Standing Before the Cross and Finding Life

On Good Friday, we stand in silence before the cross. We stand before the harsh reality of death. It is a legal death, but one that is deeply unjust—a death imposed by those who cling to power, those who protect their political positions, and those whose self-centeredness blinds them to the needs of others. It is an ugly death, born of evil.

It’s not just that Jesus died two thousand years ago. His death is repeated again and again, in our time. It is the death of those taken captive from our streets and imprisoned without due process. It is the death of those denied medical care because of corporate greed. It is the death caused by the marginalization of people in all its forms—whether through poverty, racism, sexism, ableism, or heterosexism.

Yet, even as we stand before the reality of death, we must remember that death does not define us. Indeed, the death of Jesus does not define Jesus. It is his life that defines him. His death marked a day—an important day, yes, but a day nonetheless. His life, however—his teachings to love one another, to live with compassion, to trust as freely as the birds of the air and as beautifully as the flowers of the field—his life and teachings are eternal. Death did not limit the truth that was his life.

And what about us? No, death does not define us. It is how we live that defines who we are. How do we live in the face of suffering? In what ways do we sustain hope when injustice crashes in around us? Can we find faith in life, in our lives, even when what we see before us is death?

Standing before the cross and finding life—that is the essence of the journey from Good Friday to Easter Sunday…and beyond, each and every day.