Death; the only remaining taboo

 

 

 

The reason that many catholic prayers reminds us of our own physical death

is not because we are gloomy and do not enjoy life; it is because the awareness

of us passing from this life to the next, is necessary for balance in our earthly 

life, and for psychological and mental balance and well being. It helps us to 

embrace life with openness and confidence, and to always see the larger picture.

 

It is a fact that for many, it is only when they realize that they are "on the way 

out", that they remember the things they have done that have hurt others, and 

they die in fear, because their own conscience tells them that there is a judgement 

coming, this is why regular use of  The Sacrament of Confession is so necessary 

during our life time.

 

Some people, former Catholics, and also protestants, like to amuse themselves 

with joking about  "Catholic guilt" as if it is a mental illness, when the truth is 

that it is about being aware of the things we do that are not good; not for us, 

not for others, and most of all; for us who believe: they hurt God, with whom 

we want to be in relationship with. Awareness and honesty is indispensable. 

It is not about whipping ourselves into an everlasting guilt trip, it is about 

seeing and feeling sufficient remorse and pain to be motivated and find the 

will to change and improve ourselves.

If we say; "but, sure, God loves me and forgives me anyway," that is much 

less likely to produce real change.

 

I heard someone say that they did not want their grandchildren to see them

after they had died, because it "would leave a trauma".  They said that having

seen their own grandparents layed out in the coffin, had left "a trauma" on 

them when they were young, and they did not want that for their own 

grandchildren.

But there is a difference between the pain and grief we experience when 

loosing a close one, which is natural, healthy and necessary; an integral 

part of life and not "a trauma", albeit it being painful.

 

A trauma, strictly speaking, is something deeply disturbing, which has 

the capacity to create lasting disturbances in the psyche, because it was 

something that ought not to have happened.

 

Although it is traumatic for a young child to loose a parent while they are 

young, we do know, and we expect, our parents and our grandparents to die

at some stage, it is sad, but it is normal, life goes on.

 

What a healthy and holistic approach they had before when wakes were 

the norm; 3 day long sometimes, when the body, exposed in the open 

coffin, allowed for everybody to come and say farewell individually 

and to pray together for the deceased, and then stay around with the 

family, neighbors and friends, to talk, eat, have a drink, cry, tell stories, 

laugh. Nothing more natural than that, people got the opportunity to 

process the death that had taken place.

Death is part of life, when someone we knew well dies, it is also for us 

a timely reminder that one day it will be us.

 

 

 

Natural, Supernatural

 

The higher, supernatural life, springs out of; emerges from, 

life lived in accordance to the commandments and teaching 

of Jesus Christ, which must necessarily take place in our life 

lived in our bodies, in our minds, in our psychology, our 

emotions.

The supernatural life is not found in a different, separate, 

other sphere than the one we already find ourselves in. 

We can not find God by looking into the sky.

 

"They were looking intently into the sky as He was going, when suddenly 

two men dressed in white stood beside them. Men of Galilee," they said, 

"why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has 

been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you 

have seen Him go into heaven"

Acts 1:10- 11

 

So when people say that they are pagans and live according to nature; 

the science of nature; the science of the body, and they think that this 

is somehow in contradiction to faith in God, they are mistaken, 

because this is the very material; the tools we have, to work with and 

put the religion into practise. 

It is illogical to believe that, because God Himself came down to earth 

and became one of us; a human being, with all the aspects of human nature, 

apart from sin.

He was fully human, and fully God. 

The supernatural is not in conflict with the natural, it superimposes it. 

 

Those who seek God with all their heart and all their strength, will find Him.

 

"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door 

will be opened to you." Matthew 7:7, NIV

"Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, 

and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you."

Matthew 7:7, NLT

 

Actively personal seeking is a requisite, you will rarely stumble upon God 

by accident. But that does happen now and again though, when God might 

reveal Himself  to people that are even strongly opposed to Him, like what 

happened to Saul on the road to Damascus.

 

"Then Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the 

Lord, went to the high priest  and asked letters from him to the synagogues 

of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or 

women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.

As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone 

around him from heaven. Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice 

saying to him,  

“Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?”

And he said, “Who are You, Lord?”

Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard 

for you to kick against the goads.”

