Confidence: not a word one might first associate with Good Friday. But in today’s reading from Hebrews the word stood out for me, and seemed worthy of reflection:
So let us confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy and to find grace for timely help.
Confidence is not the first thought that comes to mind on Good Friday. The first sense of encountering Jesus might be sadness and mourning. The sense of ourselves might be guilt, sorrow, and contrition. As a community, we latch onto traditions and the group sense of liturgy and piety.
One oft-cited meme among Catholics concerns a possible meeting with Jesus: wouldn’t you fall to your knees? Some people would. The author of the letter to the Hebrews would seem to counsel we stand talk and walk to the experience of grace.
Catholic Sensibility 