Stations of the Cross

This Order for the Stations of the Cross was first compiled by Fr. W. T. St. John Brown, now departed, one of the pioneers in the return of Anglicans to full Catholic communion. The prayers and readings in these Stations reflect much from our Anglican patrimony.

PREPARATION – Jesus is betrayed

In the Name + of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen

THE READING: (St. Mark 14:26, 32, 45; St. Luke 22:41-42; St. John 18:12-13)

They went out into the Mount of Olives.  And they came to a place which was named Gethsemane.  And Jesus was withdrawn from the disciples about a stone's cast, and kneeled down, and prayed, saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine be done...  As soon as Judas was come, he goeth straightway to Jesus, and saith, Master, Master: and kissed him.  Then the band and the captain and officers of the Jews took Jesus, and bound him, and led him away.

Let us pray.  Assist us mercifully with thy help, O Lord God of our salvation, that we may enter with joy upon the meditation of those mighty acts, whereby thou hast given unto us life and immortality; through Jesus Christ our Lord (who liveth and reigneth with thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end).  Amen.

V.  Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name; Thy kingdom come, thy Will be done, on earth as it is in heaven:

R.  Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.

V.   Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus:

R.   Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now, and at the hour of our death. Amen.

V.  Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost:

R.  As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

V.  Have mercy upon us, O Lord.

R.  Have mercy upon us.

V.  May the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.

R.  Amen.

Sing my tongue the glorious battle

Sing the winning of the fray:

Now above the cross, the trophy,

Sound the high triumphal lay:

Tell how Christ, the world's Redeemer,

As a Victim won the day.

The First Station - Jesus is Condemned to Death

V. We adore thee, O Christ, and we bless thee: (genuflect)

R. Because by thy holy Cross thou hast redeemed the world.

THE READING: (St. Mark 14:61, 64)

The high priest asked him, and said unto him, Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?  And Jesus said, I am...  And then all condemned him to be guilty of death.

V.  Oh my people, what have I done unto thee, or wherein have I wearied thee?  Testify against me.

R.  Holy and Immortal, have mercy upon us.

Let us pray: Almighty God, whose most dear Son went not up to joy, but first he suffered pain, and entered not into glory before he was crucified; Mercifully grant that we, walking the Way of the Cross, may find it none other than the way of life and peace; through the same thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord (who liveth and reigneth with thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end).  Amen.

V.  O Savior of the world, who by thy Cross and Precious Blood hast redeemed us:

R.  Save us and help us, we humbly beseech thee, O Lord.

Faithful Cross! above all other,

One and only noble tree!

None in foliage, none in blossom

None in fruit thy peer may be:

Sweetest wood, and sweetest iron!

Sweetest weight is hung on thee.

The Second Station - Jesus Receives the Cross

V. We adore thee, O Christ, and we bless thee: (genuflect)

R. Because by thy holy Cross thou hast redeemed the world.

THE READING: (St. John 19:14, 17)

Pilate saith unto the Jews, Behold your King!  But they cried out, Away with him, away with him, crucify him.  Pilate saith unto them, Shall I crucify your King?  The chief priest answered, We have no king but Caesar.  Then delivered he him therefore unto them to be crucified.  And they took Jesus and led him away.  And he bearing his cross went forth...

V.  Because I brought thee forth from the land of Egypt, thou hast prepared a cross for thy Savior.

R.  Holy and Immortal, have mercy upon us.

Let us pray.  O God, who by the passion of thy blessed Son didst make an instrument of shameful death to be unto us the means of life: Grant us to glory in the cross of Christ, that we may gladly suffer shame and loss for the sake of thy Son our Savior Jesus Christ  (who liveth and reigneth with thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end).  Amen.

V.  O Savior of the world, who by thy Cross and Precious Blood hast redeemed us:

R.  Save us and help us, we humbly beseech thee, O Lord.

Sing my tongue the glorious battle

Sing the winning of the fray:

Now above the cross, the trophy,

Sound the high triumphal lay:

Tell how Christ, the world's Redeemer,

As a Victim won the day.

The Third Station - Jesus Falls the First Time

V. We adore thee, O Christ, and we bless thee: (genuflect)

R. Because by thy holy Cross thou hast redeemed the world.

THE READING: (St. John 15:18-20)

Jesus said to his disciples: If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.  If ye were of the world, the world would love his own; but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hated you.  Remember the word that I said unto you:  The servant is not greater than his lord.  If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you.

V.  Because I led thee through the desert forty years, and fed thee with manna, and brought thee into a land exceeding good: thou hast prepared a cross for thy Savior.

R.  Holy and Immortal, have mercy upon us.

Let us pray.  Almighty God, who hast given thy Son to be unto us both a sacrifice for sin and also an example of godly life: Give us grace that we may always most thankfully receive that inestimable benefit, and also daily endeavor ourselves to follow the blessed steps of his most holy life; through the same thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord (who liveth and reigneth with thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end).  Amen.

V.  O Savior of the world, who by thy Cross and Precious Blood hast redeemed us:

R.  Save us and help us, we humbly beseech thee, O Lord.

God in pity saw man fallen,

Shamed and sunk in misery,

When he fell on death by tasting

 Fruit of the forbidden tree:

That another Tree was chosen

Which the world from death would free.

The Fourth Station - Jesus Meets His Blessed Mother

V. We adore thee, O Christ, and we bless thee: (genuflect)

R. Because by thy holy Cross thou hast redeemed the world.

THE READING: (St. John 19:25-27)

Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother, and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene.  When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son!  Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother!  And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home.

