Luke 23:48Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

Hearts that had previously been indifferent began to experience repentance, and the terror of God’s judgment compelled them to depart from Golgotha, which had been marked by an unfathomable crime. In anguish, they struck their chests and rushed away. This marked the dawn of true repentance, which would later be powerfully preached by the Apostles (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19). Similarly, the crucified Jesus began to exert His transformative influence over the crowd. "I will draw all to Myself," He declared. The Gentile centurion glorified God, and the soldiers, also Gentiles, were filled with fear, while the Jewish people beat their breasts in penance at the outcry of heaven for the crucified Jesus. Yet what of the Jewish leaders, the scribes, and the Pharisees? The Evangelists remain silent regarding any change of heart among them. On the contrary, we will observe that these figures continued to act adversarially towards Jesus. They were impervious to the preaching and works of the Almighty; it was as though they did not witness the cleft rocks or the torn veil, nor did they notice the resurrected dead fading into the shadows of their tumultuous thoughts. What a dreadful chaos unchecked passions can lead to! Beloved audience, should you come across a brazen retelling of a miracle or the mysteries of faith, do not assume it to be an expression of sound reasoning or clear insight. Rather, it signifies a heart grown cold to truth and goodness, a soul tainted by selfish desires, and an obstinate sin that resists anything threatening its dominion. Listening to the faithless, one might marvel at their seemingly endless objections to the truth, mistaking it for a strong mind. Observe carefully, and you will discern it as nothing but the ramblings of skepticism. Look closer, and recognize the triviality, contradictions, inconsistencies, and improprieties inherent in the language of disbelief! It is a regrettable predicament, yet one that can be understood. When pride and passion dominate the soul, self-love, in its defense, encircles itself with all manner of thoughts from a dreamy mindset, feelings of questionable virtue, and aspirations of dubious merit. What genuine conviction or meaningful insight can emerge from such a heart? Although the sacred surrounds it, it remains indifferent; profound truths lie before its eyes, yet they go unheeded; God's wondrous works manifest around it, but it offers them no reverence. "Send," the rich man implored Abraham from hell, "send Lazarus to my father’s house, so that my brothers may be spared from this torment." Abraham replied, "If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead" (Luke 16:27-31). Such is the condition of souls ensnared by passions! They reject the possibility of believing in the miraculous. To entertain the notion of a miracle-working God would require them to approach the Holy and Righteous One, but they flee from all that is sacred—it does not resonate with their hearts. They would have to confront their own shortcomings, bad habits, sinful tendencies, unclean desires, and prideful arrogance. Dear listeners, our hearts are the wellspring of all evil: dark thoughts, impure longings, and malicious actions emanate from within. Let us cleanse our hearts through sincere repentance, earnest prayer, vigilance over ourselves, and immersion in the teachings of God's Word. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God (Matthew 5:8). Amen.

