Pilate judges unjustly because of his human respect. Jesus is silent and
accepts the unjust judgement. He feels its injustice deeply in his heart, but says
not a word.
How difficult this is for me when I believe that I am right. How I defend
myself when someone speaks an unjust word about me.
Teach me, Jesus, to be silent when I meet injustice. I will bear it out of
love for you. I will not flare up but master myself. I will then think of the sentence
passed against you. And when I must speak against it, I will do so with love and
patience as you did. Mary, my mother, obtain for me this grace.
Willingly Jesus opens his arms and receives the heavy cross. He knows that
through his cross He will redeem us. With determination he lifts the heavy burden
upon his shoulder.
How I complain, when once in a while, a little cross comes to me such as
an unpleasant or difficult task, a sickness, a failure despite earnest efforts,
or a misunderstanding. I will open my arms and bear my cross in union with Jesus,
my Saviour, for my salvation and for that of others.
Lord, give me the strength to bear with determination and joy the suffering
which comes to me. Teach me to shoulder my cross and through it to make myself a
new person.
The burden is too heavy; the Lord is exhausted! He falls on the stony street.
The cross falls upon him. But he must continue along the narrow way. He struggles
to his feet again. He thinks of us and of our sins which he is expiating.
Lord, you fall under the cross that my sins have laid upon you. Now I see,
Jesus, how dreadful sin is and what it does to you in your Mystical Body.
I am sorry. Give me your grace, 0 Lord that I may resist bravely when I am
in temptation, before it is too late. At the first opportunity I will flee from
the enticement of sin.
From afar Mary has seen how Pilate condemned her son to death, how they laid
the heavy cross on him. She sees the whole procession stopped by his first fall
and anxiously seeks a place where he must pass close by. Words are denied them but
their eyes meet lovingly. She feels all the pain and disgrace that he suffers.
Mary's heart has been so deeply pierced by the sword of suffering that she
is able to appreciate what suffering you are undergoing. When we are tormented by
serious worry, or by the burden of sin, turn to her, the comforter of the afflicted
and refuge of sinners. She will lead us to the suffering Redeemer, she will explain
to us the mystery of suffering.
The Saviour is so weak that the Jews fear that He will die on the way. They
force a passerby, Simon, to help Jesus carry the cross. After some reluctance, he
agrees. As a reward for his help he is given the gift of faith.
How Jesus rewards those who freely help the suffering! In every poor, suffering
man, like the hundreds we meet, we meet our Saviour bearing his cross. A friendly
glance, an encouraging word is a great help to a sufferer. What have I done for
Jesus? What will I do for him? Is there no one I can comfort, help?
Veronica performs for Jesus a service of love. In return she receives the
imprint of his face. Jesus is generous. Whenever we give him something, he bestows
a hundred fold in return. Even in his bitter suffering, he is grateful for a little
act of kindness.
Lord, here you show me something very necessary: genuine gratitude. Give
me a sensitive heart to appreciate that everything ultimately comes from you and
is a blessing for me from you. I will also be grateful to all those who do good
to me by bringing your gifts to me. Help me to recognize you in them.
The cross grows heavier, Jesus more weary and weak. Now he stumbles again
to the ground. Completely alone, he must rise again under the curses and blows of
the soldiers. Jesus is atoning for the sins which I repeatedly commit, for my recurring
sins and faults.
Lord, I kneel near you in sorrow for my unfaithfulness. The stones which
are reddened by your blood cry out loudly against the great malice of sin. I understand.
To sin is to beat and buffet you. Have mercy on me, a sinner! Help me to root out
my deep seated recurring fault.
The Good women are touched by the pitiable sight of the Saviour. What was
the site that met their eyes?
Jesus, Saviour, on your way of the cross you demand more of us than mere
compassion and sentiment which quickly pass away. Let me not be weak in spirit and
discouraged when the enthusiasm of emotion fails. Precisely in this moment I will
serve you faithfully in deeds and in the fulfillment of my obligations.
Divine Saviour, a third time you fall beneath the cross. Many resolutions
have I made; I have kept but few. Today I will start again with fresh determination.
Now the preparation for the crucifixion is under way. Jesus witnessed it
all. They stripped him of his clothes. His flesh tore. It hurt fiercely.
Jesus, in memory of your painful stripping, helps me to preserve my soul
from sensuality. I will with your grace avoid all softness and craving for comfort.
I will make myself give up something that my body likes and finds pleasant. I will
be austere with myself. Help me to fullfil this promise.
Now comes the dreadful moment; the executioners nail him to the cross. His
pain is beyond imagination. And he sees his enemies around him enjoying his disgrace
and distress. 'He saved others! Let him save himself.' How bitter were these humiliations
and taunts! How crushing his sense of failure and his abandonment by his friends!
Jesus, I kneel and adore you as they raise up your cross. 'Hail Cross'. Your
cross is your standard. I begin to understand what your cross means; it means humiliation,
pain, dispossession. You have not even a peaceful place to die in! I will follow
your standard. I will proclaim by my life the value you have set on poverty, humiliations
and a hard life for the sake of your kingdom.
Obedient to death, even to the death of the cross! Jesus, through the disobedience
of Adam came Sin; through your obedience, Redemption.
On my knees at the foot of your cross, I beg for the grace to understand
the value of obedience for a priest, for a religious, for a committed christian,
that it is obedience which saves souls and redeems the world.
Give me the spirit of joyful obedience. When it is difficult to bend my will,
I will look up at your holy cross and recall your filial obedience to your Heavenly
Father. I will obey your Church, my bishop, my superiors. I will be their consolation
through my cheerful and prompt obedience. I will obey your voice speaking to me
in the realities of my situation.
Dear Mother, there was deep suffering in your heart when you held the body
of Jesus in your arms. But amidst that suffering you said within your heart; 'Behold
the handmaid of the Lord, be it done to me according to your word'!
Let me look at you and learn from you to say yes to God, not to be impatient
when suffering comes to me. Let my sentiments be like yours; 'Be it done to me according
to God's word'.
The few faithful friends carry the body of Jesus to the grave. It is now
quiet. The procession is a sorrowful one, but there is a heavenly peace about it-
the peace of a task accomplished of a victory won.
Lord, your suffering is over; you triumphed, though in men's eyes you seem
to have failed. Sin, death, and hell have been conquered. The world is yours. I
am yours. Be king of my heart. I surrender myself to your Will. Your kingdom come.
The mysteries, 0 Lord, proclaim to me that those who follow you in hardship
and suffering will be crowned like you with success and glory. Contemplating your
triumph I feel encouraged to follow you more faithfully. This I now resolve to do.
Help me.