The Fifth Sorrow: the Crucifixion of Christ

“Standing near the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.” (John 19:25)

Meditation: The Mother of Compassion

In the Fifth Sorrow, the faithful stand prayerfully with the sorrowful Virgin at the foot of the cross, as she contemplates the agonising death of her Son.

Pope Francis explained: “Mary is the Mother of compassion. Her faith is compassionate. She, “the servant of the Lord” (cf. Luke 1:38) who, with a mother’s care, ensured that the wine at the wedding feast of Cana would be sufficient (cf. John 2:1-12), shared in her Son’s mission of salvation, even to the foot of the Cross. At Calvary, in her overwhelming grief, she understood the prophecy of Simeon: “And a sword will pierce your own soul too” (Luke 2:35). The suffering of her dying Son, who had taken upon himself the sins and infirmities of humanity, pierced her own heart. Jesus suffered in the flesh, the man of sorrows, disfigured by evil (cf. Isaiah 53:3ff). Mary suffered in spirit, as the compassionate Mother who dries our tears, comforts us and points to Christ’s definitive victory.”

He continued: “Mary, Mother of Sorrows, remains at the foot the cross. She simply stands there. She does not run away, or try to save herself, or find ways to alleviate her grief. Here is the proof of true compassion: to remain standing beneath the cross. To stand there weeping, yet with the faith that knows that, in her Son, God transfigures pain and suffering and triumphs over death.”

The pope concluded: “In contemplating the Sorrowful Mother, may we too open our hearts to a faith that becomes compassion, a faith that identifies with those who are hurting, suffering and forced to bear heavy crosses. A faith that does not remain abstract, but becomes incarnate in fellowship with those in need. A faith that imitates God’s way of doing things, quietly relieves the suffering of our world and waters the soil of history with salvation.”

This relief carving pictures the Twelfth Station of the Cross, which shows us the death of Christ. It was made in 1912 by Georg Lang of Oberammergau, and is found within St Boniface’s, Whitechapel.

In this detailed scene, we see the soldier who pierced Christ with a lance, several weeping disciples and St John encouraging us to behold Christ’s death. In the centre, we also see Our Lady throwing her hands up in grief, as she realises her Son has now gone.

Prayer:
O Sorrowful Mother, obtain for me the grace to deny myself, to take up my cross daily and to follow your Son to Calvary. Through the depths of grief you experienced as you watched your beloved Jesus die, I ask that you may comfort those now in their last agony, and that you be also with me at the hour of my own death. Amen.

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