Jesus himself knew what to do within this strange silent stillness (of Holy Saturday). It was the stillness of the Garden of Gethsemane. It was the torment of his heart, deeper than words, that expressed itself in blood sweat through his pores. It was the shocking, total, and utter acceptance of his human nature ("Let this cup pass!") and then the acceptance of his divine Father ("Not my will but yours be done."). He must have learned those words from his human father, who taught him how to sit in silence and encounter God in the prayer of the deep.
"I order you, O sleeper, to awake. I did not create you to be held prisoner in hell. Rise from the dead, for I am the life of the dead. Rise up, work of my hands, you who were in created in my image. Rise, let us leave this place, for you are in me and I am in you. Together we form only one person and we cannot be separated.
. . . I slept on the cross and a sword pierced my side for you who slept in paradise and brought forth Eve from your side. My side has healed the pain in yours. My sleep will rouse you from your sleep in hell. The sword that pierced me has sheathed the sword that was turned against you.
Rise, let us leave this place."
-from an ancient homily in the Office of the Readings for Holy Saturday
What doubt do we hold onto in our lives that we don't think God will take care of?
It is easy to say we trust God, but do we act like it?
What do we ruminate about?
- Conflicts and disagreements with other people, especially those who are close to me.
What do we stress about?
- Not having fulfilled a vocation. Whether I will always be alone.
What situations bring out the worst in us because we begin to feel the loss of control or worry that all will not be well?
- At work, feeling overwhelmed with too many assignments to do in a short time or feeling misunderstood or undervalued
- Succumbing once again to some habitual sin, feeling that there's no way out or that I am perpetually defective or deficient
- Interactions with my parents or siblings in which I feel there is some unbridgeable chasm between us
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