The Way of the Cross

First Station.

Jesus is condemned to death.

We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you. Because by your holy Cross you have redeemed the world.

Pilate said to them, 'Then what am I to do with Jesus who is called Christ?' They all said, 'Let him be crucified!' He asked, 'But what harm has he done?' But they shouted all the louder, 'Let him be crucified!'    (Mt 27:22-23)

Short pause for reflection.

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be to the Father.

Second Station.

Jesus takes up his Cross.

We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you. Because by your holy Cross you have redeemed the world.

They then took charge of Jesus, and carrying his own cross he went out to the Place of the Skull or, as it is called in Hebrew, Golgotha.
(Jn 19:17)

Short pause for reflection.

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be to the Father.

Third Station.

Jesus falls the first time.

We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you. Because by your holy Cross you have redeemed the world.

We had all gone astray like sheep, each taking his own way, and the Lord laid on him the iniquity of us all.
(Is 53:6)

Short pause for reflection.

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be to the Father.

Fourth Station.

Jesus meets his Mother.

We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you. Because by your holy Cross you have redeemed the world.

Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, 'Look, he is destined for the fall and for the rise of many in Israel, destined to be a sign that is opposed, so that the secret thoughts of many may be laid bare. And a sword will pierce your soul too.'
(Lk 2:34-35)

Short pause for reflection.

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be to the Father.

Fifth Station.

Simon of Cyrene helps Jesus to carry his Cross.

We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you. Because by your holy Cross you have redeemed the world.

As they were leading him away they seized on a man, Simon from Cyrene, who was coming in from the country, and made him shoulder the cross and carry it behind Jesus.
(Lk 23:26)

Short pause for reflection.

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be to the Father.

Sixth Station.

Veronica wipes the face of Jesus.

We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you. Because by your holy Cross you have redeemed the world.

He had no form or charm to attract us, no beauty to win our hearts; he was despised, the lowest of men, a man of sorrows, familiar with suffering, one from whom men hide their faces.
(Is: 53,2-3)

Short pause for reflection.

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be to the Father.

Seventh Station.

Jesus falls the second time.

We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you. Because by your holy Cross you have redeemed the world.

Ill-treated and afflicted, he never opened his mouth, like a lamb led to the slaughter-house, like a sheep dumb before its shearers he never opened his mouth.
(Is 53:7)

Short pause for reflection.

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be to the Father.

Eighth Station.

Jesus consoles the women of Jerusalem.

We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you. Because by your holy Cross you have redeemed the world.

Large numbers of people followed him, and women too, who mourned and lamented for him. But Jesus turned to them and said, 'Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep rather for yourselves and for your children. For look, the days are coming when people will say, "Blessed are those who are barren, the wombs that have never borne children, the breasts that have never suckled!" Then they will begin to say to the mountains, "Fall on us!"; to the hills, "Cover us!" For if this is what is done to green wood, what will be done when the wood is dry?'
(Lk 23:27-31)

                                                       Short pause for reflection.

                                                       Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be to the Father.

Ninth Station.

Jesus falls the third time.

We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you. Because by your holy Cross you have redeemed the world.

He was pierced for our offenses, crushed because of our guilt; the punishment reconciling us fell on him, and we have been healed by his wounds.
(Is 53:5)

Short pause for reflection.

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be to the Father.

Tenth Station.

Jesus is stripped of his garments.

We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you. Because by your holy Cross you have redeemed the world.

When the soldiers had finished crucifying Jesus they took his clothing and divided it into four shares, one for each soldier. His undergarment was seamless, woven in one piece from neck to hem; so they said to one another, 'Instead of tearing it, let's throw dice to decide who is to have it.' In this way the words of scripture were fulfilled: They divide my garments among them and cast lots for my clothes.
(Jn 19:23-24)

Short pause for reflection.

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be to the Father.

Eleventh Station.

Jesus is nailed to the Cross.

We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you. Because by your holy Cross you have redeemed the world.

When they reached the place called The Skull, there they crucified him and the two criminals, one on his right, the other on his left. Jesus said, 'Father, forgive them; they do not know what they are doing.'
(Lk 23:33-34)

Short pause for reflection.

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be to the Father.

Twelfth Station.

Jesus dies on the Cross.

We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you. Because by your holy Cross you have redeemed the world.

It was now about the sixth hour and the sun's light failed, so that darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour. The veil of the Sanctuary was torn right down the middle. Jesus cried out in a loud voice saying, 'Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.' With these words he breathed his last.
(Lk 23, 44-46)

Short pause for reflection.

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be to the Father.

Thirteenth Station.

Jesus is taken down from the Cross.

We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you. Because by your holy Cross you have redeemed the world.

And now a member of the Council arrived, a good and upright man named Joseph. He had not consented to what the others had planned and carried out. He came from Arimathaea, a Jewish town, and he lived in the hope of seeing the kingdom of God. This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. And he took it down from the cross.
(Lk:23,50-53)

Short pause for reflection.

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be to the Father.

Fourteenth Station.

Jesus is laid in the tomb.

We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you. Because by your holy Cross you have redeemed the world.

Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean shroud and put it in his own new tomb which he had hewn out of the rock. He then rolled a large stone across the entrance of the tomb and went away.
(Mt 27:59-60)

Short pause for reflection.

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be to the Father.