Way of the Cross
Introduction
The Way of the Cross is our journey as individuals and as a community, to become a People of God. This is the only way for us to follow more intimately the life of Jesus. Jesus' journey began with His commitment to say "Yes" to His Father - "Did you not know that I must be busy with my Father's affairs?" and ends with his surrendering His Life - "Father, into Your hands, I commend my spirit". (Luke 23: 46)
During this Season of Lent, we want to walk on His last journey to Calvary, to recall His Life and to examine Our Lives, so that we too will be able to continue living the life of Jesus in the world today.
Opening Hymn: Hosea
Come back to me with all you heart
Don't let fear keep us apart
Trees to bend, though straight and tall;
So must we to other's call
Refrain:
Long have I waited for your coming
Home to me and living deeply our new life.
First Station
JESUS IS CONDEMNED TO DEATH
"He was insulted and did not retaliate with insults; when he suffered he made no threats. Instead he entrusted himself to him who judges justly... Through his wounds we have been healed " (1 Peter 2:23-24)
L1: We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
C: Because by Your Holy Cross, You have brought new life to the world.
Christ's Life: (L1)
Pilate's hands were washed clean, but the stain of sin remained. All denied responsibility for putting an end to the life of the Son of Man. He was sent to bring New Life but this threatened the powerful. He preached salvation to the weak and powerless and was willing to die to self and for others. But the power of Jesus was in his prayer of fidelity to His Father "Not My will but thine be done". (SILENCE)
Our Lives: (L2)
This is the Way of the Cross for those who wish to follow Jesus. Our salvation lies in service, humility and gentleness, not in the hands of the powers of the World. We need to remind ourselves constantly that to walk away from persons and community is to walk away from his love and forgiveness. We need to teach our hearts to love as Jesus did.
My Prayer: (C)
Jesus, O Lord, through your death you brought new life in obedience to your Father. I need to be moulded by your Word, so that I may grow in your "image and likeness". Let me follow your ways in and through each member of my family and my community to the Kingdom of Your Father.
Hymn.
Second Station
JESUS ACCEPTS HIS CROSS
"His state was divine, yet he did not cling to his equality with God, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a slave, and became as men are" (Phil. 6-7)
L1: We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
C: Because by Your Holy Cross, You have brought new life to the world.
Christ's Life: (L1)
This cross, the symbol of humiliation is also the way to new life and resurrection. The way to salvation chosen by His Father was to walk the path of humanity. "Do you know that I must be about my Father's business" made Jesus decide not to be a slave of this world but the servant of the Kingdom. (SILENCE)
Our Lives: (L2)
The world today is covered with darkness, we need to be evangelized. We need to be the light to dispel greed, materialism and consumerism by following the way of Jesus to the Father. Let us also walk together with others who carry with them their hurts and anger through our gentleness and kindness.
My Prayer: (C)
Lord Jesus, let me freely and wholeheartedly accept my daily cross - my life, my realities. Let me welcome the little things that mark my day - my disappointments, tensions, setbacks and preoccupations. Help me deny myself, take up my cross and follow you.
Hymn.
Third Station
JESUS FALLS THE FIRST TIME
"But Jesus said to them (James and John), Have you the strength to drink of the cup I am to drink of, to be baptised with the baptism I am to be baptised with? They said to him, we have" (Mark 10: 38-39)
L1: We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
C: Because by Your Holy Cross, You have brought new life to the world.
Christ's Life: (L1)
The Lord who made and rules the universe, falls under the weight of the cross but rises again. You stood amidst the people to preach the peace, joy and justice of your Father, and fell on your knees to be in prayerful union. You were ready to renew your baptism and your faithfulness to the Will of Your Father, even till this moment when you have to rise again on your way to Calvary. (SILENCE)
Our Lives: (L2)
We are all baptised but are we ready to drink the cup of suffering that Jesus is offering us each day. We are being challenged continuously each time we approach the Eucharistic table to renewal. We need to be strengthened through prayer and fasting to commit ourselves to the life of Jesus. We are called to be a Communion of Communities and to live our baptism in a new way in the world.
My Prayer: (C)
Lord Jesus, help me to recognise my brokenness and to see the need to seek reconciliation with my brothers and sisters each time I fall. Help me accept my weakness and limitations and have the humility to bear with the weaknesses of the members of my family and my Church.
Hymn.
Fourth Station
JESUS MEETS HIS MOTHER
"Love is as strong as death" (The Song of Songs 8.6)
L1: We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
C: Because by Your Holy Cross, You have brought new life to the world.
