Trinity Episcopal Stations of the Cross
Concerning the Service
The devotion known as the Way of the Cross (Via Crucis) or the Way of Sorrow (Via Dolorosa) is an adaptation to a local custom widely observed by pilgrims to Jerusalem consisting of prayers at a series of stations traditionally associated with our Lord’s passion and death.
Christian pilgrims have prayerfully contemplated the various events of Jesus’ journey to Golgotha since the third century and continue today as a form of personal and corporate devotion. This ancient Christian devotion connects us to the ongoing effort to understand human suffering, our own and others, as we search for new life and hope personally and as a faith community. The Way of the Cross leaves us draped in silent death as we lay Jesus in a borrowed grave – a death that encourages us to prayerfully consider what is essential and important about life and what it means to be truly alive. As spiritual pilgrims the Way of Cross reminds us that there can be no life-giving resurrection without a Good Friday.
The number of stations, which at first varied widely, finally became fixed at fourteen. Of these, eight are directly based on events recorded in the Gospels. The remaining six (numbers 3, 4, 6, 9, and 13) are based on inferences from the Gospel account or from pious legend.
An order of Service for Personal Prayer and Devotion
Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my thoughts. See if there is any wicked way in me and lead me in the way everlasting. (Psalm 139: 23-24)
The Way of the Cross
Holy Jesus, in the garden in the darkness of night you agonized over the Father’s will for you. So may we always seek God’s will and find the insight and strength to do it, empowered by your Good Spirit. And when we, like your disciples, are wearied and exhausted by the changes and chances of this mortal life, send us your angels to waken us to care and love and work. Amen.
Jesus, as we begin this journey with you, help us to see that for you it was a self-emptying journey of love. By walking with you now, may we be moved to follow you more closely, to accept the love that you have for us, and learn to love you and others as you have loved us. Amen.
O Holy and eternal Spirit, God of our salvation, assist us mercifully with your help that we may enter with joy upon the contemplation of those mighty acts whereby you have given us life and immortality, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Lord have mercy
Christ have mercy
Lord have mercy
Let us glory in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ:. In whom is our salvation, our life and our hope.
- Jesus is Condemned to Death
We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you. Because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world.
Reading
Now Jesus stood before the governor; and the governor asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” Jesus said, “You Say so.” But when he was accused by the chief priest and elders, he did not answer. Then Pilate said to him, “Do you hear how many accusations they make against you? But he gave them no answer, not even to a single charge, so that the governor was greatly amazed….So when Pilate saw that he could do nothing, but rather a riot was beginning, he took some water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this man’s blood; see to it yourselves.”….and after flogging Jesus, he handed him over to be crucified. (Matthew 27: 11-14, 24, 26b)
Reflection
Jesus, I see in your silence quiet peace and resolve, O Lord, help me deal with the unfairness of life without becoming critical of others. Help me to be sensitive to the pain and feelings of others. Give me the courage to do what is right without being swayed by the demands of others.
Silence
Almighty God, whose most dear Son went not up to joy but first he suffered pain, and entered not into glory before he was crucified: Mercifully grant that I, walking in the way of the cross, may find it none other than the way of life and peace; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord. Amen.
Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And blessed be his kingdom, now and forever.
- Jesus Takes up His Cross
We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you: Because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world.
Reading
Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the governor’s headquarters, and they gathered the whole cohort around him. They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him and twisted some thorns into a crown. They put it on his head. They put a reed in his right hand and knelt before him and mocked him, Saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” They spat on him and took the reed and struck him on the head. After mocking him, they stripped him of the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him. (Matthew 27: 27-31)
Carrying the cross by himself, he went out to what is called the place of the Skull, which in Hebrew is called Golgotha.
(John 19:17)
Reflection
O Lord in my weakness I’m driven to trust in you, and in such trust my weakness becomes your strength. Forgive my attitude of self-pity that makes me more repulsive than loving. I do not ask for crosses to bear but, when they come, give me strength to bear them as one who follows your example.
Silence
Almighty God, whose beloved Son willingly endured the agony and the shame of the cross for me redemption: Give me courage to take up my cross and follow him, who lives and reigns forever and ever. Amen.
Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And blessed be his kingdom, now and forever.
