Holy Saturday

Meditation:

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There remained then only one more thing to do: bury the body of the murdered savior.  Sabbath would begin shortly, so there was no time to prepare the body, only to bury it. The burial rituals would have to wait.  Everything would have to wait.  And who knew for sure what they were waiting for?  The disciples laid the body in the cave, and rolled a large rock across the entrance.  Then they withdrew into the emptiness of the night, into the tomb outside the tomb. 

We are transformed in the deadly silence between burial and resurrection, like new life in a mother’s womb, waiting patiently to be born.  The events of Holy Saturday remind us that change takes time.  So, apparently, does new life: He descended into hell, the Apostles’ Creed says, and then -- only on the third day -- rose again.  No magic answers; no miracle cures; no instant success.  We are left waiting ... for hope, and for healing ... for rebirth, and new life.  Waiting for the grief to subside and the passion to return. 

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Reflection:

Spend some time now reflecting on your own life.  Take some time to journal and share answers with another person if possible.  

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* How are you experiencing "waiting" in your life right now?  What feelings do you have in times of waiting?

* In what ways are you growing and changing?  In what ways do you need to grow and change? 

* How is that transformation as much a gift as a task?

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Prayer:

Offer spontaneous open and honest prayer to God regarding thoughts that came up in your reflection. 

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Closing:

Close the retreat with Jerusalem, My Destiny.