{"id":65,"date":"2015-04-02T14:11:00","date_gmt":"2015-04-02T14:11:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/labmind\/2015\/04\/encounter-with-christs-power.html"},"modified":"2016-03-25T17:26:25","modified_gmt":"2016-03-25T22:26:25","slug":"encounter-with-christs-power","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/labmind\/2015\/04\/encounter-with-christs-power.html","title":{"rendered":"Encounter with Christ\u2019s Power"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>
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I stood silently at the edge of the square of San Lorenzo waiting, occasionally sitting on the concrete curb to give my aching legs a deserved rest. \u00a0The night was warm but not enough to make me sweat. \u00a0I was restless, yet I anticipated the wait was certainly worth enduring. \u00a0With my legs stretched out into the street, I fixed my tired and hazy eyes on the closed wooden doors of the small church on the opposite side of the square. \u00a0I did not wait alone. \u00a0Thousands had gathered to catch a glimpse of El Se\u00f1or del Gran Poder, the patron of Seville.<\/div>\n

After a magnificent Holy Thursday liturgy at the cathedral, I had journeyed through Seville\u2019s winding streets to patiently wait for the madrugada procession to begin. \u00a0I had never seen a rendition of Seville\u2019s beloved patron saint and his name intrigued me. \u00a0I imagined him either sitting triumphantly on a throne with rays of sunlight gloriously emerging from behind an imposing throne or sitting with one right hand elevated in blessing and the other holding Scripture reminiscent of the traditional Greek pantocrator. \u00a0What an appropriate name for the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, the creator and sustainer of all that exists, the Lord of Great Power.<\/p>\n

Suddenly the wait came to an end. \u00a0A few minutes past midnight, in the first minutes of Good Friday, a loud clash signaled the doors of the church were being unlocked and they were soon opened. \u00a0The assembled crowd fell silent immediately, every eye fixed on the dark doorway. \u00a0Penitents began emerging from inside, walking solemnly in silence. \u00a0Dark hoods concealed their identity, only two small holes revealed their eyes. \u00a0Every penitent reverently carried a tall, dark orange candle. \u00a0I soon became bored with the endless stream of penitents, when will the Se\u00f1or del Gran Poder emerge?<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n

Looking across the square I caught a glimpse of gold and silver softly glimmering, reflecting the light of the lamps on the paso and the few lights inside the church. \u00a0Christ emerged triumphantly and powerfully from the church that bears his name, Se\u00f1or del Gran Poder. \u00a0I was stunned. \u00a0I had been terribly wrong. \u00a0The power of Christ does not rest on lofty thrones or in a mighty pantocrator depiction. \u00a0The power of Jesus Christ is the cross. \u00a0The 17th century rendition of Christ in all his power had our Lord carrying the cross, the source of his power.<\/p>\n

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The Lord of Great Power carried the cross triumphantly out of the Church into San Lorenzo Square while scores of men below the paso steadily carried him on the way to the cathedral. \u00a0As the image reached the opposite end of the square closer to where I stood, the captain of the men ordered the image to be lowered by hammering onto the wood of the paso. \u00a0A woman emerged from a balcony over me and the silence was broken by the most haunting tune, a saeta to El Se\u00f1or del Gran Poder. \u00a0The richness of the sound filled my ears. \u00a0It became almost unbearable for me to hear the saeta as tears streamed down my eyes while my startled senses did not know how to take in such solemn and beautiful moment.<\/p>\n

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Unfortunately for me the saeta ended, the paso was raised and it continued on its way to the cathedral to venerate Jesus Christ truly present at the altar of repose. \u00a0Seven hours later, as the sun rose over Seville, the image would return to the same square and back into the church. \u00a0The encounter at San Lorenzo allowed me to experience the Paschal Mystery by contemplating the cross of Christ and at the same time, drawing from it strength and new life that the resurrection brings.<\/p>\n

Written for The Southern Cross<\/i><\/p>\n

Pictures are mine, all rights reserved.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I stood silently at the edge of the square of San Lorenzo waiting, occasionally sitting on the concrete curb to give my aching legs a deserved rest. \u00a0The night was warm but not enough to make me sweat. \u00a0I was restless, yet I anticipated the wait was certainly worth enduring. \u00a0With my legs stretched out […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2533,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-65","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nEncounter with Christ\u2019s Power<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"I stood silently at the edge of the square of San Lorenzo waiting, occasionally sitting on the concrete curb to give my aching legs a deserved rest. \u00a0The\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, 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