- Jesus Falls the First time
We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you: Because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world.
Reading
Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped; but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, and was born in human likeness. And being found in human form he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross. Therefore, God has highly exalted him, and bestowed on him the name which is above every name. Come, let us bow down, and bend the knee before the Lord our Maker, for he is the Lord our God.
Reflection
O Lord forgive me for living a life of pretense, for making my reality one of competition, an ever-present win-lose, a measuring stick by which I parade my importance and greatness before others. Deliver me from the temptation and desire merely to impress and manipulate others for my own sense of pride, appearance and success, and not in true service of God and others. Grant me the courage to empty myself of the obstacles and barriers that keep me from true obedience and humble service.
Silence
O God, you know me to be set in the midst of so many and great dangers, that by reason of the frailty of my nature I cannot always stand upright. Grant me such strength and protection as may support me in all dangers, and carry me through all temptations, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And blessed be his kingdom, now and forever.
- Jesus Meets His Afflicted Mother
We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you: Because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world.
Reading
To what can I liken you, to what can I compare you, O daughter of Jerusalem? What likeness can I use to comfort you, O virgin daughter of Zion? For vast as the Sea is your ruin. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. The Lord will be your everlasting light, and your days of mourning shall be ended.
Reflection
O Lord, comfort me with your presence when I encounter defining moments of life – moments of birth, death, humiliation, failure, and rejection. Awaken me to your love that nurtures life and well-being and a knowledge that without your love I can only die long before death takes me. Merciful Lord assist me to be truly alive.
Silence
O God, who willed that in the passion of your Son a sword of grief should pierce the soul of the Blessed Virgin Mary his mother: Mercifully grant that your Church, having shared with her in his passion, may be made worthy to share in the joys of his resurrection; who lives and reigns forever and ever. Amen.
Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And blessed be his kingdom, now and forever.
- The Cross is Laid on Simon of Cyrene
We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you: Because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world.
Reading
They compelled a passer-by, who was coming in from the country, to carry his cross; it was Simon of Cyrene, the father of Alexander and Rufus. (Mark 15: 21)
Reflection
O Lord forgive me for becoming preoccupied with myself and becoming deaf and blind to the grief and suffering of those around me. Forgive me for my indifference. Constantly remind me we cannot love you without loving others. Help me always to remember being a follower of yours means that I share in the burdens of others. Lord, show me someone who’s cross I may help carry.
Silence
Heavenly Father, whose blessed Son came not to be served but to serve: Bless all who, following in his steps, give themselves to the service of others; that with wisdom, patience, and courage, they may minister in his Name to the suffering, the friendless, and the needy; for the love of him who laid down his life for us, your Son our Savior Jesus Christ Amen.
Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And blessed be his kingdom, now and forever.
- A Women Wipes the Face of Jesus
We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you: Because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world.
Reading
We have seen him without beauty or majesty, with no looks to attract our eyes. He was despised and rejected by humanity; a person of sorrows and acquainted with grief and, as from one whom humanity hid their faces, he was despised, and we esteemed him not. His appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance, and his form beyond that of the children of humankind, but he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities. Upon him was the chastisement that made us whole, and with his stripes we are healed.
Reflection
O Lord deliver me from hiding my face from senseless unjustified acts of brutal violence that grieves your heart and denies your sacred image in humanity. Strengthen me to speak for justice and act in compassion, to sit with suffering and struggles until, at last, I see clearer the face of Jesus and know the hope of resurrection. Lord, heal me and transform me into your likeness.
Silence
O God, who before the passion of your only-begotten Son revealed his glory upon the mountain: Grant to us that we, beholding by faith the light of his countenance, may be strengthened to bear our cross, and to be changed into his likeness from glory to glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And blessed be his kingdom, now and forever.
- Jesus Falls a Second Time
We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you: Because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world.
Reading
Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows. All like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to their own way; and the Lord has laid on Jesus the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth. For the transgression of my people was he stricken.
Reflection
O Lord forgive me when I turn to my own self-interest excluding others and leading me away from your desire to heal and restore all people. Deliver me from the distractions that keep me from the undeniable call to wholeness, commitment and witness. Help me live the truth within that tells me to offer my bests gifts and to give those gifts in service to God’s purposes.
