Mission Stations of the Cross

“We adore you, o Christ, and we praise you, because by your Holy Cross, you have redeemed the World.”

Opening Psalm (Ps. 86)

Turn your ear and give answer for I am poor and needy.
Preserve my life, o God, for I am faithful:
save the servant who trusts in you.

You are my God, have mercy on me,
for I cry to you all the day long.
Give joy to your servant; to you I lift up my soul.

O God, you are good and forgiving,
full of love to all who call;
give heed to my prayer and attend to the sound of my voice.

In time of distress I will call; surely you will reply.
Among the gods there is none like you,
nor works to compare with yours.

All nations shall come to adore and glorify your name,
for you are great and do marvelous deeds,
you who alone are God.

Prayer
Jesus, you fulfilled your Father's will by becoming like us and giving your life on the Cross. As we reflect upon the journey of our salvation, make us aware of the Crosses of people around the world who still long to experience true freedom. May we be ever faithful to the needs of the poor. Amen

1^st Station - Pilate condemns Jesus to Die, a Death on the Cross

Reflection
Jesus’ way of life puts him on a collision course with the powerful and mighty of his day. His "crime" is to take seriously the mission described in Isaiah "The Spirit of the Lord has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor... to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free..." Jesus calls both rich and poor to conversion of heart, and to build a world where all live as brothers and sisters in love and justice.

Prayer
Jesus, we stand with you before Pilate fearless of the world’s judgment, as we watch you embrace the heavy cross for love of us. Your life of love and commitment to the poor is the true standard for judging success. Help us accept our daily cross with trust and faith in you. Amen

2^nd Station - Jesus Accepts his Cross

Reflection
The Cross of Jesus is wisdom and power from God, a weapon entrusted to Missionaries sent to proclaim the Good News. The Cross of Jesus is the master book for all Christians on earth, in which we find truth, learn humility, dedication and love. The cross becomes the ultimate instrument of torture through the streets of Jerusalem. By doing so, Jesus encourages us to carry our daily cross, knowing that in the future, it will be a sign of glory.

Prayer
Lord Jesus, we watch you embrace the heavy cross for love of us. Help us name our personal cross today, be it suffering, aging, sickness, or separation. And help us alleviate the crosses of people as we struggle for justice alongside the poor. Amen

3^rd Station - Jesus Falls the First Time

Reflection
Jesus, weakened by all his suffering, stumbles and falls on the way to Golgotha. He fully tastes the frailty and poverty of the human condition. He shares the helplessness of those who come face-to-face with their own human limitations, for they are malnourished, overworked, underpaid, illiterate and abused. He struggles to rise again. He reassures us that he will be there when we fall under the weight of our cross.

Prayer
Exhausted from the agony in the garden, the scourging, the crowning with thorns, and the weight of the wood of the Cross, Lord Jesus, we learn from you. Help us embrace our human frailty, for it is God who saves and your love that help us overcome our failures. Amen

4^th Station - Jesus Meets his Mother

Reflection
What do you say to one another, when your eyes meet? Love shines in your eyes, and deep faith that God is present even through life’s struggles. And even though you want to run away from this heart-piercing moment, Mary, you’re fully present to Jesus. You walk in solidarity with him and with all the oppressed children. Mary, you are the model of the Christian call to be a life’s companion to those who struggle from sin, suffering or abuse.

Prayer
Jesus, in your mother Mary, you show us the importance of solidarity in God’s plan of salvation. Through the example of Mary we see clearly God’s face. Help us to see in Mary a reflection of your loving and tender compassion toward us. Amen

5^th Station - Simon helps Jesus carry the Cross

Reflection
Jesus is encouraged by the helping hand of another person. This reminds us of Jesus’ own words that care shown to other people, even strangers, is care shown to Christ. When we feed, host, or shelter another woman or man, we are doing the same for Christ. When we lift unjust burdens from others by defending them against prejudice, we are lifting the same burdens from Christ’s shoulders

Prayer
Jesus, in your life you walked with the lowly, seeking to free them from sin and sickness. You protected widows and the defenseless from the abuse of the powerful and greedy. Help us take the side of those must vulnerable, by sharing in their burdens. Amen.

6^th Station - Veronica Wipes the Face of Jesus

Reflection
She steps forward to gently press her veil to the bleeding face of Christ, the convicted criminal. She puts her whole life at the risk of dying. But Veronica did become true image of the peoples who are not intimidated in the face of abuse, prejudice, and suffering. She sees dignity even in the disfigured face of this condemned criminal. In the faces of the poor, the ugly, and the disfigured, Veronica sees the true image of God.

Prayer
Ever-loving God, we feel your love and understanding in the care, consolation and support we receive from one another. Through Veronica, help us see God’s face in those the world rejects. Give us, we ask You, the courage and dedication to suffer with those who are in need, the least of your people. Amen.

7^th Station - Jesus Falls the Second Time

Reflection
Crushed to the ground by the heavy wood of the cross, Jesus is dragged to continue towards his death. He is the sign of the many peoples who day in and day out are under the heavy weight of poverty and suffering, of unemployment and hunger. Poverty is not created by God, but by all of us because we don’t share enough of the resources God has given us. Through the cross, Jesus takes away our sins.

Prayer
Lord Jesus Christ, you shared in our weaknesses that we together create a new community of believers. May we all have the courage to change our lives, to live simply so that others may simply live, and that with your strength in our hearts the richness of your gifts may dwell in all. Amen.

