By Jenny Koch, Connecting Creed and Life
Editor’s note: For 2025, the weekly Connecting Faith and Life column will be renamed Connecting Creed and Life. To celebrate the 2025 Jubilee Year and the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, the columns will consist of reflections on the Nicene Creed, corresponding with related paragraphs in the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC).
“… he was crucified under Pontius Pilate, he suffered death and was buried” (Cf. CCC 587-594; 595-598)
My daughter asked me this year, on Palm Sunday, why certain parts of the Passion reading are highlighted. “It’s our part. We have to say it” was my simple reply. As a student of history, I always appreciate the yearly reminder to place myself in the crowds, accusing Jesus of blasphemy. It forces me to recall the chaos and division that led to the cross. It also demands my attention to my sins, and our connection to the cross. When we yell Crucify Him, it is as though we are standing right next to the Jews who accused him of blasphemy and wanted Him gone. Jesus had asked the Jews to believe in Him, but they didn’t listen. Their hearts were hardened. We hear in the Gospel of John “If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me. But if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, so that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.” (Jn 10:36-38. )
Still, their hearts were hardened. The Catechism reminds us that Jesus’ main mission – forgiving sins – was indeed a “stumbling block to the Jews.” (CCC 587) Jesus caused scandal. He forced the Jews to look beyond their law, beyond the sacred temple, and see the hearts of each person. Jesus ate with sinners, shared a table with unclean persons, all for the sake of their salvation. For whatever reasons – many of the Jews just could not do this. They just couldn’t wrap their minds around how Jesus was a part of God’s Plan. The Catechism calls this the “Sanhedrin’s tragic misunderstanding of Jesus. They judged that he deserved the death sentence as a blasphemer. (CCC 591).”
Our hearts can be hardened too, perhaps not realizing the power of forgiveness and/or ignoring the devastating consequences of our own sin. The Creed reminds us that “Jesus Christ suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried.” With these words, the gruesome reality of sin should strike us. Jesus was crucified and we are responsible. It had to be done, because of our human condition. While the Jews rejected Him – that tragic misunderstanding – we also believe that “sinners were the authors and the ministers of all the sufferings that the divine Redeemer endured.” (CCC 598)
So how do we soften our hearts and remain in His love? How do we listen to the Truth of who Jesus is and live this Truth in our daily lives? The month of June is dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. And this devotion may help us in pondering our place at the foot of the Cross. In 1899, Pope Leo XIII consecrated the entire world to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Some even call this the “great act” of his papacy. Leo XIII wrote “God, the author of every good, not long ago preserved our life by curing us of a dangerous disease. We now wish, by this increase of the honor paid to the Sacred Heart, that the memory of this great mercy should be brought prominently forward, and our gratitude be publicly acknowledged.”
In these first days of Pope Leo XIV’s papacy, we have heard him echo the wisdom of his celebrated predecessor, Leo XIII. Perhaps by reviving in our hearts and homes a new devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, we can place ourselves at the foot of the Cross, remembering his great sacrifice that set us free. Let us remember to examine our own hearts and look to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Pope Leo XIV reminds us, “Brothers and sisters, this is the hour for love! The heart of the Gospel is the love of God that makes us brothers and sisters. With my predecessor Leo XIII, we can ask ourselves today: If this criterion were to prevail in the world, would not every conflict cease and peace return?” Let’s turn to the Sacred Heart of Jesus this month for a deeper understanding of our sinful, human nature and need for conversion.