Meditating on the Stations of the Cross offers a deeper perspective on Christ’s suffering and crucifixion during the season of Lent.

Pray our interactive Stations below.

Begin each station with: “We adore You, O Christ, and bless You. Because by Your holy cross You have redeemed the world.”

Read and meditate on the Station.

End each station with: Our Father… Hail Mary… Glory Be… “Jesus Christ crucified, have mercy on us. May the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.”

 Jesus stands before the high priest
in Jerusalem, is questioned and
then condemned to death.

“At that the high priest tore his garments
and said ‘What further need have we of
witnesses? You have heard the
blasphemy. What do you think?’

They all condemned him to die.”

(Mk 14: 61-64)

Station 1

Jesus is condemned to die

 Jesus is handed the heavy wooden
cross and begins his walk.

“Then he (Pilate) handed him over to
them to be crucified. So they took
Jesus, and carrying the cross himself
he went out to what is called the
Place of the Skull, in Hebrew,
Golgotha.”

(Jn 19: 16-17)

Station 2

Jesus carries His cross

 Jesus is shown falling for the first
time under the heavy weight of the
wooden cross. He is made to get up
and continue on the way.

“He was so weakened that he could
scarcely walk, and yet He had to carry
this great load upon his shoulders.”

Station 3

Jesus falls the first time

 As Jesus walks he meets Mary,
who is in deep grief and anguish
at seeing her son and his suffering.

“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.”

Station 4

Jesus meets His mother

 Simon of Cyrene is selected from
the crowd to help the suffering
Jesus bear the heavy cross.

“They pressed into service a
passer-by, Simon, a Cyrenian, who
was coming in from the country,
the father of Alexander and Rufus,
to carry his cross.”

(Mk 15:21)

Station 5

Simon helps Jesus carry His cross

 Veronica steps forth from the crowd
and wipes Jesus’ face. Tradition
states that His image (The Holy
Face) was left behind.

“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 face.”

Station 6

Veronica wipes the face of Jesus

 The weight of the cross forces
Jesus to fall yet again, and guards
force him to move on again.

“Consider the second fall ... a fall
which renews the pain of all the
wounds of ... our afflicted Lord ...
Jesus, by the merits of this new
fall, give me the necessary help to
persevere in Thy grace until death.”

Station 7

Jesus falls the second time

 Jesus encounters women in the
crowd who are in sorrow over
what is happening to him.

“Jesus turned to them and said,
'Daughters of Jerusalem, do not
weep for me; weep instead for
yourselves and for your children.'”

(Lk 23:27-28)

Station 8

Jesus meets the women
of Jerusalem

The burden of the cross forces
the suffering Jesus to fall yet again.

“His weakness was extreme, and
the cruelty of His executioners
excessive, who tried to hasten His
steps when He had scarcely
strength to move.”

Station 9

Jesus falls a third time

When he has reached the place
where he will be crucified, the
guards strip Jesus of his garments.

“They gave Jesus wine to drink
mixed with gall. But when he had
tasted it, he refused to drink. After
they had crucified him, they divided
his garments by casting lots.”

(Mt 27:34-35)

Station 10

Jesus is stripped

Jesus’ hands and feet are nailed to
the cross after he reaches Golgotha.

“When they came to the place
called The Skull, they crucified him
and the criminals there, one on his
right, the other on his left. Then
Jesus said, 'Father forgive them,
they know not what they do.'”

(Lk 23: 33-34)

Station 11

Jesus is nailed to the cross

Jesus is shown in death on the cross,
with Mary and others mourning
below him.

“Jesus cried out in a loud voice,
'Father, into your hands I commend
my spirit'; and when he said this
he breathed his last.”

(Lk 23:46)

Station 12

Jesus dies on the cross

Two of Christ’s disciples help him
down from the cross and he is placed
in the arms of Mary.

“Two of his disciples, Joseph and
Nicodemus ... placed Him in the arms
of his afflicted mother, who received
Him with unutterable tenderness.”

Station 13

Jesus is taken down from the cross

Jesus is placed in the tomb, depicted
with Joseph, his disciples and his
mother attending.

“Taking the body, Joseph (of
Arimithea) wrapped it in clean linen
and laid it in his new tomb that he
had hewn in the rock. Then he
rolled a huge stone across the
entrance to the tomb and departed.”

Station 14

Jesus is laid in the tomb

Station 1Station 2Station 3Station 4Station 5Station 6Station 7Station 8Station 9Station 10Station 11Station 12Station 13Station 14

All photos by Jeff Blake/Miscellany: Stations of the Cross are from the Basilica of St. Peter in Columbia.

Note: Where there is no Scripture passage corresponding to a Station above, reflections come from “The Way of the Cross” by St. Alphonsus De Liguori.

Additional resources

Want to read more about the stations or bring them into your prayer routine? Here are some books and apps to help you along.

The Way of the Cross by St. Alphonsus Liguori has been the most popular form of stations in the U.S. since the 19th century. Found in most Catholic bookstores and online.

Children’s Way of the Cross and Stations of the Cross in My Pocket (Pauline Books) are good prayer guides to introduce children to the stations, with prayers and meditations they can easily understand.

Creighton University has an online edition that includes audio versions in English and Spanish, as well as prayers and meditations.

The Laudate app for smartphones and tablets offers stations with images and prayers, and links to podcasts for audio versions. Available through the Apple store and Google Play.

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has print and audio, as well as specially themed stations, including one for victims of human trafficking.