THE WAY OF THE CROSS
According to the method of
St. Alphonsus Liguori
"Excerpt from “A Manual of Prayers”
This Devotion arose first in Jerusalem, among the Christians who dwelt there, out of veneration for those sacred spots witch were sanctified by the sufferings of our Divine Redeemer. From the Holy City This devout exercise was introduced into Europe. When, in 1342. the Franciscan Fathers established their House in Jerusalem and undertook the Custody of the Sacred places of the Holy Land, they began to spread throughout the Catholic world the devotion of the Way of the Cross.
This excellent Devotion has met with the repeated approvals of the Holy See, and is enriched with many Indulgences ; to gain them it is necessary to meditate according to individual ability, on the Passion and Death of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to go From one Station to another, if the Space and Number of persons will admit.
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PREPARATORY PRAYER
kneeling before the high altar, make an Act of Contrition, and form the intention of gaining the indulgences connected to this devotion, whether for himself or for the souls in Purgatory. Then say:
My Lord Jesus Christ, ✠ Thou hast made this journey to die for me with love unutterable, ✠ and I have so many times unworthily abandoned Thee; ✠ but now I love Thee with my whole heart, ✠ and because I love Thee, ✠ I repent sincerely for having ever offended Thee. ✠ Pardon me, my God, ✠ and permit me to accompany Thee on this journey. ✠ Thou goest to die for love of me; ✠ I wish also, my beloved Redeemer, ✠ to die for love of Thee. ✠ My Jesus, ✠ I will live and die always united to Thee. ✠
FIRST STATION
Jesus is condemned to Death.
V. We adore Thee, O Christ, and we praise Thee,
R. Because by Thy holy cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
Priest: Consider that Jesus, after having been scourged and crowned with thorns, was unjustly condemned by Pilate to die on the cross.
People: My adorable Jesus, ✠ it was not Pilate,✠ no, it was my sins, that condemned Thee to die. ✠ I beseech Thee, by the merits of this sorrowful journey, ✠ to assist my soul in its journey towards eternity. ✠ I love Thee, my beloved Jesus; ✠ I love Thee more than myself; ✠ I repent with my whole heart of having offended Thee. ✠ Never permit me to separate myself from Thee again. ✠ Grant that I may love Thee always, ✠ and then do with me what Thou wilt.✠
Our Father. Hail Mary. Glory Be.
V: Lord Jesus, crucified,
R. Have mercy on us!
| At the cross her station keeping, Stood the mournful Mother weeping, Close to Jesus to the last. |
Stabat Mater dolorosa, Juxta crucem lacrymosa, Dum pendebat Filius. |
SECOND STATION
Jesus is made to carry His Cross.
V. We adore Thee, O Christ, and we praise Thee,
R. Because by Thy holy cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
Priest: Consider that Jesus, in making this journey with the cross on His shoulders, thought of us and offered for us to His Father the death that He was about to undergo.
People: My most beloved Jesus, ✠ I embrace all the tribulations that Thou hast destined for me until death. ✠ I beseech Thee, ✠ by the merits of the pain Thou didst suffer in carrying Thy cross, ✠ to give me the necessary help ✠ to carry mine with perfect patience and resignation. ✠ I love Thee, Jesus, my love; ✠ I repent of having offended Thee. ✠ Never permit me to separate myself from Thee again. ✠ Grant that I may love Thee always, ✠ and then do with me what Thou wilt. ✠
Our Father. Hail Mary. Glory Be.
V. Lord Jesus, crucified,
R. Have mercy on us!
| Through her heart, His sorrow sharing, All His bitter anguish bearing, Now at length the sword has passed. |
Cujus animam gementem, Contristatam et dolentem, Pertransivit gladius. |
THIRD STATION
Jesus falls the First Time.
V. We adore Thee, O Christ, and we praise Thee,
R. Because by Thy holy cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
Priest: Consider this first fall of Jesus under His cross. His flesh was torn by the scourges, His head crowned with thorns, and He had lost a great quantity of blood. He was so weakened that He could scarcely walk, and yet He had to carry this great load upon His shoulders. The soldiers struck Him rudely, and thus He fell several times in His journey.
