Stations of The Cross
Before celebrating the Resurrection of Jesus Christ on Easter Sunday, Christians relive important moments of His Passion throughout the week. On Good Friday, we commemorate His crucifixion and death at Mount Calvary. There are many prayers dedicated to this event; another way of meditating on His last moments is by praying the Stations of the Cross every Friday of Lent, and on Good Friday.
What Are The Stations of The Cross?
The Stations of the Cross is a spiritual pilgrimage that Christians make to contemplate the Passion of Christ. It is a set of 14 Stations, marking the moments that precede the death of Christ, such as His Trial and subsequent condemnation, the Carrying of the Cross, and His crucifixion. The Stations of the Cross is a particular form of prayer: we meditate and walk, plodding alongside Jesus Christ during His ordeal.
How to Pray The Stations of The Cross
You can walk the Stations of the Cross alone, with a community, in a Church, and even outside. Before everything else, the Stations of the Cross is an inner spiritual journey. Every Church has depictions of the Stations of the Cross. Some parishes often offer their participants to pray the way of the Cross as a community. However, you are free to relive the Passion of Christ and the Mystery of His death on the Cross any time you want.
Walk the Way of The Cross
You can begin the Stations of the Cross with an act of contrition, and/or with this prayer:
“Lord Jesus Christ, fill our hearts with the light of your Spirit, so that by following you on your final journey we may come to know the price of our Redemption and become worthy of a share in the fruits of your Passion, Death and Resurrection. You who live and reign for ever and ever. Amen.”
(from John Paul II Stations of the Cross at the Colosseum - 2000)
The 14 Stations of The Cross
Start walking the way of the Cross, stopping at every station to:
Read a passage from the Gospels
Pause and meditate on the passage in silence
Pray. Each station is preceded by the prayer: “We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you. Because by your holy Cross you have redeemed the world.” You can conclude each station with a special prayer or invocation, one Glory Be, one Our Father, and one verse from the Stabat Mater Dolorosa. (ex. “Our father…”; “Glory be…”,;“At the Cross her station keeping, stood the mournful Mother weeping, close to Jesus to the last.”)
First Station: Jesus is condemned to death
Second Station: Jesus carries His Cross
Third Station: Jesus falls for the first time
Fourth Station: Jesus meets His Blessed Mother
Fifth Station: Simon of Cyrene comes to help Jesus carry His Cross
Sixth Station: Veronica wipes the face of Jesus
Seventh Station: Jesus Falls the second time
Eight Station: Jesus consoles the women of Jerusalem
Ninth Station: Jesus falls a third time
Tenth Station: Jesus is stripped of His garments and offered gall and vinegar to drink
Eleventh Station: Jesus is nailed to the Cross
Twelfth Station: Jesus dies on the Cross
Thirteenth Station: Jesus is taken down from the Cross and given to His Mother
Fourteenth Station: Jesus is laid in the tomb
You can add a fifteenth station to your prayer, depicting the resurrection of Christ (by an empty tomb).
Walk The Way of The Cross with Hozana
Discover our many spiritual programs to help you practice daily prayer! Relive the passion of Christ with Hozana: meditate and pray the stations of the Cross with your Christian brothers and sisters by joining this community. Start the program on the first Friday of Lent, or anytime you want!
Pray each day of the Holy Week with The Brothers of the Society of Saint John the Evangelist’s spiritual program to prepare for Easter day!
