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After Jesus commended His soul to God the Father on the day
of man’s redemption, Blessed Mother remained by the Cross and adored her dead
Son and His divinity inseparably united to His Sacred Body. 1
She was “especially solicitous for the burial of the sacred
body of her divine Son and how to procure someone to take it down from the
Cross.” 2
So Blessed Mother asked her holy angels how she was to take
down from the Cross “the One whom her soul loved.” She asked them, “… how and where shall I give Him honorable
burial, since this duty pertains to me as His Mother? Tell me what to do, and assist me on this
occasion by your diligence.” 3
They responded, “Our Queen and Mistress, let thy afflicted
heart be dilated for what is still to be borne…” 3
Up until that time, it had not been revealed to the
most afflicted of Mothers that Jesus
would be pierced by the lance. Her
tribulation and anxiety were then renewed by the fear and dread of what was to happen
to His Sacred Body.
When she saw the armed band approaching Calvary, she said to
Saint John and the pious women, “Alas, now shall my affliction reach its utmost
and transfix my heart! Is it possible, that the executioners and the Jews are
not yet satisfied with having put to death my Son and Lord? Shall they now heap more injury upon His dead
Body?” 4
They found that Jesus
was already dead, and so his bones were not broken since there was no more need
to hasten His death. However, one soldier
by the name of Longinus approached the Cross, and thrust his lance through
Christ’s side.
Immediately, in
death, life-saving Blood and Water flowed from the wound. It is that same Blood that we receive in Holy
Communion, the same Blood that washes away our sins. The same Precious Blood that mystically flows
from Christ’s side when we are present on Calvary during the consecration,
every time Holy Mass is celebrated.
This violent piercing was not felt by the Lord because He
had expired. However, it was felt by our
Blessed Mother in His stead.
“But even this pain was exceeded by the affliction of her
most holy soul, in witnessing the cruel laceration of the breast of her dead
Son. “ 5
She addressed Longinus thus:
“The Almighty look upon thee with eyes of mercy for the pain thou hast
caused to my soul!” Then, in order to
instruct us when we are also injured by others, HER INDIGNATION WENT NO
FARTHER. 6
Moved by His Mother’s prayer, Jesus ordained that some of His Precious Blood
and Water that were flowing from His side fell on Longinus’ face. At that moment his eyesight, which was almost
lost, was restored. Concurrently, sight
was given to his soul, and he recognized in Jesus his Savior, and was
converted.
Longinus wept over his sins which had been washed clean in
the Blood from Christ’s side, and he openly acknowledged and confessed Jesus as
the true God and Savior of the world.
And there at the foot of the Cross the fruits of our redemption were immediately evident once again, in rapid succession pouring out liberally upon two men there on Calvary, when the confessional moved from the cross of the good thief to the man who repented of mutilating His Lord with a spear.
And there at the foot of the Cross the fruits of our redemption were immediately evident once again, in rapid succession pouring out liberally upon two men there on Calvary, when the confessional moved from the cross of the good thief to the man who repented of mutilating His Lord with a spear.
After Jesus’ Body was impaled by the lance, Blessed Mother
issued forth a song of praise in honor of her divine Son. May we behave in imitation of Mary and praise God for His goodness, and forgive all those who hurt us.
May we beg for forgiveness whenever we harm others and wound our Lord with our very own lances. May we reconcile with others as soon as possible, and also be reconciled with God by asking for His forgiveness in the confessional.
Next, Blessed Mother prayed that the mysteries of the
Redemption would be verified in the
blessings spread over the whole human race. 7
Blessed Mother perceived the mystery of the wounding of
Jesus with the lance: “…namely, that in
this last pouring forth of the blood and water issued forth the new Church,”
the One, Holy , Catholic, Apostolic, and Pro-Life Church, “cleansed and washed
by the Passion and Death of Jesus, and that from His sacred side, as from the
roots, should now spread out through the whole world the fruits of life
eternal.” 8
She revealed in City of God: The Divine History and Life of the Virgin Mother of God, as manifested to Venerable Mary of Agreda for the Encouragement of Men, “…the lance-thrust which my blessed Son received in His side, was
cruel and very painful only to me; but its effects and mysteries are most sweet
to those souls who know how to taste its sweetness…whoever meets with this
mysterious favor will find it a great relief and consolation in his
sorrows. In order that thou mayest
understand this and participate in it, thou must know, that my Son and Lord, on
account of His most ardent love for men, in addition to the wounds of the feet
and hands, wished to open the wound of His heart, the seat of love, in order
that through this port the souls might enter and there receive refuge and
relief. “ 9
There, she tells us, we will find the conditions and laws of
love for imitating her. There, we will
learn how we must return blessings to
all those who injure us.
“The prayer, which thou offerest in a forgiving spirit, is
powerful not only for thy own good, but for the good of the one that offends
thee; for the kind heart of my Son is
easily moved, when He sees that creatures imitate Him in pardoning offenders
and in praying for them; for they thereby participate in His most ardent
charity manifested on the Cross. “ 10
"If you want to assist at Holy Mass with devotion and fruitfully, keep company with the Sorrowful Virgin at the foot of the Cross on Calvary." ~ Saint Pio, Cap. 12
________________
Sources:
1. City of God: The Divine History and Life of the Virgin Mother of God, as manifested to Venerable Mary of Agreda for the Encouragement of Men (Washington, New Jersey: Ave Maria Institute, 1971).
2. Ibid, p. 699.
3 , 4, 5, 6. Ibid, p. 700.
7, 8, 9. Ibid, p. 700.
10,11. Ibid, p. 711.
12. Madame Katharina Tangari, Stories of Padre Pio (Rockford, IL: Tan Books and Publishers, Inc., 1996), p. 133.
Images taken at Ss. Cyril and Methodius Slovak Catholic
Church in Sterling Heights, Michigan, U.S.A.
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