Thirteenth Station: Jesus dies on the cross

It was now about the sixth hour and, with the sun eclipsed, a darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour. The veil of the Temple was torn right down the middle; and when Jesus had cried out in a loud voice, he said, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” With these words he breathed his last. 
(Lk 23:44-46, Jerusalem Bible)

In the four gospels, the death of Jesus is described in three ways. St. Mark and Sr. Matthew report that Jesus gave a loud cry and then yielded his spirit. This loud cry was probably what St. Luke records as, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” St. John records the words as “It is finished.” Both these phrases express the great resolve of Jesus.

God the Father sent His Son to bring the good news to the world. His good news was a message that I have already mentioned in the eleventh station: The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe in the gospel. (Mk 1:15, Revised Standard Version) The preaching Jesus gives is about the kingdom. He speaks in parables about the kingdom. His miracles reveal the reality of the kingdom. In fact he tries to tell the Jews that his works (miracles) gives credence to his preaching: If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me; but if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father. (Jn 10:37-38, Revised Standard Version) He dedicated His whole life to the kingdom, living the life of an itinerant preacher. Thus when His life was over, the work is done. He commits what is left – His spirit – to the Father.

The works that Jesus result from His obedience in love of the Father. The absolute obedience that Jesus had resulted in the enduring of hours of torture. Whether He understood the significance of the suffering He endured (the theologians are still debating that point), He obeyed because He loved the Father, and had no doubt that He was loved by the Father. Jesus was single-minded in that way. When everything that he needed to do was completed, he utters, “It is finished!” (Jn 19:30) That is from the Revised Standard Version translation. The Jerusalem Bible reads, “It is accomplished” while the Douay-Rheims translation reads, “It is consummated.” The Greek word teleō, the root of the verb used in the original text, means to finish something or to make something whole. For example, it is used to indicate that someone has paid up all the tax he owed. Thus, Jesus is saying that he has fulfilled, or completed, or finished the mission which the Father had given him. We read very often in the gospels that he does what the Father has sent him to do.

The question I ask myself when meditating this station is: Can I die to my own needs and do what is needed for my neighbour? Unfortunately, I must admit that I cannot on my own. During this “circuit breaker” situation in Singapore, there are things that I could do help my parishioners but cannot due to my personal weaknesses. I was asked to take sessions online but I find it very difficult to do as I am extremely fearful of being in front of a camera. Before we ceased public masses, I was in front of a camera when I was celebrating weekend Masses. It took a lot out of me to keep myself from freezing during mass. I fought every urge to look at the monitor because I knew that my heart rate would increase whenever I saw myself on the screen. Every weekend was difficult but I believe I survived. What helped was that I did not need to look at the monitor. With the online sessions, I would not be able to ignore the monitor. That would be a great problem with me. I have prayed for the grace to overcome this fear and I patiently wait for the Lord’s help.

Lord Jesus, help me to act correctly despite my fear, just as you did during Your Passion and Death. Help me to be able to complete what you have called me to be.