“This time of trial is over for you because it is all over for me. Move along and then, give one more step and rest in the middle of the way. From what I said to you; time will have the desired effect”. Letter 30.

 The Gospel of Luke began with Jesus’ trial.  Whenever there is a trial, there is a verdict. Is He, however, the only one facing charges? The response is “No.” The trial of Jesus remains ongoing. The trial of the Jewish leaders was the first. They were being condemned face to face with Jesus, the innocent one, for their hypocrisy, dishonesty, greed, and perhaps envy. Pilate was also on trial, along with the Romans, for being corrupt and indifferent to the needs of the people. The twelve Apostles who were not present during the trial also tried invisibly for denial, betrayal, and forsaking a friend in need. Passers-by were also put through their paces due to their superficiality and narrowness of faith. That’s why they said, “Get down from the Cross and save yourself; isn’t it true that you are God?”  The sins of the Jewish leaders, the sins of the Apostles, and the sins of the passing crowds are nevertheless our sins. For thirty pieces of silver, deception, hypocrisy, bitterness, envy, lack of sensitivity to the poor, bribery, forsaking a friend in need, denial, and betrayal.  When in distress, there is no more stance for what is right due to superficial faith.

The trial occurred, two thousand years ago, but it appeared that the trial was unending because Jesus was even being tried, mocked, and allowed to be crucified.  Nevertheless, not only that we are on trial now, but we are also constantly pretending, jealous, and dishonest. We are still having to contend with the numbness to the poor, and the needs of another soul.  We are not bothered with the pleading of the human soul, just like the government was in Jesus’ time.

We are also on trial in these Gospel accounts of our Lord Jesus. The Jewish leaders, Roman leaders, the Apostles, and the crowd were all put on trial and found guilty. On the contrary, the debtor is not required to pay, and those who are not in debt have already paid for everything. That is the mystery or the good news of Palm Sunday. Innocents pay for the punishment of the guilty, and the guilty whose punishment has been paid for remain numb, ungrateful, and forgetful.

Our sinfulness, indifference, numbness, and superficial faith have been paid for.  Our sin has been redeemed and yet we remained ungrateful and are still forgetful, are still cold, and do not want to get involved.

Let us not continue living on the sins of forgetfulness, and ingratitude. Rather, let us be the person who always remembers the goodness of God in our life, grateful for his mercy. What good do you have that you did not receive from God? That same virtue that cost you nothing, and which others do not have, take good care of it and be grateful to the one who gave it to you. P. Palau. This was the strong advice of Blessed Francisco Palau to cultivate a kind of strong virtue. We should not disregard and despise them. Encouraging us to transplant it to the brink of the water of grace, to elevate, a supernatural end, and there we will see the new aspect it will take with us.