It was preparation day for Passover,
and it was about noon. And
he (Pilate) said to the Jews: "Behold
your King!" But they cried
out: "Take Him
Away! Take Him Away! Crucify Him!"
Pilate said to them: "Shall I crucify
your King?" The chief priests answered: "We have
no king but Caesar"! Then he handed Him
over to them to be crucified. (John
19:14-16)
Meditation/Prayer:
O Jesus! so meek and uncomplaining, teach
me resignation
in trials.
So they took Jesus, and carrying
the cross Himself He went out to
what is called the Place of the Skull,
in Hebrew, Golgotha.
(John 19:16-17)
My Jesus,
this Cross should be mine, not Thine; my sins crucified
Thee.
Because of His affliction he shall
see the light in fullness of days;
Through His suffering, My Servant shall
justify many and their
guilt He shall bear. (Isaiah
53:11)
O Jesus!
by this first fall, never let me fall into sin.
To what can I liken or compare
you, O Daughter of Jerusalem?
What example can I show you for your
comfort, virgin daughter
Zion? Bitterly she weeps at night, tears
upon her cheeks, With not
one to console her of all her dear ones;
Her friends have all
betrayed her and become her enemies.
(Lamentations 2:13, 1:2)
O Jesus!
May no human tie, however dear, keep me from following
the road of the
Cross.
As they were going out, they met
a Cyrenian named Simon; this
man they pressed into service to carry
his cross. (Matthew 27:32)
O Jesus!
Let me be your Cyrenian and grant me the patience to
suffer all for
Thee.
Many say, "Oh, that we might see
better times!" O Lord, let the
light of your countenance shine upon
us! (Psalms 4:7)
O Jesus!
Thou didst imprint Thy Sacred Features upon
Veronica's veil;
stamp them also indelibly upon my heart.
A large crowd of people followed
Jesus, including many women who mourned and lamented Him..(Luke
23:27)
By Thy second
fall, preserve me, dear Lord, from relapse into sin.
"Daughters of Jerusalem, do not
weep for Me: weep instead for
yourselves and for your children, for
indeed, the days are
coming when people will say: Blessed
are the barren, the wombs
that never bore and the breasts that
never nursed. For if these
things are done when the wood is green
what will happen when it
is dry?" (Luke
23:28-29, 31)
My greatest
consolation would be to hear Thee say: "Many sins are forgiven thee, because
thou hast loved much."
My people, what have I done to
you, or in what way have I
offended you? Answer
Me!
I led you out of the land of Egypt,
and you have led Me to the
cross. Forty years I fed you in the desert,
and you have beaten
Me with blows and scourges. I gave you
a royal scepter, and you
have given Me
a crown of thorns.
What more ought I do for you that
I have not done?
(Reproaches
of Good Friday)
O Jesus!
When weary upon life's long journey, be Thou my
strength and my
perseverance.
They look on and gloat over Me;
they divide my garments among
them, and for my vesture they cast lots.
(Psalm 22:18-19)
My soul has
been robbed of its innocence; clothe me, dear Jesus,
with the garb of
penance and contrition.
When they came to the place
called the Skull, they crucified Him
and the criminals there, one on his right,
the other on his left. Then
Jesus said, "Father,
forgive them, they not what they do."
(Luke 23: 33-34)
Thou didst
forgive Thy enemies; my God, teach me to forgive
injuries and forget
them.
Jesus cried out with a loud voice:
"Father, into Your hands I
commend My spirit!";
and when He had said this He breathed
His last. The centurion who witnessed
what had happened
glorified God and said, "This
man was innocent beyond doubt."
(Luke
23:46-47)
Thou art
dying, my Jesus, but Thy Sacred Heart still throbs with
love for Thy sinful
children.
Look, O Lord, and see how worthless
I have become! Come, all
you who pass by the way, look and see
whether there is any
suffering like my suffering, which has
been dealt me...
(Lamentations
11-12)
Receive me
into Thy arms, O Sorrowful Mother; and obtain for
me perfect contrition
for my sins.
Now, in the place where He had
been crucified there was a
garden, and in the garden a new tomb,
in which no one had yet
been buried. So they laid Jesus there
because of the Jewish
preparation day; for the tomb was close
by. (John 19:41-42)
When I receive
Thee into my heart in Holy Communion, O Jesus,
make it a fit abiding
place for Thy adorable Body. Amen!
