Two disciples took charge of the burial – Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus. Our blessed Lord’s sacred Body was taken down from the Cross, wrapped in clean linen with spices and laid in a new tomb which Joseph had hewed out of a rock for himself (cf. Matthew 27:60).
Assuredly Mary was present and received the lacerated Body of her divine Son into her arms. The exceptionally tender moment stirred the creation one of the most exquisite and recognizable sculptures in the whole world, Michelangelo’s Pieta.
In this moment, we rightly gaze on these wounds, on the bruises, on the Blood all of which declare so eloquently Jesus’ love for us. It is true that these wounds are no longer painful, but glorious. Tomorrow at Easter dawn we will celebrate the great victory they have won for us. Though glorified they remain forever as the indelible marks of the exceedingly great charity with which Christ loved us.
It is for us now to open wide our hearts and to permit them to be purified by Love Alone.