So he, trembling and astonished, said, “Lord, what do You want me to 

do?”

Then the Lord said to him, “Arise and go into the city, and you will be 

told what you must do.”

 And the men who journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice 

but seeing no one.  Then Saul arose from the ground, and when his eyes 

were opened he saw no one. But they led him by the hand and brought 

him into Damascus.  And he was three days without sight, and neither 

ate nor drank."

 Acts 9, 1-9

 

To find God we need to go into the wilderness; the wilderness of our 

existential loneliness.

We are in the world, but we are not of the world, and our destination is 

in the next world. In this world we are only passing through. 

We need to disengage from the world, to pull back from it,  in order to 

be able to look at what is in our minds and hearts.

"Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of 

your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what 

is good and acceptable and perfect."

Romans 12:2

The "world" is channeled mainly through mass media, it "informs" us what 

is true, what is going on, what is good and normal, and what is bad, and so 

on.

Studies shows, which corresponds with my own impression, that appr.

70 - 80 % of people live in consensus with the world. They believe in 

the government, the media, the popular opinions on any given subject,

all this is their external guide that they adhere to.

 

Even when when there is cognitive dissonance, when it goes against

their own values and common sense, for example that

marriage between two people of the same sex is marriage, 

that killing your unborn living baby, up to 9 months of gestation 

is totally acceptable and even healthcare, or 

the massive pressure and threats they used to force the population 

to take an experimental injection, a vaccine, against a virus that posed 

no threat to them, as the experts all explained openly it was an influenza 

that was not dangerous for healthy people,

the sexualizing of young children carried out in the school system, 

the normalisation of transgenderism, 

the encouragement of small children to "question" their sexuality, and 

if they "think" that they are not the gender that they are born with, they 

are encouraged and referred to clinics to get surgery done. 

These are things that are actually taking place, and has been happening for 

a long time already; this is what people are being brainwashed into accepting 

as normal, this madness comes from the government, the same government 

that people trust and believe in. And vote for.

 

But

"We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of 

the evil one."

1John 5:19

 

This state of affairs could never have come about if there was enough people 

who sought God.

Enough people willing to disengage from their cultural conditioning, to look 

inside themselves, change, convert.  

This can only happen inside the person, driven by their own will and desire.

It can not be imposed.

Neither is it the easy option, because it is the opposite to the ways of the world.

"You can enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The 

highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose 

that way."

Matthew 7:13 NLT

 

But it is worth it, because when you find God, you also find your real self.

 

You are completely unique, there is only ONE of you. 

 "For you created my inmost being;
    you knit me together in my mother’s womb. 

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
    your works are wonderful,
    I know that full well."

 Psalm 139:13-14

 

"Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this 

world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over 

to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world.” 

John 18:36

 

After Jesus had healed the man (Matthew 8,3) of leprosy, He commanded 

the man to not tell anybody, but to only show himself to the priest.

"Then Jesus said to him, “See that you don’t tell anyone. But go, show 

yourself to the priest and offer the gift Moses commanded, as a testimony 

to them.” (Matthew 8,4)

 

 

The Fifth Glorious Mystery: The Coronation of the Most Holy Virgin Mary

 

 

Our Lady; The Most Blessed Virgin Mary, is both our Mother 

and our Queen.

With her entire life, attitude, cooperation, purity, she is a perfect 

model for us to imitate.

Because in the same way as we imitate, download, are shaped 

by, our biological mother; as children we are profoundly 

affected by our mother's proximity and our dependence on her,

Our Lady, Our spiritual Mother, is our model for us to imitate in 

order to grow in holiness. 

 

The Magnificat; Our Lady's own prayer, which came out of her 

meeting with her cousin Elisabeth; recounted in the second joyful 

Mystery,

describes how it is only by submitting ourselves entirely to God,

in trust and humility, that God can operate in us; it is the only way 

we can truly become available to Him.  

It is to be poor in spirit.

 

The Magnificat

 

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed:
the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his Name.
He has mercy on those who fear him 
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm,
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones,
and has lifted up the lowly.

He has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
the promise he made to our fathers,
to Abraham and his children forever.

Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.

 

 

This is in sharp contrast to the ways of the world, which tells us 

to make our mark, to make our presence be seen and heard, to 

be somebody, to be ambitious and selfish.

