The History of the Stations of the Cross

From the earliest of days, followers of Jesus told the story of his passion, death and resurrection. When pilgrims came to see Jerusalem, they were anxious to see the sites where Jesus was. These sites become important holy connections with Jesus. Eventually, following in the footsteps of the Lord, along the way of the cross, became a part of the pilgrimage visit. The stations, as we know them today, came about when it was no longer easy or even possible to visit the holy sites. In the 1500's, villages all over Europe started creating "replicas" of the way of the cross, with small shrines commemorating the places along the route in Jerusalem. Eventually, these shrines became the set of 14 stations we now know and were placed in almost every Catholic Church in the world.

The Christian loves to follow the Way of the Cross in the Saviour's footsteps.  The Stations, from the Praetorium to Golgotha and the tomb, trace the passion and death of Christ, who by His Holy Cross has redeemed the world.  To understand the mystery of Redemption and the salvific meaning of suffering, one ought to meditate upon the sufferings of our Lord, which he took upon Himself to save us from sin.  God is always with those who suffer.  His omnipotence is manifested precisely in the fact that He freely accepted suffering.  He could have chosen not to do so, but He did and we should be forever grateful.

What are the Stations of the Cross?

Called also the Via Crucis, Via Dolorosa or the Way of the Cross, the Stations of the Cross are an old devotion that have been used to instill contemplation of the Passion of Jesus Christ. The Franciscans of St. Francis of Assisi have been credited with bringing the Stations to popularity. To find out more of the Stations you can visit New Advent's page on the subject from the Catholic Encyclopedia:

Not all the Stations are expressly biblical. Although, Jesus' standing before Pilate, His crucifixion, death, and entombment are clearly referenced in the Evangiles. Others such as Jesus falling find no biblical statement and perhaps came about as human inference both on Our Lord's suffering and our daily struggles and failures. Still other Stations such as Simon of Cyrene carrying the cross and Jesus speaking to the women are found in some gospel accounts and not others. Jesus being stripped from his garments is an example of a station arising from deduction because the Evangiles mention Jesus' clothes being divided among the soldiers who crucified him but do not specifically mention how they got those clothes.

Does this lack of strict biblical reference weaken the devotion? To me, no, since this devotion achieves many great benefits by encouraging the contemplation of the mysteries of Christ's suffering and death; two mysteries that make possible redemption and ultimate unity with God. The devotion also reflects the power and sanctity of tradition. Even though tradition may be a point of contention with many, it should be noted that the chapter and verse demarkations of the Bible are themselves evidence of universally accepted tradition. To find out how the chapters and verses in the Bible came about check out this page

Chapters and Versus -- Late Comers. Although for reference purposes chapters and verses are noted in Catholic Bibles, the scripture readings in the Mass are of a whole section much as is done in synagogues today and as Jesus would have read when he was at worship. The Bible was not written chapter and verse. Scripture itself is a whole. To weigh one verse without meditating on the context and its relationship to the whole of revelation is, in short, factious to the meaning of scripture and possibly so to the unity of the faithful.

Finally, the Stations of the Cross are an exercise that will with practice and a reverent heart lead one to a deeper appreciation of that special day lived so long ago (but yet ever present) when God gave all so that we might know His love. Besides, anytime spent in contemplation of, meditation on, and praying to Our Lord is time well spent. I hope, if you share your time and read some of the meditations, that these works may bring you to more deeply appreciate He who is Love.