V.  What more could I have done unto thee that I have not done?  I indeed did plant thee, O my vineyard, with exceeding fair fruit: and thou art become very bitter unto me.

R.  Holy and Immortal, have mercy upon us.

Let us pray.  O God, the King of Saints, we praise and magnify thy holy Name for all thy servants who have finished their course in thy faith and fear; for the Blessed Virgin Mary; for the holy patriarchs, prophets, apostles, and martyrs; and for all thy other righteous servants, known to us and unknown; and we beseech thee that, encouraged by their examples, aided by their prayers, and strengthened by their fellowship, we also may be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light; through the merits of thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord (who liveth and reigneth with thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end).  Amen.

V.  O Savior of the world, who by thy Cross and Precious Blood hast redeemed us:

R.  Save us and help us, we humbly beseech thee, O Lord.

Faithful Cross! above all other,

One and only noble tree!

None in foliage, none in blossom

None in fruit thy peer may be:

Sweetest wood, and sweetest iron!

Sweetest weight is hung on thee.

The Fifth Station - The Cross is Laid Upon Simon of Cyrene

V. We adore thee, O Christ, and we bless thee: (genuflect)

R. Because by thy holy Cross thou hast redeemed the world.

THE READING: (St. Mark 15:16, 20-22)

The soldiers...led him out to crucify him.  And they compel one Simon, a Cyrenian, who passed by, coming out of the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to bear his cross.  And they bring him unto a place Golgotha, which is, being interpreted, The place of the skull.

V.  I did scourge Egypt with her first-born for thy sake, and thou hast scourged me and delivered me up.

R.  Holy and Immortal, have mercy upon us.

Let us pray.  Almighty God, whose beloved Son willingly endured the agony and shame of the cross for our redemption; Give us courage, we beseech thee, to take up our cross and follow him, even Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord (who liveth and reigneth with thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end).  Amen.

V.  O Savior of the world, who by thy Cross and Precious Blood hast redeemed us:

R.  Save us and help us, we humbly beseech thee, O Lord.

Thus the scheme of our salvation

Was of old in order laid,

That the manifold deceiver's

Art by Art might be outweighed;

And the lure the foe put forward

Into means of healing made.

The Sixth Station - Veronica Wipes the Face of Jesus

V. We adore thee, O Christ, and we bless thee: (genuflect)

R. Because by thy holy Cross thou hast redeemed the world.

THE READING: (St. Matthew 24:8, 9, 30, 40-41)

Jesus said unto his disciples, All these are the beginning of sorrows, Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted and shall kill you; and ye shall be hated of all nations for my Name's sake.  And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven... and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.  Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.  Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left.

V.  I led thee forth out of Egypt, drowning Pharoah in the Read Sea, and thou hast delivered me up to the chief priests.

R.  Holy and Immortal, have mercy upon us.

Let us pray.  O God, whose days are without end, and whose mercies cannot be numbered; Make us, we beseech thee, deeply sensible of the shortness and uncertainty of human life; and let thy Holy Spirit lead us in holiness and righteousness all our days: that, when we shall have served thee in our generation, we may be gathered unto our fathers, having the testimony of a good conscience; in the communion of the Catholic Church; in the confidence of a certain faith; in the comfort of a reasonable, religious and holy hope; in favor with thee our God, and in perfect charity with the world; all of which we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord (who liveth and reigneth with thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end).  Amen.

V.  O Savior of the world, who by thy Cross and Precious Blood hast redeemed us:

R.  Save us and help us, we humbly beseech thee, O Lord.

Therefore when th' appointed fullness

Of the holy time was come,

He was sent, who maketh all things,

Forth from God's eternal home;

Thus he came to earth, incarnate,

Offspring of the Virgin's womb.

The Seventh Station - Jesus Falls the Second Time

V. We adore thee, O Christ, and we bless thee: (genuflect)

R. Because by thy holy Cross thou hast redeemed the world.

THE READING: (Isaiah 53:3, 5-6)

He is despised and rejected of men: a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.  But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: and with his stripes we are healed.  All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way: and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.

V.  I did open the sea before thee: and thou hast opened my side with a spear.

R.  Holy and Immortal, have mercy upon us.

Let us pray.  O Lord Jesus Christ, who by thy death didst take away the sting of death: Grant unto us thy servants so to follow in faith where thou hast led the way, that we may at length fall asleep peacefully in thee, and awake up after thy likeness; for thy tender mercies' sake (who livest and reignest with the Father, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end).  Amen.

V.  O Savior of the world, who by thy Cross and Precious Blood hast redeemed us:

R.  Save us and help us, we humbly beseech thee, O Lord.

Faithful Cross! above all other,

One and only noble tree!

None in foliage, none in blossom

None in fruit thy peer may be:

Sweetest wood, and sweetest iron!

Sweetest weight is hung on thee.

The Eighth Station - Jesus Greets the Holy Women

V. We adore thee, O Christ, and we bless thee: (genuflect)

R. Because by thy holy Cross thou hast redeemed the world.

THE READING: (St. Luke 23:27-28, 31)

There followed him a great company of people, and of women which bewailed and lamented him.  But Jesus, turning unto them said, Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for me, but weep for yourselves and for your children.  For if they do these things in a green tree, what shall be done in the dry?

