Oct 8 Wed
Is it shameful to ask?
In his catechesis at the Wednesday General Audience, Pope Leo XIV focused on Jesus’ final words on the Cross— “I thirst” and “It is finished.”
As Jesus hung on the Cross and humanity faced its most luminous yet darkest moment, those two sentences reveal his entire lifetime, making known the whole existence of the Son of God.
Jesus appears on the Cross as a “supplicant for love,” not as a victorious hero. He humbly asks for what He, alone, cannot give to Himself in any way, our love.
Jesus’ thirst on the Cross was not only the physiological need of a tortured body, but also an expression of a profound desire: that of love, of relationship, of communion.
It is the silent cry of a God who, having wished to share everything of our human condition, also lets Himself be overcome by this thirst for us. Our God is not ashamed to beg for a sip, because in that gesture, He tells us that love, to be true, must also learn to ask and not only to give.
In expressing His thirst, Jesus shows that we cannot be self-sufficient or save ourselves, since His next words, “It is finished,” come only after He receives and accepts a sponge soaked with vinegar.
Love has made itself needy, and precisely for this reason, it has accomplished its work.
The Christian paradox is that God saves not by doing, but by letting Himself be done unto; not defeating evil with force, but by accepting the weakness of love to the very end.
Salvation is not found in autonomy, but in humbly recognizing one’s own need and in being able to express it freely.
Humanity finds fulfillment in trust, which opens us up to true hope, since even the Son of God could not be self-sufficient, thirsting as He did for love, meaning, and justice.
Jesus saves us by showing us that asking is not unworthy, but fulfilling. It is the way out of the darkness of sin to re-enter the space of communion.
Ever since the beginning, sin has produced shame. But forgiveness – real forgiveness – is born when we recognize our need and no longer fear rejection.
As He thirsted on the Cross, Jesus expresses the wounded cry of humanity for living water; when we utter this cry, it leads us to God and unites us to Him.
In conclusion, Pope Leo XIV invited Christians to find joy and true fulfillment in fraternity, in simple life, in the art of asking without shame, and offering what we can, without ulterior motives.
Let us not be afraid to ask, especially when it seems to us that we do not deserve. Let us not be ashamed to reach out our hand. It is right there, in that humble gesture, that salvation hides, for we recognize that we need Him. Thus, human fragility is a bridge towards heaven.