8^th Station - Jesus Speaks to the Women of Jerusalem

Reflection
How courageous were the women throughout Jesus’ passion. And still, through the centuries, women show their courage in society and in the church, even in the midst of struggles of appreciation of their gifts. Jesus is sensitive to their plight, as he wants all people to reach their full potential as human beings created in God’s image and likeness. Jesus turns his great compassion to the welfare of others.

Prayer
Lord Jesus, you weep with those who weep... Help us to recognize the talents and contributions that often go unnoticed and un-rewarded. Deepen our faith, so that we may see you in our brothers and sisters bruised by our envy, and beaten down by injustice and greed. Amen.

9^th Station - Jesus Falls the Third Time

Reflection
We understand Jesus’ three-time plunge to the ground, for we know how hard it is to get up when things do not go well in life, or when sever challenges await us. Personal confrontations, resentments, fears, failures… a whole list of things that weigh heavy on us. Facedown on the ground, we remember that God’s Spirit is in us, and like Jesus, we choose to be faithful to the end.

Prayer
Jesus, you have not called us to be successful; you have called to be faithful. At those times when we feel most defeated and want to give up, Lord Jesus, strengthen us with your encouragement and help us always rise up and follow you in a spirit of true service. Amen.

10^th Station - Jesus is Stripped of his Garments

Reflection
Jesus stands naked, stripped of his clothing, of every shred of human dignity, like the peoples of today who are violated by torture, sexual abuse, exploitation, and irreverence. How sad to witness to the constant disposal of human beings for self-interest and pleasure, as if they are spare parts or plain objects. But Jesus teaches us from that Cross that his dignity does not depend on the quality of his clothing, but upon God. His power cannot be taken away.

Prayer
Lord Jesus, stripped of everything, you stood exposed to the jeers and contempt of the people whom you loved. You stand with all whose bodies and personal integrity have been abused and exploited. Clothe us with genuine love of others, that we might see them as temples of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

11^th Station - Jesus is Nailed to the Cross

Reflection
Jesus is now thrown down upon the cross, and his limbs are stretched and fasten with nails to the wood. In the midst of this cruel scene, Jesus’ greatest gift is forgiveness, for we at times do not know what we do. This cross, foolishness and scandal for those who do not believe, becomes triumph and sign of victory for those who follow Christ. If we die with Jesus, we also live with him. For ever.

Prayer
Lord Jesus, you have told us that we too must accept our crosses If we are to come to the resurrection with you. Accept us today, as we bring forgiveness and healing in the lives of the people around us. May we personally take selfless steps of true forgiveness. Amen.

12^th Station - Jesus Dies on the Cross

Reflection
Jesus shares the disappointment of many people who see their efforts and dreams collapse. He is even tempted to doubt God’s presence in his struggle.
But he dies the way he has lived: "Love your enemies, pray for your persecutors... do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you." In his death, Jesus has broken the hold of sin and death over us, and asks us to continue to free people from death, in his name. Greater love than this no one has, than to lay down one’s life for all.

Prayer
Jesus, make us instruments of the world’s healing. In each Eucharist you give us glimpses of the God-nourished society of love, unity and mutual healing that the whole world is meant to become. We continue your mission of freeing the human family from suffering and injustice that result from sin. Amen.

13^th Station - Jesus is taken down from the Cross

Reflection
Jesus’ lifeless body is taken down from the cross by his disciples Joseph and Nicodemus. Mary finds the strength to hold him for the last time in her arms. Here is a true reflection of God’s love. Not status, power, and wealth, but a whole life dedicated to healing people and sharing God’s Reign with all. How many mothers go through the same feelings when they bury their children because of war and killings, drugs and abuse, hunger and death penalty.

Prayer
Standing in awe before your broken and lifeless body, O Lord, we believe that your death on the Cross brought new life to humanity. Help us to give generously of ourselves in all that we do for you, that God’s will be achieved in our lives. Amen.

14^th Station - Jesus is Laid in the Tomb

Reflection
Jesus’ body is wrapped in a shroud and placed in a nearby tomb of a friend. But in three days God will raise him to new life and he will go before us into Galilee and every place where his mission is to flourish. We can embrace no grater act than to plunge into the mission of the risen Lord and be witnesses of his freeing presence in the world. "Release those bound unjustly, untie the bonds of slavery, set free the oppressed, break every yoke; share your bread with the hungry, cloth the naked, do not turn your back on your own."

Prayer
When all seemed lost, o Jesus, you empower us to follow your example and inspire us to follow in your mission. Help us to empty ourselves of self concerns that we might see your hand in our personal failures and your Word that brings humanity to live as one family, brothers and sisters in Jesus. Amen.

Closing Prayer - The Cross of Jesus

The Cross of Jesus reconciles humanity to you, God of all ages to come.
It binds in love all the children of Adam and Even, our parents.

Your Cross, Jesus, reminds us of your grace conquered at the price of your death.
By your cross, we are blessed with wisdom from on high.

We meditate on this important book, the Cross, chalice for Christ and all Christians,
foolishness and scandal to those who don’t believe, and triumph for all your beloved,
sun of justice for our hearts to love.

No other book brings us more energy, love for those who are in need,
challenge that push us onward as missionaries to everyone.

Power of God, made human, the least of all, divine cross,
triumph over us who feel your burden. If we die with Jesus, we also live with him. For ever. Amen.

Prayer Inspired by the Writings of Saint Guido M. Conforti
Stations of the Cross reworded from Catholic Update