On the disrobing and dividing of Christ’s garments
On the disrobing and dividing of Christ’s garments
LORD JESUS CHRIST, Creator of all things and Giver of all good things, I bless and thank you for enduring your violent disrobing and, amid mockery, the ripping off of your clothing. After being nailed to your Cross, you were cruelly despoiled of all your clothes, leaving you dispossessed even to the last scrap of cloth. You were even left without the smallest piece of cloth to cover your nakedness, nor was there enough linen left to serve as a winding sheet, in which your dead body could be wrapped and decently buried. If you were not to be buried naked, then a shroud would have to be procured from another party and given to you out of charity, as to one both poor and destitute.
O the great consuming greed of those soldiers—not soldiers, but dishonorable riffraff! O the disgraceful rapacity of those degenerate guards, who, overcome by ungodly avarice, were not ashamed to tear off Jesus’ few belongings and greedily add his meager garments to their booty. They separated his clothes into four piles, each soldier receiving his share, but the seamless robe alone was left untouched. For this, they cast lots—it could not be divided and at the same time keep its form. Those unfortunate despoilers and hateful malefactors had not the slightest pity on the poor, naked Jesus, hanging there. They neither returned to him the tiniest piece of cloth, nor did they leave his fringed robe as a comforting remembrance to his sorrowing mother. They did none of these things, but being devil-inspired and fearless of future judgment, they continued in their outrageous sacrilege.
My beloved Jesus, you neither say nor do anything against these actions of theirs, rather you suffer them in silence. By doing without your clothes you clearly indicate what I must do when something I deem necessary is taken from me. You want me to be prepared to prefer temporal losses rather than to seek whatever is legitimately due me. I presume that the texture of your garments was not especially fine, nor were they cheerfully colored, but that they were plain and simple, very similar to what this world’s poor wear. Or perhaps, they were simply made according to the style of the people of Nazareth or after that of the ancient prophets. They certainly were not the work of any expert tailor, but were sewn together with a needle in the hands of the Blessed Virgin, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Or perhaps the Virgin Mother purchased them for her Son during his days of childhood, with money earned from the work she did for her neighbors.
O great Creator of heaven, true God and true Man, that you should be reduced to this extreme state! At the time of your birth, you scarcely had the poorest rags to cover yourself, and now at death you have lost all your clothing! Previously a narrow manger held an infant’s tender body, now stripped of all your goods there is no place in this world, which you created, for you to rest your head except on the Cross. You came into this world as one poor and in need and you now desire to leave it naked and as an outcast. At your birth your body was tightly wrapped in swaddling clothes, now at death that body is pierced by nails and a lance.
To meditate on such great affliction arouses compassion in us and to witness such great endurance invites us to imitation. Therefore, show more patience when something you consider a necessity has been taken from you, or when what you deeply desire is denied you. If you learn to live with little and be content with what is mean and lowly, then you will be free of all complaining and you will enjoy great peace of mind and be acceptable to almighty God.
Who will give me a small piece of my Lord Jesus’ sacred garments or permit me to touch them with a devout heart or to kiss them with my lips—for from these there flowed forth great power to heal the sick. Indeed, holy are the relics of those garments and with what great reverence are they preserved, wherever they are found.
If the soldiers had truly known the excellence of those garments, then in their greed they never would have cut them up nor would they have sold them for some paltry sum, but with the greatest of care and with fitting reverence they would have preserved them in silver chests. Certainly these relics are more precious than all the mantles of kings and bishops’ fillets, and, furthermore, there is no precious metal worthy of being compared to them. But the holiness and reverence due these relics were hidden from those irreligious men, and because of their desire to satisfy their gluttonous avarice, they were incapable of perceiving the fragrance of their excellence.
It is indeed deplorable that so august a treasure should be thus disgracefully destroyed by men playing dice. I should think that if one of Christ’s wealthy, powerful, and faithful followers were there at the time, he would have willingly offered a great sum of money to redeem those sacred relics or would have acquired at least some part of them for himself and, enriched with such a prize, would have returned to his home amid great rejoicing.
Now, sweet Jesus, patient endurer of a multitude of indignities, grant that I may, for your greater praise and glory, be able with a devout mind to undo the tangled web that those infamous soldiers have woven for your sorrow. Blessed is that holy and immaculate garment which for many a year clothed your most pure body, born of the Virgin Mary. Blessed is the edge of that garment, for we read that when the sick approached you and devoutly touched it, they were instantaneously healed. Blessed is your seamless robe, not to be worn by any human, but worthy of sacred use by God alone.
It was fitting that that robe should remain whole, not only because of the special reverence due it, but that it might also proclaim the unity of Holy Mother Church throughout the world. Though the Church is divided by reason of regions, languages, and cities and is diverse because of different classes of men in varying occupations; nevertheless, the entire body of the Church exists, is governed, and is conserved under one head and one supreme pastor. The Church professes one faith, ministers one baptism, believes in one Triune God, has one Spouse in Jesus Christ, now reigning in heaven, and from whom it can never be separated, no matter what the temptation might be. Lord, this is because you gave your bride, the Catholic Church, the impregnable shield against all errors, namely, the word of truth, the light of knowledge and the fervor of charity, that she might thus attain the never-fading crown of eternal life.
Lord Jesus, you are the poorest and the richest of kings: the poorest because you were stripped of your clothing and deserted by friends; the richest because the fullness of all spiritual gifts resides in you. Grant your poor servant that I may perfectly attain to at least one virtue from among your many virtues, namely, that before your eyes I may never be found to be naked and ashamed, similar to him, who, while attending the marriage banquet was found without his wedding garment, and for that fault was immediately expelled from the fellowship of the saints.
Whenever I recall the fourfold dividing of your garments, may my heart be torn by a salutary sorrow for my sins; may it be moved to this either by the fear of hell, the hope of future glory, sorrow for past sins, or loving gratitude for graces received.
Grant me, as your seamless garment is its sign, to preserve the unity of brotherly love in the bond of peace and, for the love of interior peace, to reject all that may lead to dissension. May I avoid the bustle of this world, abstain from wandering about, and engaging in useless gossip, and may I desire to lead a pure and hidden life with you. Let me not crave worldly happiness or want to own things. While you were on this earth you possessed no worldly goods, and the little that you seemed to use to fulfill your needs, even this you permitted the despoilers to take from you and disperse. In this manner you give an example of patience to all who suffer wrongs done to them, lest they yield to inordinate sadness over the loss of their belongings.