THE BROKEN CHRIST
The Broken Christ or as it is known in México “Cristo Roto” may not have liturgical, doctrinal or biblical teaching but a strong spirituality of seeing and treating our brokenness and that of our brothers and sisters in the Broken Christ.
The image of the Broken Christ made a very strong and powerful impression on me the first I saw it. It was during one of my regular visits with some extraordinary Eucharistic ministers to confess and give communion to the sick and early that I came across the image in a home.
My initial thought was that it must have been an image of the crucifix of Christ that the cross must have fallen off, with the right arm and the right leg has broken off. But, I was completely wrong. The Broken Christ has no right arm or right leg as well as a Cross.
STORY AND HISTORY OF THE BROKEN CHRIST IN MÉXICO
Upon enquiry, the sick whom I visited gladly told me the story and history of the Broken Christ. He told me, it is an image found in the Mexican state of Aguascalientes and in a municipal called San Jose Garcia. An image that measures 25 meters and is mounted on a 3 meter base of ready-mixed concrete and reinforced steel giving a total height of 28 meters.
Where the Sanctuary of the Broken Christ is located on an island. As such, access to the sanctuary is by boat used as transport from the mainland. The people of San Jose Garcia and indeed the whole of México and other devotees the Broken Christ implore him in the question of health, job and prosperity in life´s endeavours. It is mostly visited in the Holy Week for prayers and devotion as well as touristic attractions.
Something in me was moved by the image of the Broken Christ. Hence, out of curiosity, I decided to investigate more about this remarkably striking, deep and penetrative image. Thanks to one of the ministers who accompanied I got a poetic book on the Broken Christ written by a Mexican Jesuit: Father Ramón Cué Romano S.J., “MI CRISTO ROTO” that is (MY BROKEN CHRIST).
MY CURIOSITY, MY INVESTIGATION AND MY DEVOTION TO THE BROKEN CHRIST.
My investigation and curiosity about the Broken Christ led me to visit the sanctuary in 2019 during my annual internal holiday in Mexico. I have also this precious image of the Broken Christ on my altar. It was and will remain an unforgettable experience.
Last year, during Lenten and the Holy Week, at the peak of the first wave of the covid-19 pandemic. This image became the centre of my Lenten and Holy Week reflection on the passion and death of Jesus Christ.
Then, I decided to transmit on live Facebook a moment of some penitential or mercy songs with the image in the background as well as photography of the image. I got some reactions from my viewers in Nigeria. They challenge the brokenness of Christ’s arm and leg with a biblical quotation.
For these viewers, the Broken Christ with one arm and one leg make no sense of meaning. Hence, they cited these scriptural passages: “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him from them all. 20He protects all his bones; not one of them will be broken” (Ps 34: 19-20). “But coming to Jesus, when they saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs…. For these things came to pass to fulfil the Scripture, ´Not a bone of Him shall be broken.´” (John 19: 33, 36)
Indeed, Christ at his passion and death had no broken bone, yet this brokenness of Christ relates to us. Just like the passion and death of Christ was supposed to be our own suffering, death and condemnation and He took them upon himself to heal and make us whole.
The brokenness of God or the Brokenness of Christ in this image of the Broken Christ may not be theological or biblical yet it speaks volume about our brokenness and the brokenness of our brothers and sisters.
Reflecting along with Ramón Cue poetic reflection on the Broken Christ, we see the Broken Christ that is a reminder and a challenge to us in an age of over religiosity with no spiritual transformation to love or behold the Christ in the mutilated and suffering humanity.
THE BROKEN CHRIST WITHOUT A CROSS
The Broken Christ has no cross because the cross of Christ is now behind the many broken people and situations of life. The condition of life of our many brothers and sisters is one of abject poverty, oppression, and marginalization, as well as damage, manipulated, controlled, abused and used by the haves, advantaged and powerful.
In this way, the cross of the Broken Christ is in the suffering and miserable humanity, their conditions and situation in the world. Hence, He needed no cross because these suffering people complete the crucifixion on Christ brokenness and the cross.
