The Eighth Station
Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem
Luke 23: 27-31 - A large crowd of people followed him; among them were some women who were weeping and wailing for him. Jesus turned to them and said, “Women of Jerusalem! Don’t cry for me, but for yourselves and your children. For the days are coming when people will say, ‘How lucky are the women who never had children, who never bore babies, who never nursed them!’ That will be the time when people will say to the mountains, ‘Fall on us!’ and to the hills, ‘Hide us!’ For if such things as these are done when the wood is green, what will happen when it is dry?”
John 15:6 - Whoever does not remain in me is thrown out like a branch and dries up; such branches are gathered up and thrown into the fire, where they are burned.
Meditation:
Jesus could hear the crying of the women in the crowd. He knew they were crying with compassion and pity. But Jesus had told them before “Weep not for Me but for your children.” This is such a terrible day. If this could happen to Mary and her child. It could happen to any mother. The mothers cling to each other. They pray for their own children.
Prayer:
Lord Jesus, help all the mothers of this world to care for their children and keep them safe. Help me to reach out to others and to all children. Help me to see the needs of others even when I have problems and needs of my own. This I ask in Jesus’s name. Amen.