V.  I did go before thee in the pillar of cloud, and thou hast led me unto the judgment hall of Pilate.

R.  Holy and Immortal, have mercy upon us.

Let us pray.  Almighty and everlasting God, who hatest nothing that thou hast made, and dost forgive the sins of all those who are penitent; Create and make in us new and contrite hearts, that we, worthily lamenting our sins and acknowledging our wretchedness, may obtain of thee, the God of all mercy, perfect remission and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ our Lord (who liveth and reigneth with thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end).  Amen.

V.  O Savior of the world, who by thy Cross and Precious Blood hast redeemed us:

R.  Save us and help us, we humbly beseech thee, O Lord.

Thirty years he dwelt among us,

His appointed time fulfilled;

Born for this he met his passion,

This the Savior freely willed:

On the cross the Lamb was lifted,

Where his Precious Blood was spilled.

The Ninth Station - Jesus Falls a Third Time

V. We adore thee, O Christ, and we bless thee: (genuflect)

R. Because by thy holy Cross thou hast redeemed the world.

THE READING: (Hebrews 10:10, 19-23)

We are sanctified through the offering of the Body of Jesus Christ once for all.  Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the Blood of Jesus, by a new and living way... that is to say, his Flesh; and having an high priest over the House of God; let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.  Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering.

V.  I did feed thee with manna in the desert, and thou hast stricken me with blows and scourges.

R.  Holy and Immortal, have mercy upon us.

Let us pray.  O Lord Jesus Christ, who in a wonderful Sacrament hast left unto us a memorial of thy precious death and passion; Grant us so to venerate the sacred mysteries of thy Body and Blood, that we may ever perceive within ourselves the fruits of thy redemption  (who livest and reignest with the Father, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end).  Amen.

V.  O Savior of the world, who by thy Cross and Precious Blood hast redeemed us:

R.  Save us and help us, we humbly beseech thee, O Lord.

He endured the nails, the spitting,

Vinegar, and spear, and reed;

From that holy Body broken

Blood and water forth proceed:

Earth and stars and sky and ocean

By that flood from stain are freed.

The Tenth Station - Jesus is Stripped of His Raiment

V. We adore thee, O Christ, and we bless thee: (genuflect)

R. Because by thy holy Cross thou hast redeemed the world.

THE READING: (Hebrews 10:10, 19-23)

They gave Jesus vinegar to drink mingled with gall; and when he had tasted thereof, he would not drink.  And they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots.

V.  I did give thee to drink the water of life from the rock: and thou hast given me to drink but gall and vinegar.

R.  Holy and Immortal, have mercy upon us.

Let us pray.  O Lord God, whose blessed Son our Saviour gave his back to the smiters and hid not his face from shame; Grant us grace to take joyfully the sufferings of the present time, in full assurance of the glory that shall be revealed; through the same thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord,  (who liveth and reigneth with thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end).  Amen.

V.  O Savior of the world, who by thy Cross and Precious Blood hast redeemed us:

R.  Save us and help us, we humbly beseech thee, O Lord.

Faithful Cross! above all other,

One and only noble tree!

None in foliage, none in blossom

None in fruit thy peer may be:

Sweetest wood, and sweetest iron!

Sweetest weight is hung on thee.

The Eleventh Station - Jesus is Nailed to the Cross

V. We adore thee, O Christ, and we bless thee: (genuflect)

R. Because by thy holy Cross thou hast redeemed the world.

THE READING: (St. Luke 23:33-34; St. John 19:19)

When they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified him, and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and the other on the left.  Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do...  And Pilate wrote a title, and put it on the cross.  And the writing was, JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS.

V.  I did smite the kings of the Canaanites for thy sake, and thou hast smitten my head with a reed.

R.  Holy and Immortal, have mercy upon us.

Let us pray.  Almighty God, whose Son our Savior Jesus Christ was lifted high upon the Cross, that he might draw the whole world unto himself; Mercifully grant that we, who glory in the mystery of our redemption, may have grace to take up our cross and follow him (who liveth and reigneth with thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end).  Amen.

V.  O Savior of the world, who by thy Cross and Precious Blood hast redeemed us:

R.  Save us and help us, we humbly beseech thee, O Lord.

Bend thy boughs, O tree of glory!

Thy relaxing sinews bend;

For a while the ancient rigor

That thy birth bestowed, suspend;

And the King of heavenly beauty

On thy bosom gently tend!

                               The Twelfth Station - Jesus Dies on the Cross

V. We adore thee, O Christ, and we bless thee: (genuflect)

R. Because by thy holy Cross thou hast redeemed the world.

THE READING: (St. Matthew 27:45-46; St. John 19:28, 30)

Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour.  And about the ninth hour, Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.  (kneel)

V.  I did give thee a royal scepter, and thou hast given unto my head a crown of thorns.

R.  Holy and Immortal, have mercy upon us.

Let us pray.  Almighty God, we beseech thee graciously to behold this thy family, for which our Lord Jesus  Christ was contented to be betrayed, and given up into the hands of wicked men, and to suffer death upon the cross (who now liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end).  Amen.

V.  O Savior of the world, who by thy Cross and Precious Blood hast redeemed us:

R.  Save us and help us, we humbly beseech thee, O Lord.  (rise)

Thou alone wast counted worthy

This world's Ransom to uphold,

For a shipwrecked race preparing

Harbor, like the Ark of old,

With the Sacred Blood anointed

From the smitten Lamb that rolled.

