Good Friday Homily: Which Voice do I listen to?

There are so many voices yelling at us. 

 There are those voices from within our community & world that want demean us. 

 These voices say we are only worthy if we speak the correct language, vote a certain way;
we are worthy if we have the correct amount of money, live in the right neighborhood. 

 Voices saying we are worthy by virtue of where we were born, by the color of our skin, worthy by what our citizenship status is or is not. 
Voices that tell us we need to be the “correct” religion. 
Yet.. There is one voice that says: You are worthy. 
There are so many other voices that yell at us, telling us we need to have the most beautiful bodies, that we need to buy all the right things to be good; so many voices that yell at us that tell us how to act. 

 Voices that say we must have the best job that makes the most money, and we must devote all our hours to this job and ignore our spouses, our children, our friends 
And there is one voice that says: I love you. 
There are those voices in our minds that tell us we are stupid, we are lowly, that we are nothing; 
Voices that say we are alone. 
Voices that tell us we are inconvenient, bothersome, worthless. 
Voices that tell us we can do this or that. 

 One voice comes from the cross; 
this voice speaks in blood, tears, and sweat: 
“You are my brother. You are my sister. We are children of God. 
And NOTHING, NOBODY can take that away. I love you so much. YOU ARE WORTHY.  Look at how much I love you.” 

 This is the voice of freedom. 
This is the voice of salvation. 
This is the voice of Love. 

 As we come forward to adore this Cross...we come forward to say with our own voice: “Jesus...I hear you speaking to me those words of Love. Thank You.”

 ..Because by your Holy Cross, you have redeemed the world.

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