Christ's Life: (L1)
Your mother sees you whipped, kicked and driven like a beast. She counts your wounds. Though her soul cries out in agony, no protest or complaint escapes her lips, or even enters her thoughts. She shares your martyrdom and you share her pain. This is the meaning of love. Your mother who asked the question, "My child, why have you done this to us?" knows now that true love is painful. (SILENCE)
Our Lives: (L2)
To watch the pain of those whom we love is sometimes harder than to bear our own. How much must be the Father's pain to see the increasing dehumanisation and sufferings of God's family today? "We know that the future of humanity passes through the family". Our homes and our families, the domestic church have to become the first schools for discovering the meaning of true Christian love. We also know that there can be no true love without the cross.
My Prayer: (C)
Lord, I pray that you will give me the strength each day to listen more closely to all the members of my family and to help become a channel of peace and reconciliation. Teach me to reach out with a compassionate heart. May my family also reach out in love to other families.
Hymn.
Fifth Station
SIMON HELPS JESUS CARRY THE CROSS
"Carry each other's burden, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ" (Galations 6.2)
L1: We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
C: Because by Your Holy Cross, You have brought new life to the world.
Christ's Life: (L1)
Your strength was gone and you could no longer bear the cross alone. Your, who even on the Sabbath, was moved by your compassion to remove the "yoke of suffering" from the people you ministered to was made to walk alone. The people who see you on the way to Calvary just watch you go by since they don't have the courage to give a helping hand, instead Simon was asked to help you. (SILENCE)
Our Lives: (L2)
How different are we from the passive and fearful crowd or the reluctant Simon. Each day we make Jesus walk the way of the cross alone when we don't journey together as a People of God. We remain indifferent to the sufferings of our sisters and brothers around us. Sometimes we don't even want to look for fear that we will become aware of the sufferings of the poor, the pains of migrant workers, the cry of the drug addicts and the misery of the child workers.
My Prayer: (C)
Open my eyes O, Lord, and renew me O, Lord. Allow me to listen to Your cries of anguish of the voiceless and the weak. Help me reach out in love to those in pain, those who are suffering and to lift the burdens from their backs. Help me carry Your cross to Calvary by dying to my selfishness and pride.
Hymn.
Sixth Station
VERONICA WIPES THE FACE OF JESUS
"Your face, Lord, I seek. Do not hide your face from me" (Psalm 27.8-9)
L1: We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
C: Because by Your Holy Cross, You have brought new life to the world.
Christ's Life: (L1)
A woman comes forward bravely to wipe the sweat and blood from your face. The women to whom you ministered and brought a new liberating power to them must have truly experienced your love, kindness and gentleness. You had through your "being", "witness" and "word" made known the Kingdom of the Father. You walked in communion with women spoke through her life and her witness of truly being your co-worker. (SILENCE)
Our Lives: (L2)
We need to bring new life to the world, we have to walk more closely as Church. We need to forge a genuine partnership in the Church, so that we will become truly a participatory community. It was the journey of the Lord with women, that gave them the strength to come forward with courage. We need to give the rightful place to our mothers and our daughters, to our wives and our sisters in a Church that is called to serve the whole of humanity.
My Prayer: (C)
Give me the wisdom to recognise the manifold talents present within my family and Church especially among women and to nurture a greater mutual respect. Let me be conscious of injustices and hurts and seek to bring healing and reconciliation. Give me the strength to speak with courage and compassion following the example of the women who stood by you on Your Way to the Cross.
Hymn.
Seventh Station
JESUS FALLS THE SECOND TIME
"My palate is drier than a potsherd and my tongue is stuck to my jaw. I am lying in the dust of death" (Psalm 22.16)
L1: We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
C: Because by Your Holy Cross, You have brought new life to the world.
Christ's Life: (L1)
This seventh step was a test of your courage, to persevere in doing good. You knew that you had to go on till the last ounce of strength. Your teaching to forgive "seventy times seven times" meant "Love is an Always-Come-Back". To rise again in spite of failure, to come back with hope, to continue loving although hurt and disappointed. You never failed to reach out with kindness and justice to the sick, the abandoned and marginalised irrespective of race, creed and religion. (SILENCE)
Our Lives: (L2)
We live in a state of sin and unforgiveness and in a world of apathy and division. We need to reach out to even those who have hurt us. To preach the Gospel of Jesus and to promote His Kingdom we need to work more closely with our fellow Christians and people of other faiths. To pray and to work with all people of Goodwill is to make the Father's light and love known to the whole of humanity.
My Prayer: (C)
Lord, to be a Christian today is to follow you and to participate in all that brings new life. It is the burden that I desire and my unwillingness to resort to your strength, from my innermost being that holds me down. Let me be strengthened by your selflessness so that I can become the sign of your presence and purpose in the world today. Help me to continue walking humbly, loving tenderly and acting justly in your footsteps.
