Rev. Kyle Norman Crosswalk.com Contributing Writer 2021 11 Feb The cross was not a simple event. Christ’s death on the cross is God’s definitive response to fallen humanity. Instead of judgment, we find grace. Instead of retribution, God bestows redemption. Instead of punishment, Jesus embraces the suffering of humanity. We see these realities nuanced in Christ’s statements from the cross itself. Until his final breath, Jesus proclaims forgiveness and salvation for all who would hear and respond. One of the statements that Jesus makes while on the cross is “I thirst.” This statement, in some way, seems to stand in contrast to his other statements on the cross. His cry, “forgive them Father for they know not what they do”, for example, is obviously a prayer for forgiveness upon sinful humanity. Similarly, his statements to Mary and John of “behold your son/behold your mother” implies the creation of the Christian community. Yet the declaration of his thirst seems different. The focus of the statement is not on the Father above, or the crowd below, but on