Let
me share with thee His pain,
Who for all our sins was slain,
Who for me
in torments died.
Pray for us, Virgin most sorrowful
That we may be made worthy of the promises
of Christ.
and we bless you.
Because by your holy cross
you have redeemed the world.
Station 11
(4) Huge nails are hammered through his hands and feet to fix him on the cross.
He is bleeding much more seriously now. As the cross is lifted up, the weight of his life hangs on those nails. Every time he struggles to pull himself up to breathe, his ability to cling to life slips away.
I make myself watch the nails being driven through his flesh. And I watch his face.
I contemplate the completeness of his entry into our lives. Can there be any pain or agony he would not understand?
This is for me. Nailed to a cross to forever proclaim liberty to captives.
What sorrow and gratitude fill my heart!
Lord Jesus, help us walk in your steps.
Meditation:
(2) "They have pierced my hands and my feet, I can count all my bones."(Ps 22, 16-17)
The whole of this man is in a state of utmost tension: bones, muscles, nerves, every organ, every cell is stretched and strained to breaking-point. "I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself." (Jn 12,32)
Therein lies the full reality of the crucifixion.
And part of this reality is the terrible tension driving its way into hands, feet and every bone: driving its way into his entire body which, nailed like a mere thing to the beams of the cross, is about to be utterly 'voided' in the convulsive agony of death.
From the cross he says: "Father, forgive them, because they do not know what they are doing."(Lk 23,34)
Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be to the Father.
Lord Jesus crucified, have mercy on us.
