"At the cross her station keeping,
Stood the mournful Mother weeping,
Close to Jesus to the last.
Through her heart, his sorrow sharing,
All his bitter anguish bearing,
Now at length the sword has passed.
O how sad and sore distressed,
Was that Mother highly blest
Of the sole begotten One!
Christ above in torment hangs,
She beneath beholds the pangs
Of her dying, glorious Son.
Is there one who would not weep,
Whelmed in miseries so deep,
Christ's dear Mother to behold?
Can the human heart refrain
From partaking in her pain,
In that Mother's pain untold?
Bruised, derided, cursed, defiled,
She beheld her tender Child,
All with bloody scourges rent.
For the sins of his own nation
Saw him hang in desolation
Till his spirit forth he sent...."
- Excerpt from the hymn "At The Cross Her Station Keeping"
This hymn added a layer of richness to my Lent and Easter observance this year. As a mother, the words pierced my heart. Especially after walking alongside my friend who lost her son to cancer this week. My love for Jesus grew exponentially, as I read the words and hummed the tune. What a comfort, to know that Jesus (and His mother) weren't spared any human experience, so that we may be one with them in both divine and fleshly ways. I hope you listen to this hymn, and I encourage you to walk your local Stations of the Cross to further enter into this raw, miraculous story.
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