The First Word
“Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” Luke 23:34
What Our Lord saw from the Cross
The first words of Jesus on the cross are addressed to his Father and he thereby affirms that he is in fact the Son of God. To those who maintain that he was not divine, he says otherwise. The executioners expected him to cry and curse as did everyone else who suffered crucifixion. They were certain that this man who audaciously declared himself the Son of God and who was now raised on a cross supported only by spikes driven through his ankles and wrists would in his pain and weakness reveal his true hypocritical self. He had said that we should love our enemies, but now the executioners knew that he would scream and curse the Romans and the responsible Jews.
He didn’t. Instead, St Bridget’s Fourth Prayer recalls the First Word:
“Oh Jesus! Heavenly physician raised aloft on the cross to heal our wounds with yours, remember the bruises which thou did suffer and the weaknesses of all thy members which were distended to such a degree that never was there pain like unto thee. From the crown of thy head to the soles of thy feet there was not one spot on thy body that was not in torment and yet, forgetting all thy sufferings thou did not cease to pray to the heavenly father for thy enemies saying, “Father forgive them for they know not what they do.”
The Lord’s first concern was for others – and for his enemies no less. He put into practice his teaching of loving your enemies and forgiving those who persecute you. Their redeeming feature? They didn’t know what they were doing. They were forgiven because of their ignorance. He forgave those who lashed him, spat upon him, crowned him, mocked him, and brutally nailed him. His mercy is endless, and he commands us to forgive those who trespass against us and, to the extent we do, the Father will forgive us. The lesson of the cross punctuates Jesus’ teachings. Our suffering, no matter how severe and difficult, should not preclude us from forgiving our enemies.
Some websites and references
Footnotes and Attributions
What Our Lord saw from the Cross painted by James Tissot (1836-1902) retrieved from Wikipedia Commons.
Last modified August 4, 2019