How to Pray the Rosary of the Way of the Cross?

What is the Stations of the Cross? What is its history? What do you gain by practicing the Stations of the Cross?

In order to answer all questions, we have put an investigation team on the subject. The first ones tell us that:

Prayer is the meditation of the painful moments experienced by Jesus from his imprisonment until the last day of his breath on the cross and his subsequent resurrection. Literally, via crucis means "way of the cross". When we pray to it, we remember with faith and love the suffering of Jesus to save us from sin. This way is represented by 15 images of the Passion called "stations".

Find out in the rest of this article:

• Everything you need to know about how to pray the Stations of the Cross rosary
• What are the promises of Jesus Christ to the devotees of the Stations of the Cross?
• The history of the Stations of the Cross
• The different circumstances of prayer
• The True Definition of the Stations of the Cross

Without further ado, let's begin the article.

Everything you need to know about how to pray the Stations of the Cross rosary

The rosary of the cross is composed of 44 beads. The five or six beads after the cross are separated distinctly from the lot. The other beads are grouped in sections of three, and each section is separated from the next by a medal. Each medal represents a station of the cross. There should therefore be 14 on the rosary.

The prayer begins directly on the first medal of the rosary . The cross and the first five or six beads will first be set aside. The prior should meditate on each of the medals and evoke the corresponding station. Afterwards, he should recite the following invocation: "We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you, for by your Holy Cross , you have redeemed the world."

On each triplet, he must recite successively an Our Father, a Hail Mary and a Glory Be. After having chained the 14 medals, the prior must return to the first (corresponding this time to the expectation of the resurrection of Christ). The five beads set aside correspond to the five wounds of the Lord at the time of his crucifixion. It will therefore be necessary to meditate on this. After a Glory Be, the prior must end with the invocation "Eternal Father, I offer you the wounds of Our Lord Jesus Christ. To heal those of our souls" or "Forgive us, Lord, you save by your death. Forgive us, Lord. Forgive us again".

Promises for the faithful of the Stations of the Cross

I will grant whatever is asked with faith, during the prayer of the Stations of the Cross .

I give my word to eternal life and to those who sometimes apply themselves to praying the way of the cross .

After death, if these devotees reach purgatory, I will release them from this place of atonement on the first Tuesday or Friday after their death.

I will bless these souls every time they pray the Way of the Cross , and my blessing will accompany them to all parts of the earth. After their death, they will enjoy this blessing in heaven, for eternity.

At the hour of death, I will not allow them to be subjected to the temptation of the devil. I will deprive the evil spirit of all power over these souls. Thus, they will be able to rest peacefully in my arms.

If they pray with true love, they will be highly rewarded. That is, I will convert each of these souls into a living ciborium, where I will be happy to pour out my grace.

The history of the Stations of the Cross

We may not know exactly at what point in history the Way of the Cross became one of the most beautiful and lively prayers of the Catholic religion. We do know, however, from tradition, that it was Saint Mary herself who visited the original stations daily. It is a beautiful practice, full of love, pain, joy and the memory of an unparalleled sacrifice, I believe it is enough to know this.

It is true that on Good Friday we remember above all the road to Calvary, but let us not forget that we can live the Passion of Christ every day. This prayer is intended to unite us spiritually with Christ in a prayer that is almost "a journey" in time and space to the crucial moment of our salvation.

The first documents we have speak of pilgrims who visited the Holy Land and needed to remember the road to Calvary . Since it was not possible for everyone to visit Jerusalem for various reasons, including wars, the prayer of the different stations began to spread throughout Europe until it was consistent with the prayer we know today.

The Way of the Cross has a special way of being prayed. It is composed of 15 stations. Until recently, only 14 stations were prayed, but now we can include the 15th station which reminds us that Christ triumphed over death by rising on the third day. Each station represents a specific moment of the Passion, which is why it is recommended to pray it while walking and stopping at each station because it helps us to have the images that remind us of the seasons.

Beginning of the Stations Prayer

Each station is announced and repeated: "We adore you, Lord, and we bless you, for by your holy Cross you have redeemed the world." Then a short meditation is given. At the end of each season, an Our Father, a Hail Mary, and a Glory Be are recited. There are some variations, but this is generally the basic structure.

Condemned, and not by a court, but by everyone. Condemned by the same people who had cheered Him a short time before. And He is silent... We flee from reproaches. And we jumped immediately...

Second Station: Jesus Carrying the Cross

May I understand, Lord, the value of the cross , of my little daily crosses, of my ailments, of my infirmities, of my solitude.

Help me to make my daily cross an offering of love, in reparation for my life and in apostolate for my brothers.

