The Crucifixion
The Crucifixion is the fifth Sorrowful Mystery of the Rosary. Jesus gives his life on the Cross for our salvation. Mary and the beloved disciple remain near him. In contemplating his death, we give thanks for our redemption and pray for those who are dying.
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Scripture
Luke 23:33-46
When they came to the place that is called “The Skull”, they crucified him there with the criminals, one on the right and the other on the left. Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.” … It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour. The sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was torn in two. Jesus, crying with a loud voice, said, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” Having said this, he breathed his last.
Spiritual fruit: salvation and self-denial
Love poured out on the Cross
Jesus is crucified at Calvary and dies for our salvation. The fifth Sorrowful Mystery brings us to the heart of his saving sacrifice. He freely gives himself in love, entrusting himself to the Father. In this decade we give thanks for his sacrifice and ask forgiveness for our sins.
The four Gospels recount his Crucifixion and death with distinct details. In John's account, Mary stands near the Cross with the beloved disciple, and Jesus entrusts them to one another. In Luke, he offers hope to the repentant criminal beside him. One of these encounters can provide a focus for the decade. Reading the surrounding passage before praying helps us attend to the words Jesus speaks from the Cross.
The fruit of salvation and self-denial
Salvation is God's gift, received through Christ's sacrifice. We receive his grace through faith and are called to repentance, with charity shaping the way we live. At the Cross, ask to receive his mercy and to let gratitude become a generous response to others. Self-denial leads us to set aside our own comfort or preferences willingly out of love for God and neighbor.
This decade is often offered for the dying and for those who care for them. Pray that the dying person may have someone beside them and access to the sacraments. Remember people whose deaths have left a wound in your own life. Their names may be enough to express the intention as we ask for God's mercy. The Hail Mary itself includes prayer for the hour of our death.
Remaining beside Mary
Mary's presence at Calvary invites us to remain with her Son. John records her standing near the Cross. A pause before the decade allows us to consider what she witnesses as Jesus dies, and to remember those mourning a death in our own families. The Cross belongs to the same saving mystery as the Resurrection, and Christian hope rests in the Lord who passes through death and conquers it.
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