March 26, 2009

Online Stations of the Cross

Paintings, by David O’Connell, are the stations that hang in St. Richards, Chichester, England.

3. Jesus falls for the first time.

We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you:
Because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world.

Jesus carried a heavy cross or crossbar upon his back, which had been slashed by the murderous whip wielded by the soldiers. He was weak and tired, and in pain. He knew he was going to his death. At that moment, did he know anything more than to put one foot in front of the other? Overwhelmed by exhaustion, dehydration and pain, he fell.

We know what it is like to fall. Not because we carry a heavy wooden cross upon our back, but because we carry our own problems, or we are caregivers who take upon ourselves the needs of someone who is weaker than we are. We may be found in a weakened condition from physical ailment, or from the burdens of life. In a weakened state, we stumble away from the grace that God has given us, and allow our failings to bring us down. We fall, as Christ fell, and agonize about how to get up again.

Oh to grace how great a debtor daily I’m constrained to be!
Let thy goodness, like a fetter, bind my wandering heart to thee:
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it. Prone to leave the Lord I love
Take my heart, oh take and shield it, shield it for thy courts above.

Holy God
Holy and Mighty
Holy Immortal One
Have mercy upon us.

4. Jesus meets his afflicted mother

We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you;
Because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world.

Then Simon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, "This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed – and a sword will pierce your own soul too."
Luke 2:34, 35

The suffering and death of Jesus became the sword that pierced his mother’s soul. To watch someone you cherish go through agony - we would take a loved one’s pain upon ourselves if we could.

But Mary was not called to bear the cross – only to bear the bearer. Her sorrow was human sorrow, the sorrow of loss, the sorrow of watching, the sorrow of waiting. Hers was the great human condition that we all face at one point or another. Helplessly watching the suffering of another.

Can you imagine what Jesus must have desired to say to her? Like us, he would have done anything to take away her pain. How could he tell her that his pain would ultimately give her joy?

Hail Mary, full of grace.
Pray for me now, in the time of my grief.
 
Were your tears bitter, reflecting the injustice?
Were your tears a torrent, reflecting the anguish?
Were your tears hot, reflecting your anger?
Mine are.
 
Did your soul become barren in the salty river?
Did your faith grow dark, extinguished in tears?
Did your love shrivel as your tears dried?
Mine has.
 
O Mary, full of grace.
Pray for me now in the time of my grief.
From "A Mother’s Prayer" by Joanne B. Galbraith, In Women’s Uncommon Prayers

Holy God
Holy and Mighty
Holy Immortal One
Have mercy upon us.

<< BACK to Parish News