STATIONS OF THE CROSS

 

OPENING PRAYER 

  

My Lord and Savior:
You have shown me how to live by Your life and Your death. When I compare Your life to mine, I begin to ask questions about myself. Sometimes, Lord, the see of life seems so wide and so deep and my boat and oars seem so small. Help me to grow and to understand You and myself better. I ask You to help me accept life and all that it holds.
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

 

 

 

 "Let's walk together, my Brothers and Sisters to the Stations of the Cross".

 

 

THE FIRST STATION.. (Pause to Genuflect and pray
We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
Because by Your Holy Cross You have redeemed the world.

 

Jesus is condemned to death.
Jesus had nothing but love for people, yet He was condemned to die a brutal death. I have condemned myself so much that I could see little or no good in myself... much less, see the good in others. Today, Lord, help me look at each and every person - man, woman, child -and see the beauty and goodness that You have given us. Teach me by this station to help build up each and every person I meet, rather then tear them apart by my malicious criticism and condemnation...Amen

 

Meditate and sing

Anthem: Through her heart, His sorrow sharing
All His bitter anguish bearing,
Now at length the sword has passed.....

 


Walk and meditate to station two.

 

 THE SECOND STATION (Pause to Genuflect and pray
We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You. Because by Your Holy Cross You have redeemed the world.

Jesus carries his cross.
The weight of the Cross shows heavily on the brow and the face of Jesus. Yet, He moves forward without a word of complaint.
My crosses and trials in life never come close to those of Jesus. Yet, I complain and gripe constantly, hoping that the pain and trials will escape my life. My pride is so great that the thought of the smallest suffering frightens me. Teach me, Jesus, by your example, how to carry my daily crosses. Yes, "My yoke is easy and my burden light"

 

Meditate and sing

Anthem:
O, how sad and sore distressed
Was that Mother highly blessed
Of the sole Begotten One.

 

Walk and meditate to station three.

 

 

THE THIRD STATION.. (Pause to Genuflect and pray .)
We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
Because by Your Holy Cross You have redeemed the world.  

Jesus falls the first time.
Jesus is known by all His strength and courage. Yet He falls under the weight of the wooden Cross. I fall many times daily, and the weight of my crosses is nothing compared to the Cross of Jesus. Sometimes I fall because of weakness; other times I fall because I lack the incentive or the courage to keep trying. And again there are times when I get so caught up in my poor self-image that I just don't care and give up in discouragement. Lord, let me never become so discouraged that I give in to failure. Help me to know that to falter or to fall is not shameful. Help me to know my strengths through my weaknesses.

 

Meditate and sing:

 

Christ above in torment hangs

She beneath beholds the pangs
Of her dying, glorious Son.

 

 

Walk and meditate to station four.

 

 

FORTH STATION.. (Pause to Genuflect and pray .)
We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
Because by Your Holy Cross You have redeemed the world 

Jesus meets His holy Mother.
Mary's memory takes her back many years...to her tiny child taking His first steps...wobbling and falling...in Nazareth. She is there beside Him, holding her breath, Longing to put out her hands to steady Him, to prevent a fall, but she lets Him go alone, the little child...who must learn to walk on His own feet. Now as then she is slient; she holds back her hands as she did then, His will is her will. It was for this hour that she gave Him to the world. So, her Son goes on to do His Fathers will? "The Father so loved the world, that He gave up His only Son to save it"

 

Meditate and sing

Anthem:
Is there one who would not weep,
'whelmed in miseries 'O so deep
Christ's dear Mother to behold

 

 

Walk and meditate to station five.

 

 THE FIFTH STATION.. (Pause to Genuflect and pray .)
We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
Because by Your Holy Cross You have redeemed the world.

 Simon of Cyrene helps Jesus to carry His cross.
Jesus accepts the help of a bystander to carry His cross. He can no longer carry the weight of the Roman cross alone. How many times have I said, "No" to the care, Love and concern of my friends? How many times have I brusquely turned away from those who wanted to help me? Out of Puffed-up pride I always wanted to do everything by myself and never accepted a helping hand. I remember so well those who wanted to help me and I said, "No". Lord teach me by this station that I always need help.. the help of God, and the help of my fellow men and women.

 

Meditate and sing

Anthem:
Can the human heart refrain
from partaking in her pain
in that Mother's pain untold?

 

Walk and meditate to station six.

