Praying the Stations of the Cross

This is my annual reminder during Lent sharing how impactful the Stations of the Cross have been in my spiritual walk. 

As I've shared here and in my books, I grew up a member of the Churches of Christ, but in the 6th grade began to attend a Catholic middle school. Blessed Sacrament was my first exposure to Catholicism, and while I didn't appreciate it much at the time, my introduction to the Stations of the Cross during Lent left a lasting impression. To this day, praying the Stations of the Cross is a part of my annual Lenten observance. 

That said, recommending the Stations to fellow Protestants can be challenging given that some of the stations in the traditional observance aren't found in the Bible. The traditional Stations of the Cross are these:

1. Jesus is condemned to death 
2. Jesus carries his cross 
3. Jesus falls the first time 
4. Jesus meets his mother 
5. Simon of Cyrene helps Jesus carry the cross 
6. Veronica wipes the face of Jesus 
7. Jesus falls the second time 
8. Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem 
9. Jesus falls the third time 
10. Jesus' clothes are taken away 
11. Jesus is nailed to the cross 
12. Jesus dies on the cross 
13. Jesus is taken down from the cross
14. Jesus is laid in the tomb

Obviously, as a Protestant kid I was puzzled about Station Six. Who was Veronica?

According to Catholic tradition, Veronica was a pious woman of Jerusalem who was moved with pity upon seeing Jesus carrying his cross to Golgotha. As Jesus passed Veronica wiped his face. A miracle occurred in that an impression of Jesus's face was left upon the cloth called "The Veil of Veronica." 

As a Protestant, that story was new to me. As were Stations Three, Seven and Nine. I was unaware that Jesus fell, precisely, three times on his way to the cross.

As you might expect, these extra-biblical Stations can make some Protestants hesitant to observe or use the Stations of the Cross during Lent. However, in 1991 John Paul II introduced what is called the Scriptural or Biblical Stations of the Cross. These fourteen Stations are each tied to a part of the Passion narrative in the gospels. Protestants using the Stations during Lent might be more comfortable with these, the Scriptural Stations of the Cross:

1. Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36-41)
2. Jesus is betrayed by Judas and arrested (Mark 14:43-46)
3. Jesus is condemned by the Sanhedrin (Luke 22:66-71)
4. Jesus is denied by Peter (Matthew 26:69-75)
5. Jesus is judged by Pilate (Mark 15:1-5, 15)
6. Jesus is scourged and crowned with thorns (John 19:1-3)
7. Jesus takes up his cross (John 19:6, 15-17)
8. Jesus is helped by Simon to carry his cross (Mark 15:21)
9. Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem (Luke 23:27-31)
10. Jesus is crucified (Luke 23:33-34)
11. Jesus promises his kingdom to the repentant thief (Luke 23:39-43)
12. Jesus entrusts Mary and John to each other (John 19:25-27)
13. Jesus dies on the cross (Luke 23:44-46)
14. Jesus is laid in the tomb (Matthew 27:57-60)

If you want to pray the Stations resources abound online, from written resources to prayer apps to Youtube videos to podcasts. Often these resources share a meditation or reflection associated with each station. A good place to start is Bishop Robert Barron's meditation (links to Youtube, mp3 file, and PDF text here, link to the podcast version here). 

But you can also pray the stations contemplatively, reading each station and spending time in silence as you journey with Jesus from the garden to the tomb.