March 26, 2013 Tuesday: Divine Mercy Novena #8
For this week of the Divine Mercy Novena, we move to the right of the entrance of St. Peter’s Basilica to one of the most famous statues in the world--the Pieta by Michelangelo. This famous work of art depicts the body of Jesus on the lap of his mother Mary after he was taken down from the Crucifix. Her eyelids are heavy with much weeping, gazing into the distance, as if meditating in her heart upon everything that had happened. On her knees rests the lifeless body of her son, and she holds him gently and lovingly like a precious gift. We see the marks of the crucifixion on his bare flesh. His pierced side is open to us, as if to invite all of us to see the atrocity of what’s been done to him; at the same time, the open wound shows us the extent to which he poured out himself for us.
As a priest, I have seen joyful mothers proudly holding their infant babies for all to see. I have also seen anxious mothers cradling the incubator in which their premature babies lie. On one occasion, I was with a new mother who was clutching her dying infant in her arms. The sorrow I witnessed in her cannot be explained in words. It has often been said, "To lose a child is the worst death for a parent to endure." Blessed Mother experienced the piercing of her heart many times over as she stood near her son as he suffered in agony. Jesus, looking down from the Cross, the throne of grace and salvation, gave us his mother Mary to be our mother. At the moment of his self-offering for us, he made Mary, so to speak, the channel of the rivers of grace that flow from the Cross. At the foot of the Cross, Mary became our fellow traveller and protector on life’s journey. By her motherly love she cares for her son’s sisters and brothers who still journey on earth surrounded by dangers and difficulties, until they are led into the blessed home. Therefore, the Church calls her, ‘Mother of Mercy,’ for Jesus is mercy itself and she is his mother.
Mary’s powerful words to Archangel Gabriel, “Be it done to me according to your word,” echoes in the gentle cradling of Jesus’ dead body in her arms. We are also invited to be cradled by her in the moment of our suffering and loss. As she, our Mother of Mercy, holds us in her arms, we experience in a profound way, the joy of saying “be it done to me according to your word.” With a mother’s tenderness, she will help us understand that our whole life should be a response to the love of our God, who is so rich in mercy.