 The Thirteenth Station - Jesus is Taken Down From the Cross

V. We adore thee, O Christ, and we bless thee: (genuflect)

R. Because by thy holy Cross thou hast redeemed the world.

THE READING: (St. John 19:33-34, 38)

When the soldiers came to Jesus, and saw that he was dead already, they brake not his legs: but one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water.  After this Joseph of Arimathaea, being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews, besought Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus: and Pilate gave him leave.  He came therefore, and took the body of Jesus.

V.  I did raise thee on high with great powers, and thou hast hanged me on the gibbet of the cross.

R.  Holy and Immortal, have mercy upon us.

Let us pray.  Almighty and everlasting God, who of they tender love towards mankind, hast sent thy Son our Savior Jesus Christ to take upon him our flesh, and to suffer death upon the cross, that all mankind should follow the example of his great humility; Mercifully grant that we may both follow the example of his patience, and also be made partakers of his resurrection; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord (who liveth and reigneth with thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end).  Amen.

V.  O Savior of the world, who by thy Cross and Precious Blood hast redeemed us:

R.  Save us and help us, we humbly beseech thee, O Lord.

Faithful Cross! above all other,

One and only noble tree!

None in foliage, none in blossom

None in fruit thy peer may be:

Sweetest wood, and sweetest iron!

Sweetest weight is hung on thee.

 The Fourteenth Station - Jesus is Laid in the Tomb

V. We adore thee, O Christ, and we bless thee: (genuflect)

R. Because by thy holy Cross thou hast redeemed the world.

THE READING: (St. John 19:40-42)

Then took they the body of Jesus, and wound it in linen clothes with the spices, as the manner of the Jews is to bury.  Now in the place where he was crucified there was a garden; and in the garden a new sepulchre wherein never man yet laid.  There laid they Jesus.

V.  O my people, what have I done unto thee, or wherein have I wearied thee?  Testify against me.

R.  Holy and Immortal, have mercy upon us.

Let us pray.  O Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the living God, we pray thee to set thy passion, cross , and death between thy judgment and our souls, now and in the hour of our death.  Give mercy and grace to the living, pardon and rest to the dead, to thy holy Church peace and concord, and to us sinners everlasting life and glory (who livest and reignest with the Father, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end).  Amen.

V.  O Savior of the world, who by thy Cross and Precious Blood hast redeemed us:

R.  Save us and help us, we humbly beseech thee, O Lord.

To the Trinity be glory

Everlasting, as is meet:

Equal to the Father, equal

To the Son, and Paraclete:

God the Three in One, whose praises

All created things repeat.  Amen.

CONCLUDING PRAYER

Let us pray.  O God, who for our redemption didst give thine only-begotten Son to the death of the Cross, and by his glorious resurrection hast delivered us from the power of our enemy; Grant us so to die daily to sin, that we may evermore live with him in the joy of his resurrection; through the same thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord (who liveth and reigneth with thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end).  Amen.

V.  May the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.

R.  Amen.

Seven Founders of the Servite Order

These seven men were the founders of the Servite Order, a community instituted for the special purpose of cultivating the spirit of penance and contemplating the passion of Christ and Mary's Seven Sorrows. Due to the spirit of humility cherished by the members of the Order, their accomplishments are not too widely known. But in the field of home missions great things are to their credit, and certainly they have benefited millions by arousing devotion to the Mother of Sorrows.

The Breviary tells us that in the midst of the party strife during the thirteenth century, God called seven men from the nobility of Florence. In the year 1233 they met and prayed together most fervently. The Blessed Mother appeared to each of them individually and urged them to begin a more perfect life. Disregarding birth and wealth, in sackcloth under shabby and well-worn clothing they withdrew to a small building in the country. It was September 8, selected so that they might begin to live a more holy life on the very day when the Mother of God began to live her holy life.

Soon after, when the seven were begging alms from door to door in the streets of Florence, they suddenly heard children's voices calling to them, "Servants of holy Mary." Among these children was St. Philip Benizi, then just five months old. Hereafter they were known by this name, first heard from the lips of children. In the course of time they retired into solitude on Monte Senario and gave themselves wholly to contemplation and penance. Leo XIII canonized the Holy Founders and introduced today's feast in 1888.

(From The Church's Year of Grace, by Pius Parsch.)

O Lord Jesus Christ, who for the remembrance of the sorrows of thy most holy Mother didst by the seven blessed Fathers enrich thy Church with a new household of her servants: mercifully grant that we may in such wise be joined to them in their sorrowing; that we may be made worthy to be partakers of their gladness; who livest and reignest with the Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

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Painting: "The Madonna with the Seven Founders of the Servite Order"

by Agostino Masucci (1691-1758)

Friday after Ash Wednesday

At that time: the disciples of John came to Jesus, saying, "Why do we and the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?" And Jesus said to them, "Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The days will come, when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.

- St. Matthew 9:14-15

Lent is like athletic training for the soul. We’re encouraged to take up three practices which are as essential for spiritual health as are regular physical exercise and healthy diet for an athlete; namely, prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. Today, consider fasting.

The voluntary giving up of things we may legitimately enjoy can be an expression of our love for God, and it can strengthen our wills and spiritual muscles. This helps us to resist the lures and lies of Satan, when he tempts us to make choices that we know to be sinful.

Fasting may be of many kinds, such as refraining from food or drink, or reducing the time we spend in front of the television or on our phones. It’s not that those things are bad in and of themselves, but we voluntarily fast from them so that we can become spiritually stronger in the face of temptations which may well be bad for us.

