TODAY'S CATECHISM
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WE BEGIN OUR CATECHISM IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER AND OF THE SON AND OF THE HOLY SPIRIT,
AMEN
TOPIC: STATIONS OF THE CROSS( Ways of the Cross)
=> INTRODUCTION/DEFINITIONS
=> BRIEF HISTORY
=> STATIONS OF THE CROSS
=> SIGNIFICANCE OF STATIONS OF THE CROSS
=> CONCLUSION
=> REFERENCE
INTRODUCTION/DEFINITIONS
The Stations of the Cross are a 14-step Catholic devotion that commemorates Jesus Christ's last day on Earth as a man. The 14 devotions, or stations, focus on specific events of His last day, beginning with His condemnation. The stations are commonly used as a mini pilgrimage as the individual moves from station to station. At each station, the individual recalls and meditates on a specific event from Christ's last day. Specific prayers are recited, then the individual moves to the next station until all 14 are complete.
The Stations of the Cross are commonly found in churches as a series of 14 small icons or images. They can also appear in church yards arranged along paths. The stations are most commonly prayed or observed during Lent on Wednesdays and Fridays, and especially on Good Friday, the day of the year upon which the events actually occurred.
BRIEF HISTORY
The devotional exercise of visiting and praying in front of each of the 14 stations and meditating on the Passion of Christ stems from the practice of early Christian pilgrims who visited the scenes of the events in Jerusalem and walked the traditional route from the supposed location of Pilate’s house to Calvary. Tradition holds that Mary, the mother of Jesus, set up stone markers at her home outside Jerusalem to prayerfully retrace the steps of her son’s Passion.
The number of stations originally observed in Jerusalem was considerably smaller than 14. In the early 16th century, Ways of the Cross were established in Europe, and the tradition of 14 stations probably derived from the best known of them, that at Leuven in 1505.
The Franciscans long popularized the practice, and in the 18th century they bowed to Western Christian devotional feeling and provided 14 stations in Jerusalem. The traditional stations have been recently supplemented with the Via Lucis (the Way of Light), in which the meditations focus on the resurrected Christ.
In monasteries they are often placed in the cloisters. The erection and use of the Stations did not become at all general before the end of the seventeenth century, but they are now to be found in almost every church. Formerly their number varied considerably in different places but fourteen are now prescribed by authority. They are as follows:
STATIONS OF THE CROSS
First Station
JESUS IS CONDEMNED TO DEATH
Second Station
JESUS RECEIVES THE CROSS
Third Station
JESUS FALLS THE FIRST TIME UNDER HIS CROSS
Fourth Station
JESUS IS MET BY HIS BLESSED MOTHER
Fifth Station
THE CROSS IS LAID UPON SIMON OF CYRENE
Sixth Station
VERONICA WIPES THE FACE OF JESUS
Seventh Station
JESUS FALLS THE SECOND TIME
Eight Station
THE WOMEN OF JERUSALEM MOURN FOR OUR LORD
Ninth Station
JESUS FALLS FOR THE THIRD TIME
Tenth Station
JESUS IS STRIPPED OF HIS GARMENTS
Eleventh Station
JESUS IS NAILED TO THE CROSS
Twelfth Station
JESUS DIES ON THE CROSS
Thirteenth Station
JESUS IS TAKEN DOWN FROM THE CROSS
Fourteenth Station
JESUS IS PLACED IN THE SEPULCHRE
The object of the Stations is to help the faithful to make in spirit, as it were, a pilgrimage to the chief scenes of Christ's sufferings and death, and this has become one of the most popular of Catholic devotions. It is carried out by passing from Station to Station, with certain prayers at each and devout meditation on the various incidents in turn. It is very usual, when the devotion is performed publicly, to sing a stanza of the "Stabat Mater" while passing from one Station to the next.
SIGNIFICANCE OF STATIONS OF THE CROSS
After the Passion and Death of Jesus Christ which was of course crowned with His Resurrection, the experience of this passion which has transformed into the Stations of the Cross has undergone different developments from pilgrimages to the Holy Land to reliving and re-witnessing Christ’s Passion and Death in hearts and minds of many Christians as well as in the communities of Christ’s faithful.
The Stations of the Cross helps Christians to discover and appreciate more and more the meaning of the suffering and death of Jesus Christ, and to unite their own earthly suffering with His; like St Paul puts it, “I want to know Christ--yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death” (Phil. 3:10).
The benefits of the Stations of the Cross therefore are:
+ Uniting one’s suffering and pain with the Suffering of Christ (cf. Rom 8:17; 2Cor 1:5)
+ Healing for by His wounds we are healed (cf. 1Pet 2:24; Is 53:5)
+ Penance through the shedding of His blood (cf. Heb 9:22; Eph 1:7)
+ A plenary indulgence is received.
What is plenary indulgence?
It Is a remission for the entire temporary punishment of a sin.
“If you suffer, it should not be as a murderer or thief or any other kind of criminal, or even as a meddler. However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name.” (1Pet 4:15-16)
For one to be granted plenary indulgence, the faithful will personally make a pious way of the Cross, be detached from sin and be in a state of grace.
CONCLUSION
The most important thing to remember is that the observance of the Stations of the Cross can be as personal as you like it to be. One of our common religious struggles is to realize that we are not alone. The Good News is that Jesus entered into our life's experience completely through his suffering and death and he fell into the hands of a Loving God, who raised him from death to life.
We have hope that suffering and death have no hold on us. We will all share eternal life with Jesus, if we can fall into the hands of the same Loving God. And, along the way, we are not alone, Jesus is with us. Jesus suffered, died and resurrected. Through the faithful observance of Jesus' passion we can also share in the salvation he promised.
So try the stations, and experience the consolation they offer. And return often, to be renewed in this intimate experience of Jesus' solidarity with all humanity in our way of the cross each day.
REFERENCE
=> The Holy Bible
=> Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC)
We have come to a conclusion on the topic STATIONS OF THE CROSS( Ways of the Cross)
Thanks for your participation, support and contributions. May the God in his infinite mercy continue to be bless and grant you more understanding of his words; in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen
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