PASSION :- Courage to Suffer



Reflections on

Easter Week

Compassion & Courage

The week leading up to Easter Sunday begins on Palm Sunday. It is an important part of the Christian story. It starts with the triumph and joy of Palm Sunday, includes the torment and disappointment of Good Friday and ends with the Jubilation and Joy of Easter Sunday. The week tells the story  of 'the Passion of Jesus' . But what do we really mean by passion ?  Is it merely about suffering , death and despair or could it also have a deeper meaning ?  What could we learn from the example of Jesus' Passion ?  

Well obviously there are many answers to these questions. The Christian Story has been explored and reflected on for 2000 years and thousands of books, azrticles  and videos have been made. What I would like to do is to outline some recent reflections of mine that were instigated or ignited by recent events in Burma.


Aung San Kuu Kyi
Burmese Pro-Democracy Leader

I was listening to BBC Radio today ( Palm Sunday 1st April)  as it reported on the Burmese Elections.  The story of the pro-democracy movement in Burma is dominated by the courage and tenacity of a remarkable woman  + Aung San Kuu Kyi. She is the inspirational leader of the movement that has been struggling for liberty and freedom for several decades.


She delivered the BBC Reith Lectures in 2011. In these she commented upon the Burmese people's struggle for liberty. During her talk she noted that the word  Passion  had connections with suffering. However, she remarked that this was not a pointless, painful event but rather a choice both she, and the Burmese people were willing to make for their liberty and freedom. This was  not only an inspirational speech,  but also one that shone a light on the meaning of the word passion.


Passion, has an element of energy, focus and momentum about it. It is also linked to the word 
com-passion. Compassion means to be with and is a word strongly associated with many spiritual traditions not least Buddhism and Christianity.These two Faith Traditions share a lot. Both are founded on the teaching and example of a Great Teacher and both emphasise the importance of compassion.

Now Passion suggests energy and deep involvement. We can reflect on the things in life we are passionate about. Ultimately, to be passionate requires involvement. It requires that we enter into a relationship with the person or thing we feel passionate about. In that sense we give something of ourselves to it and in doing this we open ourselves up to the possibility of suffrering.


For Christians, as we move into the time of Passion-Tide, it is a timely reminder of the Life, Teaching and Example of Jesus the Christ. He came so that all could have Life and Freedom.His compassion ,  oneness with all of humanity, fuelled His life and sustained Him through the Passion of Easter. Therefore His  'suffering'  was freely undertaken. It is suffering rooted in real passion.

Suffering because of Passion  is a choice. It requires that the person making the choice does so with freedom. To be truly free and to exercise the liberty of choice can require loss and suffering but ultimately to be passionate is to be human. Whether we are reflecting on the struggle of the Burmese people for freedom or liberty, or on our own life - the example of Jesus anf His Passion has a message that can both guide and assist us as we travel throgh life