Tenth Station: Jesus is stripped of his garments

John 19,23

When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they took his clothes and divided them into four parts, one for each soldier. They also took his tunic; now the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece from the top.

Meditation

I see you, Jesus, naked, as I have never seen you before. They have stripped you of your garments, Jesus, and are casting dice for them. In the eyes of these men, you have lost the last shred of your remaining dignity, your one possession on this, your journey of suffering. At the beginning of time, your Father had sewn garments for men, to clothe them in dignity; now men strip that garment off your back. I see you, Jesus, and I see a young migrant, his body ravaged, who arrives in a land that all too often is heartless, ready to strip off his garment, his one treasure, and to sell it. To leave him alone with his cross, like yours, alone with his disfigured skin, like yours, alone with his eyes brimming with tears of pain, like yours.

Yet there is something we often forget about dignity. It is found beneath your skin; it is part of you, and it will always be with you. All the more, at this moment, in this nakedness.

The nakedness in which we are born is the same as the nakedness with which the earth will receive us in the evening of our lives. From one mother to another. And now, here on this hill, your mother is also present. Once again, she sees you naked.

I see you and I understand the grandeur and the splendour of your dignity, the dignity of every man, which no one will ever be able to erase.

Prayer

I ask you, Lord, grant that all of us may acknowledge
the dignity belonging to our nature,
even when we find ourselves naked and alone before others.
Grant that we may always see the dignity of others,
respect it and defend it.
We ask you to grant us the courage needed
to understand ourselves as more than the clothing we wear,
and to accept our own nakedness.
It reminds us of our poverty,
with which you fell in love, even to giving your life for us.
Our Father...

Community prayer

Our Father

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day, our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And let us not enter into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen

Thank you! 32 people prayed

Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer everyone. Col 4:6

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