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Introduction: Jim Marsh
Friends, we began our Lenten journey this year with a focus on “Living Well—listening with all our heart, soul, strength and mind.”
This past Sunday, we began a “Holy Week” marked by Christians around the globe: remembering the humble yet jubilant procession of the Galilean teacher Jesus into Jerusalem, where many in the throng of onlookers shouted “Hosanna!”
Yesterday, within the context of a meal we remembered the words “Love one another as I have loved you” in the ancient ritual of a household servant (read and imagine ‘one less than’) performing the intimate act of foot-washing.
This day, we remember Jesus being condemned to a violent death by both empire and religious authorities for daring to live God’s vision of kin-dom. The question we must ponder is: What does Good Friday and the Cross symbolize and mean when we have abandoned a theology of atonement and its necessity for Jesus’ death as a divine-given for forgiveness, salvation and redemption?
As disciples of Jesus, do we ask “where are you staying?” to which Jesus replies “Come and see.” (John 1:38) Let us enter into the journey as individuals and people of faith to experience the Christ-event yet again.
Jesus is condemned unjustly by those who were frightened of what he did and said. Perhaps they sensed that this man could make a difference, that he could turn their world upside down.
We continue to condemn people unjustly today. People are condemned because of the color of their skin, their gender, their beliefs, because they are born with a disability, because they don’t conform to our way of thinking; the list is endless.
There are also the people who have been justly condemned, who have been found guilty, served their sentence and asked for forgiveness. Does our society really forgive; really believe that people can change or do we continue to condemn them over and over again?
Sung Response: Were you there when Jesus was condemned? Were you there? Were you there?
Prayer: Holy One, we pray for the grace to see, respect and love your image in all people, both innocent and guilty. May our hearts be transformed to see with new eyes those we so easily might otherwise condemn.
A cross is not simply a piece of wood. It is a symbol of everything that is difficult in life.
There are burdens that we all carry, some are very obvious and others we take great care to hide. There are the burdens of illness, pain and disability, of old age, dependence, and caring for someone who no longer knows who we are. There are the burdens of constant fear, of loneliness and of isolation.
Sung Response: Were you there when they laid the cross on him? Were you there? Were you there?
Prayer: Holy One, may we feel your presence as we acknowledge and carry our burdens this day. May we be more aware of the crosses that other bear and help to ease and alleviate their burdens.
Jesus shows us that being heroic means getting up and starting again after falling.
She might be living on the streets or he may be slouched in a doorway on skid row. Do we look on with disdain or avert our eyes to “not see them?” Did we play a part in their falling down?
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Sung Response: Were you there when he fell beneath the cross? Were you there? Were you there?
Prayer: Holy One, may we embody compassion and recognize the dignity of each person we meet. May we have the courage and fortitude to eradicate the stumbling blocks to living joyfully as your sons and daughters.
Jesus knows the intimate bonds of connection to family.
Do we see Mary’s pain in the mothers and fathers who watch their children giving up their life to drugs, addictions and suicide; in the women and men who suffer violence and the ongoing threat of violence in their home from a spouse or a child?
Sung Response: Were you there when Mary met her son? Were you there? Were you there?
Prayer: Holy One, may we have courageous hearts to bring love to our spouses, children and to all those places of fracture and disharmony in our relationships.
Simon of Cyrene, a stranger, lends his strength to one whose own had waned. Simon embodies a ministry of presence and accompaniment.
Across our world we see human suffering in the faces of strangers struggling in war zones, in the faces of those dealing with the loss of life and destruction of property due to destructive natural forces and the effects of climate change, in migrants and refugees seeking safe haven, in families who have lost loved ones, jobs and homes to the COVID pandemic.
Sung Response: Were you there when Simon came to help? Were you there? Were you there?
Prayer: Holy One, may we grasp the opportunities to be Simon to our world with our giftedness and resources. May we also have the humility to accept the Simons along our road in our moments of need.
Veronica moves courageously from the crowd to offer comfort by wiping blood and sweat from the face of Jesus.
Today, the leaders of our Church have wounded and disfigured many by its own sins of abuse and power: children sexually abused, women’s gifts and talents dismissed outrightly, and the very dignity of gay, lesbian, transgendered and queer folk questioned and condemned.
Sung Response: Were you there when the woman wiped his face? Were you there? Were you there?
Prayer: Holy One, may we bring healing to those who suffer so unjustly these sins against your own creation. May our loving and compassionate response reveal your Holy Face (ver - icon) to our world.
