The Catholic Church is this week marking the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ. The events started with Palm Sunday being marked last Sunday, will continue this evening with the symbolic washing of the Apostles feet and the traditional Visits to the Seven Churches, while tomorrow, Good Friday processions will be held in various towns and villages before the feast of Easter, the Resurrected Christ, is celebrated on Sunday.

It is a time for reflection for the Catholic community worldwide, and Malta is no exception, as thousands are expected to throng churches and line up streets to take part in liturgical events as well as solemn processions tomorrow and joyous celebrations on Sunday.

There are various aspects that Catholics can think about during Holy Week.

For one thing, one can try to understand what led the people to greet Jesus with so much joy and love on Palm Sunday, only to turn against him in a matter of days, preferring to liberate Barabbas and condemn Christ to death.

What led to such a change of heart? Why can people be so manipulated by a few others? Why are people influenced so much by their leaders? Why was Pontius Pilate so afraid to take a decision, and left it to the crowd to decide?

One can also reflect on how Jesus was betrayed by one of his own disciples, with Judas scheming to hand over Jesus to be crucified. Another disciple, Peter, one of the closest friends Jesus had, denied knowing Him when confronted three times. Judas later hanged himself while Peter lived on to become the first Pope, the rock on which Jesus built his Church.

What led Judas to betray Jesus? Did he really believe that the betrayal would have led Jesus to emerge more powerful in the fight against the Romans? Why did Peter deny knowing Jesus? Did he think that saying he was one of the Apostles would have led to his death too, alongside his Master? Why did Judas and Peter react in such a different way? Why did the first despair and the latter repent? And where were the other 10 Apostles while Jesus was being tried, beaten and crucified?

The Passion of Jesus Christ is a story that is told over and over again, and yet there is always some new angle that one can think about. There is always a new aspect that we can lift and adapt to our everyday life.

If Christ had to be crucified today, what would be the world’s reaction to it? Would Christ have been thought as being a revolutionary who needs to be silenced, or would he have been considered as an idealist who creates controversy?

How would the media have reported his Crucifixion? So many people die, or are killed, every day, and few of them get a mention. Would the killing of Jesus Christ have made the front pages? Or would it have been relegated to a tiny snippet inside? It could be that it would have gone unreported too.

It is, as said earlier, a time for reflection. Believers, and even those who aren’t, should make it a point to stop, even for a few minutes, and think about what happened that night in the Garden of Gethsemane and the subsequent events that led to Jesus Christ’s Death and Resurrection.

There is always something to new to learn.