Way of the Cross
meditations adapted from Heavenwards by Fr. Joseph Kentenich
Introductory Prayer
Father, at the side of our Mother, let me accompany the Savior of the world and see in his struggle of life and death the powers standing behind all world events. With his Bride, the Great Sign, help me extend my weak hands to him as his instrument. He is the Lord whom you have commissioned in love to pass judgment on Satan.
I stand between the two great powers which oppose each other in eternal battle. In complete freedom, I renew my decision for Christ now and forever.
I ask you, Thrice Admirable Lady, to let me look deeply into our Savior's heart and in the midst of an ocean of brimming hate to let me stand at his side with the warmth of your love. Amen.
FIRST STATION - Jesus is condemned to death
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you, (genuflect)
because by your Holy Cross, you have redeemed the world. (rise)
With your Bride who bears this suffering with you, let me renounce all self-will. At the Father's word, I am joyfully ready to give up everything, even honor, and justice.
SECOND STATION - Jesus accepts his heavy cross
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you, (genuflect)
because by your Holy Cross, you have redeemed the world. (rise)
May I always joyfully carry the splinter of the cross which the Father sends me through the circumstances of my life, that my love of the cross may prove to be genuine and what I am and do may give the Father childlike praise.
THIRD STATION - Jesus falls the first time under the cross
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you, (genuflect)
because by your Holy Cross, you have redeemed the world. (rise)
When nature's guilt and weight oppress me, and failure and the burden of being a shepherd bow me down, then let me follow in your footsteps, Lord, as a beacon of hope for the weakness of our nature.
FOURTH STATION - Jesus meets his holy Mother
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you, (genuflect)
because by your Holy Cross, you have redeemed the world. (rise)
In unspeakably overflowing kindness you have given us humanity's most noble blossom. Let us cherish our Blessed Mother in the shrine of our hearts and courageously carry her into the world.
FIFTH STATION - Simon of Cyrene helps Jesus carry the cross
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you, (genuflect)
because by your Holy Cross, you have redeemed the world. (rise)
I thank you that I may daily give you my shoulders for the cross which bears all life. In this way mold me into your image, that in childlike spirit I may always fulfill the Father's wish.
SIXTH STATION - Veronica offers Jesus a cloth
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you, (genuflect)
because by your Holy Cross, you have redeemed the world. (rise)
I thank you that other Veronicas may keep watch in our world. Never let them die out of our ranks and may we always be their valiant defenders.
SEVENTH STATION - Jesus falls the second time under the cross
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you, (genuflect)
because by your Holy Cross, you have redeemed the world. (rise)
Lord, at the plea of your Bride, do not allow your cross to fall but lift it up again and let it shine from heaven. I want to carry it with you into the world until our nation pays it homage once more.
EIGHTH STATION - Jesus meets the weeping women
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you, (genuflect)
because by your Holy Cross, you have redeemed the world. (rise)
Let me offer your blood to the Father. May he consider the sorrows of our Mother and accept me as his sacrifice of atonement that he might relent from the severity of his justice.
NINTH STATION - Jesus falls the third time under the cross
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you, (genuflect)
because by your Holy Cross, you have redeemed the world. (rise)
Destroy the secret reservations which nest in the hidden corners of our hearts and are to blame that our outward efforts lack the fruitfulness God desires.
TENTH STATION - Jesus is stripped of his garments
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you, (genuflect)
because by your Holy Cross, you have redeemed the world. (rise)
In you let me always take my bearings from the Father and help me relinquish earthly shelteredness so that in holy and undivided unity I may travel homeward and look upon the hands and eyes of my Mother.
ELEVENTH STATION - Jesus is nailed to the cross
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you, (genuflect)
because by your Holy Cross, you have redeemed the world. (rise)
Help me to always make the free decision to let my love be guided by obedience alone. Then the Father's eternal plan of love can be fulfilled in my life.
TWELFTH STATION - Jesus dies on the cross
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you, (genuflect)
because by your Holy Cross, you have redeemed the world. (rise)
As often as I may lovingly contemplate your cross, let me trust no longer in money and possessions so that I can give myself with heart and mind, carefree and completely, to you and to my Mother.
THIRTEENTH STATION - Jesus is placed in the arms of his Mother
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you, (genuflect)
because by your Holy Cross, you have redeemed the world. (rise)
May I always remain a faithful child of this Mother, deeply inscribing her name into all hearts. Then the sorrows that afflict the nations will awaken a jubilant and resounding hymn of redemption.
FOURTEENTH STATION - Jesus is laid in the tomb
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you, (genuflect)
because by your Holy Cross, you have redeemed the world. (rise)
In sorrow and persecution teach me to believe that nothing can rob you of the crown of victory. Use me as your chosen instrument to gloriously increase the holy ranks of the Church.
Concluding Prayer
O Holy Cross, I fall before you and sing to you ardent hymns of thanks and jubilation: On you, our Lord completed the work which made us children of God. I want to plant you deeply in my joyous heart and constantly give you all my love; my life's hope is built on you, my crucified Lord, and on your Bride. Let me proclaim you both to those around me, daring my life's battle for you each day. Then your kingdom will be victorious everywhere and extend its boundaries to the ends of the universe.
Let me present the cross and the picture of Mary to the nations as the sign of redemption so that the two who stand as one in the Father's plan of love may never be divided. May I always be your loyal instrument, inscribing your names, together, into human hearts, that Satan's realm may truly be destroyed and in the Holy Spirit the Father's glory be increased. Amen.
Please join us in praying the Stations of the Cross during the Good Friday Pilgrimage, a 9-mile walk in solemn remembrance of our Lord's sacrifice.
Schedule for Good Friday
9:30am: Gather at the steps of St Mary's Cathedral in downtown Austin.
10:00am: Send-off blessing and depart for the Shrine. The group will pass through the streets of downtown Austin, and feature stops for meditation along the way for reenactments of the Way of the Cross by various University students in character.
3:00 - 3:30pm: Arrival at the Shine. Final stations will be at the Shrine.
4:00pm: The pilgrimage will conclude with the Good Friday liturgy.