Station Eight: Jesus is Helped by Simon the Cyrenian to Carry the Cross
Art
Mark 15: 21
They pressed into service a passer-by, Simon, a Cyrenian, who was coming in from the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to carry his cross.
Reflection
Drew Denton | Director of Faith Formation, Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church, Atlanta
This is not the path I would have taken. Not the revolution I would have chosen. But this damning placard—your name, your cause, your crime—is now mine to parade through Passover traffic.
The soldiers, far from home and fatigued, are only ever a
symptom. So too the onlookers, conditioned for spectacle and
scapegoating.
Strange as it sounds, I hold you responsible, as if you had
orchestrated this.
No matter—soon enough we’ll be unyoked.
My soreness will subside by Sabbath’s end. Your wounds will
never heal.
Errands still await within the city walls. There is no end to the
buying and selling.
Today is not my day to die. Or is it?