Fourteenth Station: Jesus is laid in the tomb

After this, Joseph of Arimathaea, who was a disciple of Jesus — though a secret one because he was afraid of the Jews — asked Pilate to let him remove the body of Jesus. Pilate gave permission, so they came and took it away. Nicodemus came as well — the same one who had first come to Jesus at nighttime — and he brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, weighing about a hundred pounds. They took the body of Jesus and wrapped it with the spices in linen cloths, following the Jewish burial custom. At the place where he had been crucified there was a garden, and in this garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been buried. Since it was the Jewish Day of Preparation and the tomb was near at hand, they laid Jesus there.
(Jn 19:38-42, Jerusalem Bible)

Joseph of Arimathaea is only mentioned in the gospels with respect to the burial of Jesus. All the gospels say that he is a disciple (Mt 27:57; Jn 19:38), or that he was looking for the kingdom of God (Mk 15:43; Lk 23:51). Imagine his feelings in receiving the body of his master. Like many of the disciples, he was probably hoping for Jesus to be a political messiah, to lead the Jewish nation to freedom from Rome. Despite the dashing of his hopes, he still has respect for Jesus. Although he fears the backlash from the Jews, he still decides to give his final respects to his master.

Jews were not allowed to leave corpses unburied:

And if a man has committed a crime punishable by death and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree, his body shall not remain all night upon the tree, but you shall bury him the same day, for a hanged man is accursed by God; you shall not defile your land which the LORD your God gives you for an inheritance.  (Dt. 21:22-23, Revised Standard Version)

There has been a question as to why myrrh and aloes were used and why so much of it. One must remember that Jesus was probably bleeding profusely, and with sweat and dirt mixed in, there would probably be a smell. Aloes and myrrh were probably used to cover the body so that it would smell so bad. There are suggestions that it was used for embalming but it is more likely that the two sweet smelling substances were used to perfume the corpse of Jesus. The two men, who were secret disciples of Jesus, now took the courage to claim the body and bury it after treating it with the respect of a normal human person. This was something the Jewish authorities at the time of Jesus had not afforded to Jesus. Neither did any of the apostles were there to give their last respects to Jesus, the master they had lived with for three years.

My family converted from the Chinese religion. Chinese funerals were very expensive affairs. Often, after a relation’s funeral or after watching one of the old black and white television dramas, my mother (who is still alive) would tell me spend money on her rather than on her funeral. Sometimes I witness very melodramatic displays of grief at a funeral, only to discover that the one making the display had not really paid attention to the deceased when he or she was alive.

True respect to the dead can only occur when we truly respected the living. Sometimes when we suddenly find a loved one dead, we feel guilt over the things we could have said or done. This was an experience I had with my late father. I must admit that I was not as close to my father as I could have been. He passed on when I was in Rome for my post-graduate studies. He had suddenly took ill and passed away. I had spoken to him just over a week before. I only managed to make it in time for his funeral. I was not able to grieve for a while. I felt I had to be strong for my family and my mother. It was only when I was back in Rome, after my exams, that I was able to begin to grieve. The guilt of what I could have said to him or done for him came to me like a tsunami. I cannot remember how long I wept, but I did. Remembering that my father was now in the hands of God, I simply asked God to relay what I needed to say to my father.

Although Jesus died a horrible death, he was given an honourable burial. For Nicodemus and Joseph who were not able to prevent his death, they were able to provide him a decent burial. For us, who have benefitted from his death, let us never forget the great love Jesus had for us: He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. (1 Pet 2:24, Revised Standard Version)