Harpa Dei

On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples […]

Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “Because

Now on the first day of the week Mary Mag′dalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. So she ran, and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have

 V. Adoramus te Christe et benedicimus tibi (We adore Thee, O Christ, and we bless Thee) R. Quia per Crucem tuam redemisti mundum (For by Thy holy cross Thou hast redeemed the world.) Once again we meet Mary on the Way of the Cross, as well as at the Fourth Station and at the foot

 V. Adoramus te Christe et benedicimus tibi (We adore Thee, O Christ, and we bless Thee) R. Quia per Crucem tuam redemisti mundum (For by Thy holy cross Thou hast redeemed the world.) “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” (Mt 27:46). “It is finished” (Jn 19:30). These are two of the words

 V. Adoramus te Christe et benedicimus tibi (We adore Thee, O Christ, and we bless Thee) R. Quia per Crucem tuam redemisti mundum (For by Thy holy cross Thou hast redeemed the world.) The Lord’s suffering becomes increasingly acute. He has already walked the way that led Him to Calvary, accompanied by mockery and insults,

 V. Adoramus te Christe et benedicimus tibi (We adore Thee, O Christ, and we bless Thee) R. Quia per Crucem tuam redemisti mundum (For by Thy holy cross Thou hast redeemed the world.) It was not enough for the executioners charged with killing Jesus to crucify Him. They wanted to humiliate Him even more by

 V. Adoramus te Christe et benedicimus tibi (We adore Thee, O Christ, and we bless Thee) R. Quia per Crucem tuam redemisti mundum (For by Thy holy cross Thou hast redeemed the world.) Everything has to be consummated. From this perspective we can also understand the threefold fall of Jesus. The imperfect and sinful world

 V. Adoramus te Christe et benedicimus tibi (We adore Thee, O Christ, and we bless Thee) R. Quia per Crucem tuam redemisti mundum (For by Thy holy cross Thou hast redeemed the world.) Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem. They remained faithful to Him. Their hearts are aching, because they see the Son of God

Once again we see how difficult the way is. How many burdens does the Lord carry on His shoulders: the physical burden, the spiritual burden, all that is happening around Him, the cruelty of so many? But what weighs most on Him is the burden of sin, which brings separation from God, and which Jesus