Tenth Station - Jesus is stripped of his clothes

The war in Sudan began on 15 April 2023. It was completely unexpected in the capital, since previous conflicts had taken place on the country’s margins. 

Around 14 million of us had to abandon our homes to escape the violence, some with the encouragement of a Kalashnikov. By leaving, we left behind homes that we don’t know if we will ever see again, family and friends we may never meet, work, studios, dreams, projects… all to face the unknown, with hardly anything to our name.

For three years, the war in Sudan has been sowing destruction and death. But these seem not to matter at all to the decision-makers. The countries that make and sell weapons continue to get rich while the Sudanese people are stripped of their natural resources to fund the purchase of arms. Thousands of lives, in all their dignity, dreams and value, are equally stripped away. It even seems like we have been stripped of our names, and that we have become mere numbers that evoke a brief feeling of pity, before fading amongst so many other figures.

Prayer

God, Father of Mercy, through the incarnation of your Son you made common cause with the millions who are expelled from their homes, stripped of their jobs and dreams, victims of violence and wars. Though to the world these people do not seem to matter, before you they have infinite dignity. Help us to not be indifferent nor passive before the forces that strip mankind of its dignity. Illuminate us to find a way to break these forces and build new ones that restore the dignity of each person, through Jesus Christ our Lord.