People: My beloved Jesus, ✠ it is not the weight of the cross, ✠ but of my sins, ✠ which have made Thee suffer so much pain. ✠ Ah, by the merits of this first fall, ✠ deliver me from the misfortune of falling into mortal sin. ✠ I love Thee, O my Jesus, with my whole heart; ✠ I repent of having offended Thee. ✠ Never permit me to offend Thee again. ✠ Grant that I may love Thee always, ✠ and then do with me what Thou wilt.✠
Our Father. Hail Mary. Glory Be.
V. Lord Jesus, crucified,
R. Have mercy on us!
| Oh, how sad, and sore distressed., Now was she, that Mother Blessed Of the sole-begotten One. |
O quam tristis et affiicta Fuit illa benedicta Mater Unigeniti! |
FOURTH STATION
Jesus meets His Sorrowful Mother.
V. We adore Thee, O Christ, and we praise Thee,
R. Because by Thy holy cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
Priest: Consider the meeting of the Son and the Mother, which took place on this journey. Jesus and Mary looked at each other, and their looks became as so many arrows to wound those hearts which loved each other so tenderly.
People: My most loving Jesus, ✠ by the sorrow Thou didst experience in this meeting, ✠ grant me the grace of a truly devoted love for Thy most holy Mother. ✠ And thou, my Queen, ✠ who wast overwhelmed with sorrow, ✠ obtain for me by thy intercession ✠ a continual and tender remembrance of the Passion of thy Son. ✠ I love Thee, Jesus, my love; ✠ I repent of ever having offended Thee. ✠ Never permit me to offend Thee again. ✠ Grant that I may love Thee always,✠ and then do with me what Thou wilt. ✠
Our Father. Hail Mary. Glory Be.
V. Lord Jesus, crucified,
R. Have mercy on us!
| Woe-begone, with heart's prostration Mother meek, the bitter Passion Saw she of her glorious Son. |
Quae moerebat, et dolebat, Pia Mater dum videbat Nati poenas inclyti. |
FIFTH STATION
Simon of Cyrene helps Jesus to carry His Cross.
V. We adore Thee, O Christ, and we praise Thee,
R. Because by Thy holy cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
Priest: Consider that the Jews, seeing that at each step Jesus, from weakness, was on the point of expiring, and fearing that He would die on the way, when they wished Him to die the ignominious death of the cross, constrained Simon the Cyrenian to carry the cross behind Our Lord.
People: My most sweet Jesus, ✠ I will not refuse the cross as the Cyrenian did; ✠ I accept it, I embrace it. ✠ I accept in particular the death that Thou hast destined for me, ✠ with all the pains which may accompany it. ✠ I unite it to Thy death; ✠ I offer it to Thee. ✠ Thou hast died for love of me! ✠ I will die for love of Thee, and to please Thee. ✠ Help me by Thy grace. ✠ I love Thee, Jesus, my love; ✠ I repent of having offended Thee. ✠ Never permit me to offend Thee again. ✠ Grant that I may love Thee always, ✠ and then do with me what Thou wilt. ✠
Our Father. Hail Mary. Glory Be.
V. Lord Jesus, crucified,
R. Have mercy on us!
| Who could mark, from tears refraining. Christ's dear Mother uncomplaining, In so great a sorrow bowed? |
Quis est homo qui non fleret Matrem Christi si videret In tanto supplicio? |
SIXTH STATION
Veronica wipes the Face of Jesus.
V. We adore Thee, O Christ, and we praise Thee,
R. Because by Thy holy cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
Priest: Consider that the holy woman named Veronica, seeing Jesus so afflicted and His face bathed in sweat and blood, presented Him with a towel, with which He wiped His adorable face, leaving on it the impression of His holy countenance.
People: My most beloved Jesus. ✠ Thy face was beautiful before, ✠ but in this journey it has lost all its beauty, ✠ and wounds and blood have disfigured it. ✠ Alas! my soul also was once beautiful, ✠ when it received Thy grace in Baptism, ✠ but I have disfigured it since by my sins. ✠ Thou alone, my Redeemer, ✠ canst restore it to its former beauty. ✠ Do this by Thy Passion, O Jesus. ✠ I repent of having offended Thee. ✠ Never permit me to offend Thee again. ✠ Grant that I may love Thee always, ✠ and then do with me what Thou wilt. ✠
Our Father. Hail Mary. Glory Be.
V. Lord Jesus, crucified,
R. Have mercy on us!
| Who, unmoved, behold her languish, Underneath His cross of anguish, 'Mid the fierce, unpitying crowd? |
Quis non posset contristari, Christi Matrem contemplari Dolentem cum Filio? |
SEVENTH STATION
Jesus falls the Second Time.