And pride is on top of the list of mortal sins; 

sins which leads to damnation.  It is probably the most widespread;

unconsciously maybe, we look for recognition, motivated in our 

actions by ambition, by vainglory. Even in the spiritual sphere, 

pride props back up from under the superficial surface of false 

humility.

 

But God, who is both visible and invisible, works away in the background, 

outside our immediate awareness, discreetly, gently and quietly. 

 Hail Holy Queen (Salve Regina)

 Hail, holy Queen, Mother of Mercy,
Hail our life, our sweetness and our hope.
To thee do we cry,
Poor banished children of Eve;
To thee do we send up our sighs,
Mourning and weeping in this valley of tears.

Turn then, most gracious advocate,
Thine eyes of mercy toward us;
And after this our exile,
Show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
O clement, O loving,
O sweet Virgin Mary.

  Pray for us, O holy Mother of God,

  that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

 

Fruit of the Mystery:

A greater devotion to The Most Holy Virgin Mary.

May the grace of this Mystery come into our souls. 

The Fourth Glorious Mystery: The Assumption of The Virgin Mary

 

 

Catholics believe that Mary; Mother of God and Mother 

of men, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory.

The Bull Munificentissimus Deus affirms the elevation of 

Mary’s body to heavenly glory, declaring this truth 

a divinely revealed dogma.

 

Mary, chosen by God as being worthy to be used as a 

pure vessel for God to come through, in order to become 

Man:

 

The Annunciation, (1.Joyful Mystery) recounts: 

"In the sixth month, Gabriel (the angel) was sent from God 

to a town in Galilee called Nazareth,  to a virgin engaged to 

a man called Joseph, from the family of David. 

The virgin was called Mary.

“Greetings, favored one!” said the angel when he arrived. 

“May the Lord be with you!”

She was disturbed at this, and wondered what such a greeting 

might mean.

“Don’t be afraid, Mary,” said the angel to her. 

“You’re in favor with God.  

Listen: you will conceive in your womb and will have a son; 

and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be a great man, and 

he’ll be called the son of the Most High. The Lord God will 

give him the throne of David his father, and he shall reign 

over the house of Jacob forever. 

His kingdom will never come to an end.”

Luke 1: 26- 33

 

Mary; Mother of God

The Immaculate Conception

The spotless Ark of the Covenant 

The beginning of the new creation

Full of grace

The new Eve

The one who intercedes for us

Who was not spared earthly suffering herself

Mary, always at the side of her Son, who just 

before breathing His last breath, gave her to us as 

our Mother:

 "Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s 

sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.  

When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom 

he loved standing nearby, he said to her,  

“Woman, here is your son,” and to the 

disciple, “Here is your mother.” 

From that time on, this disciple took her into his home."

John 19:25-27

 

Our heavenly, spiritual mother, the mother of our souls,

always faithful and helpful; someone we can trust.

Mary, The greatest Saint of all the Saints in Heaven.

Mary, the “woman clothed with the sun” described in 

the Book of Revelation.

 

"A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed 

with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a 

crown of twelve stars on her head." 

Revelation 12: 1

 

We are children of God, we have a Father and a Mother. 

Mary is the Mother we go to with our problems,

for protection, for help, in this "valley of tears"

(Hail Holy Queen prayer)

She who supported Our Lord Jesus Christ; our brother,

on His journey to Calvary, supports us in our often

painful and difficult journey in life.

Pope Benedict XVI:

"By contemplating Mary in heavenly glory, we understand 

that the earth is not the definitive homeland for us either, 

and that if we live with our gaze fixed on eternal goods 

we will one day share in this same glory and the earth 

will become more beautiful.

Consequently, we must not lose our serenity and peace even 

amid the thousands of daily difficulties. The luminous sign of 

Our Lady taken up into Heaven shines out even more brightly 

when sad shadows of suffering and violence seem to loom on 

the horizon."

 

Fruit of the Mystery:

Perseverance, The grace of a good death.

May the grace of this Mystery come into our souls.

 

The Third Glorious Mystery: Pentecost; The descent of the Holy Spirit

 

 

 

Our Lord was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit,

He was brought into existence by God the Father, of whom 

He was of the same substance.