Their minds were consumed by the overwhelming grief of losing Jesus and, with Him, everything they held dear—a sorrow made even more acute by unintentional pangs of conscience. Each one realized they had lost everything through Jesus. All their aspirations for the glorious reign of the Messiah lay shattered. Those dreams no longer held value for them; they were at a loss about how to navigate their uncertain future. Their faith in Jesus, along with His splendor, had faded, robbing them of the extraordinary powers that faith once bestowed. They were stripped of courage within their hearts, deprived of miraculous abilities, lacking the support of influential benefactors or treasures to ensure their safety. Everything had been taken from them, along with their Master, to the grave. They could only anticipate the same fate from their fellow countrymen. After spending so much time in close communion with their Divine Teacher, they had fostered a genuine love for Him. How could they not love Him? How deeply He loved them! How graciously He conducted Himself towards them! What life-saving guidance He provided! How He stood guard against the assaults of His adversaries! How He cared for them even in the face of His impending demise! Who could possess enough love to repay Him for His affection, and who would be more unfeeling than a stone to turn cold towards Him? His heart was fully open to them; all mysteries were revealed to His disciples. He, their Lord, regarded them as friends. And now He was gone, leaving them to question whether they could bear to confront their actions towards Him. Each one might have pondered in the depths of their hearts: I remained loyal to You, Divine Teacher, until Your final hours, sharing in everything with You—only some outside force wrested You from us. However, their consciences rebuked each one, insisting they were unworthy of His everlasting presence. The memories of His afflictions on that last night lingered clearly: when He warned one of them he would deny Him three times, they all protested vehemently that it could not be true. What were their feelings when Jesus was seized? They were ready to abandon their last clothing before His persecutors just to rid themselves of them. The more He drew some close to share in their heavy foreboding, the less they understood. He asked them to pray with Him, yet they slept. He sought to impart the gravity of the upcoming peril, but they did not grasp His words. He informed them of the sufferings He was about to endure, and instead, they debated among themselves who would be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And was it not one of their own who betrayed Him? Thus, every consolation and bright hope was consumed by the despair of losing their Master, particularly in the initial hours following the tragic events on Golgotha. The time had arrived as foretold by Jesus at the Last Supper: You will mourn and lament, while the world rejoices; you will seek Me, and you cannot follow where I am going. Gradually, they began to gather together, but even in company, they felt no relief from their anguish. Others who were close to Jesus shared in their grief, especially His Holy Mother, who bore witness to His agony on the cross, lamenting the suffering of her beloved Son. Simeon's prophecy was realized; a sword pierced her soul. Each drop of Jesus’ blood fell upon her heart, causing her pain. The humiliation and disgrace He faced, being numbered among the transgressors, stung her even more poignantly, for she had known Him to be the Son of God even before His birth and foretold that all nations would honor her on His account. In His compassion, the suffering Son sought to shield His mother from the sight of His final torments, yet this could do little to ease her sorrow. The mothers of the Apostles James and Judas, along with Salome, the mother of James and John, were likely with the Blessed Virgin at John’s residence in Jerusalem, sharing in their weeping. Those who had witnessed Jesus’ sufferings returned from the humiliating scene, filled with anguish. What torment must have afflicted the hearts of the women bound to Jesus by blood, love, and hope? Finally, Mary Magdalene, who loved Jesus fervently as her Lord and Healer, stood at the foot of the cross alongside His Mother. The sisters of Lazarus, who had seen Him restore their brother to life, realized with sorrow that this pivotal event had been the catalyst for the Sanhedrin's decisive judgment against Jesus. Joseph and Nicodemus, who had hidden their allegiance to Him, came forward seemingly merely to pay their last respects to the forsaken One. In truth, all who had encountered Jesus, whether to a greater or lesser degree, were immersed in the same feelings as the apostles.

For instance, he uniquely records the last words of the suffering Savior: "Father, into Thy hands I commit My spirit." He also conveys that the miraculous phenomena surrounding Jesus' death impacted not only the deceased but also the witnesses present. It is not only the centurion who was astonished by these wonders, but also "all the people who had come together at this spectacle, seeing what had happened, returned, beating their chests."

Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the lesser and Joseph, along with perhaps more devoted Galilean women, stand nearby (Mt 27:55-56, 61; Mk 15:40-41, 47). The beloved disciple of the Deceased and the holy Mother, entrusted to this disciple's care by her Son, likely wait here as well. Additionally, another secret follower of the Lord, Nicodemus, who once visited Him for a night conversation, is also present.

When extraordinary occurrences transpired at the moment of the Lord's death, this latter group, as if in a daze, were filled with astonishment and confusion. Initially overcome with sorrow for the tragedy that had unfolded and fear, "all the people" who had gathered for this event, upon witnessing the scene, reverted to beating their chests. Such rapid shifts in emotion are typical within an agitated crowd, even beyond such extraordinary events.

Both the misguided and the apathetic were filled with a sense of compassion and remorse, leading to the realization, as noted by the holy Evangelist, that all the onlookers who witnessed this disgrace struck their chests in sorrow and returned in reflection.