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Stations of the Cross

We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.

Because by Your holy cross

You have redeemed the world.

 

During the Stations of the Cross contemplation,

try to pause and reflect on your life.

 

The First Station

Jesus is condemned to death

Obedience to the Father’s Will

cost Our Lord His life.

He died a shameful death of the Cross.

 

How willing am I to “die to myself”

for the sake of God’s Will?

Do I love myself more than God?

 

Lord, help me to be more

open to Your Will.

 Give me the strength to obey

You without counting the cost.

The Second Station

Jesus takes up His Cross

Our Lord had to carry His Cross

even though He was innocent.

 

Some of my crosses too

are not caused by me.

Persevere… Our Lord will never

give me a cross that will crush me.

 

Lord, You bore Your Cross so

courageously and so faithfully.

Help me to bear mine

in the same spirit.

 

The Third Station

Jesus falls the first time

Our Lord, fully divine and fully human

 felt the full weight of the Cross;

He collapsed under is weight.

 

Do I recognise and accept

my human frailty?

Lord, give me the graces to

accept the truth that I am

weak and sinful.

Help me to realise how

dependent I am on you.

The Fourth Station

Jesus meets His mother

When Our Lord met His

Mother at Calvary, both their

hearts must have bled

for they loved each other

so deeply.

 

Do I love Our Lord as deeply?

 

Lord, to watch our loved ones

suffer is harder to bear

than my own pain. 

Help me to believe that You

are always there for me.

 

The Fifth  Station

Simon helps Jesus to carry the Cross

Simon of Cyrene relieved the

burden of the Cross of Our Lord.

This was a welcome relief.

 

Like Simon, do I want to relieve

the burdens of others through

my care and concern for them? 

 

Lord, help me to be more willing and

eager to help anyone who is in need. 

Help me to have the

courage to serve even though others

may laugh or think I am weird.

The Sixth  Station

Veronica wipes the face of Jesus

Where ever there are tears of pain

and blood from victims of

unjust suffering in slums, jails, homes,

etc. Jesus’ blood-stained face

is there staring at us.

 

When I see people suffer, do I

have compassion for them?

 
 

Lord, help me to see how You too

suffer in those who suffer.

Through my deeds, may I be Your

compassion for them.

 

The Seventh  Station

Jesus falls a second time

Our Lord truly tried so hard

to complete the torture

of Calvary, yet the pain

overpowered His efforts.

 

How often have I tried

to do God’s Will and failed?

Lord, help me not to be

discouraged by my failures.

Give me strength to persevere,

for I know that not to try

harder is the worst “failure.”

The Eighth Station

Jesus consoles the women of Jerusalem

In spite of His sufferings

Our Lord never lost His

Compassion for others.

 

How often have I reached

out to others?

Is my attention only focused

On my own needs?

 
 

Lord, it is very difficult to understand

the needs of others

when I myself am hurting.

Help me to be more like You

in my compassion.

 

The Ninth Station

Jesus falls the third time

Our Lord drained of

strength, crashed to the ground,

lays there motionless as though

He has died.

But, He struggled on

to complete His Mission.

 

Do I give up so easily as soon

as the going gets tough or

do I fight on?

 

Lord, may Your strength

sustain me and keep me going

especially when I am

down and depressed.

The Tenth Station

Jesus is stripped of His garments

Our Lord was stripped

of all that He possessed

in this world.

His only consolation was

His Father’s Love.

 

Am I attached to anything that is keeping me from loving

God more?

 

Lord, root out all traces of

envy and pride in me.

May I remain poor in spirit

so that I be rich in You.

 

The Eleventh Station

Jesus is nailed to the Cross

Our Lord worked miracles,

walked miles, preached endlessly

about His Father’s Will.

And the crowd crucified Him.

 

Should I expect and demand

results and reward for the

good that I do?

 
 

Lord, as You are nailed

so cruelly on the Cross and

found Yourself so helpless,

give me the wisdom to

see how doing Your

Father’s Will is never easy.

The Twelve  Station

Jesus dies on the Cross

Before Jesus died He said,

“Father, forgive them for they

do not know what they are doing.”

 

How often have I sort

revenge for those who have wronged me?  Should I not

learn to forgive like Our Lord?

 

Lord, help me to see how

forgiveness is a virtue that

brings healing and unity.

Help me to be humble so that

I can more willingly forgive.

 

The Thirteenth Station

Jesus is taken down from the Cross

The cold and limp body of Jesus

is placed on the lap of

His Mother who weeps

silently in her heart.

 

How selfless am I in

serving God’s people?

 

Lord, You have given fully

without counting the cost.

May I too have a heart

that is like Yours.

The Fourteenth Station

Jesus is laid in the tomb

The Saviour of the world

who was born without an inn

now dies without a tomb

of His own.

 

Does this total

detachment of Jesus

help me to live my faith

more purely for Him?    

 

Lord, may Your Father’s Will

always take first place in

everything that I do.