I took a lot of pictures, one at every station. Most of them we have our fingers up but some of them we didn't want to be disrespectful. So I will go through all of the stations and tell you what happened at each one.
Note: This is where many Christians claim that these things happened to Christ. I am going to say them as if they are true, but know that I do not whole heartedly believe that these are the exact stones Jesus walked on to Golgotha, and somehow they have survived through thousands of years and the Roman destruction and Muslim rule, and the many different rulers. However, it is a spiritual journey to take the walk in the areas where he would have walked and fallen, and thus to give you a small piece of this journey, I will put what the pamphlet says each location represents.
1. This is where Jesus was condemned to death. There is a courtyard behind us and it is in this general location (the Praetorium) where Pilate condemned Christ.
2. This is where Christ took up the cross. There are two churches in this area, the church of flagellation (where he was whipped) and the chapel of condemnation.
This is one of the roof paintings in the church of flagellation---I love it because it is a crown of thorns with lilies, signaling the inevitability of the resurrection. It is such a beautiful image to think of. Maybe because I have grown up worshipping the resurrected Lord, I connect to this more than other common Christian images.
3. Jesus falls for the first time. If you look at the back you can see a interesting painting/sculpture with the saints or martyrs that came after Christ carrying the cross with him. To me this painting makes me think of the heavy sadness that we (as angels) all felt as we watched from heaven as our brother carried the cross through the streets of Jerusalem. I imagine it was devastating to not help as he fell down for the first time, knowing that he had to do it alone.
4. Jesus meets his mother ------ I am sure that this will mean even more when I am a mother, but I have always thought it is very sweet to see Christ and his mother. He must have such a love for her, and she certainly must feel like many mothers feel when they realize that their child is really God's child and that they have a mission from God that requires their child to leave them. Maybe a little bit like giving up a child for a mission, but much worse obviously.
5. Simon of Cyrene helps Jesus to carry the cross----this is where Christ put his hand on the stone wall and made an impression on the rock. Many people come and touch this rock and pray. Although I doubt that this was the actual rock that Jesus himself touched, I am learning here that spiritual experiences are not limited to those who are in the exact spots, but rather those whose hearts are turned to Christ, so I have no problem with people feeling the spirit when they touch this rock, or for that matter do inscence burning rituals with all sorts of trinkets. These things remind them of Christ, and that is how they grow closer to the Savior, so I think that they can feel the Holy Ghost just as strong as I do when I worship in the "correct" way when they worship God in an "incorrect" way.
6. Veronica wipes the face of Jesus---So according to the story, Veronica gave Jesus her veil to wipe his face on, and when he gave it back there was an impression of his face on the veil. This makes me think of how even people had never even seen him before saw Him and wanted to help Him. It makes me think of people who typify the pure love of Christ in my life, and how whenever I see them, I want to help them if they ever needed anything because I know they would do the same and more for me.
7. Jesus falls for the second time.
8. Jesus Consoles the Crying Women of Jerusalem--- I love this because this is so exactly what Jesus would do in this situation. I had not heard of this story before, but it would only be right that Jesus, after being beaten and tied to a cross, walking to his death, feeling the sorrows and pains of the world, would see the sorrow of the world, and would comfort the few. It also is amazing to think that at this point, the atonement is completed, so he probably knew each of these women by name, and exactly what their lives were like because he had felt them all already.
9. Jesus falls for the third time. Notice there are crosses here (obviously miniature versions). People sometimes take the stations of the cross tour with a cross to really understand how long of a walk it is.
10. Jesus is stripped of his garments. The rest of the stations were all in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher (where many Christians believe Jesus was buried.)
11. Jesus is nailed to the cross. You can't see it in the picture, but there is a mural of Jesus being nailed to the cross in the background. Also, sooo many people come to this church. I have passed by like three times and every single time it is super busy.
12. Crucifixion and Death
13. Jesus is taken down from the cross. The hanging lamps behind us are over a rock called the anointing rock, where Jesus was anointed for burial. This is another one of the big places that people come to kiss and cry over and worship Jesus. Also, we are making 13 fingers, not being irreverent, FYI. It kind of looks a little odd.
14. Jesus is laid in the tomb. Not the best picture, but this is in the middle of the church and it is huge! I haven't been inside it yet but when we as a group go on a tour in a week or two hopefully I will get to go inside of it. This is the last stop.
15. RESURRECTION!!!!!! Ok. so there isn't really a stop 15, but this is the top of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, and the miracle of the stations of the cross is that they didn't lead to death, they lead to resurrection. So this is the unofficial last stop of the tour.
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