The Second Station: Jesus Takes Up His Cross
But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; upon Him was the chastisement that made us whole, and with His stripes we are healed. (Isaiah 53:5)
The sentence has been passed. Jesus is to be crucified. His hands that once calmed storms and healed lepers now hoist a massive beam on his back. The wood is not smooth and sanded like the wood He worked with for so many years in His shop in Nazareth. It splinters and digs into the already deep wounds of His scourging. Unsteady with the weight, the cross slams into Jesus’ head and pushes deeper the thorns of His crown.
Jesus steadies Himself. He is not surprised by the pain. He holds the cross tightly, committed to His path to Calvary. Already He is shoved and hurried by the soldiers. The crowd that has gathered continues to jeer. He takes his first step.
Jesus, you knew that you would suffer and die. You had the power to change how You would save us, but Your love was so perfect that You suffered because You wanted to be like us “in all things but sin.” You made it possible to be joyful despite great suffering because through that suffering we can be close to You. Every vocation involves suffering, involves the cross. You told us that if we wanted to follow You, we also had to take up our crosses. Jesus, help me to see my struggles as the opportunities that they are. Help me to realize that while I want happiness, I will only ever be truly happy when I have let go of what I want and seek what You want. As I carry the crosses of motherhood, help me to realize that this is my way to heaven and that You are with me every step of the way.
Points to consider:
Do I see motherhood as my vocation that will necessarily involve suffering, great and small?
How do I react when I am presented with discomforts and contradictions?
Do I see my tiredness, the demands on my time and attention, the illnesses, and the other struggles as the raw material that will help both me and my children to grow closer to You?
Can I embrace those little crosses and unite them to the intentions of my family and friends?
In a world that tells me to shun sacrifices, do I put my personal preferences last?
Do I see suffering as not only as compatible with joy but as a true sign that I am close to Jesus?
Cheerfulness prepares a glorious mind for all the noblest acts.
-Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, mother