Our Sacrifice to the Lord Who Suffered

A Homily for Great Wednesday

Brethren! This present day is the day on which our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ was delivered up to suffering and death.

Faithful souls, who know how to value and to feel the supreme self-sacrifice made for the salvation of us all by our Lord and Friend of us all! From this day onward, guard above all your heart, and guard it with the strictest care, for Him alone, and let nothing worldly, nothing corruptible, no passion gain mastery over you. Prove that you, too, know how to answer love with love; prove that you are true Christians, and that out of love for Christ you can keep vigil with Him—that is, keep wakeful watch over your own heart—in the days in which He alone drank for us the cup of the wrath of heaven. Bring Christ the Lord, in faith, into your hearts as He suffers for us, and suffer there—within your own heart—together with Him; call your sins to mind, be contrite, and, if you can, weep over them. Weep for yourselves[1], says the Lord. Send up your sighs and tears to Christ, and this will be the most acceptable offering to the Lord who suffers for us: you will soon feel in your heart His favor toward you in return for the gift of your heart: a peace in the soul exceeding every mind[2], and a quiet heavenly joy will proclaim to you that your sacrifice—the sacrifice of a broken and humbled heart—has not been scorned, but has been accepted by the Lord upon His supracelestial and noetic altar. Having been cleansed, this very evening, of your sins in the Mystery of repentance—you who have not already been cleansed before—you will tomorrow be made worthy to partake of His Body and Blood: may this Supper of Love unite you with Him Who commanded it to be celebrated in remembrance of Him, may it always remind you of His boundless love for us, and may it grant you the strength to pass the great days that are coming in holiness, in a spirit of ardent love for the Lord who laid down His life for us. Amen.