 

Our Lady gave birth to God, by her purity and by the

YES of her heart. 

 

After the Ascension of Our Lord, Mary was present with 

the apostles in the Cenacle; the Upper room, (where also 

the Last Supper ( the very first Mass) had taken place), when, 

in accordance with Jesus's promise, He sent them the Helper; 

the Holy Spirit, which came in the appearance of tongues 

of fire.

All the apostles were filled with it's power and light, and 

they began to speak foreign languages which they had never 

learnt.

  

Believing practicing Catholics who have received the 

Sacrament of Confirmation, also have the Holy Spirit

within them.

 

The Holy Spirit is the third Person of The Holy Trinity.

The Holy Trinity's Three Persons: 

Father, Son and the Holy Spirit, 

are all of the one and the same Substance.

The appearance of tongues of flames, which came after

loud sounds and heavy winds, is a strong and forceful

manifestation of the Holy Spirit.

 

For most of us believers, the progressive growth

in the Holy Presence of God; the Paraclete, 

takes place more discreetly and gently, which is why it

is also often symbolized by a dove. 

Fruit of the Mystery: 

Charity, and the descent of the Holy Spirit into our hearts.

May the grace of the Mystery come into our soul.

 

The Second Glorious Mystery: The Ascension of Jesus Christ

 

 

With our minds and spirits lifted up to God, with our internal 

regard upwards, in prayer, trust and humility, hope for the eternal

grows.

Yes, Jesus ascended up to Heaven; for as He came down 

from Heaven when He was born,

He returned the same way; He ascended back up to 

Heaven.

 

His apostles were present, they saw Him ascending into Heaven

and:

 

"they were looking intently into the sky as He was going when 

suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. 

“Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into 

the sky? 

This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will 

come back in the same way you have seen Him go into heaven.”

 Acts 1:10-11 

 

The Three Theological Virtues; Faith, Hope and Charity, allow

man to share in God's nature. 

It is God who infuses these virtues directly into the soul where they 

make the believers capable of living as God's children and meriting 

eternal life.

 

So, what is Faith?

 

"Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about 

what we do not see."

Hebrews 11:1

 

Daily prayers of the Church and the Sacrifice of the Mass as frequently

as possible is necessary to nourish and to grow in Faith.

Fruit of Mystery:

Hope and the desire for Heaven.

May the grace of the Mystery come into our hearts. 

The First Glorious Mystery: The Resurrection

The empty grave 

 

 

From His Conception to His Death, Jesus caused consternation,

upset, shock, admiration, amazement, love; He deeply impacted 

the lives around Him. He performed many miracles, and His 

speech were words of authority.

 

But in the end He was brought like a lamb to the slaughter, 

in the utmost disgrace and humiliation, He was put to death

on a cross between two criminals.

He died, and He was buried in a grave.

 

When the women came back to the tomb, in order to anoint 

His body, the heavy stone which had been put in front of the

opening, was no longer there,

they looked inside and the body was not there, only the shroud 

that His body had been buried in, remained.

The profession of the catholic faith says that we believe in

"the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body".

If we confess our sins in Confession, they are forgiven, if we work

constantly on our own sanctification, on becoming united to God,

we will rise up to God, to Heaven, when our souls have been purified.

We come out of God, we go back to God.

 

What we do in the short time we have available to us in this earthly 

dimension, is very important, because God didn't just create us so 

we should grow up, go to work, earn money, reproduce, grow old 

and then die.

 

Having an interior, spiritual life, a life of prayer, of communion with

The Source that made us, raises the consciousness to a higher level. 

The higher dimension that escapes people that only occupy

themselves with worldly things.

  

"Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, 

but on every word that comes from the mouth of God."

 Matthew 4:4

 

This not only raises the mind and the spirit, but sometimes also 

the physical body; in the history of the Catholic Church there has 

been many cases of levitation by nuns in enclosed 

convents.

And there is also the supernatural ability to be physical present 

in two places at the same time; bi-location, the most famous of 

our time of this would be Padre Pio.

 

When we die, our soul leaves the body. 

There are countless testimonies from people who have been 

clinically dead and have been brought back to life, who all 

say the same thing; they left the body passing through a sort

of a tunnel, and when they were out; they were 

looking down at "themselves"; their body.

