The 6th, 7th and 8th Stations

Wednesday of Holy Week

The Sixth Station:  Veronica Wipes the Face of Jesus
While Simon had the honor of carrying the cross for Jesus, Veronica also aided Our Lord on His way.  Amid all the bitter afflictions of the way of the cross, at this one moment Jesus received an unlikely physical comfort.  Set in a scale against the sting of the lashes, the weight of the wood, the blows of the contemptuous guards and the coming anguish of the nails, the simple gesture of Veronica wiping the sacred face of Jesus would seem to weigh nothing at all.

It is often only in small ways that we are able to live out the Faith on a daily basis.  These small ways are also the easiest to ignore because we want to see great results from our good works.  Veronica, motivated by her great love for Jesus, reminds us that to God a small good can outweigh a great many evils, for "love covers a multitude of sins" (1 Peter 4:8). How often do we reject an opportunity to do good for one another because it seems "unimportant?"  Do we give ourselves enough credit as powerful actors in bringing about the Kingdom of God?

Lord, help us to see all the gifts You have given us as worthy to share with your suffering people.

The Seventh Station:  Jesus Falls the Second Time
Jesus fell more than once along the way to Calvary.  It grew harder and harder with each fall for Him to rise again and continue on the road to Calvary.  But rise He did to endure more buffets and spitting (Isaiah 50:6) from the guards and the crowd.  He pressed on to His own crucifixion for the sake of the very people who hated Him, and for the sake of His absent friends, and for the sake of the Will of His Father.

For Christians, the hatred of others is a strong motivation to inaction.  It is right and good to love others, and to encourage positive feelings in our hearts toward those with whom we do not agree.  It is natural to want others to think positive thoughts about us in return.  At the same time, faithfulness to the Will of God will make us enemies.  We must stay faithful nonetheless.  In what ways are we afraid to live, act and speak as Christians in the public eye?  How often do we mistake actions that will protect our reputation for holy meekness and humbleness of heart (Matthew 11:29)?

Lord, help us to stay on the path of righteousness no matter what others may think of us, good or ill.

The Eighth Station:  Jesus Meets the Women of Jerusalem
In the Gospel of Luke Jesus has a brief conversation with a group of the women of Jerusalem.  It is unclear from Scripture if they were lamenting the injustice of what had been done to Him or if their tears were for the evils of which He had been wrongfully accused.  What is clear is that Jesus replies by redirecting their tears to their own future progeny with prophetic words:  "Indeed, the days are coming when people will say, ‘Blessed are the barren, the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed’" (Luke 23:29).

In every generation since the time of Our Lord human beings have had the responsibility to hand down a way of life to the next generation.  This is a sacred responsibility.  And yet Christians seldom spend enough time learning from the wellspring of the Faith how to be good teachers or what, indeed, to teach.  If we let the World do the teaching, we shirk that responsibility and allow our society to sink further into the despair of our Lord's prophecy.  What is the source of the wisdom we personally pass down to future generations?  Do our children and others see in us a joyful concern for Godly things that is worth emulating and passing on?

Lord, help us to be more faithful to You that we may not leave the world barren.