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During Lent, the idea of a spiritual passage through the desert resonates with many. It's a time often associated with deep reflection and introspection, sometimes leading individuals to confront elements of their past as if facing a mirror through the sands. This year, Elizabeth Scalia, an editor at large for OSV, describes a profound spiritual experience during this season, finding herself spiritually in the tomb of Christ.
Scalia recounts a moment of wonder when the prayers of Lent led her to perceive herself in such a historically significant space. In this contemplative moment, she finds herself questioning: “What am I doing here… It’s not Holy Saturday! This has not happened yet, so why am I here?”
Reflecting on the chronology of events outside the bounds of time, Scalia accepts the timeless occurrence of Christ’s death and resurrection: “One of the gifts of the Rosary is that it helps us to place ourselves at these moments...”
She observes how, despite the unusual timing of this spiritual encounter early in Lent, the experience felt oddly necessary. She reveals the recurrent question that lingered in her mind: “Why am I brought here, before this shroud, my Lord’s bruised and bloodied body beneath it?”
Scalia describes grappling with the weight of personal challenges in her life, where many around her are in need of healing and restoration. This reflection leads her to bring these concerns into her prayers, as she imagines a dialogue with Christ: “Lord, behold your little ones! He needs a job; she has cancer; she can’t walk anymore; they are apart … Lord, they beg your restoration…” She perceives this as a calling to witness spiritual and physical restoration, believing that “the energy of light and life” could bring forth healing.
Describing the restorative light, she emphasizes a moment of cosmic energy, transformative yet not destructive: “the atomic moment unbearable, not survivable by ordinary things and people.” It's a light that promises, “For I will restore health to you, and your wounds I will heal” (Jer 30:17).
In this reflection, Scalia invites others to join her spiritually in the tomb, to witness this mystical renewal, proclaiming it as a moment of eternal restoration and hope.
Elizabeth Scalia is the editor at large for OSV and shares her reflections on social media as well. "Follow her on X @theanchoress."
"It is Good"Holy Week/TriduumLentOpinion
