"The Sorrowful Way"

Good Friday Sermon

The Rev. Cindy Carter

March 29, 2024

The Passion According to John

The Old City of Jerusalem is one of my favorite places on earth. I’ve visited that place on three different trips to Israel and Palestine, and I will never tire of it. 

If you’ve ever been there, perhaps you know what I mean. To walk where Jesus walked is an experience that is really difficult for me to find words to describe.

But, the Old City, as ancient as it is, is not some sort of museum. 

It remains a living, breathing, vibrant city. Apartments where people live, a marketplace where people buy and sell, streets where children play and schools where they learn. It is full of brilliant colors and wonderful smells; and it is noisy.­­­­

A number of years ago, the group of pilgrims of which I was a part did what groups of pilgrims traditionally do in the Old City. We took turns carrying a cross along the Via Dolorosa, the Sorrowful Way, the route that Jesus took from his trial before the religious authorities to condemnation by the Roman Governor Pilate and finally to his crucifixion and burial… ending at what is now the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.     

For pilgrims, it is a very meaningful journey. 

But, as I walked along that day in the Old City, it suddenly dawned on me that no one around us seemed to notice what we were doing. No one was paying attention.

For those of us who were pilgrims, it was a reverent, powerful experience, but for people in the Old City, it was just one more group of pilgrims. Nothing special.

Israeli soldiers hassled Palestinian children playing in the street, tourist shops advertised their wares, all manner of items – everything from food and deliciously fragrant spices to clothing and shoes – were bought and solk. The busy life of the city went on as we walked the Sorrowful Way. 

And, then I realized - it was probably the same on that day when Jesus carried his cross to Golgotha. You see, the Roman Government that occupied Jerusalem crucified people literally all the time. 

Nothing unusual here. It was one of the ways that Rome kept things under control. It was how agitators were dealt with as a warning to others.

And, while it was indeed public and violent and awful, it was usual. 

I’m guessing that the everyday life of the city went on as Jesus carried that cross. Perhaps only a few of Jesus’ followers who were scattered along the way noticed, but most of the people in the City that day weren’t really paying attention. 

One more man to be crucified. One more life that was expendable to preserve the “peace of Rome.”

And, this Holy Week, I have wondered – how often do we miss the people travelling Sorrowful Ways all around us? Are suffering and sorrow so usual that we simply do not see it unless they smack us right in the face and affect us personally? 

How often do we fail to see the suffering, the violence, the sadness, the sorrow around us? If we miss the folks travelling on these Sorrowful Ways, how can we reach out to help them? And, if we fail to see the suffering and sorrow around us, do we perhaps risk our own minds becoming closed and our own hearts becoming hard ad uncaring hearts becoming hard and uncaring?

(PAUSE)

In a few moments, we will pray what the Prayer Book calls “The Solemn Collects.” 

We will pray for “people everywhere according to their needs.” We will pray for the church and for the nations of the world and those in authority. We will pray for those who suffer – the hungry and homeless, the sick and wounded, the lonely and fearful, the sorrowful and bereaved, those in prison, and those in mortal danger. We will pray for those who have not received the Gospel of Christ. 

I wonder – perhaps these prayers which are part of the Good Friday liturgy can help remove our complacency and inattention and remind us of all those travelling Sorrowful Ways. 

Perhaps we can pray these prayers today as a way to open our hearts and minds and eyes to see those close to us and those far away who need our love and help. 

Perhaps we can pray these prayers today to activate our hands and feet to do something to help.

Today we gaze on the One who walked the Sorrowful Way and hung on a cross to show us how far love will go, what love looks like when it is lived to its fullest, to its completeness. 

May that One be our model of love and compassion, so we can truly see all those around us – close to us and far away – who walk the Sorrowful Way. So that we can show others the love we see on a cross today. 

AMEN.