Dear Parishioners of Mary Immaculate and Saint Rose,

The last of the Seven Sorrows of Mary are the taking down of Jesus from the Cross and the placing of the body of Jesus in the tomb.

The silence is deafening as the Son of God and the Son of Mary hangs dead upon the Cross. The sky has darkened, the earth trembles, and thunder begins to rumble. The last words of Jesus were, “It is finished,” and to those at the foot of the Cross, it truly seems as if the end has come.
The Virgin Mary is filled with sorrow. She mourns the loss of her dearly beloved only Son, but her faith is firm and she believes in the power of God’s love.

As the body of Jesus is taken from the Cross, He is lowered into her loving arms. She cradles Him in her arms reminiscent of a cold night years ago when she held this same body as a newborn child. Sorrow and love pour forth from her heart.

The time has come for the body to be prepared for burial. The Blessed Mother, John, and Mary Magdalene follow as the body of Jesus is transported to the place of burial. It is not far, but a more painful pilgrimage has never taken place.

The body of Jesus is washed, anointed, and shrouded in burial cloths and placed in the empty, cold tomb. The Blessed Mother takes one last look at the shrouded body of her Son. How hard it is to accept that this has come to pass. It is so hard to believe that this has come to pass. And yet, she must believe that this, too, is somehow the will of God.

The Blessed Mother leaves the tomb and the stone is rolled into place. Silence and darkness descend upon the Earth. There is great sorrow; Jesus, the Son of God and the Son of Mary, has died and is buried.

It is finished!

But in truth, it is only about to begin.

Msgr. Cox
The Entombment of Christ, Caravaggio (1604)


 Homepage thumbnail is Pietà, William-Adolphe Bouguereau (1876)