Hence, as Cue puts it, “there could be a Christ without the cross, and also, a cross without a Christ.” This is because we could bring together the broken Christ and our crosses as well as the crosses of our broken brothers and sisters. In this manner, our crosses and brokenness without Christ are completed in the brokenness of Christ even without a cross.
In other words, we have a Christ, a Broken Christ without a cross because we complete Christ as the cross through our life´s difficulties, pains, sufferings and brokenness. This implies that even without the cross, Christ is not resting. He still continues to suffer in all suffering and broken people.
THE BROKEN CHRIST WITHOUT RIGHT ARM AND RIGHT LEG
We were created whole and complete. However, we suffer a lot of incompleteness along life´s journey. The hardships we face, the diseases that plague us, the battery of life through disappointments, failures, and unrealized dreams, relationships or personal or collective goal are all parts of our incompleteness.
This brokenness and incompleteness continue through the crushing reeds of natural as well as man-made disasters. Every natural disaster: Earthquakes, Volcanoes, Landslides, Famines & Droughts, Hurricanes, Tornados, and Cyclones, Extreme precipitation and flooding, Extreme Temperature (Heat & Cold), Wildfires, lighting, tsunami, environmental and climatic changes all bring untold brokenness on us and our existence.
Today, there is ecological brokenness that affects us all as the result of man´s senseless explorative pressure on the earth that has untold repercussion on nature; animals, plants and living organism including human.
In the same light, wars, conflicts, genocide, slavery, racism, human or animals trafficking, capitalism, communism, liberalism, narcissism, individualism, sadism, religious bigotry, religious abuses, manipulations and control. As well as political divisiveness, dehumanization, violence, deformation, euthanasia, abortion, is man-made brokenness of others for selfish gain.
THERE IS OR ARE BROKENNESS EVERYWHERE AND EVERY TIME
The Broken Christ in his brokenness, we meet all men and women in their own brokenness too whether in it is brokenness as physical disabilities, intellectual or learning disabilities, psychiatric disabilities, visual impairments, hearing impairments, or neurological disabilities.
We also see and meet the Broken Christ in all mutilated victim of war and conflicts, post-war, injustice and offended. As well as in every sexually, racially, socially, culturally, politically, religiously or economically discriminated or exploited persons. He is seen and met in every migrant, wounded or hurt a person, in every exiled or displaced children, youths, adults and elderly people.
The broken Christ is seen in every brutally disfigured person by weapons of mass destructions, women or men widowed and children orphaned as a result of political war, in every refugee child or persons due to the greed, corruptions or misappropriation of politicians or benefactors of wars who sell arms.
The Broken Christ is also seen in every child victim of labour, trafficking, slavery, paedophilia or domestic abuses or violence.
The Broken Christ is seen our brothers and sisters stressed up, depressed, oppressed, marginalized, dehumanized, stigmatized, crushed, disfigured, used, abused denied and exploited by the powers and authorities that be as religious, economic, paternal or political.
The Broken Christ is seen in every human brokenness, our own brokenness, systems, institutions and world brokenness and above all in nature´s brokenness
In summary, in a figurative way, we are invited and challenged to be the right arm and right leg of the Broken Christ in order to heal and make whole his brokenness in our broken brothers and sisters.
OUR CHALLENGE WITH THE IMAGE OF THE BROKEN CHRIST
The Christian life and the Christian spirituality is one in which the Broken Christ lives in our brothers and sisters. And as Christians, we are called to amend the brokenness of Christ, to fix or help in the brokenness of our brothers and sisters as well as strangers we meet daily. This is Christ challenge to us in the Sermon on the Mount, (Mt 5-7), the Beatitudes (Mt 5:1-12), as well as the parable of the sheep and the goats (Mt 25: 31-46).
The brokenness of Christ must not be theological, doctrinal, or biblical correct before we can respond to the needy and suffering brothers and sisters. Hence, whatever excuses or pretensions we put forward not help our brothers and sisters are not the gospel demands or witnesses God wants or expects of us.
