Mystery reminds us of his passion, death, and resurrection. The good news is Christ conquered the world through the sacred mystery. He did to redeem humanity from its first fall in the Garden of Eden.

In the words of Fulton Sheen:

"Unless there is a Good Friday in our lives, there will never be an Easter Sunday; unless we die to this world, we shall not live to the next; unless there is the crown of thorns, there will never be the halo of light; unless there is the cross, there will never be an empty tomb."

As we commemorate the day our lord died, let us pause and remember that Jesus did it out of love. He did it because he redeemed the world.