As one drives or walks in a city, there are so many things to read. Advertisements, billboards, road signs, warnings, inscriptions, posters, historical markers, graffiti etc. Most of these do not evoke a deep emotional response, they simply want us to purchase an item, vote for a candidate or stay out of a construction zone.
I read the inscription above while walking down a busy road in Jerusalem while participating in the Stations of the Cross. Not only did it evoke a response from me, but now every time I take part in Stations, I remember it. The words pierced me right through the heart.
O vos omnes qui transitis per viam, attendite et videte si est dolor sicut dolor meus.
O you all who walk by on the road, pay attention and see if there is any sorrow like my sorrow.
The inscription spoke directly to me who was literally walking by on the road meditating on the passion of Christ. It was an invitation to meditate more deeply into the redeeming suffering and death of Our Savior.
Through the death of Jesus we are redeemed and He is exalted by God the Father. Here the great mysteries of the incarnation and the passion merge. Saint Paul wrote in his letter to the Philippians:
“He emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness; and found human in appearance, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross. Because of this, God greatly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
The more we meditate on the passion of Christ, the more we experience His love for us. The more we experience His love, the more our lives are transformed and filled by his grace. The more we meditate on the passion, the greater our rejoicing will be at the resurrection.
May these last days of Lent be fruitful as we all prepare to remember and celebrate the Sacred Mysteries of our redemption during Holy Week and Easter.
Pictures are mine, all rights reserved.
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