Today let us contemplate on the 9th and 10th stations. In the 9th station we see Jesus falling for the third time. This is the only event which is repeated thrice in the way of the cross. According to the biblical literature the number three has a profound symbolism. It is considered as a perfect number. The third fall of Jesus tell us that He became the perfect symbol of the fallen humanity. The Son of God identified himself completely with the failures of humankind. As his name indicates, He is with us even in our sinfulness and failures as our redeemer. He did not sin but he carried the burdens of our shortcomings. When we sin, we move away from the grace and gradually we fall. Though, He was the Son of God, yet He has to face the consequences of our sins and He falls thrice. But He did not give up. By getting up from his falls, He gave us hope that however deep our falls, He can redeem us. The psalmist praises God: “Our steps are made firm by the Lord, When He delights in our way; though we stumble, we shall not fall headlong, for the Lord holds us by the hand” (Ps. 37: 23-24).
In the 10th station, we see Jesus is stripped of his clothes. Cloth is something that covers our nakedness and give us dignity. Romans usually strip off the clothes of those who are condemned for the crucifixion. So that they may die in utter shame. Even the basic human respect and dignity were denied them. In the book of Genesis we see that when Adam and Eve commits sin, they became aware of their nakedness and they tried to hide themselves from the presence of the Lord. But, Jesus was not ashamed. He offered His sacrifice to the Father remaining naked that never again we may feel ashamed in the presence of the Lord; thus, His nakedness covers our guilt and shame. That might be the reason people belonging to any walk of life don’t feel shame when they look upto the crucified Jesus. “Look to Him and be radiant; so your faces shall never be ashamed.” (Ps. 34:5) Finally, he gave His seamless tunic, the tunic of divine innocence and grace…a tunic that is always made available to cover our spiritual nakedness… When our sinfulness and failures fill our being with guilt and shame, let us not forget to look up to the crucifix – that man on the cross who became the symbol of guilt and shame that we will be empowered to conquer our guilt and shame and walk with God again…

Jesus Said: “Into your hands, I commend my spirit.” We read a moving verse in Psalm 23:4 “Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil for you are with me.”When we reflect on the crucifixion of Jesus, a question that maylinger in our mind is that, did Jesusdie in despair? In all likelihood we tend to think thatJesus died on the cross without any hope. He came to save his people but unfortunately, he was rejected by them and finally they crucified him. He worked miracles one after another for them. He raised the dead, cured various kinds of illness, multiplied bread, and gave them new law based on love. Yet he was brutally punished and executed by the Jewish leaders and his own people. They challenged him by saying that ifhe is the son of God, come downfrom the cross and save himself. All considered him as a great failure.People asked Barabbas, a notorious criminal instead of him and pleaded to Pilate for his crucifixion. Who can bear all these mental and physical torture, other than God Himself?
Sometimes we will be very much attracted by the discount offers that we see in the advertisement or free vouchers of various companies. In reality, nothing is freely given;even the salivation. It is true that we did not pay a single pie to enjoy this gratuitous gift.Instead, Son of God paid a price for it by accepting the death on the cross. How can God die? Isn’t it contradicting to His nature? It is not easy to reason out this mystery. But there is only one answer for this: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.”(Jn3: 16)
When we reflect on these last seven words of Jesus it is clear that Jesus did not die in despair but he died in hope and he became a symbol of hope for us. It was quite sure that his Father will not allow his body to decay and Jesus very well knew this prophecy would be fulfilled in time. “You will not abandon me to the realm of the dead, nor will you let your faithful one see decay.” (Ps 16:10) In this filial trust and immense love Jesus prays the Psalm 31: 5“Into your hands, I commit my spirit; you have redeemed me, O Lord, Faithful God.”
As we conclude this reflections on the last seven words of Jesus, let us live in hope that we are not alone in this way of the cross, he has gone before us and now he accompanies us, whenever we fall and stumble, he is there to carry our cross and he understands us because he had undergone all the possible mental and physical torments even beyond our imagination. Like Jesus let us find meaning for our life by accepting our daily crosses with LOVE.

