Station Eleven: Jesus is Nailed to the Cross

As a child, I remember watching the story of Jesus every Lent on TV and being horrified at the thought of someone nailing someone to a cross. The entirety of the Passion for me was contained in that one event, comprised of extreme physical pain acted out on screen. 50+ years later, the more subtle details of the story become clearer. Maybe the nails were the least of it.

The rejection, the fear, the testing of spirit between Gethsemane and Calvary…those seem more heart-wrenching. Did the soldiers meet Jesus’s eyes as they nailed him to the cross? Was he afraid or resigned? Did he doubt his calling to fulfill his father’s will?

In everything I have done, failed to do, in my thoughts and words, I take solace that in his last moments he chose to remain in solidarity with humanity by crying out, “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34) We killed the one who created us. And even so, Jesus has always been, is now, and forever will be on our side.

Color is symbolic in each of my Stations pieces: Red = Points of pain; White = Movement of the Holy Spirit; Blue = God’s presence; Black = the weight of the cross; Neutrals = Humanity.