Praying the Way of the Cross at Manresa
| The 12th Station, "Jesus Dies on the Cross," located along a wooded edge of the extensive Manresa grounds. | |||
As we have recently seen in our parish during Holy Week and throughout Lent, the Way of the Cross is a beautiful way to make a spiritual pilgrimage to the scenes of Christ's passion and death. At each station, we reflect on Jesus' sacrifice for us and meditate on how it relates - or should relate - to the way we live each day.
In addition to the many personal benefits we realize by praying the Way of the Cross, each person who does so receives the same indulgences that are granted for devoutly visiting the actual scenes of Christ's passion in Jerusalem. Also known as the Stations of the Cross, they may be prayed either publicly or privately. As such, there are several opportunities to pray the Way of the Cross on a Manresa retreat. Perhaps the most obvious place to pray the Way of the Cross at Manresa is under the breezeway just between the chapel and St. Mary's Hall. You can, of course, make this Way of the Cross on your own, or you can join the rest of the retreatants on the Saturday afternoon of the retreat. The group assembles silently, one by one, at the first station. Promptly at 4:00 PM, the bell chimes and the assigned leader begins the prayer. He subsequently ushers the prayerful group from station to station. Although there are no other organized gatherings to pray the Way of the Cross at Manresa, there are a multitude of opportunities for retreatants to pray the Stations on their own. As is the case in almost every Catholic church, there are Stations of the Cross in the St. Ignatius Chapel. A less conventional way to pray the Way of the Cross is at the outdoor stations along the wooded upriver edge of the extensive Manresa grounds. Isolated only by distance, they allow you the opportunity to pray each station at your own pace, amid nature's beauty and rustic artwork at each station. The Way of the Cross can also be prayed privately in any of the smaller chapels at Manresa. The chapels in St. Mary's Hall, in St. Joseph's Hall, and in Loyola Hall all have uniquely beautiful stations of the cross, and each location offers you the opportunity to pray the Way of the Cross in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament. 