Third Station: Jesus falls for the first time under the weight of the Cross

You fall, Lord, to redeem me. To help me get up in my daily falls, when after having proposed to be faithful, I return to my daily faults. Help me to always get up and follow my path to You! Lord, I have sinned, have mercy on me.

Fourth Station: Jesus Meets His Mother

Lord, may I be by your mother's side every moment of my life.

With her, supported by her maternal love, I am certain of joining You on the last day of my existence.

Fifth Station: The Cyrenean Helps the Lord to Carry the Cross

Each of us has our own vocation, we came into the world for something concrete, to fulfill ourselves in a particular way.

What is mine and how can I achieve it? But there is something, Lord, which is my mission and that of everyone: to be a Cyrenean for others, to help everyone.

Sixth Station: Veronica Wipes Jesus' Face

She is the courageous and determined woman who comes to You when everyone abandons You. I, Lord, abandon You when I let myself be carried away by "what they will say", by human respect, when I do not dare to defend my absent neighbor, when I do not dare to respond to a joke that ridicules those who try to approach You.

And on so many other occasions.

Seventh Station: Second Fall on the Way of the Cross

You fall, Lord, for the second time. The Way of the Cross shows us three falls on your way to Calvary . Perhaps there were others.

You fall in front of everyone... When will I learn not to be afraid of appearing bad in front of others, because of a mistake, a fault? When will I learn that this too can become an offering? Lord, I have sinned, have mercy on me.

Eighth Station: Jesus Comforts the Daughters of Jerusalem

Often I had to analyze the cause of my tears. At least, of my sorrows, of my worries. Perhaps there is a background of pride, of misunderstood self-esteem, of selfishness, of envy.

I should mourn my lack of correspondence to your innumerable daily blessings, which show me, Lord, how much you love me.

Ninth Station: Jesus falls for the third time

Third fall. Closer to the cross. More exhausted, more lacking in strength. You are late, Lord.

I say that the years weigh on me, that I am no longer who I was, that I feel incapable. Grant me, Lord, to imitate You in this third autumn and to make my fainting beneficial to others, because I give it to You for them.

Tenth Station: Jesus is stripped of his garments

They tear off your clothes, attached to you by the blood of your wounds. At an infinite distance from your pain, I felt, at times, how something was painfully torn from me by the loss of my loved ones.

May I be able to offer you the memory of the separations that have torn me apart, by joining your passion and striving to comfort those who suffer, by escaping my own selfishness.

Eleventh Station: Jesus Nailed to the Cross

Lord, may I diminish my limitations through my efforts to help my brothers. And when my efforts fail to diminish them, may I strive to offer them to You for them as well.

Twelfth Station: Jesus Dies on the Cross

I adore You, my Lord , who died on the Cross to save me. I adore You and I kiss your wounds, the wounds of the nails, the throwing aside... Thank you, Lord, thank you! You died to save me, to save us.

Grant that I may respond to your love with love, that I may do your will, that I may work for my salvation, aided by your grace.

Thirteenth Station: Jesus in his mother's arms

Let me be by your side, Mother, especially in these moments of your incomparable pain. Let me be by your side. I ask you more: today and always, keep me close to you and have mercy on me.

Fourteenth Station: Jesus' Body is Placed in the Tomb

It is all over. But no: after death, the Resurrection. Teach me to see what is happening, what is transitory and passing, in the light of what is not happening. And let this light illuminate all my actions.

TheResurrection: Fifteenth Station

Fifteenth Station: Jesus Rises on the Third Day

If Christ had not risen, our faith would have been in vain. For all the times I have made my faith in vain by believing in myths that go against your Resurrection.

• Closing Prayer

“My Lord Jesus Christ, who by your passion and death gave life to the world, deliver us from all our faults and from every inclination to evil, grant us to live according to your commandments and never allow us to be separated from you. You who live and reign forever and ever. Amen. I pray you, Lord, to grant me, through the intercession of your Mother the Virgin, that each time I meditate on your Passion, it may be engraved on me with a mark. 🙏

The Way of the Cross helps us overcome all difficulties

Now, you are quite equipped on the notion of the Way of the Cross . It consists of commemorating the ordeal experienced by Jesus from his arrest until his death on the cross. Similarly, as a Christian it is possible to formulate wishes to Jesus through the intersection of the Virgin Mary, his mother. With fourteen stations and a fifteenth station which is the resurrection , the Way of the Cross strengthens faith and solidifies your spiritual life on a daily basis. This allows you to overcome all difficult times, no matter the circumstances. If you wish to have victory and wisdom in the face of all your challenges, we would like to present our article on how to pray to the Orthodox . This will surely help you.