 

 

THE SIXTH STATION.. (Pause to Genuflect and pray .)
We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
Because by Your Holy Cross You have redeemed the world.

 

 

  Jesus meets Veronica

 Veronica wipes the blood and sweat from the face of Jesus. A single gesture of love and concern and it meant so much to Jesus, and to Veronica! I, being a self-centered person, fail many times to offer a helping hand, to say a word of comfort or just give a simple encouragement to someone on the brink of dispair. Those precious moments I let slip away from my life because of my selfishness. O God! I know You can remove all these short comings and defects of character from my life. Just as Veronica wiped away the sweat blood from your brow, wipe away my selfishness and lack of love for others.

 

Veronica

a woman of Jerusalem who, according to legend, gave Jesus her veil to wipe his face as he bore his cross to Calvary. He returned it with his countenance miraculously imprinted on the fabric. Modern scholars believe that her name, which is also applied to the veil itself, is derived from the Latin vera and the Greek eikon, meaning "true image." The legend is represented in the 6th of the 14 Stations of the Cross. Of the several cloths reputed to be the original veil, the most celebrated is kept at Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome, where it became an object of popular veneration during the Middle Ages.

 

Meditate and sing

Anthem:
Bruised, derided, cursed, defiled
She beheld her tender Child
All with bloody scourges rent.

 

Walk and meditate to station seven.

 

 

THE SEVENTH STATION.. (Pause to Genuflect and pray .)
We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
Because by Your Holy Cross You have redeemed the world.  

Jesus falls a second time.
Once again, Jesus stumbles and falls under the weight of the heavy wooden cross. His body is covered with bruises and He is blood stained from head to foot. I fall daily. I lament and complain and ask, "Why?" Somehow I want to rest contentedly and confidently on honors already won and suddenly...Down I go! That's the story of my life. I say in my moments of complacency that I am going to do this or that, and I do nothing instead. Teach me by these repeated falls to act and to do, rather to dream and want.

 

meditate and sing 

Anthem:
For the sins of His own nation
Saw Him hang in desolation
Till His spirit forth He sent.

 

Walk and meditate to station eight.

 

 THE EIGHTH STATION.. (Pause to Genuflect and pray .)
We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
Because by Your Holy Cross You have redeemed the world.

Jesus comforts the weeping women of Jerusalem.
Jesus forgets for the moment His own pain, anguish and the weight of the cross, and comforts the women who followed Him. And I, a person so quick to criticize and slow to compliment,seldom give of my time to comfort and console anyone in need. Help me to love my neighbor as myself. Let me never think of myself as being better than, or more noble than those around me. Teach me by Your example to help and comfort people I meet in my life's journey. Only when I freely love others that I receive love in return.

 

Meditate and sing

 

Anthem:
O' sweet Mother! Fount of Love,
Touch my spirit from above
Make my heart with yours accord.

 

Walk and meditate to station nine.

 

 

 

THE NINTH STATION.. (Pause to Genuflect and pray .)
We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
Because by Your Holy Cross You have redeemed the world.

 

Jesus falls the third time.
Jesus, completely overcome by physical weakness, slumps under the cross for the final time. I've slipped, I've stumbled, I've fallen many times in life. Each time I looked at myself as being a no-good, worthless wretch. My self-image was getting worse with each slip in life. It was only then when I learned to live one day at a time and not to look at my past or to worry about all the tomorrows that I could live in the here and now. Just as God made all the creatures and things in the world for a purpose, I began to see a purpose, I began to see a purpose and meaning in my life. Teach me not to condemn myself so much that I give up in despair.

Meditate and sing

Anthem:
Make me feel as You have felt,
Makes my soul to go and melt
With the love of Christ, my Lord

 

Walk and meditate to station ten

 

 

THE TENTH STATION.. (Pause to Genuflect and pray .We adore You, O

Christ, and we praise You.
Because by Your Holy Cross You have redeemed the world.

Jesus is stripped of His clothing.
Jesus, too weak to walk and nearing His final moment, is stripped of His clothing-a savage effort by the soldiers to humiliate Jesus. Somehow, I have yearned to be something great in this life, always seeking goals that were beyond me or not good for me. I was never content with being the simple, ordinary, run of the mill person God made me. I searched for happiness and treasures at the end of the rainbow, and instead my life has been a broken dream. I ask You, Lord, for the gift of humility. Teach me never to yearn for the great and noble things of life, but may the little acts of kindness and love in my life be many.

