Christ is to be found in all those who are stripped of their dignity and demeaned by arrogance, injustice and power says Pope Francis in his meditations for the Via Crucis, released ahead of the Good Friday liturgy at the Colosseum in Rome on Friday evening.
"Teach me to see you in those who suffer, for you are there, and in those stripped of their dignity, demeaned by the arrogance, injustice and power of those who exploit the poor amid general indifference," prays the pope in his reflection for the ninthStation of the Cross. .
"Now I know why you insisted on identifying yourself with those in need," continued Francis.
"You too were imprisoned; you too were a stranger, led outside the city to be crucified. You too were naked, stripped of your clothes. You too were sick and wounded; on the cross, you too were thirsty and hungry for love," he added .
The Pope also reflects on the "women of Jerusalem", who "have a voice, yet they make their presence felt".
“Help us to recognize the dignity of those women who remained faithful and stood by you in your passion, and those who in our own day are exploited and endure injustice and indignity,” he says.
In his closing invocations the pope also prays for all those who are suffering persecution and war.
"May this prayer of intercession embrace our brothers and sisters who in so many parts of the world are suffering persecution on account of your name; those who experience the trauma of war, and all those who look to you for the strength to bear their heavy crosses," says Francis.
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