Stations of The Cross
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As we pray these Stations during Lent, let us pray for all those who are suffering in the world - the poor, the vulnerable, the neglected, the abused, all affected by the coronavirus, and those who live in conditions of poverty and deprivation, in our own parish and in our city and throughout the world. We pray that as we enter into the sufferings of Christ we will see Him suffering in the world around us. This Lent we also pray for peace in Ukraine. Stations of the Cross Introduction + In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit The Lord be with you Let us pray + + + First Station - Jesus is condemned to death We adore you O Christ and we bless you
Our Lord stands in silence condemned to death. False witnesses have accused him; judges in bad faith have condemned him; a friend has betrayed him, still he remains silent. ‘Harshly dealt with, he bore it humbly, never opening his mouth; like a lamb before its shearer never opening its mouth.’ Lord, it was not Pilate; no, it was my sins that condemned you to die. I beseech you by the merits of this sorrowful journey, to assist my journey towards eternity. Glory be to the Father At the cross her station keeping + + + Second Station - Jesus is loaded with his cross We adore you O Christ and we bless you
Jesus begins his sorrowful journey. Burdened with the world’s sin, still he thinks of each one of us. Embracing the cross he does not complain of his fate. But as Scripture says, ‘For my part I make no resistance, I offered my back to those who struck me, I did not cover my face against insult and spittle.’ My loving Jesus, by the merits of carrying your cross, give me the necessary help to carry mine with perfect patience and resignation. Lord have mercy Through her soul of joy bereaved + + + Third Station - Jesus falls the first time We adore you O Christ and we bless you
Jesus falls at the feet of his tormentors. Yet his longing for our salvation drives him on. He did not need the blows of the soldiery to flog him to Calvary. The love of his Sacred Heart drove him on; the Holy Spirit drove him on; the longing of the Eternal Father to win us to heaven drove him on. Lord, how heavily my sins must weigh upon your Sacred Heart. By the merits of this first fall, deliver me from the misfortune of falling into mortal sin. Lamb of God you take away the sins of the World O that blessed one grief-laden + + + Fourth Station - Jesus meets his afflicted Mother We adore you O Christ and we bless you
Jesus beholds the loving face of Mary amidst the mockeries around him. But now he is hardly recognizable, so disfigured did he look. Without beauty, without majesty she saw him, ‘A thing despised and rejected by men, and the Lord has laid upon him the sins of us all.’ My Jesus, by the sorrow you experienced in this meeting, grant me the grace of a devoted love for your Holy Mother. And do you my Queen, who were overwhelmed with sorrow, obtain for me a continual and tender remembrance of the Passion of your Son. Hail Mary O that silent ceaseless mourning + + + Fifth Station - Simon helps Jesus to carry his cross We adore you O Christ and we bless you
A stranger is forced to carry the cross of Jesus. And yet in doing so, faith came to Simon and his family, for Scripture names him, ‘Simon the father of Alexander and Rufus’ who became well known to Christ’s followers. Who on Christ’s dear Mother gazing + + Sixth Station - Veronica offers Jesus a towel We adore you O Christ and we bless you
This was indeed a gracious reward for Veronica’s compassion. Yet in this meeting there is a lesson for us all. For whenever out of love we minister to the needy, we receive an increase of grace, and the image and likeness of Christ grows in our souls. Lord, my soul was once beautiful, when I received your grace in Baptism. But I have often disfigured it by my sins. You alone, my Redeemer, can restore it to its former beauty. Do this by your passion, O Jesus. Who on Christ’s dear Mother thinking + + + Seventh Station - Jesus falls a second time We adore you O Christ and we bless you
Again, Jesus falls beneath the weight of the cross. Yet again he staggers to his feet and continues along the road to Calvary. Lord have mercy For his people’s sins in anguish + + + Eighth Station - Jesus speaks to the weeping women We adore you O Christ and we bless you
These courageous women mourned for him as he passed by. And supporting him in their grief they openly confessed their faith in his name, fearless of what might happen to them. Lord Jesus, by the example of this meeting, let me always confess my faith in you as my Lord and my God, careless of any danger or derision it may bring me. Glory be to the Father Saw the Lord’s anointed taken + + + Ninth Station - Jesus falls a third time We adore you O Christ and we bless you
Jesus was but a few steps from Calvary. Yet before he gained the very spot where he was to be crucified, again he fell to the ground. As Scripture says of our Holy Redeemer, ‘My throat is dried up as parched as clay, and in the dust of death you have laid me.’ In the Passion of my Maker + + + Tenth Station - Jesus is stripped of his garments We adore you O Christ and we bless you
Our Lord stands exposed to the gaze of the jeering crowd. He is made to look a fool for my sake. He who as God’s creating Word rightly possesses all things, now possesses nothing. Most innocent Jesus, by the merits of the ridicule that you bore, grant me readiness to be considered a fool for your sake. Strip me of all sinful desires for worldly things. But above all, never allow me to be stripped of your grace. Our Father Of his Passion bear the token + + + Eleventh Station - Jesus is nailed to the cross We adore you O Christ and we bless you
Our Saviour is crucified, and in the company of two thieves. As Scripture had foretold, he was taken for a sinner, while he was praying all the time for sinners. As they fastened him with nails, he prayed for us all: ‘Father forgive them for they know not what they do.’ May his wounds both wound and heal me + + + Twelfth Station - Jesus dies on the cross + We adore you O Christ and we bless you
(We kneel throughout this Station where able, bow our heads, and pause and reflect a short while) How completely dependent we are on that Holy Cross: for the grace of God’s friendship; for the forgiveness of sins; for the hope of heaven hereafter. On Calvary, his life of sacrifice has reached its conclusion, ‘It is finished; Father into your hands I commit my spirit.’ May he when the mountains quiver + + + Thirteenth Station - Jesus is taken down from the cross We adore you O Christ and we bless you
Mary at last has possession of her Son. Now when his enemies can do no more, they leave him to her in contempt. How deeply now she felt the force of Simeon’s words, ‘And your own soul a sword shall pierce.’ Jesus may thy Cross defend me + + + Fourteenth Station - Jesus is laid in the tomb We adore you O Christ and we bless you
Jesus is left alone to rest in peace. And yet he is not alone, for the Father is always with him. He came from the Father into the world, and now he has left the world and gone to the Father. When to dust my dust returneth
May the Divine assistance remain with us always and may the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. + + +
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