The Way of the Cross in Jerusalem

      Every Friday during Lent hundreds of pilgrims gather to retrace the last steps of Christ.This Friday about 15 of us joined the throng of people who would meander through the streets of the Old City of Jerusalem, reliving the path Christ took to his death. For over 500 years now, the Franciscan friars have been in charge of leading this procession. We arrived at Station 1 early to see just a handful of people who were beginning to gather. But it didn't take long before the plaza became full, full of people from literally all over the world. I saw Portuguese, Polish, Filipinos, Nigerians, Irish, Mexicans and even some Californians, and those were just some of the languages I heard or flags I saw. Also mixed in were men and women from the religious orders. The largest group by far were the Franciscans  in their brown habits, but I also saw many different women orders, such as Mother Teresa's order, the Missionaries of Charity in their distinctive white and blue habits. Then promptly at 3 pm the Stations of the Cross began, starting in the location where the Roman Governor Pontius Pilate condemned Christ to death. From there we made our way through the narrow and crowded streets of the Old City going station by station, praying and calling to mind the Passion of Our Lord. Recalling His falls, the forced help of Simon the Cyrene, the blows from the soldiers and the loving gaze of His Mother. 

      Eventually we made our way to the final stations which reside in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, an absolutely huge church built over the location where Christ was crucified and laid in the tomb. The whole procession was quite the experience, because most of the time I had no idea what was going on, the prayers were in Arabic and Latin for the most part, sometimes I wasn't sure which of the fourteen Stations we were at, and sometimes you would get separated from the group and would have to scramble just to get back into the procession. Besides the surface level confusion I was experiencing, it was beautiful and amazing to see so many people from every corner of the world coming together, united in their prayer and love for the God man who died for them. Strangers in a foreign land, but walking together in the same direction because of an event that happened 2,000 years ago. Every single one of us, carrying our own unique crosses but still full of hope because we know His death leads to our salvation. It was a powerful experience, one of the blessings of being in the Holy Land for an extended period. So, if you happen to find yourself at your local parish's Stations of the Cross next Friday, know that in the streets of Jerusalem hundreds of people will be in solidarity with you.