By Nicholas Soellner
Connecting Liturgy and Life
Editor’s note: For 2026, the weekly “Connecting Faith and Life” column has been renamed “Connecting Liturgy and Life.” The column consists of reflections on Part Two of the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC), which focuses on the Liturgy and the Sacraments.
cf. CCC 1262-1274
Even though I know what’s coming, it never gets any easier. Every year, we read the Passion narrative, and every year, I don’t want to say the words. Even though, as Scott Hahn has said, “never was that sacred humanity so lovable, as when he was hanging on the cross, fulfilling this debt of satisfaction. Giving back to God out of love, more than our sins ever detracted from God,” it still turns my stomach to join in saying the words, “Crucify him!” A common theme of many Palm Sunday homilies is that the sins we commit in our lives are essentially echoing those words anew here and now. And yes, I know how the story ends. We don’t get Easter and the Resurrection without Christ’s death. But it still breaks my heart every time.
In Acts 2:22-24, St. Peter proclaims this lynchpin of the gospel, “Hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs which God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know — this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. But God raised him up, having loosed the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it.” The response of the crowd in Jerusalem was recorded: “Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ‘Brethren, what shall we do?’ And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38).
In the original Greek, the phrase “cut to the heart” shares the same root word used for the expression “heartbroken.” Hearing the Gospel often leads to the realization of our brokenness. “What shall I do?” is the question that is prompted in the heart when we are faced with a problem we don’t know how to solve. How often do we find ourselves thinking about ourselves as a problem to solve? “If only I were more ____, less ___, or if only I could stop ____– then I’d be lovable.” But God not only recognizes our remorse in our brokenness, but gives us the sacraments as a way forward. Religare, the Latin word from which we get the word “Religion,” means “to bind up,” as in, to bind what is broken or wounded, or to reestablish a broken connection or relationship. What else would Peter rightfully do in this moment other than invite them to come forward to allow God’s mercy to bind up that which is broken?
For us who are baptized, what are we called to do? As the catechism explains, “Reborn as sons of God (the baptized) must profess before men the faith they have received from God through the church, and participate in the apostolic missionary activity of the People of God” (CCC 1270). The gift of the Holy Spirit, received at baptism and then further poured out through Confirmation, is given to us not only as the means of fulfilling our missionary activity, but also serves as the chief catalyst for change in the hearts of the many who still need to hear the gospel proclaimed anew. Like a healing salve, the oils of Baptism tend the wounds of the broken and bind them through the apostolic mission of the Church. As St. Paul wrote, “In him you also, who have heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and have believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit.” That is why the salvation of the world is to be carried forward by the Church Jesus established.
For all the baptized, the call to repentance remains a lifelong journey. By virtue of our baptism, we have been consecrated for Christian religious worship and to give witness to the gospel through participation in the Mass and the witness of holy lives and practical charity (CCC 1273). As we rejoice in celebration of the Resurrection anew this Easter season, may the Holy Spirit continue to revitalize us in our efforts to love and serve the Lord — to one day hear the words, “Well done, good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of your master” (Matthew 25:21).