Nicole Berlucchi, Writer on a Mission

Visit Tribe of Many Arrows on Etsy. These images are used with their permission,
and I am grateful for these beautiful creations accompanying my reflections this month.

For the month of October the “That We May Imitate What They Contain and Obtain What They Promise” series will take a daily look at one mystery of the Rosary and how we have the opportunity to imitate it and rejoice in what it promises us.

Today, we look at the fifth Sorrowful Mystery of the Rosary: The Crucifixion.

“So they took Jesus, and carrying the cross himself he went out to what is called the Place of the Skull, in Hebrew, Golgotha. There they crucified him, and with him two others, one on either side with Jesus in the middle. Pilate also had an inscription written and put on the cross. It read, “Jesus, the Nazorean, the King of the Jews.” Now many of the Jews read this inscription, because the place where Jesus was crucified as near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, Latin and Greek. So the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate, “Do not write ‘The King of the Jews,’ but that he said, ‘I am the King of the Jews.’” Pilate answered, “What I have written, I have written.”

When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they took his clothes and divided them into four shares, a share for each soldier. They also took his tunic, but the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece from the top down. So they said to one another, “Let’s not tear it, but cast lots for it to see whose it will be,” in order that the passage of scripture might be fulfilled [that says]:

                                           “They divided my garments among them,

                                             And for my vesture they cast lots.”

This is what the soldiers did. Standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary of Magdala. When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple there whom he had loved, 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 into his home.

After this, aware that everything was now finished, in order that the scripture might be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I thirst.” There was a vessel filled with common wine. So they put a sponge soaked in wine on a sprig of hyssop and put it up to his mouth. When Jesus had taken the wine, he said, “It is finished.” And bowing his head, he handed over his spirit. John 19:16-30 (NABRE)

The Crucifixion is where we witness the most humble, generous death. We see our Lord, dying for us, giving us His mother, only thinking of us as He cries out for us, “I thirst.” He desires nothing more than our love, so let’s see how can we imitate this great act of love for us.

1. There are crosses we will have to suffer with directly. Here we are at the culmination of Jesus’ Passion—the crucifixion. At this point, we see He is carrying the cross Himself. Simon has gone away. He will be crucified. While the criminals are there to be crucified for their crimes, there is not anyone stepping in to divert Jesus from His mission of dying for our sins. This moment seems tragic, yet Jesus understands He alone can carry out this mission. He is the person God the Father has designated to redeem us from sin. Sometimes in our lives, while we are surrounded by people who accompany us, we must bear the cross ourselves. Physical suffering especially is a weight that most bear alone even if others attempt to be present in the midst of their suffering. The physical pain they experience cannot be transferred or taken on by another.
2. Even when all seems lost, let us not give up on people. We see Jesus surrounded by the utmost faithful friends. They are ready to accompany Him to the end. They realize at this point that there is no way to intervene. They stand by Jesus as a sign of their loyalty, as homage to all He has given to them in how He lived among them, as friendship and love for a person they care for deeply and who they know would do the same for them. We must remember that Jesus reminds us that there is always hope. We must stand by those we love even when all seems lost, recalling who Jesus is and how those He loved never gave up on Him. They stood with Him until the very end.
3. Take Mary as your mother. Can you receive that—Can you imitate John and take her into your home, your heart. Jesus is giving His own mother to you. His sinless, humble, perfect mother who is so conformed to God and His will, who is the spouse of the Holy Spirit, who points the way to Jesus. His mother whose incredible strength bolstered with divine grace enabled her to stand at the foot of the cross and watch her son, her beloved Lord, die in the most unjust of ways.  You might have a wonderful earthly mother or maybe you are estranged from your mother or maybe it is somewhere in between, but no matter where your relationship is with your earthly mother, Mary is someone who you want to be connected with, who you want praying for you and guiding you. She is a model of all of the fruits of the Holy Spirit. You name it—she has it—charity, fortitude, perseverance, and on and on. Let’s imitate John and take her into our homes right away. Let’s pray to her, read about her, and talk with her. Let’s let her love us as she loved Jesus, always there, ready to endure anything with us.
4. Give Jesus the love He desires. Thirst for Him like He thirsts for you. Jesus cries out from the cross—“I thirst”—and he is not thirsty for a drink. He is thirsting for souls. Your soul and my soul. He wants so desperately to be united to us. He is laid bare, vulnerable, nailed to a cross, arms open. He has endured brutality, mocking, loneliness; He has given everything. He thirsts for you and me. Do we thirst for Him in the same way? We must recognize his sacrifice and return His love with a love thirsting for Him. Will we give our whole hearts to the one who gave His life for us? Only He can make us whole; only He can satisfy our longing. Let us be like Jesus and give our whole selves to Him, holding nothing back.

Jesus shows us how to die a holy death, accepting any path laid out before us, even when we feel alone. He reminds us God does provide faithful friends who stand by us in the midst of our suffering. He reminds us he provides us with a heavenly mother who will be kind and loving towards us, showing us the way, and He reminds us that all He desires is our love. The best way to show our love is being so sorry for the sins that have brought about this moment. The Lord desires us. He loves His own suffering because He knows it saves us. Let us remember our crosses draw us closer to Him; they unite us to Him. May the ways we imitate this mystery draw us to love our crosses and desire a holy death like Jesus.

Visit Tribe of Many Arrows on Etsy. These images are used with their permission, and I am grateful for these beautiful creations accompanying my reflections this month.

If you missed last week’s reflections, catch them here: Annunciation, Visitation, Birth of Jesus, the Presentation, and the Finding of Jesus in the Temple.