Thursday 19th March Mass at 10am All are welcome! St Joseph, Pray for us!

The Passion of Christ I finally understand what Simeon’s prophesy that ‘a sword will pierce through your own soul’ mean. My Divine Son, You received all of Your human substance solely from me, which made me connect to You more than any other mother can be to her child. Your Pain is my pain. Your Sufferings are my sufferings. Your Sorrows are my sorrows. Even when we are physically separated, my spirit is always with You. From the tribunal of the high priest to the tribunal of Pilate, You didn't protest, You didn't defend Yourself. From being clothed in the fool’s garment in Herod's palace, to being put on the purple cloak, to being stripped off Your clothes again and again, like a plaything in the soldiers hands without dignity. You were silent like a lamb being led to the slaughter, patiently bear with everything and offered them to God for our salvation. From slapping by the official to the most barbaric form of scourging, You didn't uttered a single complaint in those humiliation and extreme cruelty; but returned them with Your mild but deep groans, and Your prayers and supplications. Your enemies' insulting, mocking, jeering, despising, accusing, reproaching, blaspheming words fired like rains of arrows towards You. Most Pure and Holy God, not only You didn't shy away from being hurt, You continued to turn Your Face towards them, and forgave them 'seventyseven' times. From giving You the crown of thorns on Your Head and the reed in Your Hand to putting the Cross on Your Shoulder, how much You have suffered when not a single part of Your Sacred Body is not in great Agony! I can never forget the moment when I can embrace and meet You face to face, when our eyes looked upon each other with ineffable tenderness yet with unspeakable sorrow…But I have to let You go, I will not let myself hinder the Will of God. Ah my Beloved Son, it broke my heart into pieces when I see You suffered so. If I was not strengthened by divine power, the vehemence of my interior sorrow and anxiety would certainly have ended my life long ago. I survived this heart-wrenching grief countless times, so I can accompany and continue to participate Your Sufferings with You on this Work of Salvation. Although my tears sometimes blurred my vision, but I followed You as close as I can on this Way of the Cross. I want to venerate every place of Your peculiar sufferings, driven by the love to mankind. And every drop of Your Most Precious Blood that shed along the way, were the Signs of Love and Mercy which point us the way to the open gates of Heaven. Reflection: God's single Word would be sufficient to save this world, but in His Divine Plan He came down from Heaven, took our human flesh and dwell amongst us, suffered all His Life and die on the Cross. Although we cannot fully understand this whole Mystery, but could we not sense the Love for us behind all these? God not only wish to forgive and save us, He also wish to know and realise how much He Love us. Our relationship with God is not merely a Creator and the Created, nor a Master and the servant, but like Father and son, like friends, like lovers...

So they said to him, ‘Then how were your eyes opened?’ He answered, ‘The man called Jesus made mud and anointed my eyes and said to me, “Go to Siloam and wash.” So I went and washed and received my sight.’ (John 9:10-11) O God, who through your Word reconcile the human race to yourself in a wonderful way, grant, we pray, that with prompt devotion and eager faith the Christian people may hasten toward the solemn celebrations to come. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,  God, for ever and ever. Amen.