Stations of the Cross

I went downtown to the Catholic cathedral today and did the "Stations of the Cross".

I don't think I had even heard of the Stations of the Cross until I went overseas. I recall seeing Stations of the Cross at the Basilica in Yamassoukro, Ivory Coast, and the term sounded odd to me - kind of like "feeding stations" you might find on a bike race, or battle stations.

In his book, "Monk Habits for everyday people: Benedictine spirituality for Protestants", Dennis Okholm points out that we Protestants have the idea that spiritual things are real only if they are spontaneous. He asks why we will practice various physical disciplines like flossing and exercise, if the doctor or dentist tells us to, but not spiritual ones?

Until very recently, I was in a similar place and had little place in my life for liturgy and prayers that were already written down, etc. I have been reading a book called "Common Prayer: a Liturgury for Ordinary Radicals" (Shane Claiborne) and have found it very helpful. Likewise, my time in N. Ireland last year gave me a taste for Celtic prayers.

So anyway, one day while cycling around downtown Kansas City, I saw a sign outside the beautiful Cathedral advertising the Stations of the Cross and was open to giving it a try.

The setting was beautiful - Good Friday at noon. A beautiful sanctuary with pretty impressive stained glass. The pews were maybe 2/3 filled with people of various ethnicity and ages and dress. I had the sudden realization that I was wearing my "Bob the Tomato" T-shirt and thought it was perhaps inappropriate, so I buttoned up my jacket.

There were two priests who advanced in a circle around the sanctuary, stopping at wooden panels representing the 14 stations of the cross.
At each one, the priest read a paragraph and then the congregation kneeled and read a paragraph in response.
There was a sort of stanza that went like this:

Priest: We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you.

Congregation: Because by your holy cross, you have redeemed the world.”

At the end of almost each station there was a part that read: "This is for me, so I express the feelings of my heart." I found this to be meaningful as it personalized Christ's action at that particular station for me, and then gave me time to respond in prayer. 

The Stations that we did are found online here. There are other versions that are perhaps better suited for protestants (see here), but I didn't have any troubles with the ones we did.

What struck me - and this should have not been a surprise really - was the big emphasis on Christ’s suffering: 

• his weakness, inability to even carry the cross alone. He understands my fatigue and defeats. In this he was “deprived of the satisfaction of carrying his burden alone”. He "enters the experience of all who must depend on others".(Stations 3 and 5)
• Jesus falls a second time: “I will never feel alone in my suffering or in my diminishment with this image of Jesus on the ground.”(7th station)\
• Jesus is stripped – the indignity of it, In this, Jesus shows the ultimate vulnerability of the defenseless. (10th station)
• Jesus experiences the pain and agony of the nails. Can there then be any pain or agony I would experience that he would not understand ?(11th station)
• The Tomb represents every tomb I stand before with fear, in defeat, struggling to believe it could ever be empty. (14th station)

I came away with the realization that the cross is not just about Jesus bearing our iniquities (which is so much the focus in Protestant circles), but also about Jesus enduring extreme suffering and pain and sorrow and weakness, and indignity and finally a cruel death and in so doing, identifying with us as we experience similar things and providing comfort to us as we walk through those things! Wow!

Looking at Isaiah 53, you certainly see all  of this. In verse 5, he is pierced for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities. The other side shows up in verse 3 where he takes our pain and bears our sorrows. The cross also brings healing (by his wounds we are healed). Our Western cultures are "guilt-based" so the first one speaks well to us, but for those from African and Asian "shame-based cultures", the fact that he was despised and held in low esteem (vs 3) speaks strongly to removing shame as well as guilt. 

Stand with me at Station 12, "at the foot of the cross, side by side with all humanity and behold our salvation."

Happy Good Friday and Happy Easter!