The devotion of the Way of the Cross consists of the mental prayer of accompanying the Lord Jesus in his sufferings – known as the Passion of Our Lord –, from the Court of Pilate to Mount Calvary.
This meditation originated during the Crusades (10th century). The faithful, who made pilgrimages to the Holy Land and visited the sacred places of Jesus’ Passion, continued to remember the steps of the Via Dolorosa of Jerusalem in their homelands, uniting this devotion to the Passion. Here we present one of the versions, adapted by Pope John Paul II.
Let us pray:
A few moments of silence.
Look, Holy Father, at the blood that flows from the Savior’s pierced chest; look at the blood shed by so many victims of hatred, war and terrorism, and grant, benignant, that the course of events in the world unfold according to your will in justice and peace, and your Church surrenders with serene confidence to the your service and the liberation of man.
By Christ our Lord
R. Amen.
At the end of each station we pray: Our Father, Hail Mary and Glory…
FIRST STATION
We adore you, LORD JESUS, and we bless you!
Because through Your Holy Cross you redeemed the world!
Jesus in agony in the Garden of Olives
Jesus, who calmed the waters tossed by the wind, now cannot give peace to Himself. The storm is the doubt that shakes your mind and chest, as it shakes the spirit of millions of men and women yesterday, today and tomorrow, because true peace will only come after the resurrection.
SECOND SEASON
We adore you, LORD JESUS, and we bless you!
Because through Your Holy Cross you redeemed the world!
Jesus, betrayed by Judas, is arrested.
On that tragic dark night of Gethsemane, the Son of God arouses in us, with his words and gestures, various feelings and we shudder at the pettiness of betrayal. From the death of Christ, new life blossoms, memory and announcement of a hope that does not die: universal salvation.
THIRD STATION
We adore you, LORD JESUS, and we bless you!
Because through Your Holy Cross you redeemed the world!
Jesus is condemned by the Sanhedrin
Leaving one’s identity and proclaiming one’s faith are sometimes acts punishable by death. But how many are those who seek God? How many are looking for Him behind bars? How many in the prison of your life, of your suffering? How many in the mockery endured and the torture suffered? She who condemns without evidence, accuses without reason, judges without appeal, crushes the innocent.
FOURTH SEASON
We adore you, LORD JESUS, and we bless you!
Because through Your Holy Cross you redeemed the world!
Jesus is disowned by Peter
Peter reveals his weakness. He had rashly promised to die before. Humiliated, he cries and asks God for forgiveness. Peter’s lesson is great: even those closest to him will offend Jesus with their sin. But as soon as Jesus’ gaze meets Peter’s, the Apostle recognizes his sad mistake.
FIFTH SEASON
We adore you, LORD JESUS, and we bless you!
Because through Your Holy Cross you redeemed the world!
Jesus is judged by Pilate
We always find a justification for our faults and our mistakes. Jesus responds with silence when he sees the hypocrisy and pride of power, the indifference of those who evade his responsibilities.
SIXTH SEASON
We adore you, LORD JESUS, and we bless you!
Because through Your Holy Cross you redeemed the world!
Jesus is scourged and crowned with thorns
True man suffered indescribable pains; By contemplating your face, we are able to bear our pain, in the hope of being welcomed into your Kingdom, the true and only Kingdom. Your Kingdom is not of this world, but we men expect favors, power, success, riches: a world without suffering.
SEVENTH STATION
We adore you, LORD JESUS, and we bless you!
Because through Your Holy Cross you redeemed the world!
Jesus receives the Cross on his shoulders
Despite being clothed with the glory and power given to Him by the Father, Jesus accepted a horrible, inglorious, rather shameful death. The powerful of the world unite to carry out reprisals,
to reach poor and exhausted populations. Even terrorism is justified in the name of justice and the defense of the poor.
EIGHTH STATION
We adore you, LORD JESUS, and we bless you!
Because through Your Holy Cross you redeemed the world!
Jesus is helped by Simon of Cyrene to carry the Cross
A man who came from the countryside entered Jerusalem to negotiate. He profited from it: five minutes in salvation history, one sentence in the Gospel. The cross is too heavy for God, who became man. Jesus needs solidarity. Man needs solidarity. We are told: Bear one another’s burdens.
NINTH SEASON
We adore you, LORD JESUS, and we bless you!
Because through Your Holy Cross you redeemed the world!
Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem
A funeral lament accompanies the condemned man’s walk to death. On the path that leads to Calvary, women cry, beating their chests. He, carrying the cross on his shoulders, falters under the weight of the sin and pain of the men he wanted as brothers. You know how long the story is
the painful path that leads to the Calvaries of the world.
TENTH STATION
We adore you, LORD JESUS, and we bless you!
Because through Your Holy Cross you redeemed the world!
Jesus is crucified
The Savior’s wounds continue to bleed today, aggravated by the nails of injustice, lies and hatred, outrages, sacrileges and indifference. On the palms of His hands pierced by nails is written the names of those who, with Him, continue to be crucified.
ELEVENTH STATION
We adore you, LORD JESUS, and we bless you!
Because through Your Holy Cross you redeemed the world!
Jesus promises his Kingdom to the good thief
The good thief had certainly killed, possibly more than once, and he knew nothing about Jesus, other than what he heard shouting from the crowd. A feeling of solidarity and a cry for help were enough to save him. That thief represents all of us. His quick adventure teaches us that the Kingdom preached by Jesus is not difficult to achieve for those who call on him.
TWELFTH STATION
We adore you, LORD JESUS, and we bless you!
Because through Your Holy Cross you redeemed the world!
Jesus on the Cross, the Mother and the Disciple.
Mary is standing by the Cross; the youngest disciple is at your side. Now offer your Son to the world and receive the disciple He loved. From that moment on, João welcomes you into the home of his heart and into his life, and the strength of Love spreads within him. He is now, in the Church, the witness of the light
and with his Gospel he reveals the Love of the Savior.
THIRTEENTH STATION
We adore you, LORD JESUS, and we bless you!
Because through Your Holy Cross you redeemed the world!
Jesus dies on the Cross
He suffers from the torment of his Mother, chosen to give life to a Son who he will see die.
However, Jesus, in love and obedience, accepts the Father’s project. He knows that without the gift of His life our death would be hopeless; the darkness of despair would not turn into light; pain would not result in consolation, in the hope of eternity.
FOURTEENTH STATION
We adore you, LORD JESUS, and we bless you!
Because through Your Holy Cross you redeemed the world!
Jesus is placed in the tomb
After the terrible thunder at the moment of death, the great silence. The Son of God descends into the mansion of the dead to rescue those whom death holds back. His light upsets the darkness of Hell. The earth shakes and the tombs open. Jesus comes to free the righteous and return them to the light of the resurrection.
Our Father, Hail Mary and Glory…
Final Prayer
I beseech you, Lord, to grant me,
through the intercession of your Mother the Virgin Mary,
that every time you meditate on your Passion,
stay engraved on me
with a constant current mark,
what you did for me
and your constant benefits.
Lord, please accompany me,
throughout my life,
I am immensely grateful to your Kindness. Amen.