Jesus Said: “It is finished.” What did he mean? The garden of Gethsemane to Golgotha, more than fifteen hours of intense suffering came to an end on the cross. His sufferings were not that so silly. If we analyze those last fifteen hours of Jesus, we could very well understand the depth of his intense suffering. Let us begin from the Last Supper: Judas betrayed him with a kiss. He underwent intense mental agony in the garden of Gethsemane. Peter, the leader of his apostles, who promised staunch fidelity to the Master, denied him thrice. All the other disciples ran for their life. Added to that the false accusation of the high priest, Pharisees, and his own people. The mockery of the soldiers like slapping and spitting on his face, crowning him with thorns. They made him wear a long gown, fooled him as though he was a king and chastised him on the journey to Calvary; thrice he fell down on the way. His hands and legs were nailed to the cross. And also the harassment of the people, soldiers, fellow prisoners etc.
He did not mean that his intense sufferings were over rather it was the peak moment of his mission wherein he gained salvation for mankind by offering his life as a sacrifice on the cross. From this content heart, Jesus said that all that his Abba revealed to humanity about the Messiah was fulfilled. The disobedience of Adam brought death to humanity but the obedience of Christ to God’s will brought back eternal life to humanity. We read in the book of prophet Isaiah: “By his bruises, we are healed.”(Isa 53:5) Thus the suffering that he endured transformed his body as the bread of life and the blood that he shed became the life-giving water.
Jesus did not want to escape from his suffering. He accepted it wholeheartedly because he found great meaning in his suffering. He transformed his suffering as redemptive. We have seen a number of saints who accepted the suffering wholeheartedly. They recognized the mystery of the cross and surrendered their lives along with the sufferings of Jesus. St. Paul in his letter to the Corinthians gives the account of sufferings that he had to undergo in order to be a witness of Christ (2Cor11: 24-27). He was not ready to give up his faith because of his sufferings or difficulties. In the end, he asks: who can separate us from the love of Christ?( Rom 8:35) in the same way, we read in the life of St. Alphonsa, even in the midst of intense suffering when others enquired about her wellbeing, she replied that she was loving.
What is our response towards the suffering that we encounter in our life journey? Do we find meaning in our suffering? Like Jesus let us accept our difficulties wholeheartedly. I agree with you it is not easy to accept suffering when it causes intense pain and uneasiness. Let us hang on to that man on the cross, definitely, he will empower us to accept our difficulties and transform them into redemptive power. At the end of our life’s Journey with a contended heart let us say: “It is finished.”

Jesus said: “I thirst.” It is quite natural that a person who is encountering death very closely feels thirsty. What about Jesus’ thirst on the cross? Was it merely a thirst for a few drops of wine?
It is undesirable to imagine the mental state of a person who undergoes the punishment of crucifixion. It is considered as the most agonizing form of execution. This barbarous punishment was rewarded only for those notorious criminals of the ancient time. Roman citizens were exempted from this punishment because it was considered as below their dignity. The victim would experience each excruciating moment of his death. Normally, victims used to die by cursing themselves and others. However, Jesus found great meaning for each and every moment of his passion especially on the cross because he knew that his sacrifice would transform everything.
It was considered as a basic human right to allow a person to die with dignity. Therefore, soldiers gave bitter vine for Jesus. It was a kind of sedation so that the victim might not realize the unbearable pain of crucifixion and die pain-free. Jesus tasted the vine but he did not drink the bitter vine. John, the beloved disciple who was a witness for this event says that it happened in order to fulfill the scripture. The thirst that Jesus felt was not a biological need rather it was a spiritual quest for souls, which last till the end of time. That was His mission, salvation of souls. He brought back the corrupted humanity into the bosom of his Father. Even today, he continues the same mission. It is his sacrifice on the cross that saved us. Can we become collaborators in his mission?
There are holy men and women who shared the same thirst for souls that Jesus had. I remember an incident read from the autobiography of St. Therese of Child Jesus. She read about a man who was a notorious criminal and being sentenced to the death penalty. She prayed hard for his conversion but he was not ready to repent, the prison chaplain tried his best but he refused to change his mind. All the same, she prayed with great hope. Interestingly, on the way to execution room, he was deeply touched by the divine mercy and begged pardon from the Lord, for all his failures and the chaplain commented his soul to the boundless mercy of Christ. Thus he became the first spiritual Son of Therese. As we reflect these words of Jesus let us imbibe the same thirst that Jesus had for the souls and let us add a new story of winning souls for Jesus.