The prophet Isaiah reminds us of the wrong kind of fasting. “Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight and to hit with wicked fist. Fasting like yours this day will not make your voice to be heard on high.” (Is. 58:4)

Let’s not forget what we’re really supposed to be fasting from, which is anything that is not pleasing to God, anything which gives a bad example to others, anything which stops us from doing God’s will.

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Painting: "St. Benedict and His Monks in the Refectory"

by Il Sodoma (1477-1549)

Thursday after Ash Wednesday

Jesus said, "If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me."

- St. Luke 9:23

Jesus had just asked the disciples who men said that He was, and Peter had professed that He was the Christ.  Then they heard our Lord say, "I must go to Jerusalem and die." He knew he had a work to complete. The Father’s will was His will. He had no other task but to do upon earth what the Father had sent him to do.  The Divine Son was under orders from the Father.

And in imitation of Christ, the Christian is also a man under orders. What are those orders? First, that we must deny ourselves. What does that mean? Think of it in this way: Peter once denied his Lord. He said of Jesus, "I do not know the man." So, to deny ourselves is to say, "I do not know myself." It is to ignore oneself. It is to treat the “self” as if it were not the most important thing to us – in fact, to treat it almost as though it doesn’t exist. Usually we treat ourselves as if our self was far and away the most important thing in the world. If we are to follow Jesus, we must put self aside.

And then, we are to take up our cross. To take up our cross means to be prepared to face sacrifice, suffering, and even death out of loyalty to Jesus. It means to be ready to endure the worst that can be done to us for the sake of being true to Him.

The taking up of the cross is a voluntary thing. It isn’t something that is thrust upon us by surprise, but it is something we choose. Part of the reason for our Lenten discipline is to help us choose willingly the cross which has been prepared for us.

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Image from the Carrow Psalter, East Anglia, ca. 1250

Marked By God For Change

In days gone by, the Pope, as the Bishop of Rome, would walk barefoot to St. Sabina's Church on the Aventine hill, built on the site of the martyr's house. It was there that he blessed the sackcloth which was worn by the Penitenti throughout Lent's forty days, and they would be covered also with ashes. 

The Penitenti were a particular class of Christians who had committed very public and widely known sins. They were expelled from all Christian holy places on account of their sins, driven out, just as Adam and Eve were driven out of the Garden of Eden on account of their sin. After a long and public period of penance throughout Lent they were reconciled to the Body of Christ on Maundy Thursday by the bishop with sacramental absolution after the public confession of their sins.

When we are marked with ashes it is only a tiny remainder of what used to happen when the Christian Faith was first openly practiced in the Roman Empire. The imposition of ashes along with the admonition "Remember man, thou art but dust, and unto dust shalt thou return" reminds us of the truth that we have all sinned, and that as a consequence, we all stand under the sentence of death. We shall all return to the dust of the earth from which we were made.

Like so much in Catholic life and worship, whatever is signed and acted outwardly by the body is an external activity designed to effect changes in the inner soul. Behaviour modification isn’t something recently discovered. The salutary effect of behavioural changes in the body can, with the cooperation of the will, modify attitudes in the inner soul. The Church has always known this.

Of course, this isn't some kind of "self-help" approach to salvation. We cannot save ourselves by mere human works, but rather we are obliged to respond to God. God offers, and we respond. And our response must involve more than smiles, pious thoughts and good wishes. Our response is found in our human activity. As the saying goes, “Actions speak louder than words.” 

Jesus said, "It is not those who cry out Lord, Lord, who will be saved; rather, it is those who hear the word of God and keep it."  It is our response to God's Word and to His love that will bring about changes within us.

So Lent Begins...

This is the time of the year when our Holy Mother the Church uses all her rich resources to bring us back to holiness, back to wholeness in Christ. She exorcises and reconciles; she pardons and blesses and anoints; she instructs and lays on hands; she worships and fasts, and does everything possible to touch us with Christ.

Our human condition is summed up in Adam and Eve. They decided to act on their own decision and in their own strength, and apart from God. And so have we. As a result, life around us has collapsed. People are fractured and broken, isolated and alone in their shame and guilt. The human soul, in its rebellion against God, has become addicted and trapped in its own sickness. Our Ancient Enemy, the Father of Lies and the Great Seducer, has captivated us and we are powerless in his control. Like the Prodigal Son, we long for the freedom of the sons and daughters of God. Our souls hunger for food that has substance to it.

Christ comes to us to release us from our captivity, to bring Good News to us in our poverty, to give us sight, to restore our liberty, and to empower us to walk in the glorious freedom that belongs to us as God's children.

So that all this might happen, we must first curb our arrogance, put bridle and bit to our pride, and acknowledge the hunger of our souls. Fasting, almsgiving, and prayer are the remedies that allow us to empty ourselves of arrogance and ego-centrism; they clear out the accumulated clutter that has been deposited in our souls, sweeping them clean and so making room once again for God's presence to dwell within us.

God is at work. God is offering, calling, inviting and making Himself present to us in Christ. He is interacting with us in His Mystical Body, the Church. He is working to bring about our salvation. He suffered and died for our sins. He suffered and died so that by the power of the Holy Spirit, our humanity can be raised up from spiritual death to victory.

So then, how could we not respond? How could we fail to act? How could we possibly ignore Him and turn away from all that God is doing for us in Christ?

