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| Stations of the Cross
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| The
Fourteenth Station |
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Jesus is Laid in the Tomb |
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V.
We adore thee, O Christ, and we bless thee:
(genuflect)
R.
Because by thy holy Cross thou hast redeemed the world.
THE
READING: (St. John 19:40-42)
Then
took they the body of Jesus, and wound it in linen clothes with the
spices, as the manner of the Jews is to bury. Now in the place where
he was crucified there was a garden; and in the garden a new sepulchre
wherein never man yet laid. There laid they Jesus.
V.
O my people, what have I done unto thee, or wherein
have I wearied thee? Testify against me.
R.
Holy and Immortal, have mercy upon us.
Let us
pray:
O
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the living God, we pray thee to set thy
passion, cross , and death between thy judgment and our souls, now and
in the hour of our death. Give mercy and grace to the living,
pardon and rest to the dead, to thy holy Church peace and concord, and
to us sinners everlasting life and glory (who livest and reignest with
the Father, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever
one God, world without end). Amen.
V.
O Savior of the world, who by thy Cross and Precious Blood hast redeemed
us:
R.
Save us and help us, we humbly beseech thee, O Lord.
| Reflection:
But
for a short three days, for a day and a half--Mary then must give
Him up. He is not yet risen. His friends and servants take Him from
thee, and place Him in an honorable tomb. They close it safely, till
the hour comes for His resurrection.
Lie
down and sleep in peace in the calm grave for a little while, dear
Lord, and then wake up for an everlasting reign. We, like the
faithful women, will watch around Thee, for all our treasure, all
our life, is lodged with Thee. And, when our turn comes to die,
grant, sweet Lord, that we may sleep calmly too, the sleep of the
just. Let us sleep peacefully for the brief interval between death
and the general resurrection. Guard us from the enemy, save us from
the pit. Let our friends remember us and pray for us, O dear Lord.
Let Masses be said for us, so that the pains of Purgatory, so much
deserved by us, and therefore so truly welcomed by us, may be over
with little delay. Give us seasons of refreshment there; wrap us
round with holy dreams and soothing contemplations, while we gather
strength to ascend the heavens. And then let our faithful guardian
Angels help us up the glorious ladder, reaching from earth to
heaven, which Jacob saw in vision. And when we reach the everlasting
gates, let them open upon us with the music of Angels; and let St.
Peter receive us, and our Lady, the glorious Queen of Saints,
embrace us, and bring us to Thee, and to Thy Eternal Father, and to
Thy Co-equal Spirit, Three Persons, One God, to reign with Them for
ever and ever. |
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