Hymn.
Eight Station
JESUS CONSOLES THE WOMEN OF JERUSALEM WHO WEEP FOR HIM
"Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for me but for yourselves and for your children" (Luke 23:28)
L1: We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
C: Because by Your Holy Cross, You have brought new life to the world.
Christ's Life: (L1)
You know that this way of the cross is for you the way to the resurrection. You tried to gather the children and offered them as models of service and humility. Indeed your heart weeps especially for them and the women and dread the times when more pain and suffering awaits them because of the unwillingness of sinful humanity to return your love. (SILENCE)
Our Lives: (L2)
We are often moved by His pain and suffering on the Cross but he is also asking us to "weep" for ourselves and for our future. We cannot just stop weeping for ourselves. We have to seek to redress those conditions that continue to demean the human person and human life and retard the building of the Kingdom of God. The uncontrolled desire for power, wealth and status makes us insensitive to the prompting of the Spirit and the cries of those around us.
My Prayer: (C)
Lord, may I become the leaven of communion for all those among whom I live. Let me become your hands to wipe every tear dry and also to experience your joy and peace that you promised. Let me learn to be humble, poor in spirit and simple in my life style through the love you have shown me. Give me the courage to be prepared to fall in the eyes of the world and not to cling to power, privilege or prestige.
Hymn.
Ninth Station
JESUS FALLS THE THIRD TIME
"In my own body I make up what is still to be undergone by Christ for the sake of his body, which is the Church" (Colosians 1:24)
L1: We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
C: Because by Your Holy Cross, You have brought new life to the world.
Christ's Life: (L1)
Completely drained of strength you lie collapsed, on the ground. Your body may be broken, but no force on earth, no actions of man can prevent you from fulfilling the will of your Father. You denied the devil and its powers and lived in total self-giving during the temptation in the desert. You transformed the shame of the cross to become the sign of our Salvation. (SILENCE)
Our Lives: (L2)
We give up so easily. We become discouraged so quickly, especially when we don't see the results. We blame others when things don't succeed and don't see the need to spend time in the "desert" to do penance and to discern Your Will.
My Prayer: (C)
Lord, lead me to an openness beyond myself. To be your presence wherever I am, in my family, my work place, my neighbourhood and with my friends. Let me reflect your light wherever I am so that all people will recognise that you are our Lord and saviour.
Hymn.
Tenth Station
JESUS IS STRIPPED OF HIS GARMENTS
"There they are staring at me, gloating: they divide my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing" (Psalm 22: 17-18)
L1: We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
C: Because by Your Holy Cross, You have brought new life to the world.
Christ's Life: (L1)
You came poor into this world and leave it without anything to call your own. You told us not to be too concerned about our food, clothes and life and you proved this is possible only in a total gift of self in love. Your very last earthly possessions are being shared and divided. Those who are not around are not satisfied with the suffering and pain imposed on you but continue to divide your very last possessions. (SILENCE)
Our Lives: (L2)
In this increasingly materialistic and consumeristic world we are driven to love more and more things. Even the land and seas and nature itself given by the Lord of Creation for all people is being plundered by the greedy. We have laid waste the forests and polluted the rivers and the air itself all in the name of progress and development. We continue to consume excessively and waste without thinking of the future generations.
My Prayer: (C)
Dear Lord Jesus, I cannot remain silent when the possessions that you have given to the whole of humanity are kept for the few and in the process hurt our sisters and brothers. Help me keep you in view and not allow possessions to stifle and separate me from others. Help me and the members of my family live a simple lifestyle so that we can become stewards of your gifts meant for all people of the world. Lord, you alone are my light.
Hymn.
Eleventh Station
JESUS IS NAILED TO THE CROSS
'Today you will be with me in Paradise" (Luke 23:43)
L1: We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
C: Because by Your Holy Cross, You have brought new life to the world.
Christ's Life: (L1)
The executioners stretch your hand and wrist against the wood and press the nails until it pierces your flesh. You who never used harsh words, insult others or do no harm are subject to such an inhuman way. You did not deserve it but bore it with patience and calm. (SILENCE)
Our Lives: (L2)
Lord, the world around us is constantly nailing you to the cross but we continue to allow this to happen. Human beings are tortured and millions die through the violence of war and from forced poverty. You bore our pain in silence but we need His courage to speak the truth and stand up for justice. We need to cry out against the corruption and avarice that destroy the values of human life and cause the break up of families.
