The Stations of the Cross is a devotion consisting of 14 different parts - called stations - of Christ's passion and death. The devotion holds many great rewards attached to it including a plenary indulgence.Indulgences are:
- A plenary indulgence every time the devotion is completed.
- An additional plenary indulgence if one receives Holy Communion on the day.
- Also an additional plenary indulgence if one performs the devotion ten times and receives Holy Communion within a month after so doing.
- A partial indulgence of ten years for every Station made if one was not able to finish the Stations.
The conditions for gaining them are:
- Walking from Station to Station when making the Way of the Cross privately; when making it publicly, it suffices for the priest with the altar boys to do so.
- Meditate at each Station on the sufferings of our Lord.
- These two conditions are essential. No oral prayers are prescribed; yet they are profitable.
In the Stations of the Cross we celebrate and remember how much our Savior loved us - to the very end. As we profess at Mass, His dying destroyed our death, and His Rising Again restored our life.
Before each station, pray "We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you [genuflect] because by your Holy Cross you have redeemed the world."
Advice from St. Alphonsus Liguori: "The pious exercise of the Way of the Cross represents the sorrowful journey that Jesus Christ made with the cross on His shoulders, to die on Calvary for the love of us. We should, therefore, practice this devotion with the greatest possible fervor, placing ourselves in spirit beside our Savior as He walked this sorrowful way, uniting our tears with His, and offering to Him both our compassion and our gratitude."
The Traditional Stations of the Cross:
- Jesus is Condemned to death
- Jesus carries the Cross
- Jesus falls the first time
- Jesus meets his Mother Mary
- Simon of Cyrene helps Jesus to carry the Cross
- Veronica wipes the face of Jesus
- Jesus falls the Second Time
- Jesus meets the Women of Jerusalem
- Jesus falls the third time
- Jesus is stripped of His garments
- Jesus is nailed to the Cross
- Jesus dies
- Jesus' body is taken down
- Jesus' body is placed in the tomb
A plenary indulgence* is granted to the faithful for making the Stations of the Cross under the normal conditions:
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*A plenary indulgence is the removal of all punishment due to sin. Even though you are forgiven in Confession, the punishment remains unless an indulgence is granted (Read more: Indulgences)
- one is free from all attachment from sin
- one receives the Sacraments of Penance and the Eucharist (I believe 7 days before or after)
- one prays for the intentions of the Pope
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8 comments:
Some common prayers whilst with a priest and faithful, are like you said:
(whilst genuflecting)P/ We adore thee O Christ and we praise thee.
C/Becuase by thy Holy cross thou hast redeemed the world.
And, whilst moving from station to station:
All: Holy Mother, pierce me thorugh, in my heart each wound renew, of my saviour crucified.
At my parish we remain in our pews, so we don't say the last prayer you mentioned.
Yes we do aswell Money, but the priest and faithful still say it. I forgot one other awell which we say before the Our father etc ..
"I love thee Jesus, my love above all things. And I repent with my whole heart of having offended thee. Never permit me to seperate myself from thee again, grant that I may love thee always, and then do with me what thou wilt"
This is one of my favourite things to say on Fridays.
Thanks for sharing this information...you are so well versed and knowledgeable.
My Priests, we have two, refuse to lead this devotion. They say that the laity should do it. I dissagree. Which is proper?
With a priest able to say the Stations, the priest should definitely lead them instead of a layperson.
Thank you for a quick response. Im curious where I can find something that gives the answer an "offical" flavor. Is it written that the Priest should lead the devotion?
At our parish, the priest does not lead the Stations of the Cross. He asks each church society to take a Friday and lead the service. He does not even attend. I would feel much better if he attended, at the very least. It would seem more official, somehow. I don't know if it is wrong to feel bad about this, but I do miss having a priest at these services.
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