Fearless

By Greg Zambrano

The passion of Christ is a very violent and horrific event, but we should never be afraid of a crucifix – just respect and honor it.

Many courageous Christian men and women have stared at, venerated and exalted one. Valiant saints like Maximilian Kolbe, Edith Stein, Maria Goretti and others have given their lives for Christ through martyrdom. St. Ignatius of Antioch was martyred in the Roman Coliseum in 107 AD.

Thank God, the vast majority of Christians do not die this way.

The death that Christ is looking for – in us – is of our bad habits and sins. I find reflecting, walking and praying with the Stations of the Cross a good way to get centered in Christ.

Some time ago, during a difficult moment, I found my spiritual life stagnant no matter how much I prayed. A wise priest advised me to pray like I was speaking to Jesus as if he were in the room. This was very interesting to me. I was to use my imagination for the purest of forms – Christ.

With this in mind, I imagined Christ standing in front of me and prayed. When I applied this method to reflecting on the Stations of the Cross, I saw the cost of our salvation.

If I see that I caused Christ’s suffering, visualizing Jesus creates suffering in me. So, I started using this method to avoid the near occasion of sin.

Watching the movie, “The Passion of Christ,” is the perfect way to employ my imagination to gain salvation. I’m not seeing it like I would see any other Hollywood movie that shows terror, blood and agony. (It is a good idea to keep ourselves from watching these movies.) Keys to maintaining a pure imagination also involve monitoring what our children watch on TV and play using video games.