 

                                               Meditate and sing

Anthem:
Holy Mother, pierce me through
In my heart each wound renew
Of my Savior crucified.

 

 

Walk and meditate to station eleven.

 

 

THE ELEVENTH STATION.. (Pause to Genuflect and pray .)

We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
Because by Your Holy Cross You have redeemed the world.

 Jesus is nailed to the cross.
Jesus, too weak to carry the cross any further, is nailed to the cross. Arms and hands that were always extended in love are now extended and fastened to the wood of the cross. It almost frightens me when I think of the many times I've stretched out my hands and arms to take anything I could get. Seldom did I extend myself to those in need of a little love and concern. The words, "I want this," or "give me that" become the broken record of my life. Oh God! I beg You for the gift of generosity. Never permit me to put limits on what we do.

 Meditate and sing

Anthem:
Let me share with you His pain
Who for all our sins was slain,
Who for me in torments died.

 

Walk and meditate to station twelve.

 

THE TWELFTH STATION.. (Pause to Genuflect and pray .)
We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.

Because by Your Holy Cross You have redeemed the world.

Jesus dies on the cross.
Jesus utters a loud cry, "My God! My God! Why have you forsaken me?" Then He bows his head and dies. Jesus gave His whole life and died that we might live. He endured pain and suffering without complaint. He left beneath the cross, His mother mourning the death of a Son.Lord, help me to die to my old ways of living. Help me to die to a life filled with selfishness, pride, anger and self-hatred. Replace these with charity, faith, love and courage. Grant me the courage not to give up on what I know is right, even though I may feel it to be hopeless.

Meditate and sing

Anthem:
Let me mingle tears with thee
Mourning Him who mourned with me,
All the days that I may live.

 

Walk and meditate to station thirteen.

 

THIRTEENTH STATION.. (Pause to Genuflect and pray
We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.

Jesus is taken down from the cross.
It was only after the death of Jesus that He was recognized as the Son of God. His peaceful resignation and acceptance of suffering and death were proof to the Centurion, He was God's son. Grant me the acceptance and resignation. Help me to accept each day as it comes. Teach me not to complain when each day and everything it holds is not perfect. After all, I was never promised that each day and every day would be a rose in the garden of life. Let me never greet another day with these words: "O God! Another day," let me say instead,"Thank God! It's another day!"

Meditate and sing

Anthem:
By the Cross with You to stay
there with you we weep and pray
Is all I ask of you to give.

 

Walk and meditate to station fourteenth.

 

THE FOURTEENTH STATIONPause to Genuflect and pray
We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
Because by Your Holy Cross You have redeemed the world.

 Jesus is laid in the tomb.

Jesus lived so humbly and simply that He had no place to be buried. They laid Him in the burial place of a stranger. As the soldier closed the door on the tomb of Jesus, a new chapter of the person and life of Jesus opened. I know that if I turn my life and will over to the care of God, I can be transformed into a new person. My hatred can be turned into love and kindness; my sadness turned into joy; and where there is dispair, I can find hope. My weakness can be turned into strength. Lord, teach me by your tremendous courage to face everything in life, even death itself, and never to fear. Help me my God to never fear anything but fear itself. Amen.

 Meditate and sing

 

Anthem:
Virgin of all virgins blest!
Listen to my found request;
Let me share your grief devine.

 

 

Now pray my brothers and sisters the CLOSING PRAYER.
Then we will go back home to a new life,

Thanks be to God!

  

CLOSING PRAYER

Dear God! As I follow and study Your life from the time

of Your condemnation until Your Crucifixion and death, it is also a

time to review my own life and ask for help in those areas where I

have not done well. When I find areas where I need help, let me not

become discouraged or give in to despair, but rather turn to You as a

child to a parent, and humbly ask for Your devine help and guidance.

Help me live one day at a time, and never relive the past or worry

about the future. Help me accept each day as it comes, and to live it

the way that You and I know best. Never let me say, "If I had the

chance to live it over, I would do this or that." Knowing myself, if I

had the chance, I would probably make the same mistakes again. Help me

to live each moment to its fullest, and in the newness of each moment

give me comfort of soul and peace of mind. AMEN

Peace be with you" Said our Lord Jesus, Friend, Brother,

Father, GOD!

 

 

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