Therefore, whether theological or biblical correct, the image of the Broken Christ is a much-needed image in our world of individualism and indifference to remind us of our Christian essence.
The religiosity of the Holy Week of many a Christian is puzzling with many questions and thoughts. How could we celebrate the Lord´s passion and death with open and emotional affection for the beautiful Christ crucified- making pilgrimages, processions, devotion and no empathetic feeling to connect, relate or feel our broken brothers and sisters around? Of what significance is all of piety and devotion to recall and to live the suffering of Christ when there is a lack of love or total indifference from us to the Broken Christ in our suffering brothers and sisters or the broken humanity?
CHRISTIANITY WITH THE BEAUTIFULLY CRUCIFIED CHRIST VERSUS THE BROKEN CHRIST
Today, we live and practise Christianity in an era where many so-called Christian try to tranquillize their conscience with the beautiful work of art (the crucifix). While making arguments about the necessity of an image like the Broken Christ that stung our conscience and probe our commitment to the gospel works of spiritual and corporal mercy. A false Christianity, the Broken Christ must be seen and treated in the broken us, the broken others and the broken humanity or world. If not our lovely sentiments of piety and devotion are mere external expressions with no transformational effect on us or others. True Christ Christianity is seeing Christ, the Broken Christ in others and coming to their help or assistance (Mt 25:31-46).
Significantly, the Broken Christ has no right arm or right leg which many of us needed to function properly daily. That Is, the majority of human beings used more of the right arms or right leg to living, working and reaching out to help others. Coincidentally, the image of the Broken Christ has only the left arm or the left leg which a sort of limitation.
When we are incapacitated with our right arm or right leg life becomes increasingly hopeless and frustrating. This is how the Broken Christ feels before the helpless situations or conditions of the ignored broken brothers and sisters that need to be attended to. He worked out his life helping, healing, restoring and making whole all who came in contact with him: the poor, the diseased, the sinners and outcast as well as all those at the margin of the society, used, abused and preyed upon.
It is not by accident, the Broken Christ has no right arms because we are supposed to complete this brokenness in Christ in us when we became the right arms that help, heal, restore and make others whole and well in body, spirit, mind and soul.
CHRIST BROKENNESS IS NOT OUR MAKING
It could be said, the Roman world of Pilates and the Jewish religious leaders crucified Christ on the cross. Equally, today modern man and his ideologies practices of anti-life, anti-nature, anti-goodness are mutilations and disfigurement of the dignity and integrity of man. Hence, Christ continues to be broken, crushed and mutilated by us and our cruelties and dehumanization of God´s image in us, in others and in the world, or nature.
THE MERCY OF THE LEFT ARM OF CHRIST OR GOD
Traditionally, our right arm or hand is one of charity, openness, transparency and enlightening. While the left is shady, closed, limited and sticky of performance. Yet, there is a beauty of the left arm – when the right fails. This is the doing of God- his grace always working in and through our human nature even against the physical or natural laws of existence and order.
The Broken Christ has his left arm because God has used many left arms of no significance or worth to do great and marvellous things. His left arm uses John the Evangelist, Francis of Assis, John of the Cross, John Vianney, Theresa of the Little Child Jesus and Theresa of Calcutta to restore and beautify his Church and raise hope for broken humanity.
With the left arm of God, the Broken Christ led St. Peter, St. Paul, St. Augustine, and many others who in the “righteous” or ignorance right could only be saved by the grace of God´s left arm. God as they said, works in crooked ways – a pencil that writes straight on a crooked line. In God, it is always: “The stone that the builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.” (Ps 118:22)
OUR BROKENNESS CAN LEAD TO REAL EMPATHY FOR OTHERS
Conclusively, the Broken Christ has a left arm because no one uses tother he left well than God. Our left arm is like a spare pare of us, but with God no! It is as efficient and effective as the right. The lesson here for us is that even in our own limitation, incompleteness or brokenness we can become better instruments to restore and heal the brokenness of others empathetically.
