Fourth Station: Jesus Meets His Mother
We adore You, O Christ and we praise You, because by Your holy cross You have redeemed the world.My steps have held fast to thy paths, my feet have not slipped. I call upon thee, for thou wilt answer me, O God; incline thy ear to me, hear my words. Wondrously show thy steadfast love, O savior of those who seek refuge from their adversaries at thy right hand. Keep me as the apple of the eye; hide me in the shadow of thy wings, from the wicked who despoil me, my deadly enemies who surround me. (Psalm 17:5-9)
The station that most intrigues me is the fourth station, Jesus meeting his Mother. I often think
about what transpired in the brief moment in which their eyes locked. On her hot, stumbling, pushing way through the crowd, Mary had to have thought about, consciously or not, what she would transmit to her son when He finally distinguished her eye in the crowd. She was determined to lock eyes. Now, more that any other moment in his life, He needed to see her in this hostile, murderous, senseless crowd.Earlier on in my life, when I contemplated what that moment was like for mother and son, I thought that Mary’s glance said to Him, "I remember you on my knee!" or "you are so precious to me!" or something else that reflected back on their life together. I used to think this before I knew about life, and how it is we humans really get along in this world.
Now I am sure that Mary made sure she transmitted something quite different. One glance, early on in his passion, said everything she needed to give Him at that moment…"You can do this. You were born for this. Hang on. Don’t give up. Any bit of strength I have left in me is yours…take it, all of it. I am here and I am yours. Do what you have to do. You will succeed."
Mary transmitted strength in that glance, born of her unflagging love of him, and her conviction, if not her full understanding, of His mission on the earth. She was there early on—it is but the fourth station—and she would be there with him throughout, no matter what the cost to her.
Surely, she was granted extraordinary sustenance by the power of God, or she would have expired herself.
Mary refused to reveal in that glance her broken heart. She refused to reveal her own wounds, her grief. She would not show pity, pathos, anger, revulsion, anything that would wear Him down. Mary only gave Him what He needed, and what He needed was strength. I know this to be true because I have lived enough of life by this point to know that this is how we get along in this life. We get along by love, and love will provide what is needed by the other person to sustain them in truth. The feeling that emerges in me at this station is a desire to by like Mary. I want to be there for the people in my life in their daily, small struggles, and the times when they are called to suffer in extraordinary ways. I want to show them that there is nothing we can’t accomplish together, even if that means me simply holding their hand and telling them everything is exactly how it should be, and nothing has escaped the eye of God.
Submitted by Barbara Gata, Pro Sanctity friend, New York
A Station that bring tears to my eyes every time is the Fourth Station. I almost see the sorrowful but fully surrendering look of Mary and the loving tender, look of Jesus. It helps me to surrender all into God’s loving hands. He knows, and He wants the best for me and for all of us. I just need to surrender as Mary has done at every step of her life.Submitted by Agnes Rus, Apostolic Oblate, California
Holy Mother, impress into my heart the wounds of your Son.
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