Silence
Almighty and ever living God, in your tender love for the human race you sent your Son our Savior Jesus Christ to take upon himself our nature, to suffer death upon the cross, giving us the example of his great humility. Mercifully grant that we may walk in the way of his suffering, and also share in his resurrection, who lives and reigns forever and ever. Amen.
Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And blessed be his kingdom, now and forever.
- Jesus Meets the Women of Jerusalem
We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you: Because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world.
Reading
A great number of people followed Jesus and among them were women who were beating their breasts and weeping for him. Jesus turned to them and said, “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me, but weep for yourselves and for your children. For the days are surely coming when they will say, ‘Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that never bore, and the breasts that never nursed.’ Then they will begin to say to the mountains, ‘Fall on us’; and to hill, ‘Cover us’ for if they do this when the wood is green, what will happen if it is dry?” (Luke 23: 27-31)
Reflection
O Lord forgive me of my unwillingness to repent and confess all before you. Help me go beyond the repentance mouthed in words of false piety, to sweep away the facades of who I try to be before others. Help me once again stand before God with a bare and open heart. Help me not just to repent in words, but to put that repentance into action in everything I am and do. O Lord give me the gift of tears for my failures, for my sins, for the pain I bring to others and for the strength to live the fruits of repentance.
Silence
Teach me, O Lord, to mourn the sins of which I am guilty and to repent and forsake them; that, by your pardoning grace the results of our cruelty, greed, pride and hatred may not be visited upon our children and our children’s children. Amen.
Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And blessed be his kingdom, now and forever.
- Jesus Falls a Third Time
We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you: Because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world.
Reading
I am the man who has seen affliction under the rod of his wrath; he has driven and brought me into darkness without any light. He has besieged me and enveloped me with bitterness and tribulation; he made me dwell in darkness like the dead long ago. Though I call and cry for help, he shuts out my prayer. He has made my teeth grind on gravel, and made me cower in ashes, “Remember, O Lord, my affliction and bitterness, the wormwood and the gall!”
Reflection
O Lord forgive me for making complacency and bitterness virtues of my failures when love needs repaired and truth needs proclamation. Assist me, O Lord, to accept the consequences of love and justice, whatever they may be with the understanding that quitting is not an option. Grant me your strength to bring forth new life from perseverance.
Silence
O God, by the passion of your blessed Son you made an instrument of shameful death to be for me the means of life: Grant me so to glory in the cross of Christ, that I may gladly suffer shame and loss for the sake of your Son our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And blessed be his kingdom, now and forever.
- Jesus Is Stripped of His Garments
We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you: Because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world.
Reading
When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they took his clothes and divided them into four parts, one for each soldier. They also took his tunic; now the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece from the top, so they said to one another, “Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it to see who will get it.” This was to fulfill what the scripture says, “They divided my clothes among themselves, and for my clothing they cast lots.” And that is what the soldiers did. (Johns 19: 23-25a)
Reflection
O Lord forgive me for wanting to take the path of glory and reward. Forgive me for my selfishness wanting to serve you in easy ways seeking the reward of others’ praise. Lord, teach me the humility of spirit that replaces self-centeredness with a sacrificial spirit. Make me vulnerable so I may follow your courageous example. Help me see those around me who are in need. Give me courage to lay aside the things I use to hide from their need and find ways to minister to others as you have shown me.
Silence
Lord God, whose blessed Son our Savior gave his body to be whipped and his face to be spit upon: Give me grace to accept joyfully the sufferings of the present time, confident of the glory that shall be revealed; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And blessed be his kingdom, now and forever.
- Jesus is Nailed to The Cross
We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you: Because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world.
Reading
One of the criminals who was hanged there kept deriding Jesus saying, “Are you not the Messiah? Save yourself and us.” But the other one rebuked him saying, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And indeed, have been condemned justly, for we are getting what we deserve for our deeds, but this man has done nothing wrong.” And then he said to Jesus, “Lord, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” Jesus replied, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” (Luke 23: 39-43)
Reflection
O Lord remind me of the deathly cost of sin. Forgive me of those things that are displeasing to you. Forgive me for not allowing you to deal with the darkness I harbor in the hidden recesses of my hearts. Forgive me for fooling myself into believing I’m more righteous than I am, that I’m better than others, and that I have no need to repent. Forgive me for those things I should have done but found excuses not to do. O Lord, make me better than I am, transform me into what I can be by your grace.
