It has been said that to love someone is to risk having oneâs heart broken. Or we say things along the lines of âLove always costs something; if it costs you nothing, it is not love.â Or CS Lewis's wrote: âTo love at all is to be vulnerable.â or Euripides said âThe greater the love, the greater the sorrow when it is lost.â It is true, when we love, we may get hurt. When those we love suffer or die, our hearts break, and our tears become the visible sign of that breaking. In todayâs Gospel, we see Jesus weeping over the city of Jerusalem. His tears are not of frustration or anger, but of love; the love of one who longs for his people to find peace. He desired only what was best for them, as true love always does. Yet he foresaw that their rejection of his message. Their refusal to listen to the voice of God spoken through him, would ultimately lead to destruction and sorrow.
The Lord still weeps today. He weeps whenever those whom he loves (which is everyone!) turn away from the path that leads to peace. His love is constant, yet he will never force our hearts. All he can do is weep when we reject the grace he offers. And yet, just as he weeps through our compassion, he also rejoices through our goodness. Whenever we grieve for the pain of our world â for violence, injustice, or hatred â it is Christâs own heart that moves within us. But whenever we bring light where there is darkness, mercy where there is bitterness, and love where there is fear, the Lord rejoices in us. For then, if we are close to God, our hearts move and beat the way God's hearts moves and beats.
Today's canvas is huge. This monumental work Flevit super illam, 1892, measures 304 Ã 555 cm. The artist Enrique Simonet places Christ on the Mount of Olives, gazing across the valley at Jerusalem and weeping over the city in sorrow and compassion. Behind him the Temple stands faintly in the twilight, disciples and onlookers surround him, and the soft luminous sky reflects the coming destruction he foretells. The Spanish painter Enrique Simonet Lombardo was born in Valencia, initially trained in ecclesiastical studies before devoting himself to art; he studied at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Carlos and later in Rome, travelled to the Holy Land to document biblical scenery, and achieved international acclaim for his masterful, realist canvases.