Stretched to the breaking point, Jesus stumbles again.
People all around us, overburdened by struggle fall again and again… those who have lost jobs, those who struggle to keep others in work, those who suffer because of failures in our health and justice systems.
Sung Response: Were you there when Jesus fell again? Were you there? Were you there?
Prayer: Holy One, may we not lose hope. May your indwelling Spirit give us strength to bring justice to our world.
At seeing their distress, Jesus breaks his silence and speaks to them: “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me. Weep for yourselves and for your children.”
For whom do we weep? Do we weep for the women and children who are victims of abuse and sex-trafficking, for the young who cannot find a job or their way in life, for the people who starve every day in a world of abundance, for folks who are homeless, in exile seeking refuge, for the old ‘locked-down’ in nursing homes and forgotten …
Sung Response: Were you there when the women wept for him? Were you there? Were you there?
Prayer: Holy One, may we challenge all that brings suffering to people in our world. May our response transform tears into dancing and lives overflowing with joy and gratitude.
Broken, exhausted physically and emotionally, Jesus gets up yet again to continue the journey. How? By what power?
Many in our world today feel that they are at a final falling, that their burden of addiction or mental illness is too much to carry. Feelings of isolation and aloneness become overwhelming—they cannot bear it any longer and suicide becomes the escape from hell.
Sung Response: Were you there when Jesus fell again? Were you there? Were you there?
Prayer: Holy One, may we never forget your unconditional love for us even when we grow weary of life’s challenges. May we provide hope by embodying your love in word and action during times of depression and utter despair.
Jesus was stripped of his dignity before a crowd of onlookers.
We continue to strip people today of dignity, particularly anyone who is labeled as “less than.” At times, under the guise of truth and/or entertainment, media has sullied reputations while society devours each detail. What about the women, children and even men who are exploited as sex objects?
Sung Response: Were you there when they stripped him of his clothes? Were you there? Were you there?
Prayer: Holy One, we seek forgiveness for ‘prying’ into another’s life, for being gossipers, and consumers of fake news that exploits. May we grow in our respect for the dignity of all our sisters and brothers, enabling them to reach their full potential.
The hands that have wiped blindness from eyes, opened the ears of the deaf, cured lepers and blessed children are now nailed to a cross.
Jesus continues to be crucified in the ten children who die every minute of hunger in our world. He is crucified in all who are maimed, damaged and displaced because of war. He is crucified in all who are marginalized because of race, creed, sex, or gender-identity. He is crucified in those who are abused physically, emotionally, or sexually. He is crucified in those who are trafficked across the world. He is crucified in the exploitation of the earth’s resources and its plant and animal life.
Sung Response: Were you there when they nailed him to the tree? Were you there? Were you there?
Prayer: Holy One, we pray for all victims of violence—both those who suffer it and those who inflict it. We pray for children, the elderly and the vulnerable whose voices are often unheard. We pray for those who are dying this very moment. May they always know that You are with them by our care and presence.
As his life ebbs away, Jesus speaks words of forgiveness: “Abba, forgive
them; they know not what they are doing.” This is the real challenge of the cross—to forgive even those who hurt us most.
There is much to seek forgiveness for in our world today. Each one of us praying these stations should take this opportunity to reflect on our own culpability—deeds of commission and deeds of omission. Let us also pray in silence for those who have hurt us.
Sung Response: Were you there when Jesus breathed his last? Were you there? Were you there?
Prayer: Holy One, we thank you for your love which can’t be measured. May we respond to all we meet by acting justly and loving tenderly. In this way, we will break the silence, tear down walls, and sing of your praises with all creation.
Jesus’ body is cradled by his mother. Does Mary find consolation and meaning in his words: “This is my body, broken … this is my blood poured out …”
Sung Response: Were you there when Mary held her son? Were you there? Were you there?
Prayer: Holy One, we pray that our losses will not lead us to despair, but give us a renewed sense of gratitude for the gift that each person represents. Help us to experience resurrection and life without end.
How do we deal with the countless losses and deaths we personally experience each day? Do we linger in the darkness, overcome by grief?
Sung Response: Were you there when they laid him in the tomb? Were you there? Were you there?
Prayer: Holy One, we remember the parable “unless a grain of wheat falls on the ground and dies, it remains only a single grain; but if it dies, it yields a rich harvest.” We pray for all those who have died and those who have no one to pray for them as death approaches. Give us “eyes of faith” to see that the darkness of womb and tomb offer the promise of new life.
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