Silence
Holy God, I confess that I have ignored, scorned or tested you. But now I turn to you like a thief, seeking life that I do not deserve. I have not always loved you with my whole heart. I have not loved my neighbors as myself. I have not forgiven others as I have been forgiven. Spare me, Good Lord, and spare your people whom you have redeemed with your most precious blood. Amen.
Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And blessed be his kingdom, now and forever.
- Jesus Dies on the Cross
We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you: Because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world.
Reading
When it was noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. At three o’clock Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God why have you forsaken me?” When some of the bystanders heard it, they said, “Listen, he is calling for Elijah.” And some ran, filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on a stick, and gave it to him to drink, saying, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to take him down.” Then Jesus gave a loud cry and breathed his last. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. Now when the centurion, who stood facing him saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!” (Mark 15: 33-39)
Reflection
O Lord, I cannot comprehend the depth and breadth of your love. There are not enough words in all languages together to describe what your love means to me. May my love for you and others in some way reflect your love. Let this dark night become fertile soil for growth in your love and a help for my neighbors. May you use the way of the cross to teach me how to love you and to love others the way you have loved me. O Lord, I long for newness of life, for hope, for renewal, for life where there is now death. Out of darkness bring to me the light of dawn. O Lord have mercy on me.
Silence
Lord Jesus Christ, you stretched out your arms of love on the hard wood of the cross that everyone might come within the reach of your saving embrace; so clothe us in your Spirit that we, reaching forth our hands in love, may bring those who do not know you to the knowledge and love of you, to the honor of your Name and for the life of the world. Amen.
Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And blessed be his kingdom, now and forever.
- The Body of Jesus is Placed in the Arms of His Mother
We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you: Because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world.
Reading
All who pass by, behold and see if there is any sorrow like my sorrow. My eyes are spent with weeping; my soul is in tumult; my heart is poured out in grief because of the downfall of my people. “Do not call me Naomi (Which means Pleasant), call me Mara (which means Bitter); for Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me.”
Reflection
O Lord, my heart is broken open in sorrow. The futile effort to control life’s situations has come to loss and numbness has overtaken me. Father, everything I had imagined and hoped for seems thrown away – discarded, overlooked, ignored, forgotten – and I’ve been made to eat the dust of despair. O Lord mercifully assist me with your grace to let go and surrender life into your arms so I may begin anew.
Silence
Lord Jesus Christ, by your death you took away the sting of death: Grant to your servant so to follow in faith where you have led the way, that I may at length fall asleep peacefully in you and wake up in your likeness; for your tender mercies’ sake. Amen.
Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And blessed be his kingdom, now and forever.
- Jesus is Laid in the Tomb
We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you: Because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world.
Reading
Now there was a good and righteous man named Joseph who, though a member of the council, had not agreed to their plan and action. He came from the Jewish town of Arimathea, and he was waiting expectantly for the kingdom of God. This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then he took it down, wrapped it in linen cloth, and laid it in a rock-hewn tomb where no one had ever been laid. (Luke 23: 50-53)
Reflection
O Lord deliver me from the tomb enclosing me and from a stagnant heart trapping me in hopeless despair. In death make present the goodness of life and the hope of a renewed life and future. Empower me with the courage to complete the journey that brings true belonging and well-being. Lord, mercifully help me to live and grow out of the best of the past to the rest of the future.
Silence
O God, your only begotten Son died and was laid to rest in a borrowed tomb: Grant that we who have been buried with him in the waters of baptism may find our perfect rest in his eternal and glorious kingdom; where he lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen.
Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And blessed be his kingdom, now and forever.
The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.
Concluding Collect
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the living God, we pray you set your passion, cross, and death between your judgment and our souls, now and in the hour of our death. Give mercy and grace to the living; pardon and rest to the dead; to your holy Church peace and concord; and to us sinners everlasting life and glory; for with the Father and the Holy Spirit you live and reign, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Station artwork from Saint Augustine Minster Ohio, Russ Martin