September 14, 2025.
“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.”. (Jn 3, 14-17)
God’s love is continually manifested in many ways, but the incarnation, suffering, death, and resurrection of Christ, together with his presence in the Eucharist, is the supreme and unsurpassable demonstration of that love. Seeing Christ crucified draws us to him, and in drawing us to him, it touches our hearts and thus gives rise to gratitude, the desire to love more each day the one who has loved us so much. The cross, with the Crucified One nailed to it, is proof of an infinite love that far surpasses any other gift we could receive from God: money, work, health… We often do not understand God’s silence, but that silence is actually broken by the crucified Christ. When we see him, we must exclaim: “I do not understand why you allow this or that to happen to me, but I do not doubt your love for me, because more valuable than this miracle I ask of you is the fact that you died for me to forgive my sins and open the gates of heaven to me”.
And if this happens to us with Christ, it can also happen to others, not only seeing Him crucified, but seeing ourselves when we are suffering and, despite that, we do not despair, we do not become bitter, we do not turn away from Him, and it is from Him that we draw the strength to continue fighting, to forgive, to start again, to love even those who do not deserve it because they have hurt us or are hurting us. In this way, our suffering can become a testimony that draws people not to us, but to Christ, because, as St. Paul said, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” This is the best example we can give to our family members when they are far from God.
Intentions: Contemplate the Crucified One, thank Him for His love, and allow yourself to be drawn to Him. Unite yourself to Him in your own cross to bear witness that with Christ you can be happy even when you are suffering.