Stations of the Cross
St. John the Beloved
McLean, Virginia
 

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The Sign of the Cross
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

First Station
Jesus is condemned to death

We Adore the O Christ, and we bless Thee.

Because by Thy holy cross you have redeemed the world.

Consider how Pilate condemned the innocent Jesus to death, and how my Redeemer submitted to this sentence, to free me from the sentence of everlasting death.

Second Station
Jesus is made to carry his cross

We Adore the O Christ, and we bless Thee.

Because by Thy holy cross you have redeemed the world.

Consider how Jesus took the cross upon His shoulders, which my many sins made so heavy.

Third Station
Jesus falls the first time

We Adore the O Christ, and we bless Thee.

Because by Thy holy cross you have redeemed the world.

Consider how Jesus, overcome by weariness and pain, fell to the ground under the weight of the cross.

Fourth Station
Jesus meets his blessed Mother

We Adore the O Christ, and we bless Thee.

Because by Thy holy cross you have redeemed the world.

Consider the anguish which filled the hearts of Jesus and Mary at this sorrowful meeting. It is my sin which caused the Son and the Mother this pain.

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Fifth Station
The cross is laid on Simon of Cyrene

We Adore the O Christ, and we bless Thee.

Because by Thy holy cross you have redeemed the world.

Consider how His enemies, seeing that he was no longer able to drag his cross, compelled Simon of Cyrene to carry it after him.

Sixth Station
Veronica wipes the face of Jesus

We Adore the O Christ, and we bless Thee.

Because by Thy holy cross you have redeemed the world.

Consider how this woman tried to lessen the sufferings of Jesus, and how he rewarded her by leaving the print of His sacred face on the towel she had in her hands.

Seventh Station
Jesus falls the second time

We Adore the O Christ, and we bless Thee.

Because by Thy holy cross you have redeemed the world.

Consider the sufferings Jesus endures in this second fall. I have been the cause of them, by my frequent relapses into sin.

Eighth Station
Jesus speaks to the women of Jerusalem

We Adore the O Christ, and we bless Thee.

Because by Thy holy cross you have redeemed the world.

Consider how Jesus exhorts these women to weep, not for Him, but for themselves; to teach me to weep more for my sins than for His sufferings.

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Ninth Station
Jesus falls the third time

We Adore the O Christ, and we bless Thee.

Because by Thy holy cross you have redeemed the world.

Consider how Jesus falls the third time, enduring excruciating pain, to atone for my obstinacy in continually committing new sins.

Tenth Station
Jesus is stripped and given gall to drink

We Adore the O Christ, and we bless Thee.

Because by Thy holy cross you have redeemed the world.

Consider the shame Jesus endured in being stripped of his garments, and the bitterness of the wine mixed with myrrh and gall, which they caused Him to drink. In this He atoned for my immodesty and my intemperance in eating and drinking.

Eleventh Station
Jesus is nailed to the cross

We Adore the O Christ, and we bless Thee.

Because by Thy holy cross you have redeemed the world.

Consider the dreadful suffering Jesus endured, when His enemies stretched His bleeding body and fastened it to the cross with nails through His sacred hands and feet.

Twelfth Station
Jesus dies on the cross

We Adore the O Christ, and we bless Thee.

Because by Thy holy cross you have redeemed the world.

Consider how Jesus, after three hours of agony, dies on the cross for my salvation.

 First-Class Relic
 Thorns from Christ's Crown of Thorns

 First-Class Relic
 Wood from The True Cross

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Thirteenth Station
Jesus is taken down from the cross

We Adore the O Christ, and we bless Thee.

Because by Thy holy cross you have redeemed the world.

Consider the grief of the Mother of God when she received in her arms the body of her divine son, all pale, covered with blood, and void of life.

Fourteenth Station
Jesus is laid in the tomb

We Adore the O Christ, and we bless Thee.

Because by Thy holy cross you have redeemed the world.

Consider how the most sacred body of Jesus was laid, with the greatest reverence, in the new grave prepared for it.

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