Ultimately, the Broken Christ is a challenge to our attitude of gratitude and submission to God. Especially, when suddenly or unexpectedly we are hit by the brokenness of life which are inevitable. Tragically, every moment, every second, every minute, every hour and every day we are hit very hard and broken by many circumstances of life. It could be a death of a loved one, diagnosis of terminal diseases or illnesses like cancer, an accident that changes our lives or the lives of our dear ones, a pandemic the robs us of all humanly, emotionally, economically and even religiously leading us to question God.
There are many twists and turns in life that broke us and leaves us vulnerable to the mercy of circumstances. Yet, in the image of the Broken Christ, we see our identification to hold on to, to fight on and to remain hopeful, knowing that by his wound (brokenness) we are healed, (Isaiah 53:5 ).
THE READINGS OF THIS GOOD FRIDAY
FIRST READING: ISAIAH 52:13-53:12
This reminds us of the humiliations or brokenness of the suffering servant: Jesus Christ (the Broken Christ) who bore the sins of his people. There are vivid descriptions of Christ in phrases like these:
a. As the crowds were appalled on seeing him —so disfigured did he look that he seemed no longer human
b. Like a sapling he grew up in front of us, like a root in arid ground. Without beauty, without majesty (we saw him), no looks to attract our eyes;
c. A thing despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and familiar with suffering, a man to make people screen their faces;
d. He was despised and we took no account of him. And yet ours were the sufferings he bore, ours the sorrows he carried.
e. But we, we thought of him as someone punished, struck by God, and brought low.
f. Yet he was pierced through for our faults, crushed for our sins. On him lies a punishment that brings us peace, and through his wounds, we are healed.
g. By his sufferings shall my servant justify many, taking their faults on himself.
In these, we do not see the brokenness of Christ through cruel sufferings, pains and death but also the healing and restoration we all benefited from his brokenness.
The psalmist in Psalm 31 made us understanding how peaceful, calm and trusting the Broken Christ was in his total abandonment to God his Father. “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit”.
SECOND READING: HEBREWS 4:14-16; 5:7-9
The author of the Book of Hebrews points out clearly without missing words. We have in Christ (the Broken Christ) a great high priest who understands us fully. Especially, our brokenness through sins, failures, incompleteness and tragedies by his sufferings. Therefore, he accomplished our salvation and became for us a model, strength and hope in our struggles and fights against sins, weaknesses and brokenness.
This place on us too, the challenge of being empathetic to feel, to relate and to connect with the brokenness, failures and weaknesses of our brothers and sisters. When and where we are encouraged to be an understanding and inspiration for them to raise as well from their brokenness.
THE GOSPEL: JOHN 18:1-19:42
The passion narrative according to the Gospel of John presents us a clear image of two forces at war or trial. Truth and untruth, light and darkness, goodness and evil, life and death with the emerging victory of God through the truth, the light, goodness and life in Christ Jesus.
Hence, with dignity and strength, Jesus goes the royal road to Calvary to win for us an eternal victory of sin, death, evil and Satan. Though, he was bitterly and agonizingly broken, in his brokenness our own brokenness is healed, restored, and saved.
After all said and done, no matter our religiosity, piety, spirituality or status in the Christian community or Church, if we have no empathetic connection with our broken brothers and sisters, the shattered humanity or the broken world then we are no difference the perpetrators of this brokenness in us, in others and in the world.
OUR PRAYER
There are many twists and turns in life that broke us and leaves us vulnerable to the mercy of circumstances. Yet, in the image of the Broken Christ, we see our identification to hold on to, to fight on and to remain hopeful, knowing that by his wound (brokenness) we are healed, (Isaiah 53:5 ).hearts and minds. May our churches and celebrations especially the Holy Week: Good Friday always remind us of the pains, sufferings, brokenness and the tragedies of Christ second passion and possibly death in our brothers and sisters: men, women, young people, children, infants or unborn as well as nature passing through the crucibles of life. Amen
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