As we begin Holy Week, I want to send you a simple message of peace and hope.

One of my favorite authors, G.K. Chesterton, wrote a famous poem for Easter called “The Donkey,” see below. It’s a simple poem told from the viewpoint of the donkey that carried Jesus as he made his triumphant entry into Jerusalem. The poem is a reminder that there are glimpses of the divine in the common and lowly — or even the ugly — aspects of life.

The Donkey
BY G. K. CHESTERTON

When fishes flew and forests walked
And figs grew upon thorn,
Some moment when the moon was blood
Then surely I was born.

With monstrous head and sickening cry
And ears like errant wings,
The devil’s walking parody
On all four-footed things.

The tattered outlaw of the earth,
Of ancient crooked will;
Starve, scourge, deride me: I am dumb,
I keep my secret still.

Fools! For I also had my hour;
One far fierce hour and sweet:
There was a shout about my ears,
And palms before my feet.

Source: The Collected Poems of G. K. Chesterton (Dodd Mead & Company, 1927)

In the midst of turmoil, there is perhaps no better occasion than Holy Week to remember the constancy of God, His steadfast love for each one of us, and His victory of sin and death. I hope you are able to find comfort and peace in your faith, your family, your friends and your community.

I wish all of you a blessed Holy Week and a joyful Easter.

In Notre Dame,

Martijn