- Adoramus te Christe et benedicimus tibi (We adore Thee, O Christ, and we bless Thee)
- Quia per Crucem tuam redemisti mundum (For by Thy holy cross Thou hast redeemed the world.)
In Veronica, Jesus finds a kind soul, a soul that has compassion for Him. She does not mock Him, she does not turn her back on Him, nor is she indifferent to Him. With this gesture of love and compassion, she shows Him her heart by offering Him a handkerchief. Jesus understands the gesture and imprints His face on the cloth. He leaves a deep imprint of His being on this pious soul.
We too are called to this attitude of love towards the Lord, recognising Him in the pain and suffering of this world. A word of encouragement, a gesture of compassion, the right help at the right time… These simple acts of love glorify the Son of God. Each time we act out of this love, the face of the Lord is imprinted more deeply in our soul, we become more loving and more like Jesus.
He receives these gestures with great love and attention. In fact, there are not many who accompany Him on His way to Calvary. Many of those who watched Him pass will have been indifferent or even infected by the hatred and contempt of His accusers and executioners.
“He had no form or comeliness that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not” (Is 53:2b-3).
But those who open their hearts to Him will receive His thanks.
Prayer: “Lord, graciously grant us salvation and peace, that your Church, having overcome all obstacles and errors, may serve you in full freedom, through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit and is God for ever and ever. Amen.”
Our Father, Hail Mary and Glory Be