Now is the time of our salvation. Now the day is at hand. Now is the opportunity for us to act. Now is the time for prayer, for fasting and for almsgiving, so that we might empty ourselves of those things that bring death, and make room for the Source of Life, Jesus Christ, to enter into us, to marry Himself to us, and to make us one with Him forever in Paradise.

Lent has but one purpose, and none other: to prepare us for eternal life in heaven.

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Painting: "Man of Sorrows"

by William Dyce (1806-1864)

Fasting and Abstinence in Lent

Fasting is recommended by the Sacred Scriptures and is practiced by the Church as a means of atonement for sin and commending individuals and their prayers to God. The intent of fasting is penitential in nature and with the purpose of intensifying prayer. The current practice of the Church in the United States allows for one main meal on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, with some food being allowed at the other two mealtimes, with no food at other times. Liquids do not break this fast. The law of the Church binds Catholics “from the day after their 18th birthday to the day after their 59th birthday.”

Abstinence is followed every Friday in Lent. Abstinence means that we refrain from eating meat or food prepared with meat (including chicken). This practice is to remind us of Jesus’ redeeming death, and to practice the virtue of penance. The law of the Church binds those who are 14 years of age or older.

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Painting: "Christ in the Wilderness"

by Ivan Nikolaevich Kramskoy (1837-1887)

Chair of St. Peter Novena

NOVENA BEFORE THE FEAST OF THE CHAIR OF ST. PETER

V. In the Name of the Father, + and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.

R. Amen.

Antiphon: That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.

V. I say unto thee, thou art Peter;

R. And upon this Rock I will build my Church.

[Each day’s scripture and intention is is followed by the final prayers.]

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February 13th.

And passing along by the Sea of Galilee, [Jesus] saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net in the sea; for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, "Follow me and I will make you become fishers of men." And immediately they left their nets and followed him.

- St. Mark 1:16-18

Intention: That we may follow the call of Christ without hesitation.

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February 14th.

[Jesus] said to Simon, "Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch." And Simon answered, "Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets." And when they had done this, they enclosed a great shoal of fish; and as their nets were breaking, they beckoned to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord."

- St. Luke 5:4-8

Intention: That we may obey our Lord’s commandments with humility.

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February 15th.

[Jesus] asked his disciples, "Who do men say that the Son of man is?" And they said, "Some say John the Baptist, others say Eljjah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets." He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter replied, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." And Jesus answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jona! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the powers of death shall not prevail against it.

- St. Matthew 16:13-18

Intention: That we may confidently confess our faith in Jesus Christ.

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February 16th.

After six days Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain apart by themselves; and he was transfigured before them, and his garments became glistening, intensely white, as no fuller on earth could bleach them.

- St. Mark 9:2-3

Intention: That with Peter, we may see Christ as he is.

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February 17th.

Jesus said to the twelve, "Do you also wish to go away?" Simon Peter answered him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life; and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God."

- St. John 6:67-69

Intention: That we may know Christ as the Incarnate Word, and follow him.

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February 18th.

[Jesus asked the soldiers,] "Whom do you seek?" And they said, "Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus answered, "I told you that I am he; so, if you seek me, let these men go." Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest's slave and cut off his right ear.

- St. John 18:7-8,10a

Intention: That we may refrain from hasty or imprudent words and actions.

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February 19th.

Peter then came out with the other disciple, and they went toward the tomb. They both ran, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb; he saw the linen cloths lying, and the napkin, which had been on his head, not lying with the linen cloths but rolled up in a place by itself.

- St. John 20:3-4, 6-7

Intention: That our lives may give witness to the Risen Lord Jesus Christ.

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February 20th.

Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?" He said to him, "Yes, Lord; you know that I love you." He said to him, "Feed my lambs." A second time he said to him, "Simon, son of John, do you love me?" He said to him, "Yes, Lord; you know that I love you." He said to him, "Tend my sheep." He said to him the third time, "Simon, son of John, do you love me?" Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, "Do you love me?" And he said to him, "Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you." Jesus said to him, "Feed my sheep.

- St. John 21:15-17

Intention: That we may remain in close communion with the Successor of St. Peter, through whom Christ strengthens us.

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February 21st.

Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them, “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words.”

Acts 2:14

Intention: That in union with St. Peter we may proclaim the Gospel to the whole world.

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FINAL PRAYER (to be offered each day)

O Almighty God, who by thy Son Jesus Christ didst give to thy Apostle Saint Peter many excellent gifts, and commandedst him earnestly to feed thy flock: make, we beseech thee, all Bishops and Pastors diligently to preach thy holy Word, and the people obediently to follow the same; that they may receive the crown of everlasting glory; through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

V. St. Peter, Prince of the Apostles;

R. Pray for us.

V. In the Name of the Father, + and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.

R. Amen.

Made Whole By Christ

A leper came to Jesus beseeching him, and kneeling said to him, "If you will, you can make me clean." Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him, and said to him, "I will; be clean." And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean.

-St. Mark 1:40-42

As we read the scriptures – both Old and New Testaments – we see there was no disease that struck more terror in men’s hearts and minds than the disease of leprosy, now known medically as Hansen’s disease. To contract leprosy meant a condemnation to a slow death, and it meant complete social ostracization, too.

We can see that Jesus treated it with the seriousness with which society viewed it. For instance, when He sent the twelve disciples out, he commanded them to “heal the sick, cleanse lepers.”

The fate of the leper was truly horrible. The body becomes covered with ulcers; the appearance is changed over the course of time, losing the human look; the voice becomes hoarse; fingers and toes are lost – it really is a kind of “living death.”

