THE THIRTEENTH STATION: Jesus’ Body Is Taken Down From the Cross

Then he took the bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which will be given for you; do this in memory of me.”

—Luke 22:19

As we contemplate Jesus’ broken body, we are reminded of his full humanity. He had a body, just as we do, that needed sustenance and exercise, that could be bruised and battered, and through which he experienced the world around him. This is a common experience of humanity—that of the body—and it reminds us of our shared dignity as unique creations of God. It reminds us of our call to solidarity because, drawing on our own bodily experience of creation, we can understand and appreciate that of another, no matter where—or when—he or she may live.

Through his example, Jesus challenges us to examine the real bodily needs of those around us, the “neighbors” we pass on city streets and in crowded shopping centers.

We are reminded of the Eucharist, the Communion through which we, the Church, share in Jesus’ body and blood, in yet another common experience with our brothers and sisters no matter when or where they live. We are called to encounter our God who became human. In experiencing the Eucharist, we receive an opportunity to put our own needs aside and replace them with another’s—with our neighbor’s—needs as God did, so we empty ourselves of what it means to be me and better understand what it means to be another.