Stations of the Cross Written by Fr. John Bollan

Responses Leader: We adore you O Christ and we bless you. All: Because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world. All: I love you Jesus, my love above all things; I repent with my whole heart for having offended you. Never permit me to separate myself from you again. Grant that I may love you always, and then do with me what you will.

Opening Prayer Lord Jesus, We walk this way with you each year and yet, with every step, you teach us something new - about us, about you. We may not move as we take this journey: but we ask that you move our hearts with deeper love for you and for all those you place on our road - that we might love you in them. Give us deep compassion for the little ones of the earth: you continue to suffer in them but we know you will also rise in them. Amen.

First Station: Jesus is condemned to death We pray for those whose voices have been silenced by injustice. As Pilate shows, the law can be used as a weapon against the weak. Jesus stands with those unjustly deprived of their liberty, of their land, of their future. We cry out with him to the Father of Justice: make us servants of your justice and truth!

Second Station: Jesus takes up his cross We pray for those who are heavily burdened The weight of our cross is only lightened by responding to Christ’s invitation to come to him: may our own Way of the Cross lead us to him.

Third Station: Jesus falls the first time We pray for those who fall, and those whom we cause to fall. Each fall of Jesus is a sign of human frailty but also a foretaste of his resurrection, when he will break the chains of death to bring us salvation. Arise and come to our help, Lord!

Fourth Station: Jesus meets his mother We pray for those whose only help is their family, and for those who lack even this. The road to Golgotha fulfils the words of Simeon in the temple. Mary must watch and pray over the suffering of her son. Be close to us, Blessed Mother, in our need: be the help of the hopeless!

Fifth Station: Simon of Cyrene helps Jesus We pray for those who come to the help of the poor and oppressed. Although it seems that Simon is just plucked from the crowd, it is the Father who is sending help to his Son. Those who help others are doing God’s work – and we too are called to play our part.

Sixth Station: Veronica wipes the face of Jesus We pray for those who help us recognise our true beauty and dignity. Veronica sees through the pain and torture to recognise and love the true face of the Saviour. She is rewarded with the icon of his suffering impressed upon the cloth of her charity. Every time we persevere in loving others we recall her gesture.

Seventh Station: Jesus falls the second time We pray for all those beset by fear. Fear can affect us all: the fear of loss, of failure, of death. Jesus has taken all these fears upon himself. He enters into them with us. We are never alone in the darkness of our fears.

Eighth Station: Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem We pray for the mothers of Colombia and all women who hope for a better life for their children. For the women of Jerusalem, the meeting with Jesus is a tearful moment. But amidst the tears of the present, we are called to look forward to the hope of the resurrection.

Ninth Station: Jesus falls the third time We pray for those who cannot trust in the rule of law. In Jesus we see the suffering of all those who are oppressed. Not even he who is Truth can withstand the wave of lies directed against him. But he will lift up the cause of righteousness on his Cross. In a world of broken promises, God is ever-faithful to his covenant.

Tenth Station: Jesus is stripped of his clothing We pray for those who are stripped of their rights and dignity. All that Jesus has is taken from him: even the clothes he is wearing. Every time the poor are stripped, this scene is replayed. When we work to restore the rights of the vulnerable, we hope to inherit the Kingdom of God.

Eleventh Station: Jesus is crucified We pray for those who feel they no longer have the strength to face the trials of life. The tree of the cross is lifted up. This fallen tree becomes the source of life to all who share in Christ’s sufferings. His weakness fills us with strength, especially in those moments when our struggles seem beyond our resources.

Twelfth Station: Jesus dies on the cross We pray for the dying. The dying of Jesus rewrites the story of death. When confronted with our own death, God is there. The Cross is refashioned into his crook and staff, signs of his loving closeness. In the valley of darkness, he is our Light.

Thirteenth Station: Jesus is placed in the arms of his mother We pray for all bereaved mothers The scene at the foot of the cross revisits the scene at Bethlehem, but here there is no angel song, no gifts, no star – only the sound of weeping. But this, too, is the Mass of Christ: as Mary receives the body of her Son, her communion with him, and us, is complete.

Fourteenth Station: Jesus is laid in the tomb We pray for all those preparing for Easter. What looks like an ending is, in fact, a beginning. The death of Jesus brings a new life for us. As St. Paul says “when we were baptised we went into the tomb with him and joined him in death” (Romans 6: 4): so too we believe that through his death we share in his risen life.

Concluding Prayer God our Father, your Son suffered, died and was buried for us. In our moments of darkness, sorrow and suffering, shine in our hearts a ray of Easter light. Make us witnesses of the Resurrection, servants of justice, worthy of our anointing as your children. Through Christ our Lord. Amen

Photographs by Paul Smith, Sean Sprague and SCIAF staff. Scottish Catholic International Aid Fund SCIAF is the official aid and development charity of the Catholic Church in Scotland. Registered Scottish Charity No: SC Company No: SC Tel: SCIAF, 19 Park Circus, Glasgow, G3 6BE