Because of all of this, the leper was pronounced to be “unclean” and he was banished from living within society. He had to live apart, either alone or with other lepers. If anyone came close to him, he had to shout out “Unclean, unclean...” So the leper had to bear not only the physical pain of his disease, but also the mental anguish of being completely banished from family, friends, and society in general.

What we read in this account from St. Mark’s gospel gives a simple and beautiful picture of Jesus and His care for those in need. This particular leper had broken the law, since he had approached Jesus, which was something strictly forbidden. However, Jesus met this desperate act with understanding and compassion. He actually reached out and touched him. It was the general belief that physical contact with a leper was contagious, but to Jesus the man wasn’t unclean. He was a human being in desperate need. Then, having miraculously cleansed him, Jesus sent him to fulfill Jewish law by going to one of the temple priests. The man would need a certificate to show that he was free of leprosy. In directing the man to do that we see that Jesus did not defy conventions, but He submitted to them.

So, in Christ, we see compassion, power and wisdom all joined to bring healing and wholeness to a man in need of God’s loving embrace.

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Painting: "Jesus Healing the Leper"
by Jean-Marie Melchior Doze (1827-1913)

St. Scholastica

Twins often share the same interests and ideas with an equal intensity, so it is no surprise that Scholastica and her twin brother, Benedict, both established religious communities within a few miles of each other.

The twins were born of wealthy parents in the year 480. Scholastica and Benedict were brought up together until he left for Rome to continue his studies.

We don’t know much about Scholastica's early life, but we do know she founded a religious community for women near Montecassino, five miles from where her brother was the abbot of a monastery.

The twins visited each other once a year in a nearby farmhouse because Scholastica was not permitted inside the monastery. They spent these times discussing spiritual matters.

According to an account written by Pope St. Gregory, the brother and sister spent their last day together in prayer and conversation. Scholastica sensed her death was close at hand and she begged Benedict to stay with her until the next day.

He refused her request because he did not want to spend a night outside the monastery, thus breaking his own Rule. Scholastica asked God to let her brother remain and a severe thunderstorm broke out, preventing Benedict and his monks from returning to the abbey.

Benedict cried out, "God forgive you, Sister. What have you done?" Scholastica replied, "I asked a favour of you and you refused. I asked it of God and He granted it."

Brother and sister parted the next morning after their long discussion. Three days later, Benedict was praying in his monastery and saw the soul of his sister rising heavenward in the form of a white dove. Benedict then announced the death of his sister to the monks and later buried her in the tomb he had prepared for himself.

O God, who for a testimony to the path of innocency didst cause the soul of thy holy Virgin Saint Scholastica to enter heaven in the appearance of a dove; grant unto us, that by her merits and intercession we may walk in such innocency of life; that we may be worthy to attain everlasting felicity; Through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

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 (Pictured: Mass at Montecassino, in the Crypt Chapel 

between the tombs of Ss. Benedict and Scholastica.)

St. Josephine Bakhita

On February 8, the Church commemorates the life of St. Josephine Bakhita, a Canossian Sister who was kidnapped and sold into slavery in Sudan.

Josephine Bakhita was born in 1869, in a small village in the Darfur region of Sudan. She was kidnapped while working in the fields with her family and subsequently sold into slavery. Her captors asked for her name but she was too terrified to remember so they named her “Bakhita,” which means “fortunate” in Arabic.

Retrospectively, Bakhita was very fortunate, but the first years of her life do not necessarily attest to it. She was tortured by her various owners who branded her, beat and cut her. In her biography she notes one particularly terrifying moment when one of her masters cut her 114 times and poured salt in her wounds to ensure that the scars remained. “I felt I was going to die any moment, especially when they rubbed me with the salt,” Bakhita wrote.

She bore her suffering valiantly though she did not know Christ or the redemptive nature of suffering. She also had a certain awe for the world and its creator. “Seeing the sun, the moon and the stars, I said to myself: 'Who could be the Master of these beautiful things?' And I felt a great desire to see Him, to know Him and to pay Him homage.”

After being sold a total of five times, Bakhita was purchased by Callisto Legnani, the Italian consul in Khartoum, the capital of Sudan. Two years later, he took Bakhita to Italy to work as a nanny for his colleague, Augusto Michieli. He, in turn, sent Bakhita to accompany his daughter to a school in Venice run by the Canossian Sisters.

Bakhita felt called to learn more about the Church, and was baptized with the name “Josephine Margaret.” In the meantime, Michieli wanted to take Josephine and his daughter back to Sudan, but Josephine refused to return.

The disagreement escalated and was taken to the Italian courts where it was ruled that Josephine could stay in Italy because she was a free woman. Slavery was not recognized in Italy and it had also been illegal in Sudan since before Josephine had been born.

Josephine remained in Italy and decided to enter the Canossians in 1893. She made her profession in 1896 and was sent to Northern Italy, where she dedicated her life to assisting her community and teaching others to love God.

She was known for her smile, gentleness, and holiness. She even went on record saying, “If I were to meet the slave-traders who kidnapped me and even those who tortured me, I would kneel and kiss their hands, for if that did not happen, I would not be a Christian and Religious today.”

St. Josephine was beatified in 1992 and canonized shortly after on October 2000 by Pope John Paul II. She is the first person to be canonized from Sudan and is the patron saint of the country.

