The Crucifixion of Christ

"The Crucifixion"
April 9th, 2009
Watercolors, India ink, gold ink, pencil

The Stations of the Cross by Saint Alphonsus Liguori (my personal favorite)

The Twelfth Station: Jesus is Raised upon the Cross, and Dies

V. We adore Thee, O Christ, and we praise Thee.
R. Because by Thy holy Cross, Thou hast redeemed the world.

Consider how thy Jesus, after three hours' Agony on the Cross, consumed at length with anguish, abandons Himself to the weight of His body, bows His head, and dies.

O my dying Jesus, I kiss devoutly the Cross on which Thou didst die for love of me. I have merited by my sins to die a miserable death; but Thy death is my hope. Ah, by the merits of Thy death, give me grace to die, embracing Thy feet, and burning with love for Thee. I yield my soul into Thy hands. I love Thee with my whole heart; I repent of ever having offended Thee. Never permit me to offend Thee again. Grant that I may love Thee always; and then do with me what Thou wilt.

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be to the Father,


"The hour of our Lord was at last come; his death-struggle had commenced; a cold sweat overspread every limb. John stood at the foot of the Cross, and wiped the feet of Jesus with his scapular. Magdalen was crouched to the ground in a perfect frenzy of grief behind the Cross. The Blessed Virgin stood between Jesus and the good thief, supported by Salome and Mary of Cleophas, with her eyes riveted on the countenance of her dying Son. Jesus then said: 'It is consummated;’ and, raising his head, cried out in a loud voice, ‘Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit.’ These words, which he uttered in a clear and thrilling tone, resounded through heaven and earth; and a moment after, he bowed down his head and gave up the ghost. I saw his soul, under the appearance of a bright meteor, penetrate the earth at the foot of the Cross. John and the holy women fell prostrate on the ground. The centurion Abenadar had kept his eyes steadfastly fixed on the disfigured countenance of our Lord, and was perfectly overwhelmed by all that had taken place. When our Lord pronounced his last words, before expiring, in a loud tone, the earth trembled, and the rock of Calvary burst asunder, forming a deep chasm between the Cross of our Lord and that of Gesmas (the bad theif). The voice of God—that solemn and terrible voice—had re-echoed through the whole universe; it had broken the solemn silence which then pervaded all nature. All was accomplished. The soul of our Lord had left his body: his last cry had filled every breast with terror. The convulsed earth had paid homage to its Creator: the sword of grief had pierced the hearts of those who loved him. This moment was the moment of grace for Abenadar; his horse trembled under him; his heart was touched; it was rent like the hard rock; he threw his lance to a distance, struck his breast, and cried out: ‘Blessed be the Most High God, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob; indeed this Man was the Son of God!’ His words convinced many among the soldiers, who followed his example, and were likewise converted."

- "The Dolorous Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ" from the Meditations of Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich (1774-1824) ([link])

O Sacred Head Surrounded

O Sacred Head surrounded
By crown of piercing thorn!
O bleeding Head so wounded,
Reviled and put to scorn!
Death's pallid hue comes o'er Thee,
The glow of life decays,
Yet angel hosts adore Thee,
And tremble as they gaze.

In this, Thy bitter passion,
Good shepherd, think of me,
With Thy most sweet compassion,
Unworthy though I be:
Beneath Thy cross abiding,
Forever would I rest;
In Thy dear love confiding,
And with Thy presence blest.

Now it was about the sixth hour, and there was darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour. Then the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was torn in two. And when Jesus had cried out with a loud voice, He said, “Father, ‘into Your hands I commit My spirit.’” Having said this, He breathed His last. So when the centurion saw what had happened, he glorified God, saying, “Certainly this was a righteous Man!” And the whole crowd who came together to that sight, seeing what had been done, beat their breasts and returned. But all His acquaintances, and the women who followed Him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things. - Luke 23:33-50

My sketch of this picture is here: [link]

Along the border I drew some flowers and plants associated with Passion. I understand that they're hard to see, because they're so small. Between each flower is a red diamond with a cross--representing Christ, and the red His Divinity. The blue circle with a rose represents Mary and her humanity. And both the red and the blue together represent both Christ's united Divinity and Humanity as well as the stream of blood and water that gushed out from His pierced side. Here are the flowers, and their names, their meanings and pictures of them (I got them from here: [link] and :

Clematis (flammula) - The Cross [link]
German Iris - Mary's Sword of Sorrow [link]
Poppy - Christ's Blood (It really does look like a red blood cell) [link]
Sweet Alyssum - Flower of the Cross [link]
Larkspur - Our Lady's Tears [link]
Chrysanthemum - Death and the Tomb [link]
Bleeding Heart - Mary's Heart [link]
Begonia - The Hearts of Jesus and Mary [link]
Dog Rose - Mary's Thorn [link]
Passion Flower - Flower of the Passion ([link]) [link]
Lily of the valley - Mary's Tears [link]
Dandelion - Mary's Bitter Sorrow [link]