My Prayer: (C)
Lord, give me the courage and hope to see that the injustices and wrongs in society continue to still crucify your image in other people. May I have the trust and simplicity of the thief with whom you were crucified, and who placed his trust in you and then be ready for your kingdom.
Hymn.
Twelfth Station
JESUS IS RAISED UPON THE CROSS, AND DIES
"Father, into your hands, I commend my spirit" (Luke 23:46)
L1: We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
C: Because by Your Holy Cross, You have brought new life to the world.
Christ's Life: (L1)
To the end of your life you continue to pray to your Father by asking forgiveness for all your wrong doers and hand your mother over to be cared for. In spite of all the pain and humiliation you are still capable of continuing your obedience and submission to your Father's will. You give your life completely to the Father. (SILENCE)
Our Lives: (L2)
We are often so reluctant to live out the life of Jesus, through our lives, deeds and words, especially in difficult circumstances. We have yet to become one Church that is yet to reach out to those millions of people who have yet to experience the love of Jesus. The many who yearn for the "Living Waters" and the "Bread of Life" are yet far from our lives. Those who long to be consoled and hungry for justice need our self-giving as Church.
My Prayer: (C)
"Father into your hands I commend my spirit" was your prayer. Lord, let my prayer each day be "Lord, Your Kingdom come, Your will be done". Let me each day recall the need to be in communion with You through your Words of Life. Through this will I become your true disciple and your instrument of evangelization.
Hymn.
Thirteenth Station
JESUS IS TAKEN DOWN FROM THE CROSS
"I am the Lord's servant, let it be done as you have said" (Luke 1:38)
L1: We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
C: Because by Your Holy Cross, You have brought new life to the world.
Christ's Life: (L1)
Your sacrifice on the Cross is complete. Your mother still must cradle in her arms Your body. You too must part from those you love, and grief will come to you. Your death has brought new life only through sorrow and pain. As you walked through life with people, you showed us how to be together especially in moments of sorrow. (SILENCE)
Our Lives: (L2)
As we recognise the importance of accompanying each other as members of the family and as basic ecclesial communities, we experience sorrows and hurts. We need to learn to accept that we carry in our own bodies the marks of Jesus' crucified corpse. We are also aware of so many of our sisters and brothers throughout the world who are facing the reality of death by torture and persecution and there is no one to take down their bodies.
My Prayer: (C)
Lord, give me the courage and hope and teach me the cost of being your follower. To walk with sorrow and to continue to love and care so that I can continue your mission of saving and freeing this sin and darkness.
Hymn.
Fourteenth Station
JESUS IS LAID IN THE TOMB
"If we become united with Christ through a death like His, we will certainly be united with Him in His resurrection" (Roman 6:5)
L1: We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.
C: Because by Your Holy Cross, You have brought new life to the world.
Christ's Life: (L1)
As your mortal life ends another life begins for Mary and for Magdalene, for Peter and for John, and for you. Your work as man has been completed and you entrusted to the Church the task of being at the service of life. You told us that "Greater love has no man than this, that one lays down his life for his friends". (SILENCE)
Our Lives: (L2)
The world today in the face of numerous death dealing forces, requires the urgent response from the People of God. We need to reflect on the life and death of Jesus, the Way, the Truth and the Life. Love was His way of life. He gave himself completely. We need to work through our families and our participation in Church to live life to the fullest. We need to look to Jesus and His resurrection each day so that we continue to be His disciples.
My Prayer: (C)
Lord Jesus being nurtured by your Word and the Eucharist, allow me to reach out to those in need. Let the bread that I break together with others be the means to break from my selfishness and become the Bread of Life in the world.
Hymn.
Closing Prayer
Congragation:
Have mercy on us O Lord, in your kindness, through your compassion, you have removed all our sins through the suffering of Jesus. You have washed us clean from our guilt and enabled us to love truth in our hearts. With joy and gladness we cry out to you, Lord and ask you to open our hearts, to sing your praises and announce your goodness and truth before all the nations by serving one another.
Leader:
Give us the strength to submit our wills and our lives to Our Father in Heaven in the words that you taught us: Our Father in Heaven ...
Let us join Mary, our Mother to be our model in following Jesus. We will recite Hail Mary (3 times)
Glory be to the Father ...
Closing Hymn: Hosea
The wilderness will lead you
To your heart where I will speak
Integrity and justice
With tenderness you shall know
Refrain:
Long have I waited for your coming
Home to me and living deeply our new life.
- Pictures are taken from "Stations of the Cross" at the parish church compound.
- Scriptures are taken from "Way of the Cross", published by Peninsular Malaysia Lenten Campaign Committee National Office for Human Development
- "Way of the Cross", published by Peninsular Malaysia Lenten Campaign Committee National Office for Human Development.