Jesus Falls the First Time
The weight of the cross weighed you down
down to the ground
The weight of the world’s selfishness was your cross
The weight of Covid is our cross today
(Brought on by OUR selfishness)
Knocking us down
taking our breath
breaking our hearts
Dear Lord, help us to get up again
chastened, repentant,
forward looking.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer!
Jesus Falls the Second Time
Lord your walk to Calvary became more and more difficult –
every step like a thousand miles!
You fall again under the weight of so much suffering and pain
That’s the story of today…
Human suffering on an ever-increasing scale –
wars and rumours of wars
genocide, racism, human trafficking,
gender inequality, hunger, poverty,
climate change, extinction of species,
Human greed…Covid 19
Lord help us to get up again, as you did, to open our eyes, ears and hearts
to challenge every injustice, whether of people or of the Earth
trusting that every step forward is a step towards hope, new life and the dawning of the Light.
Jesus Falls the Third Time
The cross became increasingly heavy to bear and you fall again, Lord, under its weight –
the weight of a world, which rejected you for disturbing the status quo!
Tired and broken, you stumble on…
and you continue to stumble on in your people
“Whatsoever you do to the least, that you do unto me”…
In this time of pandemic, when we are remembering a year in lockdown, and with the cross
weighing heavily on people’s shoulders, we thank you for all the love and kindness we have received
from your people.
We mourn for the 126,000 people who have died.
We grieve for the 126,000 families who have lost loved ones.
We are sad for the people who have lost their jobs, their businesses, their homes
and who depend on Food Banks to put meals on the table.
We observe you being cared for in Care Homes, Hospitals, Prisons, Detention Centres.
We see you in Front Line Workers; in all the people who love and serve their neighbours as themselves…
And we thank you Lord, that you never leave us, even in our darkest hour,
when we fall again and again under the weight of the cross.
Lord help us to keep hope alive and love in our hearts!
Sr Mary Horan