Jesus cried: “My God, My God why have you forsaken me?” This heartfelt cry of Jesus always disturbed me. Did he experience the abandonment of His Abba at that crucial juncture?
I got little light about this dark night of Jesus when I read a book titled: “Come be my light.” It is a collection of the private letters of Mother Theresa that she had written to her spiritual director. She expresses her mental agony in these words: “Such deep longing for God — and … repulsed — empty — no faith — no love — no zeal. Saving souls hold no attraction — Heaven means nothing — pray for me please that I keep smiling at Him in spite of everything.” A woman who was considered as the ambassador of Christ’s charity was deprived of his charity! When she started her work, she heard Christ’s voice in her innermost being but then the rest of the forty years of her life she was deprived of his presence. Though her work was flourished all over the world, well appreciated, and even she won the Nobel Prize for peace in 1979. Yet she experienced great spiritual dryness within her. She felt a kind of abandonment similar to Christ that he had on the cross. It is considered as a mystical experience. The spiritual authors would say it is the privilege of the chosen soul who is called to partake in the passion and suffering of Christ in a mystical way. The soul would undergo severe mental agony because he/she deprived of the presence of God. But in reality, that soul will be closer to God and grows deeper in his/her relation with God. However, that soul may not recognize his/her spiritual growth, they feel that they are abandoned and experience severe mental agony. It is beyond our reasons to understand. Isn’t it? What about Jesus’ experience on the cross?
At times we may think that Jesus died in despair. It is true Jesus felt the silence of His Father. It was more than a cry of disappointment. it was a sincere prayer from Jesus. Like every Jew, in that intense moment of pain and suffering Jesus prayed Psalm 22: “My God, My God why have you forsaken me?” If we read the whole psalm we will be enlightened to understand the meaning of Jesus’ prayer on the cross. This psalm was a prophecy of King David about the suffering of Jesus. This psalm concludes with the fruits of salvation that Jesus brings forth through his, passion death and resurrection. What is the message that we need to take home?
In our sojourn, we too face disappointment or feel that we are abandoned by God. But remember Jesus was tested like any of us but always defended himself with his immense trust in Abba. We read in the scripture that all those difficult moments, He prayed the word of God that united him with the Father and it empowered him to carry his cross and finally to attain His victory over death. Let us pray like Jesus…

“Beneath the cross one learns to love.”(St. Padre Pio) The image of Mary carrying the lifeless body of Jesus in her arms always captures our attention. We cannot leave this picture without nostalgia of our own mothers. It is through our mother’s arms that we might have experienced the tender loving care of a person for the first time in our life. What would have been the thoughts of mother Mary when she carried the lifeless body of her Son?
Calvary invites us to meditate on this moving love story between Mary and Jesus; a love story between God and a human person. The Son knew his mother from eternity and she became His perfect disciple and spiritual daughter. Mary was an ordinary Jewish woman who loved her son unconditionally. She conceived her Son not out of a natural marital relationship, which is considered as a great offence and as per Jewish tradition, such a woman, could be stoned to death. She knew very well that her Son was someone special but His birth and death seemed to be very tragic. How can this happen to her son who was considered as the promised Messiah of Israel?
Yet she was not ready to give up on her son. She always listened to Him and accompanied Him even to Calvary without any fail. Jesus too had a filial love towards His mother. He stayed with her thirty years at home. He had a caring heart for her. Even in the midst of His hectic schedules, He managed to find time to visit her. Finally, on the Calvary, even when he was fighting with death He wanted to entrust His mother to His beloved disciple. Was it so? Then why did Jesus entrust John to Mary?
On Calvary, Jesus raised her motherhood to a universal realm. Jesus became the Second Adam and Mary became the mother of all those who are saved by her Son’s precious blood, The New Eve. She accompanies us in our life journey just like she accompanied Jesus on His way to Calvary. Like John let us take her home and she will accompany us on our earthly sojourn and journey back to our eternal home.

