{"id":10607,"date":"2026-02-02T11:44:56","date_gmt":"2026-02-02T17:44:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/passionist.org\/?p=10607"},"modified":"2026-02-06T08:52:42","modified_gmt":"2026-02-06T14:52:42","slug":"journeying-together-in-prayer-and-reflection","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/passionist.org\/es\/2026\/02\/02\/journeying-together-in-prayer-and-reflection\/","title":{"rendered":"Lent and the Passion: St. Paul of the Cross and the Passionist Way"},"content":{"rendered":"

For St. Paul of the Cross, Lent was a sacred season to return again and again to the Cross, where God\u2019s love is most clearly revealed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cThe Passion of Jesus Christ is the greatest and most overwhelming work of the love of God.\u201d <\/p>\nSan Pablo de la Cruz<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

For Paul, Lent was a privileged time to contemplate that love and allow it to change the heart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Passion at the Center of Paul\u2019s Life<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

For St. Paul of the Cross, the Passion of Jesus was the center of his spiritual life. He believed that in Christ crucified we see who God truly is \u2014 a God who enters fully into human suffering out of love. Born in 1694 in Italy, Paul was drawn early to prayer and solitude, but it was his deep meditation on the Passion that shaped his vocation and mission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Paul encouraged others to keep the Cross close, saying, \u201cLet the Passion of Jesus be always in your hearts.\u201d<\/em> During Lent especially, he believed that reflecting on Christ\u2019s suffering opened the door to real conversion and renewed faith.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Learning to Love at the Cross<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Paul taught that meditation on the Passion was not meant to lead to sadness, but to love. The wounds of Christ revealed mercy, patience and compassion. Lent, for Paul, was a school of love where prayer, fasting and sacrifice helped believers grow in generosity and tenderness toward others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He often reminded those he guided, \u201cPlace yourself at the foot of the Cross, and you will learn all virtues.\u201d<\/em> True devotion to the Passion, he insisted, always showed itself in how we treat others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Standing With the Crucified Today<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of Paul\u2019s most powerful insights was that Christ continues to suffer in the world. To remember the Passion means standing with the crucified of today \u2014 the poor, the lonely, the sick and the forgotten. Lent calls the Church to open its eyes and heart to this reality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Paul urged believers not to turn away from suffering, but to meet it with love shaped by the Cross. \u201cCompassion,\u201d<\/em> he wrote, \u201cis born from union with the Crucified.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Passionists and the Lenten Journey<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Out of Paul\u2019s devotion came the Congregaci\u00f3n de la Pasi\u00f3n de Jesucristo<\/a>, known as the Passionists. Founded in 1720, the community exists to keep alive the memory of the Passion through prayer, preaching and service. Lent remains a central season for Passionists, renewing their call to contemplation and mission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Passionist sign worn on the habit serves as a visible reminder that the Passion is not only a past event, but a living call to love wherever suffering is present.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From the Cross to New Life<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

St. Paul of the Cross never separated the Passion from the Resurrection. The Cross always points toward hope. Christ enters suffering not to glorify pain, but to redeem it and bring new life. Paul expressed this trust simply and beautifully: \u201cIn the Cross is found the true light.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lent, then, is a journey of trust \u2014 walking with Christ through suffering toward Easter joy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Lenten Invitation<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Para quienes abrazan el carisma pasionista, la Cuaresma se convierte en una escuela compartida de la Cruz. Recordar la Pasi\u00f3n de Jes\u00fas es aliarnos con \u00c9l en el sufrimiento del mundo y permitir que su amor sufriente nos transforme en un pueblo de esperanza y compasi\u00f3n fiel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n