V. We adore Thee, O Christ, and we praise Thee,
R. Because by Thy holy cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
Priest: Consider the second fall of Jesus under the cross-a fall which renews the pains of all the wounds of the head and members of our afflicted Lord.
People: My most gentle Jesus, ✠ how many times Thou hast pardoned me, ✠ and how many times have I fallen again, ✠ and begun again to offend Thee! ✠ Oh, by the merits of this new fall, ✠ give me the necessary helps to persevere in Thy grace until death. ✠ Grant that in all temptations which assail me ✠ I may always commend myself to Thee. ✠ I love Thee, Jesus, my love, with my whole heart; ✠ I repent of having offended Thee. ✠ Never permit me to offend Thee again. ✠ Grant that I may love Thee always, ✠ and then do with me what Thou wilt. ✠
Our Father. Hail Mary. Glory Be.
V. Lord Jesus, crucified,
R. Have mercy on us!
| For His people's sins rejected, She her Jesus, unprotected, Saw with thorns, with scourges rent. |
Pro peccatis suae gentis, Vidit Jesum in tormentis, Et flagellis subditum, |
EIGHTH STATION
The Women of Jerusalem weep over Jesus.
V. We adore Thee, O Christ, and we praise Thee,
R. Because by Thy holy cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
Priest: Consider that those women wept with compassion at seeing Jesus in so pitiable a state, streaming with blood, as He walked along. But Jesus said to them, "Weep not for Me, but for your children:'
People: My Jesus, ✠ laden with sorrows, I weep for the offences that I have committed against Thee, ✠ because of the pains which they have deserved, ✠ and still more because of the displeasure which they have caused Thee, ✠ Who hast loved me so much. ✠ It is Thy love, more than the fear of Hell, ✠ which causes me to weep for my sins. ✠ My Jesus, I love Thee more than myself; ✠ I repent of having offended Thee. ✠ Never permit me to offend Thee again. ✠ Grant that I may love Thee always, ✠ and then do with me what Thou wilt. ✠
Our Father. Hail Mary. Glory Be.
V. Lord Jesus, crucified,
R. Have mercy on us!
| Saw her Son from judgment taken, Her belov'd in death forsaken Till His Spirit forth He sent. |
Vidit suum dulcem natum Moriendo, desolatum, Dum emisit spiritum. |
NINTH STATION
Jesus falls the Third Time.
V. We adore Thee, O Christ, and we praise Thee,
R. Because by Thy holy cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
Priest: Consider the third fall of Jesus Christ. His weakness was extreme, and the cruelty of His executioners excessive, who tried to hasten His steps when He had scarcely strength to move.
People: Ah, my outraged Jesus, ✠ by the merits of the weakness that Thou didst suffer in going to Calvary,✠ give me strength sufficient to conquer all human respect ✠ and all my wicked passions, ✠ which have led me to despise Thy friendship. ✠ I love Thee, Jesus, my love, with my whole heart; ✠ I repent of having offended Thee. ✠ Never permit me to offend Thee again. ✠ Grant that I may love Thee always, ✠ and then do with me what Thou wilt. ✠
Our Father. Hail Mary. Glory Be.
V. Lord Jesus, crucified,
R. Have mercy on us!
| Fount of love and holy sorrow, Mother, may my spirit borrow Somewhat of thy woe profound. |
Eia Mater, fons amoris Me sentire vim· doloris. Fae, ut tecum lugeam. |
TENTH STATION
Jesus is stripped of His Garments.
V. We adore Thee, O Christ, and we praise Thee,
R. Because by Thy holy cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
Priest: Consider the violence with which the executioners stripped Jesus. His inner garments adhered to His torn flesh, and they dragged them off so roughly that the skin came with them. Compassionate your Savior thus cruelly treated, and say to Him:
People: My innocent Jesus, ✠ by the merits of the torment which Thou hast felt, ✠ help me to strip myself of all affection to things of earth, ✠ in order that I may place all my love in Thee, ✠ Who art so worthy of my love. ✠ I love Thee, O Jesus, with my whole heart; ✠ I repent of having offended Thee. ✠ Never permit me to offend Thee again. ✠ Grant that I may love Thee always, ✠ and then do with me what Thou wilt. ✠
Our Father. Hail Mary. Glory Be.
