If you are a regular viewer of Top of the Morning segments with Bishop David Malloy seen each weekday morning on the local NBC affiliate, WREX-Channel 13, you may notice the background changes from time to time. 

 

One of the many tasks I do here at the Diocese of Rockford is to “dress the set” for those Top of the Morning segments and also for the Catholic Mass seen on the same channel every Sunday morning.

 

Dressing the set means adding simple, appropriate décor according to the seasons and making sure the colors used in the background match the liturgical season. 

 

For Lent, the background features three crosses which have been used in our broadcasts for many years along with some gathered from offices in the Diocesan Administration Center. They of course represent the three crosses at Calvary. They sit upon purple cloths — the color of the penitential season of Lent.

Alongside the crosses is a stone to represent the tomb hewn from rock where Jesus would be laid.  The rock actually comes from the remnants of stone used to construct the Our Lady of Guadalupe prayer garden at the Cathedral of St. Peter. And finally, there is a crown of thorns I recently ordered from a liturgical supply house. 

 

Besides the actual reflection provided by Bishop Malloy, the décor is put in place to remind us of what our faith teaches and to reinforce it.

 

I got a personal reminder of the agony of Lent when I opened the package in which the new crown of thorns was delivered. And I can tell you that the new crown of thorns is the real deal. This fact quickly became apparent when I opened the package and got immediately stuck by the sharp thorns. In that quick second of “ouch” came the realization of what this crown really represents. As I looked at the little marks on my fingers, I also took a good hard look at the uncomfortable twists of the wreath and the sharpness of the points on the thorns themselves.  It made me think of what our Lord Jesus really must have suffered and how a little poke on the finger pales in comparison to an angry soldier thrusting such a circle of so many spikes deep into the tender and thin flesh of Jesus’ head. 

 

As I reflected on the reality of what Jesus suffered, I thought of the time Bishop Thomas G. Doran took the entire staff of the Diocesan Administration Center to see the Passion of Christ. As we discussed the movie later, some folks mentioned how gory the movie was. I recall Bishop Doran saying, “I am sure the real scene was much worse than any movie portrayal.” 

 

Why must we relive that agony year after year?  It’s so hard to be reminded of the horrific suffering of Jesus and then each year to mouth the awful words “crucify him, crucify him,” as the Passion is recited. 

 

Would we say those words if we had been there? Would we be so terrible and go along with the crowd and condemn Him? Would we hide in fear of being condemned too because we followed Jesus? It is hard to think about and hard to reenact. 

 

But then there come reminders that makes all the rest come into view. Like the lessons our priests give us at Lenten missions and in their homilies.  Recently, Father Timothy Barr of Freeport visited our parish and talked about the Paschal Mystery and what it means.  He talked of the suffering but reminded us that Jesus bore it all to assure us of His love. Father Barr explained that we are given hope in our faith, our sacraments and in the fact that Jesus became one of us and showed us how to live so we can live with Him. 

 

As we wind down this Lenten season, perhaps we all can look for those reminders and backgrounds to strengthen our faith, hope and charity. And even when the reminders are uncomfortable, they are necessary for our eternal life.