Good Friday - Celebration of the Lord's Passion

 With the reading of the Passion on Palm Sunday coming from the synoptic gospels and that on Good Friday coming from the Gospel of John we realize that even for this important and singular event the evangelists act as theologians. One example would be the use of hyssop to offer Jesus the sponge soaked in wine (Jn 19: 29) This can be compared to the Gospel of Matthew we heard last Sunday where the sponge, filled with sour wine, is offered to Jesus on a stick (Mtt 27: 48) Hyssop is more of a bush or shrub and is not practical for piercing a sponge. We understand better when we remember that in Exodus 12: 22 that the blood of the Passover Lamb was to be smeared on the lintel using a bunch of hyssop. In John, Jesus dies at the hour that the Passover lambs are sacrificed. It is clear therefore that John wants this interpretation of Jesus' death to be placed in our minds. Matthew, in his account, uses the word "Messiah" (Mtt 26: 63 and 68; 27:17and 22) four times. Matthew also uses "Messiah" three times in the genealogy of Jesus (Mtt 1: 1, 16 and 17) which is followed by another mention in Mtt 1: 18. It is clear that the concept of "messiah" has much greater significance for Matthew than it does for John. By comparing the Gospels we not only contemplate the truth of Jesus' death we also get the benefit of the interpretation of it by the evangelists.