Every Friday throughout the year should be treated as a “mini Good Friday,” but the Fridays during Lent are an extra special time to focus on the Passion of Christ.
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Are there 14 or 15 Stations?
Although some sets of the Stations of the Cross – even sometimes in churches – contain a 15th Station depicting the Resurrection, there are officially 14 Stations:
- 1st Station: Jesus is condemned to death
- 2nd Station: Jesus carries His cross
- 3rd Station: Jesus falls the first time
- 4th Station: Jesus meets His Mother
- 5th Station: Simon of Cyrene helps Jesus to carry His cross
- 6th Station: Veronica wipes the face of Jesus
- 7th Station: Jesus falls the second time
- 8th Station: Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem
- 9th Station: Jesus falls a third time
- 10th Station: Jesus’ clothes are taken away
- 11th Station: Jesus is nailed to the cross
- 12th Station: Jesus dies on the cross
- 13th Station: The body of Jesus is taken down from the cross
- 14th Station: Jesus is laid in the tomb
In churches, the stations are hung in a series that allows for moving along a path in order to journey with Jesus, recalling the events of His last day. I especially enjoy it when the Stabat Mater is sung. It is so beautiful! However, depending on the ages of your children, the status of the pandemic in your area, or any number of reasons, it may not be practical for you to attend the Stations of the Cross. That’s why I’d like to share 3 ideas for you to meditate on the Stations from home! Here are the ones that we’ve tried:
- The Stations of the Cross with Bishop Barron
- The Stations of the Cross Printable Booklet with audio from the Behold app
- Brother Francis: Stations of the Cross
Step 1: Hanging the Stations
In our house this year, I hung a small banner of the Stations made using the images from the Stations of the Cross Printable Coloring Book available at www.catholicallyear.com. I am not much of a crafting DIY-er, but inspiration struck, so I followed where it led:
If you have good eyes, you might notice that I hung Stations 12 and 13 in the wrong order. I was afraid I would rip them if I tried to fix it, so I just left it this way.
1: The Stations of the Cross with Bishop Barron
I didn’t realize before starting this with our family on the 1st Friday of Lent that it isn’t exactly The Stations of the Cross. Rather, it is Bishop Barron’s reflections on The Stations of the Cross. I still recommend this as something to add to your Lenten prayer, especially if you have some time (54 minutes to be exact!) to watch it without the kids. Its pace is slow, so it will not appeal to young children. As always with Bishop Barron’s content, it is beautiful and thought-provoking.
2: The Stations of the Cross Printable Booklet with audio from the Behold app
For the 2nd Friday of Lent, we decided to go a more traditional route with the printable booklet that was very similar to one we’d used at our Parish in a prior year. And bonus: if you follow along with the audio from the Behold app (recorded by Kendra Tierney of Catholic All Year‘s family), you can hear the Stabat Mater sung by Grace Brown. As I already mentioned, I love the Stabat Mater! Our kids were much more engaged with this version of the Stations of the Cross. They especially enjoyed listening to the Tierney children of all ages reading different parts.
3: Brother Francis: Stations of the Cross
This is by far our favorite! We watched this for the first time on Good Friday in 2020 when we found it on Formed. This year, I went ahead and bought the DVD because I didn’t want to risk being without it. All 40 minutes of this are fantastic.
My kids’ favorite part is when the illustrations are drawn on-screen, first in black-and-white and then colored in. It is very well done!
Family Time, Focused on Christ
It is so important to make time to focus on Christ. If you haven’t tried the Stations of the Cross yet this Lent, there is still time! You can meditate on the Stations of the Cross on Good Friday – whether at your local parish or at home!
More ideas for Lent:
5 Movies to Watch During Holy Week
Palm Sunday: Welcoming and Learning about Jesus
Spy Wednesday: The Betrayal of Judas and an At-Home Tenebrae Service
Holy Thursday: The Last Supper at Home
Good Friday: Silence and The Crown of Thorns
Vinegar, Salt, and the Gospel: A Holy Saturday Activity
