Stations of the Cross
How familiar are you with “The Stations of the Cross”? For me, growing up in a church tradition that, by and large, was suspicious of
anything that was deemed too close to being Roman Catholic, I simply was unaware. I don’t recall ever hearing the term until I was an adult. But, while in seminary in Kansas City, I had occasion to go with a group one evening to walk through a Stations of the Cross experience at a United Methodist Church. I sensed then the power of reconnecting with the central story of Christian faith by walking with Jesus on the via Delarosa (“the way of suffering”). Several years later, I had the blessing of treading stone streets in Jerusalem in very close proximity to the actual route Jesus took on the way to the cross.
A brief history is in order. Stations of the Cross originated in medieval Christianity in Europe at a time when fewer people could go on pilgrimage to Jerusalem to relive Jesus’s journey to the cross. Originally, there were many more stations, but fourteen became the standard number by the 1700s. Protestant Christians began adopting the practice sometime in the 1800s. And in recent decades, the practice of walking (literally or figuratively) through the fourteen scenes has ballooned into a prominent spiritual discipline primarily during Lent and especially during Holy Week, with peak interest, fittingly, on Good Friday. If all of this still is new or strange for you, I offer my thoughts here as encouragement and invitation.
You are not less of a disciple of Jesus if you never experience the Stations of the Cross. However, I urge you to be open to how
God’s Spirit might work to enrich your faith through this practice. And we have a tremendous opportunity for Stations of the Cross in a singular setting—the lakeside shore on our church campus. This year, as you navigate the Stations of the Cross, your journey can be enhanced by audio accompaniment using your electronic device. (See video below.) You may recognize the voice for the devotional readings as that of our own Patricia Gesner!
So, I can’t help but wonder how the Lord will use these Stations to bless not only our congregation but also many of our neighbors in
and beyond Bartlesville. Help spread the word. Add this spiritual discipline to your own faith walk. And let’s…
Keep dreamin’ God’s dreams
Pastor Terry