Second reflection of the fourth week of Lent
“What do we feel before the Shroud? First of all, a deep and poignant longing for the presence of Christ: not for his ‘signs,’ but for him, for Jesus the Savior whom the Father sent out of love for the world, he who came out of love and gave his life, abandoning it to the anguish, iniquity, and cruelty of men.
We need this presence, and this “sign” of the Shroud also comforts us because it seems to tell us that the Lord is faithful to his word: I am always with you. This word reaches the depths of our hearts because the Lord’s promise is consoling. We have him with us, even though we do not see him (because he has been taken up into glory); we do not hear him, not because he does not speak, but because we are deaf and unable to encounter him in the immediacy of an exchange and a meeting that would fill us with consolation and revive us.
Here we are, then, humbly making use of the “sign.” How greatly the presence of Christ the Lord is desired in the world! How we would like to say to Christ: Lord, let me see, or even better: Lord, let me see you, so that your face may be the light of my life and the strength of my journey” (Card. Anastasio Ballestrero)
What do I feel before the mystery of the Shroud of Turin? Does my faith need “signs”?
I’ll be waiting for you tomorrow morning to continue reflecting together!
