The distasteful spoofing of crucifixion

 

A year ago I posted a blog entitled ‘Catholic Church should stop crucifixion, self-flagellation.’

Every Lenten season we see real simulation of self-castigation by fanatics as their way of atoning for their sins.

To these ill-advised penitents, their ignorance about the significance of Christ’s death on the cross has made their own painful acts nonsensical, as it is unwarranted, making the whole tableau pitiable and sadly entertaining only to the curious foreigners.

If these seemingly remorseful ‘devotees’ does not know any better, who would come to explain to them their anomalous actions in relation to the real Christian beliefs and give them enlightenment and relief?

Yes, that is right, the Catholic Church and its hierarchy. It is their mandate to educate the faithful about the beliefs and teachings of the Christian religion. It is their responsibility to preach and make known that man’s own crucifixion, in this day and age, is nothing but absurdity and distasteful spoofing of Christ’s greatest sacrifice made for humanity on the cross.

It behooves on the Catholic Church hierarchy, therefore, that understanding and conviction are well ingrained in the minds of the religious about the meaning/purpose of Christ’s death on the cross.

Christian theology teaches that Jesus Christ’s death provided the perfect atoning sacrifice for the sins of all mankind.

The death of Jesus was a unique, one of a kind, once for all death that ransomed mankind from sin and satisfied the righteousness of God and made it possible for man to once again have a personal relationship with God.

We are told two truths concerning the meaning of Christ’s death.  It was for sins.  It was for the unrighteous.  It was punishment for sins and yet we have already seen that Christ did not sin.  So whose sin was He punished for? We are given the answer.  He was punished for the sins of the unrighteous.  When he died, He was acting on behalf of others. And this pleased His Father so much so that His resurrection followed.

For someone, therefore, to be nailed on the cross to save himself from sin – past, present and future – and his family from any form of sickness is a folly, and if at all, a wishful thinking.

It has already been done. It will serve us well to meditate Christ’s passion and death on the cross.

We only have to understand it, believe it, and live by it.

Catholic Church should stop crucifixion, self-flagellation

Nothing wrong being a copycat.

People from all over the world are doing it, too.

We copy designer originals.

We mimic Lady Gaga’s outrageous costume and looks.

We imitate accents – ask any call center agents.

But, we, Filipinos, are taking our apery preposterously farther.

Every Holy Week some of our brothers put up a show looking like Christ, dressing like Christ and depicting the suffering of Christ until his ‘death’ on the cross.

As a finale, some gets as real as it can be by being nailed to the cross.

All, in the name of repentance!

Among the penitents, however, most choose self-flagellation, not because it indulges a little less suffering, for that is neither here or there.

The question is: are these practices – this grim, outward expression of compunction and atonement for sins, still acceptable and needed in this time and age?

Being the third largest Catholic country in the world, shouldn’t the leaders of the Church start preaching the real meaning of repentance and the appropriate manner by which one should make amends and do penance?

Let us stop being a nation of twisted religious beliefs. There is only one Jesus Christ who suffered and died brutally to save humanity.

Nobody should be making a travesty of His fate, for doing it means totally nothing, but a big folly.

Repentance is not about the re-enactment of Christ’s notorious suffering and painful, public death by crucifixion.

Repentance is a solemn reflection and contemplation of our faith on whether or not we have become better Christians as we age.

Either the Catholic hierarchy puts a stop to this religious chicanery that is being feasted on by busybodies from here and abroad or expect the Department of Health (DOH) to be repeating, like a broken record every Holy Week, their warning on the health risk with these kinds of superstitious practices performed by penitents, which at best is absurd and ungodly at worst.