Consummatum est. It is finished. Jesus, our King born to die, now finishes his course. Completing His sacrifice in adoration of the Father’s will, His high priestly act, we receive of his fullness, grace upon grace, the cause of our salvation and all grace. Let us ponder this mystery as we read these homilies of Pope Saint Leo the Great.
Pope Saint Leo the Great on the “Condescension of Compassion” in the Incarnation:
He took the nature of a servant without stain of sin, enlarging our humanity without diminishing his divinity. He emptied himself; though invisible he made himself visible, though Creator and Lord of all things he chose to be one of us mortal men. Yet this was the condescension of compassion, not the loss of omnipotence. So he who in the nature of God had created man, became in the nature of a servant, man himself.
Thus the Son of God enters this lowly world. He comes down from the throne of heaven, yet does not separate himself from the Father’s glory. He is born in a new condition, by a new birth.
He was born in a new condition, for, invisible in his own nature, he became visible in ours. Beyond our grasp, he chose to come within our grasp. Existing before time began, he began to exist at a moment in time. Lord of the universe, he hid his infinite glory and took the nature of a servant. Incapable of suffering as God, he did not refuse to be a man, capable of suffering. Immortal, he chose to be subject to the laws of death.[i]
Pope Saint Leo the Great “No one, however weak, is denied a share in the victory of the cross. No one is beyond the help of the prayer of Christ.”
True reverence for the Lord’s passion means fixing the eyes of our heart on Jesus crucified and recognizing in him our own humanity. The earth – our earthly nature – should tremble at the suffering of its Redeemer. The rocks – the hearts of unbelievers – should burst asunder. The dead, imprisoned in the tombs of their mortality, should come forth, the massive stones now ripped apart. Foreshadowings of the future resurrection should appear in the holy city, the Church of God: what is to happen to our bodies should now take place in our hearts.
No one, however weak, is denied a share in the victory of the cross. No one is beyond the help of the prayer of Christ. His prayer brought benefit to the multitude that raged against him. How much more does it bring to those who turn to him in repentance…
The Christian people are invited to share the riches of paradise. All who have been reborn have the way open before them to return to their native land, from which they had been exiled. Unless indeed they close off for themselves the path that could be opened before the faith of a thief.
The business of this life should not preoccupy us with its anxiety and pride, so that we no longer strive with all the love of our heart to be like our Redeemer, and to follow his example. Everything that he did or suffered was for our salvation: he wanted his body to share the goodness of its head…
The body that lay lifeless in the tomb is ours. The body that rose again on the third day is ours. The body that ascended above all the heights of heaven to the right hand of the Father’s glory is ours. If then we walk in the way of his commandments, and are not ashamed to acknowledge the price he paid for our salvation in a lowly body, we too are to rise to share his glory. The promise he made will be fulfilled in the sight of all: Whoever acknowledges me before men, I too will acknowledge him before my Father who is in heaven.[ii]
Read the whole sermons from Pope Saint Leo the Great:
From a letter by Saint Leo the Great, pope | The Mystery of Man’s Reconciliation with God for the Solemnity of the Annunciation
From a sermon by St. Leo the Great, pope |Contemplating the Lord’s Passion
van Dyck, Anthony. “Christ Crucified with the Virgin, Saint John and Mary Magdalene.” WikiMedia Commons, April 5, 2016. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:CrucifixionVanDyckLouvre.jpg.
Brozino, Agnolo. “Deposition of Christ.” WikiMedia Commons, September 4, 2012. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Deposition_of_Christ_C2RMF.jpg.
[i] Pope Saint Leo, the Great. “The Mystery of Man’s Reconciliation with God.” Annunciation – Office of Readings. Accessed March 27, 2021. http://www.liturgies.net/saints/annunciation/officeofreadings.htm.
(Epist. 28 ad Flavianum 3-4: PL 54, 763-767)
[ii] Great, Leo the. “Meditating on Christ’s Passion-Leo the Great.” Crossroads Initiative, June 30, 2016. https://www.crossroadsinitiative.com/media/articles/meditating-on-christs-passion-leo-the-great/. Office of Readings for Thursday, Fourth Week of Lent.
(Sermo 15, De Passione Domini, 3-4; PL 54, 366-367)
Posted for Good Friday | April 2, 2021