V. Lord Jesus, crucified,
R. Have mercy on us!
| Unto Christ, with, pure emotion, Raise my contrite heart's devotion, Love to read in every wound. |
Fae, ut ardeat cor meum In amando Christum Deum, Ut sibi complaceam. |
ELEVENTH STATION
Jesus is nailed to the Cross.
V. We adore Thee, O Christ, and we praise Thee,
R. Because by Thy holy cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
Priest: Consider that Jesus, after being thrown on the cross, extended His hands, and offered to His eternal Father the sacrifice of His life for our salvation. These barbarians fastened Him with nails, and then, raising the cross, left Him to die with anguish on this infamous gibbet.
People: My Jesus, loaded with contempt, ✠ nail my heart to Thy feet, that it may ever remain there ✠ to love Thee and never quit Thee again. ✠ I love Thee more than myself; ✠ I repent of having offended Thee. ✠ Never permit me to offend Thee again. ✠ Grant that I may love Thee always,✠ and then do with me what Thou wilt.✠
Our Father. Hail Mary. Glory Be.
V. Lord Jesus, crucified,
R. Have mercy on us!
| Those five wounds on Jesus smitten. Mother! in my heart be written, Deep as in thine own they be. |
Sancta Mater istud agas, Crucifixi fige plagas Cordi meo valide. |
TWELFTH STATION
Jesus is raised upon the Cross and Dies.
V. We adore Thee, O Christ, and we praise Thee,
R. Because by Thy holy cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
Priest: Consider how thy Jesus, after three hours of agony on the cross, consumed at length with anguish, abandons Himself to the weight of His body, bows His head, and dies.
People: O my dying Jesus, ✠ I kiss devoutly the cross on which Thou didst die for love of me. ✠ I have merited by my sins to die a miserable death, ✠ but Thy death is my hope. ✠ Ah, by the merits of Thy death, ✠ give me grace to die, embracing Thy feet ✠ and burning with love for Thee. ✠ I commit my soul into Thy hands. ✠ I love Thee with my whole heart; ✠ I repent of ever having offended Thee. ✠ Never permit me to offend Thee again. ✠ Grant that I may love Thee always, ✠ and then do with me what Thou wilt. ✠
Our Father. Hail Mary. Glory Be.
V. Lord Jesus, crucified,
R. Have mercy on us!
| Thou, my Saviour's Cross who bearest, Thou thy Son’s rebuke who sharest, Let me share them both with Thee! |
Toi nati vulnerati, Tum dignati pro me pati Poenas mecum divide. |
THIRTEENTH STATION
Jesus is taken down from the Cross and placed in the Arms of His Mother.
V. We adore Thee, O Christ, and we praise Thee,
R. Because by Thy holy cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
Priest: Consider that Our Lord having expired, two of His disciples, Joseph and Nicodemus, took Him down from the cross and placed Him in the arms of His afflicted Mother, who received Him with unutterable tenderness and pressed Him to her bosom.
People: O Mother of Sorrow, ✠ for the love of this Son, ✠ accept me for thy servant, ✠ and pray to Him for me. ✠ And Thou, my Redeemer, ✠ since Thou hast died for me, ✠ permit me to love Thee; ✠ for I wish but Thee, my Jesus, ✠ and I repent of ever having offended Thee. ✠ Never permit me to offend Thee again. ✠ Grant that I may love Thee always, ✠ and then do with me what Thou wilt. ✠
Our Father. Hail Mary. Glory Be.
V. Lord Jesus, crucified,
R. Have mercy on us!
| In the Passion of my Maker, Be my sinful soul partaker, Weep till death, and keep with Thee. |
Fae me tecum pie flere, Crucifixo condolere, Donec ego vixero. |
FOURTEENTH STATION
Jesus is laid in the Sepulcher.
V. We adore Thee, O Christ, and we praise Thee,
R. Because by Thy holy cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
Priest: Consider that the disciples carried the body of Jesus to bury it, accompanied by His holy Mother, who arranged it in the sepulchre with her own hands. They then closed the tomb, and all withdrew.
People: Ah, my buried Jesus, ✠ I kiss the stone that encloses Thee. ✠ But Thou didst rise again the third day. ✠ I beseech Thee, by Thy resurrection, ✠ make me rise glorious with Thee at the Last Day, ✠ to be always united with Thee in Heaven, ✠ to praise Thee and love Thee forever. ✠ I love Thee,✠ and I repent of ever having offended Thee. ✠ Never permit me to offend Thee again. ✠ Grant that I may love Thee always, ✠ and then do with me what Thou wilt. ✠
Our Father. Hail Mary. Glory Be.