Jesus said: “Truly I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.”(Lk 23: 43) In our meditation on the way of the cross, the good thief remains as a hero. When we run through the history we come across a few thieves who were the real heroes of their time. Our good thief may be the first hero of that category. The spiritual writers used to say; at the end of his life journey he stole paradise from Jesus and thus the loser became the hero. But how could a thief be the hero? Isn’t it unnatural?
It is Jesus’ compassion that transformed this man who was labeled as a criminal to a hero. Even in the midst of his intense suffering, Jesus extended his compassionate heart to the good thief. When we reflect on the conversation between Jesus and the good thief, we can be sure that he might have heard about Jesus earlier otherwise he would not have acknowledged the innocence of Jesus. This good thief resembles many of us; sometimes though we know the truth, yet we postpone our conversion or remain indifferent towards the truth. But the greatness of the good thief is that on the cross, he embraced this truth and prays a sincere prayer: “remember me in your kingdom.” He acknowledged Christ as his king and savior. However, the other thief, even at the last moment, chose to be indifferent towards the truth that Jesus is. He challenged Jesus to work miracles by saving himself and also both of them. Many of our brethren like this thief question the authenticity of the person of Jesus and not ready to embrace this eternal truth. Then, what about the kingdom mentioned by this man?
All those who gathered there thought that Jesus would fight against Roman Empire and establish David’s throne. But this good thief received the wisdom to understand that what Jesus meant was not a kingdom bound by space and time of this earth rather it is the eternity. At the end, Jesus gives a share of his eternity to this good thief. “You will be with me in paradise.” Jesus is the eternity, the Eternal Truth; thus, the loser became the hero. Let us give witness to this eternal truth by carrying our daily crosses without complaints and become his heroes.

Jesus Said: “Father, forgive them for they do not know what they are doing.”(Lk 23: 24) Jesus extended an unconditional forgiveness to all those who caused his misery on the cross. At the very outset, we may think it is only the Roman soldiers those who persecuted him are responsible for his crucifixion on the cross but all of us who made him a Pascal Lamb are responsible for his death. But In Jesus, we all are forgiven. But do we practice the same forgiveness that we have received from Jesus?
In our day to day life, we find it very difficult to forget and forgive the failures of our brethren. It is true that it is not that easy to practice the virtue of forgiveness, especially in our concrete life situations. We are living in a world wherein, people suffer because of the grudge feeling that they keep with them. Our contemporary world is in need of reconciliation between individuals, families, societies, states, and countries. How is it possible for us?
“To err is human; to forgive, divine.”(Alexander Pope) When we analyze the history we can find individuals who imitated the unconditional forgiveness of Jesus towards their persecutors like St. Maria Goretti, St. John Paul II, Bl. Rani Maria. The only solution for us is Jesus, who extended an unconditional forgiveness towards His persecutors. Let us embrace Jesus, the man on the cross, to receive His grace that we too may extend an unconditional forgiveness towards our fellow brethren. We need to keep in mind that we are forgiven unconditionally because of the innocent blood that He shed on Calvary. Let us forget and forgive the failures of our fellow brethren by hanging on to that man on the cross and become divine while we are alive…