Two others, who were criminals, were led away to be put to death with him. And when they came to the place that is called The Skull, there they crucified him, and the criminals, one on his right and one on his left.
Luke 23:32-33 (ESV)

STATION 7 VIDEO | All the Way Down

REFLECTION

The cross is not and cannot be loved. —Jürgen Moltmann, “The Crucified God”

Shriver talks about how she grew up numbed to the pain of the cross because of how it is celebrated. She feels that we must embrace the darkness that the cross represents. She says, “until you go to that place, Easter will never make sense. If you don’t go all the way down, you can’t come all the way up.”

Coming up means taking on the belief that “If we killed God, and that brought life, there is literally nothing we can fear” because Jesus “went way deeper than despair.” Jesus is nailed to his cross and positioned between two criminals. The crowd mocks him. According to Shriver, he’s “doubled down on our despair.” Now he hangs, now he waits.

How do you struggle with the crucified God? How do you deal with the violence of it all? The cross took a lot of love. A lot. How did Jesus’s human heart contain so much love?

RESPONSE
Take the time to let Shriver’s statements sink in: “If we killed God, and that brought life, there is literally nothing we can fear because Jesus went way deeper than despair.” Considering what you are going through in your life right now, what would you like to say to the God who went deeper than our own despair? Voice it to God through prayer, art, writing, or any other way you wish.

PRAYER
Jesus Christ crucified, who were you to suffer such indignity? You hang, arms open to the world, holding nails, draining…I understand this is your way and yet I still beg of God: “Have mercy. Take him down.” May your inflictions cause an uprising of the wounded. Let them become first responders, offering empathy as a salve to the wounded around them, and giving people the kind of dignity and love that can only come from the cross.