O GOD, who didst lead Saint Josephine Bakhita from abject slavery to the dignity of being thy daughter and a bride of Christ: grant, we pray; that by her example we may show constant love for the Lord Jesus crucified, remaining steadfast in charity and prompt to show compassion; through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

St. Jerome Emiliani, Priest and Confessor

St. Jerome Emiliani was born in the 15th century, and as a young man he became a soldier for the city-state of Venice. During that time he wasn’t terribly religious; in fact, he was fairly selfish, and didn’t think much about other people. He loved the life of a soldier, and was never happier than when he was heading off to do battle against someone else. 

One day, when he was engaged in a minor battle, Jerome was captured and chained in a dungeon. While he was in prison, Jerome had a lot of time to think. He began to think about his life, and he began to think about God, and gradually he learned how to pray. One day he managed to escape from prison. He returned to Venice to his family, and with nothing else to do, he took charge of the education of his nephews. At the same time, he began his own studies for the priesthood.

St. Jerome eventually was ordained, and settled into the life of a parish priest. But soon after his ordination, God began to call St. Jerome into a new ministry – not in a parish, but a ministry which would reach far beyond a single parish. A terrible plague was sweeping across Europe, and there was widespread famine throughout northern Italy where St. Jerome was. He began caring for the sick and feeding the hungry at his own expense. While serving the sick and the poor, he made the decision to devote himself and all his resources to assist others, particularly for the care of abandoned children. He founded three orphanages and a hospital.

In about the year 1532, Jerome and two other priests established a religious congregation dedicated to the care of orphans and the education of youth. Jerome died in 1537 from a disease he caught while tending the sick. He was eventually canonized, and was named the universal patron of orphans and abandoned children.

O God, the Father of mercies, who didst raise up Saint Jerome Emiliani to be a defender and father of the fatherless: vouchsafe, through his merits and intercession; that we may faithfully guard thy spirit of adoption, whereby we are called and are indeed thy children; through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

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"St. Jerome Emiliani" by Antonio Caboni, 1844

St. Paul Miki and the Martyrs of Japan

Nagasaki, Japan, is known in history as the city on which the second atomic bomb was dropped in 1945 during the last stages of World War II, killing hundreds of thousands. But some 350 years before that, twenty-six martyrs of Japan were crucified on a hill, now known as the Holy Mountain, overlooking Nagasaki. Among them were priests, brothers and laymen, Franciscans, Jesuits and members of the Secular Franciscan Order; there were catechists, doctors, old men and innocent children—all united in a common faith and love for Jesus and his church.

When Christianity first came to Japan, it was tolerated by the shoguns – the leaders – because they thought it would open up trade with the West. However, they soon decided that the Christian faith wasn’t helpful to them, so they outlawed it, and began the systematic destruction of the faith. The martyrs we celebrate today were rounded up and tortured, trying to get them to deny their faith. Each one of them had an ear cut off, and then they were marched for a thousand miles through the winter months, in the hope that they would denounce the faith, and cause others to do the same. All that accomplished was to make their faith grow stronger. The forced march ended at Nagasaki, where the Christians were then crucified on what came to be known as the Holy Mountain.

St. Paul Miki, a Jesuit and a native of Japan, has become the best known among the martyrs of Japan. While hanging upon a cross Paul Miki preached to the people gathered for the execution. He forgave his persecutors and called people to love God and to obey Him. His final words were, "I ask God to have pity on all, and I hope my blood will fall on my fellow men as a fruitful rain."

When missionaries returned to Japan in the 1860s, at first they found no trace of Christianity. But after establishing themselves they found that thousands of Christians lived around Nagasaki and that even though there were no priests and no sacraments other than baptism, the people had secretly preserved the faith.

O GOD, the strength of all the Saints, who through the Cross wast pleased to call the Martyrs Saint Paul Miki and Companions to everlasting life: grant, we pray; that by their intercession we may hold with courage to the faith that we profess, even unto death; through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

St. Agatha, Virgin and Martyr

St. Agatha was born in Sicily, and is one of the many brave and faithful martyrs of the 3rd century. Her family was a wealthy and important one. Agatha was raised as a Christian, and when she was a very young girl she dedicated her life to God alone, and felt no vocation to be married. Because of her beauty and wealth, and because of the importance of her family, there were many men who sought to marry her. She resisted them all, desiring only a life of prayer and charitable service.

There was a man named Quintian, a Roman prefect, who thought his rank and power could force Agatha into a relationship with him. Knowing she was a Christian, and because this was in a time of persecution, he had her arrested and brought to trial. The judge was none other than himself. He expected Agatha to give in to him when she was faced with torture and death, but she simply rededicated herself to God.

Quintian imprisoned Agatha, locking her up with cruel and immoral women, in order to get her to change her mind. After she had suffered a month of being assaulted and humiliated she never wavered, saying that although they could physically lock her up, her real freedom came from Jesus. Quintian continued to have her tortured. He refused to allow her to have any medical care, but St. Agatha was given great comfort by God, who allowed her to have a vision of St. Peter, in which he encouraged and strengthened her.

Finally, because of the repeated torture and mutilation of her body, St. Agatha died in about the year 251, while whispering a prayer of thanks to God.

O God, who among the manifold works of thine almighty power hast bestowed even upon the gentleness of women strength to win the victory of martyrdom: grant, we beseech thee; that we, who on this day recall the heavenly birth of Saint Agatha, thy Virgin and Martyr, may so follow in her footsteps, that we may likewise attain unto thee; through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, ever one God, world without end. Amen.