- Feb 5, 2002
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You have to draw close to hear the words, for a crucified man struggles to speak, his lungs crushed under the pressure of his own weight, even as his body screams to him in pain.
Editor’s Note: For more than 20 years, Father Raymond de Souza has preached the Seven Last Words devotion, a traditional meditation on the seven times Jesus speaks from the Cross on Good Friday. Made famous in recent times by the Venerable Fulton J. Sheen, the meditations are usually organized around a particular theme. For 2025, Father de Souza chose the Nicene Creed as his theme, as the Catholic Church marks this year the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea. This first of seven meditations were preached at Holy Cross parish in Kemptville, Ontario, where Father de Souza is the pastor.
Elsewhere, the sun no doubt shone that first Good Friday, as it normally does. Then, as now, the day does not appear different from other days. Then, as now, people went about their business, for a holiday was at hand, and the final preparations had to be attended to. But the Gospels tell us that the sun did not shine in Jerusalem from noon until three that first Good Friday. Many then, as now, did not know what was happening, but the God who set the sun and the stars in their places knew what was happening. And so darkness fell across the land.
Continued below.
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Editor’s Note: For more than 20 years, Father Raymond de Souza has preached the Seven Last Words devotion, a traditional meditation on the seven times Jesus speaks from the Cross on Good Friday. Made famous in recent times by the Venerable Fulton J. Sheen, the meditations are usually organized around a particular theme. For 2025, Father de Souza chose the Nicene Creed as his theme, as the Catholic Church marks this year the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea. This first of seven meditations were preached at Holy Cross parish in Kemptville, Ontario, where Father de Souza is the pastor.
It is noon and in Jerusalem darkness falls upon the land, for the Son of Man has been lifted up and is now hanging upon the Cross (Mark 15:33).
Elsewhere, the sun no doubt shone that first Good Friday, as it normally does. Then, as now, the day does not appear different from other days. Then, as now, people went about their business, for a holiday was at hand, and the final preparations had to be attended to. But the Gospels tell us that the sun did not shine in Jerusalem from noon until three that first Good Friday. Many then, as now, did not know what was happening, but the God who set the sun and the stars in their places knew what was happening. And so darkness fell across the land.
Continued below.
The 7 Last Words of Christ and the Nicene Creed: ‘Father, Forgive Them, for They Know Not What They Do’
You have to draw close to hear the words, for a crucified man struggles to speak, his lungs crushed under the pressure of his own weight, even as his body screams to him in pain.
