As we learn today, saintly people are not protected from suffering, but they learn how to develop compassion from it. ❣️
March 29, 2024
Dear John,
“We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you. Because by your holy cross You have redeemed the world.”
In the book, Lent with St. Francis: Daily Reflections, Diane Houdek writes, “Francis’ conversion began with his prayer before the cross of the ruined chapel of San Damiano and culminated in his experience of the stigmata on Mount La Verna. As we journey with him, he brings us always to the cross and to Christ.”
As we reflect upon Good Friday, let us lovingly gaze upon Jesus and let us adore his holy cross.
Saint of the Day for March 29: Ludovico of Casoria
(March 11, 1814 – March 30, 1885)
Saint Ludovico of Casoria’s Story
Born in Casoria, near Naples, Arcangelo Palmentieri was a cabinet-maker before entering the Friars Minor in 1832, taking the name Ludovico. After his ordination five years later, he taught chemistry, physics, and mathematics to younger members of his province for several years.
In 1847, he had a mystical experience which he later described as a cleansing. After that, he dedicated his life to the poor and the infirm, establishing a dispensary for the poor, two schools for African children, an institute for the children of nobility, as well as an institution for orphans, the deaf, and the speechless, and other institutes for the blind, elderly, and for travelers. In addition to an infirmary for friars of his province, he began charitable institutes in Naples, Florence, and Assisi. He once said, “Christ’s love has wounded my heart.” This love prompted him to great acts of charity.
To help continue these works of mercy, in 1859 he established the Gray Brothers, a religious community composed of men who formerly belonged to the Secular Franciscan Order. Three years later, he founded the Gray Sisters of St. Elizabeth for the same purpose.
Toward the beginning of his final, nine-year illness, Ludovico wrote a spiritual testament which described faith as “light in the darkness, help in sickness, blessing in tribulations, paradise in the crucifixion, and life amid death.” The local work for his beatification began within five months of Ludovico’s death. He was beatified in 1993 and canonized in 2014.
Reflection
Saintly people are not protected from suffering, but with God’s help they learn how to develop compassion from it. In the face of great suffering, we move either toward compassion or indifference. Saintly men and women show us the path toward compassion.
Take an unforgettable tour of the most important sites in the Holy Land through guided meditations and prayerful reflections.
Eighteen original watercolor drawings by Alessandro Alghisi capture the beauty and sacredness of these places.
The words “I thirst” uttered from the cross are echoed in the cries of those who go without adequate supplies or access to clean drinking water. These words also evoke the teaching of Jesus found at the end of Matthew’s Gospel, when the Lord says to his followers that it is when they feed the hungry, clothe the naked, give something to drink to the thirsty that they are in fact serving him. How is it that we can quench the thirst of the Lord on the cross in the lives of those who are dying from lack of water today? What does the cry “I thirst” from the cross mean for us in terms of the ecological crises of our own day?
Jesus continues to thirst in the lives of those hanging on the crosses of poverty and oppression. What is it that we have done or have failed to do to serve the least among us? Do we work to alleviate the suffering of our sisters and brothers, helping to fight against systems of injustice that allow for nearly half the human race to go without basic sanitation and clean water? Or do we flush our resources down the toilet and water our lawns with what could sustain the least among us without a second thought?
Jesus said, “I thirst.” What do you say in response?
Take a journey into the deeper meaning of pain with guidance from a trusted spiritual advisor.
Experience profound reflections on the central mystery of our Christian faith, and beautifully written meditations on the passion and the cross invites you to a new understanding of redemption and offers insight into the meaning of your own loss and suffering.
Christ knew what it was like to suffer. Christ knew the gaping pain of yearning for an embrace when those around you cause you pain. Christ knew the taste of death and the fear of taking a last breath. The God of the universe—who created the stars in the sky, the creatures of the deep, and the birds in the air—knows the fear of death. But that same Christ knows the promise of resurrection, for death is not the end.
Pray
To Christ, who felt abandoned, To Christ, who bled, To Christ, who wept, To Christ, who yearned for his mother’s embrace: I come to the foot of the cross, dealing with abandonment, with my own laments, yearning for an embrace from you, who knows death. In the darkness of this moment—on the hill and under the cross— may I know of your last breaths as promises of a new day. To the Christ who died, carry me into the resurrection day with you. Amen.
Act
This Good Friday, find a place where you can participate in an act of service. Whether it is a local soup kitchen, nursing home, or charity of your choice, dedicate a few hours before (or after) the Good Friday church service to helping out. Think of it delivering part of the promise of the Resurrection story for all people.
Today's Pause+Pray was written by Vanessa Zuleta Goldberg. Learn more here!
This newsletter is not free to produce! Please consider making a donation to help us in our efforts to share God's love in the spirit of Saint Francis.
