Stations of the Cross will be held at St. Joseph Catholic Church on Fridays in Lent at 7:00 PM.
The STATIONS OF THE CROSS are a fourteen-step Catholic devotion that commemorates Jesus Christ's last day on
earth as a man. The fourteen 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 fourteen are complete. If prayed as a group in a church, the priest or presider moves from station to station and the parishioners remain stationary in their pews. The Stations of the Cross are commonly found in churches as a series of fourteen small icons or images. They can also appear in church yards arranged along paths. The stations are most commonly prayed during Lent on Wednesdays and Fridays, and especially on Good Friday, the day of the year upon which the events actually occurred.
INDULGENCES
A Plenary Indulgence is grated to the faithful who make the pious exercise of the Way of the Cross.
Those who are impeded can gain the same indulgence if they spend at least one half an hour
in pious reading and meditation on the Passion and Death of our Lord Jesus Christ.
- Enchiridion Indulgentiarum, no. 63
PREPARATORY PRAYERS:
Kneeling before the altar, make an Act of Contrition, and form the intention of gaining the indulgences, whether for yourself or for the souls in purgatory.
ACT OF CONTRITION: O my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended Thee, and I detest all my sins because of Thy just punishments, but most of all because they offend Thee, my God, Who art all-good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve, with the help of Thy grace, to sin no more and to avoid the near occasions of sin. Amen.
Following the act of contrition say:
My Lord Jesus Christ, You have made this journey to die for me with unspeakable love; and I have so many times ungratefully abandoned You. But now I love You with all my heart; and, because I love You, I am sincerely sorry for ever having offended You. Pardon me, my God, and permit me to accompany You on this journey. You go to die for love of me; I want, my beloved Redeemer, to die for love of You. My Jesus, I will live and die always united to You.
Stabat mater dolorósa
juxta Crucem lacrimósa,
dum pendébat Fílius.
At the cross her station keeping
Stood the mournful Mother weeping
Close to Jesus to the last.
The First Station: PILATE CONDEMNS JESUS TO DIE
V. We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You. (Genuflect)
R. Because, by Your holy cross, You have redeemed the world.
Priest: Consider how Jesus Christ, after being scourged and crowned with thorns, was unjustly condemned by Pilate to die on the cross.
All say: My Adorable Jesus, it was not Pilate; no, it was my sins that condemned You to die. I beseech You, by the merits of this sorrowful journey, to assist my soul on its journey to eternity. I love You, beloved Jesus; I love You more than I love myself. With all my heart I repent of ever having offended You. Grant that I may love You always; and then do with me as You will.
Our Father…
Hail Mary...
Glory Be...
Cuius ánimam geméntem,
contristátam et doléntem
pertransívit gladius.
Through her heart, His sorrow sharing
All His bitter anguish bearing
Now at length the sword has passed.
The Second Station: JESUS ACCEPTS HIS CROSS
V. We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You. (Genuflect)
R. Because, by Your holy cross, You have redeemed the world.
Priest: Consider Jesus as He walked this road with the cross on His shoulders, thinking of us, and offering to His Father in our behalf, the death He was about to suffer.
All say: My most beloved Jesus, I embrace all the sufferings You have destined for me until death. I beg You, by all You suffered in carrying Your cross, to help me carry mine with Your perfect peace and resignation. I love You, Jesus, my love; I repent of ever having offended You. Never let me separate myself from You again. Grant that I may love You always; and then do with me as You will.
Our Father…
Hail Mary...
Glory Be...
O quam tristis et afflícta
fuit illa benedícta,
mater Unigéniti!
O, how sad and sore depressed
Was that Mother highly blessed
Of the sole Begotten One!
