Walking the Stations Trivia Quiz

It is said that after Christ's death and resurrection that Mary retraced his last day every day. Then pilgrims began to walk the Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem which is the accepted processional route symbolising the path Jesus walked to Mount Calvary.

Over the centuries this has grown into what we know today as the Stations of the Cross, also known as Via Crucis or the Way of Sorrows. It can be found in many Western Christian churches but there are slight variations according to different belief systems so I am focusing on the Roman Catholic tradition today. If I say 'we' I am referring to what the Catholic Church believes.

1. At this first station we are encouraged to think about Jesus and what was done to Him before He was condemned by Pilate to die. The meditation and prayer encourage us to reflect on the fact that it was not Pilate but our sins that condemned Him to death.

St Francis of Assisi made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in the early thirteenth century but had to obtain permission to visit as the Crusades were still occurring. In 1217, while Jerusalem was still under Muslim rule, he founded the 'Custody of the Holy Land' under his Order. The Vatican recognised the Franciscans as the official custodians of the Holy Places in 1342. These include monasteries, churches, hospitals and all the other holy sites. The Order continue to take care of these to this day.

2. The second station focuses on the physical pain it would have caused Him to carry the Cross and then we ask for Him to give us the help we need to carry our burdens.

After this decree the Franciscans began to replicate the sacred monuments and sites around Europe so more people could have the experience. These were originally all outside shrines but then they began to build them inside the churches - originally without approval by the Vatican but Pope Innocent XI finally approved their request in 1686. Now they are found inside nearly every Catholic Church.

3. The third station sees Jesus falling for the first time and we ask for help to prevent us from falling into mortal sin.

The style and format of the stations vary considerably from huge monuments, like those in my pictures, to small tapestries or pictures around the church walls, although pictures alone won't suffice - they must contain a cross. Some churches prefer a very minimalist approach and just have the crosses with numbers on them.

Inside the churches the sheer logistics of numbers and limited aisle space mean that the attendants often stay in the pews and face each station while the priest, acolytes and altar servers travel around the path stopping at each one.

4. As Jesus meets His mother in the fourth station we acknowledge her courage in following Gods will and we ask for her intercession when we need this courage.

There are discussions about the 14 traditional stations as they do not all have a scriptural foundation. Eight are found in the scriptures while the other six are either out of order or not mentioned at all. There is no mention of Station 4 where He meets Mary along the way. She is mentioned after He is on the Cross. There is no record of Him falling as in 3, 7 and 9 and no record of anyone wiping His face as in station 6. Station 13 where He is taken from the Cross and laid in Mary's arms is different from the Gospels which state that Joseph of Arimathea took Him down from the Cross. Though most people do accept these in the spirit in which they were intended.

5. The fifth station sees the soldiers getting Simon to help Him to carry the Cross. We focus on spiritually being able to carry our crosses and that we may receive and accept His help.

For those that do find it difficult to accept, Pope John Paul II introduced a new set of Devotions in 1991 that he called the Scriptural Way of the Cross which he celebrated many times. They are used in conjunction with, not in place of, the original. These include:

1. Jesus prays in the Garden of Gethsemane
2. Jesus is betrayed by Judas and arrested
3. Jesus is condemned by the Sanhedrin
4. Jesus is denied by Peter 3 times
5. Jesus is judged by Pilate
6. Jesus is scourged and crowned with thorns
7. Jesus takes up his cross
8. Jesus is helped by Simon of Cyrene to carry his cross
9. Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem
10. Jesus is crucified
11. Jesus promises his kingdom to the repentant thief
12. Jesus entrusts Mary and John to each other
13. Jesus dies on the cross
14. Jesus is laid in the tomb.

6. Veronica seeing Jesus with His face covered in blood and sweat steps forward to offer him a towel to wipe it clean. We may reflect on the fact that our soul was beautified at our Baptism but we have disfigured it with our sins and ask Him to cleanse it for us again.

Pope John Paul II used to lead an annual procession of the Stations of the Cross at the Roman Colosseum on Good Fridays. He used to carry the Cross around the stations himself until the last few years when he wasn't strong enough anymore.

Every year different people are chosen to write the meditation texts for these stations and several were written by Non-Catholics. The Pope himself wrote the ones used for the Jubilee in 2000.

