The fifth reflection about the painting of the Sacred Heart of Jesus at St Ubaldesca Church, Paola

Standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother, and the disciple whom he loved standing near, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son!” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother!” And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home.

John 19:25-27

Returning to the characters that Lazzaro Pisani portrays in the painting of the Sacred Heart of Jesus at St Ubaldesca Church in Paola, we notice the complimentary and parallel figures of Mary Magdalene and the beloved disciple, with the Mother of Jesus and Peter standing on either side.

Mary Magdalene’s posture is not typical of the iconography of the Crucifixion, where we see her in despair weeping by the cross. In the context of this painting, that interpretation makes no sense because on close inspection we realise that her pose resembles more that of the gesture of Mary of Bethany, the sister of Martha and Lazarus, who anointed the feet of Jesus with costly ointment of pure nard and wiped his feet with her hair (Jn 12:3). There is similarity also with the posture of the sinful woman who, “weeping, began to wet his feet with her tears, and wiped them with the hair of her head” in atonement (Lk 7:38). We know that according to an old Church tradition, these different persons have become one personage, even though Bible scholars insist that this is an incorrect interpretation.

The beloved disciple, the Mother, and Mary Magdalene were all standing by the cross at the time Jesus’s heart was pierced with a spear (see Jn 19:25, 34). On the other hand, Peter never reaches the peak of Calvary because he denies the Lord in the courtyard of the palace of the high priest precisely while his Master was affirming that he is the Son of God before the elders.

In some way, in these figures we can perceive the categories defined by theologian Hans Urs von Balthasar: “the Church of love” and “the official Church”. The first is primarily represented by the Mother and the Disciple, whereas Peter, who holds the Office of the Keys of the Kingdom, personifies the second. This distinction might seem a little contrived, but one cannot deny that the Church consists of both the institutional as well as the more charismatic components. Both elements are necessary, and neither may be disregarded to the detriment of the other. Somehow this is reflected in the choice of the beloved disciple to give way to Peter, waiting for him to go first into the tomb (see Jn 20:1-10). However, it is the beloved disciple who always believes and recognises Jesus first (see Jn 21:7).

Contemplating these four figures, it should be quite easy to identify with one of them in accordance with one’s state of life and one’s mission in the Church. Do you ever think that the work you do is of greater value than other aspects in the life of the Church? That pierced Heart has room for everyone. Why should there not be room for everyone in your heart too?