A fruitful arrangement for the Holy Week

The Holy Week at Sir Anthony Mamo Oncology Centre in our beloved apostolic Island of Malta has been blessed with many meaningful activities aimed at evangelization. The entrance of the Oncology Centre at Sir Anthony Mamo has surely been a case in point. Here, the employees working at the entrance of the Hospital got together to evangelize the patients, their loved ones and us, the staff members. They helped us meditate on the passion, death and resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ thanks to the Easter arrangements they put up.

On the beautiful black carpet they put the instruments of Christ’s passion. The instruments of Christ’s passion or as their Latin term dubs them Arma Christi involve the objects related to the Passion of Jesus Christ as found in Christian symbolism as well as art. Normally one would find them surround a cross or a figure of Christ, the Man of Sorrows as the Prophet Isaiah depicts him. They are either put around the composition or even held by angels. The Arma Christi involves the Cross, Holy Lance, Holy Sponge, Holy Chalice and Holy nails.

In one of his tweets, Pope Francis said: In his passion, Jesus took upon himself all our suffering. He knows the meaning of pain, he understands and comforts us, giving us strength. As Sr Nuala Kenny, who is a Sister of Charity of Halifax, Medical Doctor, ethicist and author, wrote: In sacrificing Himself, Jesus gave a new meaning to sickness, dying and all human suffering.

Most of all the Arma Christi shows that Jesus’ love for us was and is truly till the end! To Jesus can easily be applied what Pope Francis said: True love does not pay attention to the evil it suffers. It rejoices in doing good.

Lord, use the Arma Christi beautifully arranged and displayed at the Sir Anthony Mamo Oncology Centre’s entrance to teach us how to love like you, till the very end, even if we suffer for the good you do in and through us. Amen.

Fr Mario Attard OFM Cap