  

The soul belongs to God, it animates the body, it gives it life

during the earthly life. This physical body goes back to the earth,

but we believe that we will also be reunited with our bodies, 

as we consist of a body and a soul, we are not just one or the other.

The two makes us who we are: a person. In the integrity of our 

whole being we will be judged.

 

Many Catholics do not believe in this, although those who go to 

Mass profess it at the start of every Mass, because they can not 

understand how the body, that has been reduced to bones and dust

can be restored. 

This is due to a lack of faith, because if we believe 

that God, by His INFINITE power created everything,

that He brought back to life; RESURRECTED, dead people during His life-time, 

(Lazarus had already started to decompose, and was smelling)  

and He reunited with His own scarred and bruised Body and

rose from His own grave,

He can definitely restore my body too. 

The Word that became flesh; The Creator, who created everything, can also re-create.

Jesus IS the Resurrection and the Life.

The body of a person is always changing.

 

 

 This is a person:

This is a person:

  This is a person:

 

This is a person:

Fruit of Mystery: A more lively Faith.

May the grace of this Mystery come into our soul. 

 

 

The Fifth Sorrowful Mystery: The Death of Our Lord Jesus Christ on the Cross

 

 

The public spectacle of the crucifixion; it was an event that 

drew out the masses, so they could participate in the 

condemnation; they joined the crowd, the mob, like people 

still do today.

 

People are terrified of standing out from the crowd, 

most people align themselves with whatever the political 

correct narrative says at any given time, without reflecting, 

they just take it onboard, and then afterwards they believe that 

it comes from themselves, not realizing that their beliefs was 

simply downloaded from outside them. 

 

"This and that is "good, 

cool, attractive", this and that is "bad, old fashioned or stupid".

I grew up in the 60s and 70s, it was a time of a great shift in 

the world, "out with the old and in with the new", so to speak,

everybody demanding liberation and emancipation, always at 

somebody else's cost, but this self centered culture took foothold 

everywhere. 

Personal happiness and fulfillment was "the meaning of life".

 

Eastern philosophies were brought to the West in a big way, and 

personal psychotherapy became the norm for everybody.

 

Looking for peace and stability in ways outside of ourselves, open 

to manipulation by a massive industry of "well being", which is 

business like all other businesses; they are there to make money.

 

But the way our integrated nature functions is the other way

around. 

The only way "out" is in.  By living the interior authentic life 

we have what it takes to be truly liberated. By fully

accepting our restraints and even sometimes the feeling of 

being a captive, a prisoner, by always uniting ourselves to 

Jesus; true God and true Man, we find true freedom, and 

genuine healing.

Healing from all our fears and all our wounds. 

 

"The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. 

When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy 

went and sold all he had and bought that field.

 

"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking 

for fine pearls.  When he found one of great value, he went 

away and sold everything he had and bought it."

Matthew 13:44-46

 

We are the field in which the treasure is buried.

 

We have the precious Pearl of Life inside us; 

The Kingdom of God.

 

Jesus is our brother, our teacher, our ever present friend. 

He laid down His entire life for us, what do we give back 

in turn?

 

Also; do we fully realize that each one of us is also going 

to die? And that we have to account for our life?

Do we prepare for this?

 

Getting old is dying gradually, our bodies and minds lose

their strength, and many people are afraid of the ultimate

death, because at the end of the day they believe in a 

judgement, and although it is a brutal and painful event 

for the loved ones left behind, physical 

death is the birth into real life; the same way as childbirth 

is painful, and can be traumatic also for the baby, as it's 

entry into this sphere necessitates being 

squeezed through a narrow channel.

 

But a seed, which contains the full potential inside it, 

has to die, in order for it to come to life; to unfold and 

to flourish, it has to be buried in the ground so the plant 

inside it may come to life. 

 

"Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the 

ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it 

dies, it produces many seeds."

John 12: 24 

 

There are many references made to seeds in the Bible.

 

Jesus spoke in parables:

  

The Parable of the Growing Seed:

 

"He also said, “This is what the kingdom of God is like. 

A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether 

he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he 

does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain—

first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the 

head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, 

because the harvest has come.”

