TWELFTH STATION
Jesus on the Cross, his Mother and his Disciple
V.Adoramus
te, Christe, et benedicimus tibi.
We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you.
R.Quia
per sanctam crucem tuam redemisti mundum.
Because by your holy Cross you have redeemed the world.
From the Gospel according to Jn 19,26-27
When
Jesus saw his mother, and the disciple whom he loved standing near, he said to
his mother: "Woman, behold, your son!".
Then he said to the disciple: "Behold, your mother!". And from that hour the
disciple took her to his own home.
MEDITATION
Mary, you are standing at the foot of the Cross; the youngest disciple is standing next to you. Amid the noise of the soldiers and the crowd, the two of you lift your eyes, silently, to Christ. Mary, did you raise your hands to collect the blood running down the wood, the sap of the tree of life? Did your tears water the earth, where too many mothers lay their children to rest? From the beginning you pondered in your heart, in silence and abandonment, in peace and trust, what you saw and heard. Now you offer your Son to the world, and you receive the Disciple whom he loved. From that moment, John takes you into the home of his heart and his life, and the power of Love expands within him. He is now, in the Church, the witness to the light and through his Gospel he reveals the Saviour's Love.
PRAYER
Jesus, from the Cross
you looked upon Mary and your Disciple:
grant us, in the midst of our sufferings,
the courage and the joy to welcome you
and to follow you with complete trust.
Christ, the source of life,
of every grace and beauty,
grant that we may contemplate your smiling face,
the face of him who saves the world and leads it
to the Father.
Lord, our praise rises to you,
guided by the Church and by your Mother:
grant that we may see in the folly of the Cross
the promise of our resurrection.
Your face, Jesus,
shines brightly in the hour of darkness,
as the face of Master, Son and Friend:
to you go our love and gratitude,
with the Father and the Holy Spirit,
in the fleetingness of time
and in unchanging eternity.
R.Amen.
All:
Pater noster, qui es in cælis:
sanctificetur nomen tuum;
adveniat regnum tuum;
fiat voluntas tua, sicut in cælo, et in terra.
Panem nostrum cotidianum da nobis hodie;
et dimitte nobis debita nostra,
sicut et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris;
et ne nos inducas in tentationem;
sed libera nos a malo.
Vidit
suum dulcem Natum
morientem desolatum,
cum emisit spiritum.
She
looked upon her sweet Son,
saw him hang in desolation,
till his spirit forth he sent.