by
Fr. John Keep

13th. Station: The Body of Jesus is Taken Down from the Cross

Verse:  We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
Response:  Because by Your Holy Cross You have redeemed the world.

The Passion of Christ is over, but the sufferings of His Mother, like those of the Church She represents, have not yet ended.  The Body of Jesus is taken down from the Cross and placed in Her arms.  As She pays Her last respects on earth to the body of Her Son, she does not weaken in faith, nor does She lose her love for mankind.   He embraced mankind.  They are Her Son’s people, and Her own.  She knows what He meant when He said to Her, “Behold your son,” and She heard Him address us from the Cross with the words, “Behold your Mother.” 
    
We think of these things, and yet sometimes there is jealousy among us or resentment. We sometimes complain about things.  We even get angry at times.  We have been given such a vital share in such a great love that we ought all to be like saints.  But as we are not saints, let us be true penitents, making reparation for our sins and those of others.  Nothing we can do can really make us worthy of such a Son of God and such a Mother.  Yet at any moment we choose, from morning to night, we can speak to Jesus and to Mary and be heard.  There is no limit to the communion we can have with Them.

(after a brief pause)

Eternal Father, I offer You the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Your dearly beloved Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, in atonement for our sins and those of the whole world.

For the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world.