 Mark 4:26-29

 

The Parable of the Mustard Seed:

 

"Again he said, “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, 

or what parable shall we use to describe it? It is like a mustard 

seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. Yet when planted, 

it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such 

big branches that the birds can perch in its shade.”

Mark 4:30-32

 

From that we see that in dying and being buried, we are not "dead"; 

as in non-existent, no more, but we are asleep. 

The word cemetery comes from Greek, which means dormitory;

a resting place where people sleep.

 

And the dead will hear His voice;

 "Very truly I tell you, a time is coming and has now come when the 

dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live."

John 5:25

 

The sperm that falls from a man as he ejaculates, is the seed that 

contains life.   

Being buried in the earthly body of a woman it has all the potential 

to create a new life. 

 

Catholics must follow and unite themselves to Jesus in everything: 

His life, His suffering and in His death. 

In everyday situations to train ourselves to throw off our habitual 

self-centered selfishness; "to die to ourselves", to bind ourselves 

entirely to Our Lord, become One with Him. 

I that way we diminish, and He grows, in us.

 

 "He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less."  

John 3:30

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also 

in me.  

My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have 

told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go 

and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with 

me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place  

where I am going.”

John 14: 1- 4

 

Sometimes we feel neglected and abandoned, but even 

God Himself felt abandoned as He hung on the Cross;

 

"About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, 

“Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” 

(which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

Matthew 27:46

 

 

Fruit of the Mystery: A greater love for God and for souls.

May the grace of this mystery come into our souls. 

 

 

 

The Fourth Sorrowful Mystery: The Carrying of The Cross

 

 

 

 

Jesus had to carry Himself the instrument upon which He was 

going to be put to death.  

Crucifixion was the sentence  imposed on the worst criminals;

apart from the indescribable physical pain, it was also chosen 

for reasons of wanting to strip the dignity of the condemned; 

for the public shame and humiliation.

Jesus; God Himself, was spat on, they threw stones at Him, 

as He dragged the heavy cross and they laughed when they 

saw how He struggled.

 

 

 

When He came into the world as a new born baby there was 

no room available in the Inn; He was born in a cave or a stable:

shelter for animals, and at the end of His life He was 

nailed to a Cross until death. 

 

This is the Person who changed the whole world by His 

Birth, Life, Death and Resurrection, when we look at this, 

we see a distinct lack of worldly glory. 

On the way to the place of His execution; Golgotha; a hill 

on the outskirts of Jerusalem, there were also some kind 

people. 

Apart from His Mother Mary who never left His side, there

was Veronica who showed her love and support by wiping 

His face with her linen cloth, upon which Jesus left the 

imprint of Himself, there was Simon of Cyrene who helped  

to carry the heavy Cross, and there were the women of 

Jerusalem who felt very sad and sorry for Him. And what 

did Jesus say to the women?

He said to not worry about Him, but rather about themselves 

and their children, because if they could treat Him in this way,

He who was innocent, what would happen to them, who were 

sinners?

 

This journey carrying His Cross is full of meaning for us;

Jesus went through it willingly, but His Cross was our sins, 

we caused it. We are still causing it today.

  

We need to examine ourselves every day, see ourselves as we 

really are, see our faults, stop being self defensive and make 

excuses for our bad behavior, and confess our sins to a priest.  

And our sins are thus forgiven, by Jesus Himself, because He 

gave the power and authority to forgive sins to His priests. 

So in Confession it is not the priest who forgives, he is only an 

instrument, it is Jesus Himself. 

Jesus also said that anyone who wanted to follow Him, 

had to pick up their own cross and carry it.

 

Crosses are not in short supply in our world; they come in 

all forms.

None of us want them, but very few avoid them.

What we do when they arrive, is what shows how 

great our desire for Him is, how much we put Him first,

and how much we trust Him. 

 

We can unite our sufferings to those of Jesus, in that way 

we use our suffering in a productive way, we can offer them 

up for someone else's healing, for example. In this way, 

suffering becomes not only bearable, but fruitful. 

Because we arrive at the Resurrection through the way of 

the Cross.

Fruit of this Mystery: 

Patience and gentleness during adversity, affliction and 

suffering of any kind. 

May the grace of this Mystery come into our souls.