Station of the Cross Six 2023
Allie Senyard and Larisa Shaterian, Seminarians
Holy Apostles Episcopal Church, Good Friday 2023
The Stations of the Cross
The Sixth Station: Veronica Wipes Jesus’ Face.
Station One | Two | Three | Four | Five | Six | Seven | Eight | Nine | Ten | Eleven | Twelve | Thirteen | Fourteen
The Sixth Station: Veronica Wipes Jesus’ Face.
Jesus breathed in.
Breathe in.
Breathe out.
Jesus' journey is at times brutal. He has entered into the terrible experiences of rejection and injustice. He has been whipped and beaten. His face shows the signs of his solidarity with all who have ever suffered injustice and vile, abusive treatment. He encounters a compassionate, loving disciple who wipes the vulgar spit and mocking blood from his face. On her veil, she discovers the image of his face - his gift to her. And, for us to contemplate forever.
It’s a dramatic effect of being alive. And if I am startled, then I know my breath comes more quickly. But normally, just ordinary breathing, it’s common, perhaps, you know sometimes I enjoy listening to classical music, all of the time, when I listen to that station all of the time, and sometimes, there’s a song that comes on that really speaks to me and I notice my breathing either becomes more stressful and slow as I’m enjoying that piece of music so much. If I’m in the middle of my house, you know, ordinary going on and the bells ring suddenly, I might notice my breath gets quicker like now, I’m talking about it, and I’m speaking more quickly than when I started talking to you. But, to me, breath … Breath is something that can really express the mood, that you’re in, your state, whether you’re happy because you notice when you’re enjoying something, the breath seems to be more slow and long-lasting. Whereas if something is frightening you, you breathe much more quickly and you don’t really have time to think at all, you’re just talking and the breath comes much much more quickly. Whereas in a more relaxed mood, it’s calm.
“Breathe on me, Breath of God.” What do we really mean by that? What kind of breath do we want God to be breathing on us? Something that will calm us and make us more receptive to whatever may be happening. That is strange, you know, that in the Bible in readings you do read about the Breath of God, not the sight of God, the speech of God, the vision of God, it’s the Breath of God. I mean, supportive in our daily lives: coming to church or anything, I can’t notice any special difference in the breathing unless, again, like music affects me. So when an organ or something like that is being played there’s a difference in the way I’m breathing, perhaps I’m breathing more in tune with the music, I don’t know.
This may sound strange, but to me, Jesus was a human being: he got mad, he, you know, he reprimanded people. Look at Lazarus today: he wept. And that of course would affect his breathing, which, would be more labored and difficult to hide.
Breathe in.
Breathe out.
Jesus breathed out.
Station One | Two | Three | Four | Five | Six | Seven | Eight | Nine | Ten | Eleven | Twelve | Thirteen | Fourteen