Mothers and Sisters

 Today is Good Friday, the day that Jesus was killed at 3 PM. Today is a beautiful sunny day in Maryland, with the daffodils gleaming drops of rain and the birds hopping around the grass tugging fat worms out with glee.

 In a way, the dichotomy of the suffering of Jesus on His way to die is reflected in the splendor of His love for us in the nature He created: in those flowers, in those birds and even in the fat worms. They were created for love of us. If we look in the mirror what do we see? 

One good looking baby!

Wrinkles, or grey hair, no hair, good hair, bad hair. What do our eyes say? Joy, pain, anticipation, dread, exhaustion, satisfaction. Who do we see when we look in the mirror? Do see only yourself looking back? If you look a little closer, you'll see you aren't alone. No, you're not schizophrenic, it's not multiple personality disorder, but you are not alone, you are a reflection of your Creator and were made with love. 

In today's podcast Fr Dan talks about the beauty of the suffering of Christ leading us to unity and freedom in Him. In the World Villages for Children, where Fr Dan is priest, there are thousands of children who lived in atrocious and abusive situations. They are now in these schools and each child is part of a school family where each have a Mother-Sister. These are very special nuns who are the mothers and sisters to the children till they graduate from High School. Father Dan talks about the sacrifice each of these Mother-Sisters makes for their children. 

Mother of hope to her children.

A vast majority of children arrive to the schools with the wrong identity: worthless, broken, dirty, and with no value because of the horrific childhood they've had before entering. Many of these children react with anger, explosive emotions with triggers and also with self-cutting. They think, "This is who I am and God made me this way." The truth is, they are not, and no God didn't make them or you or me the way we are after being broken down by pain. Each of the Mother-Sisters embraces their new child and like a surgeon completing surgery on the battlefield they begin to show them who they really are: beautiful, good, dignified, worthy of love, and pure. 

Mother of good counsel to her children.

Is it easy for Mother - Sisters to do this work? No, it is demanding but they see the glory of the cross. Jesus carried an incredibly heavy, oppressively heavy, cross that knocked the wind out of Him. He dragged it, after being beaten mercilessly, and that cross is our pains. Those wrongs we have felt and have also inflicted on others, He carried, and it knocked the wind out of Him so much  He fell three times. One man, Simon of Cyrene, helped Jesus carry His cross (albeit complaining). 

Queen of peace to her wounded children.

Mother Sisters see the beauty of helping children carry their cross and wounds. They see that each child needs to bury the old identity of worthlessness in a tomb and come out resurrected with a new identity of dignified child of Christ.  

Comforter of the afflicted to her children.

For these Mother Sisters, it is not just worthwhile but worth living, eating, breathing and dying to their desires to do this for their children in the way Christ did it for us.

The Queen of the family to her children.

 We are each invited to bury the old identity of whom we are not. God doesn't create our identity as explosive, resentful, gossipy, indifferent, lazy, self-centered children, because He isn't like that and our true reflection is His. We are like that because of original sin, which He took on His back, dragged that monster to the top of a hill and was crucified to it. He took it so we can see what our false identity is and bury that thing. Easter morning is coming. Our Easter egg has our new identity that will come from the grave shining like the sun. The only way our Easter egg will be filled, and not empty though will be with sacrificial and unitive actions to be with Christ. Self denial of our old instincts of false identity needs to happen to fill the egg, so to speak. Christ doesn't fill our Easter egg with an old identity, nor will He fill it if we don't recognize the false labels and make conscious efforts to let those go and not pick them back up.

"Do you want to heal?' is a question Jesus asked many as He healed them in the Bible. Each question He made in the Bible is for you today, for me today. "Do you want to heal?" gives us the liberating joy to come out of the tomb with the reality of who our true identity was always meant to be.

Enjoy the beautiful podcast from today, and if you are able, consider adopting one of the Mother Sisters from World Villages for Children. They will pray for you with their family of children with a new identity.  

Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2f3TmO7oX3E&t=1028s