V. Lord Jesus, crucified,
R. Have mercy on us!
| Mine with Thee be that sad station, There to watch the great Salvation Wrought upon th' atoning Tree. |
Juxta crucem tecum stare, Et me tibi sociare, In planctu desidero. |
PRAYER TO JESUS CRUCIFIED
After this return to the high altar and, to complete the devotion, say the Our Father, Hail Mary and Glory Be five times in honor of the Passion of Jesus Christ.
Behold, O kind and most sweet Jesus, ✠ I cast myself upon my knees in Thy sight, ✠ and with the most fervent desire of my soul, ✠ I pray and beseech Thee that Thou wouldst impress upon my heart ✠ lively sentiments of faith, hope and charity, ✠ with true contrition for my sins ✠ and a firm purpose of amendment; ✠ while with deep affection and grief of soul, ✠ I ponder within myself and mentally contemplate Thy five wounds, ✠ having before my eyes the words which David the prophet ✠ put on Thy lips concerning Thee: ✠ "They have pierced My hands and My feet, ✠ they have numbered all my bones."
Stabat Mater
(Conclusion)
|
Virgin of all virgins best!
Let me, to my latest breath,
Wounded with His every wound,
Be to me, O Virgin, nigh,
Christ, when Thou shalt call me hence,
While my body here decays,
V. Pray for us, Virgin most sorrowful. |
Virgo virginum praeclara, Mihi jam non sis amara, Fac me tecum plangere;
Fac, ut portem Christi mortem,
Fac me plagis vulnerari,
Flammis ne urar succensus
Christe, cum sit hinc exire,
Quando corpus morietur,
V. Ora pro nobis, Virgo dolorosissima. |
| Let us pray Grant, we beseech Thee, O Lord Jesus Christ, that the most blessed Virgin Mary, Thy Mother, through whose most holy soul, in the hour of Thine own Passion, the sword of sorrow passed, may intercede for us before the throne of Thy mercy, now and at the hour of our death. Through Thee, Jesus Christ, Saviour of the world, Who livest and reignest with the Father and the Holy Ghost, now and for ever. Amen. |
Oremus Interveniat pro nobis, quaesumus, Domine Jesu Christe, nunc et in hora mortis nostrae, apud tuam clementiam, beata Virgo Maria Mater tua, cujus sacratissimam animam in hora tuae passionis doloris gladius pertransivit. Per te, Jesu Christe, salvator mundi, qui cum Patre et Spiritu Sancto vivis et regnas, per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen. |
Stabat Mater
| At the cross her station keeping, Stood the mournful Mother weeping, Close to Jesus to the last.Through her heart, His sorrow sharing, All His bitter anguish bearing, Now at length the sword has passed. Oh, how sad, and sore distressed., Woe-begone, with heart's prostration Who could mark, from tears refraining. Who, unmoved, behold her languish, For His people's sins rejected, Saw her Son from judgment taken, Fount of love and holy sorrow, Unto Christ, with, pure emotion, Those five wounds on Jesus smitten. Thou, my Saviour's Cross who bearest, In the Passion of my Maker, Mine with Thee be that sad station, Virgin of all virgins best! Let me, to my latest breath, Wounded with His every wound, Be to me, O Virgin, nigh, Christ, when Thou shalt call me hence, While my body here decays, V. Pray for us, Virgin most sorrowful. |
Stabat Mater dolorosa, Juxta crucem lacrymosa, Dum pendebat Filius.Cujus animam gementem, Contristatam et dolentem, Pertransivit gladius. O quam tristis et affiicta Quae moerebat, et dolebat, Quis est homo qui non fleret Quis non posset contristari, Pro peccatis suae gentis, Vidit suum dulcem natum Eia Mater, fons amoris Fae, ut ardeat cor meum Sancta Mater istud agas, Toi nati vulnerati, Fae me tecum pie flere, Juxta crucem tecum stare, Virgo virginum praeclara, Fac, ut portem Christi mortem, Fac me plagis vulnerari, Flammis ne urar succensus Christe, cum sit hinc exire, Quando corpus morietur, V. Ora pro nobis, Virgo dolorosissima. |