7. On the second fall of Jesus we can reflect on how many times we have fallen from grace and still receive forgiveness.

The Stations can be prayed at any time but are mostly used during Lent. A lot of churches offer the services every morning during this time and a weekly one on Fridays at 3.00 pm as this is the accepted time that Christ died. They are not said at this time on Good Friday though as this is when the big Church Service itself is held.

8. When Jesus meets the woman of Jerusalem in the eighth station he tells them not to weep for Him but for their children. As children of God we weep for the offences we have committed against Him.

The most common way to say the Stations is at a Church or dedicated shrine as you allow the images to guide you through the devotion but you are able to say it anywhere. Some people have photos at home that they look at, or they just use a crucifix and imagine the stations.

As you might imagine in this day and age there is also an app (or more than one) that will lead you through them. They have a daily condensed version that takes roughly 20 mins or a much longer version that can be 20 mins per Station.

9. The ninth station and the third fall but He still has the strength to get back up. We ask for the same strength to keep going when we think we can't and the strength and conviction to follow His Word.

This is not a comfortable devotion where we are symbolically doing it out of a sense of sentimentality, it is a disturbing experience which is what it is supposed to be. We are walking with Him throughout these traumatic events, we are meditating on what it was like to be Him at each of these times and examining ourselves and our actions to see if we are living a life worth the sacrifice He made.

10. Jesus is now stripped of His garments, tearing His skin as they are pulled off. We ask for the help to strip us of all our worries and stress so we can be at peace with Him.

The Stations have a particular sequence with certain prayers and responses that are said by the priest and the congregation at the beginning and end of each one if you are following them in a service.

At the very beginning of the service there is an opening prayer and then the Priest and his entourage move to the first station. At the beginning of each the Adoration is said:

Priest: We Adore You Oh Christ and We Bless You
Response: Because By Your Holy Cross You Have Redeemed the World.

11. Jesus is nailed to the cross with His arms extended to His Father as He sacrifices Himself for us. We pray that we may be worthy of such a gift.

The station is then named. We then genuflect or kneel and focus our minds on what is happening at that point.

There is a short scripture reading about the Station and then we are given time for private reflection to think about it and what it means in our life and circumstances or to just imagine being there with Him.

There is then a set prayer that is said where we are asking for forgiveness and for help in the future and finally the three prayers - the Our Father, Hail Mary and Glory Be.
Then you move on to the next station and repeat the progress.

12. After three hours of agony he gives up His Body, bows His head and dies. A common meditation here is to marvel at the fact that somebody died for us over 2000 years ago so that we might have eternal life today.

A lot of modern liturgist believe the Stations are incomplete without the Resurrection as this is the integral part of the story and our religion. Traditional views believe that it is not intended as a complete picture of His life, it is a day to contemplate His Suffering and the fact that He died for us.

The Catholic Church now acknowledges either format. The 15th station was approved to be used by Pope St. John Paul II in 2000 but it is not necessary for those that prefer the traditional format. I have included it in this quiz because the photos I chose to use included it.

13. Jesus is now taken down from the Cross and placed in the arms of His mother. We take this time to thank her for the grief she faced for us. We again ask for intercession with her son. Just as a point of reference - we do not pray to Mary as a deity we ask for her intercession. Just like we may ask someone here on earth to pray for us when we need help.

In 1988 a concept was derived that there should be a devotion based upon the Resurrection itself so they devised The Stations of the Resurrection, also known by the Latin name Via Lucis 'Way of Light'. Although generally similar there is no official list of these stations so they can change between churches depending on their interpretations. The only common factors are that there are 14 of them, they are all scriptural and they all begin with the Resurrection and end with the Pentecost.

14. The fourteenth station and Jesus is laid in the tomb. Without the added fifteenth station this is where we acknowledge that He will rise again and ask that we may be raised up on the last day.

The sites of each happening are referred to as 'stations' because they come from the Latin word 'stat' and its variant 'stit' which mean 'to stand.' We are walking with Christ from his trial to his crucifixion and we stop and stand at each site along the way.

15. The fifteenth station is often depicted symbolically like this one showing the open tomb - or the stone rolled back. These photos were all taken at Lourdes, France. The stations stretch out over 1500 metres and include 115 cast iron life size statues. The walk is not for everyone as it involves some steep ascents and descents.