Joy of the Cross. Way of the Cross Meditation with Evangelii Gaudium

Joy of the Cross

“Cruci Gaudium” Way of the Cross based on

Evangelii Gaudium of Pope Francis

Opening Devotions

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Lord, have mercy.Christ, have mercy.

Lord, have mercy.

Welcoming the Joy of Cross…… “The joy of the gospel fills the hearts and lives of all who encounter Jesus. Those who accept his offer of salvation are set free from sin, sorrow, inner emptiness and loneliness. With Christ joy is constantly born anew” (EG 1)

Let us pray“Lord, I have let myself be deceived; in a thousand ways I have shunned your love, yet here I am once more, to renew my covenant with you. I need you. Accept me once again, Lord, take me once more into your redeeming embrace”. Amen.

(at the end of each Station)

Have Mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy. May the souls in purgatory through the

mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

(hymn)

…..to the next Station….

I. Jesus is condemned to death

Priest: We adore you,

O Christ, and we bless you!

All:Because by your holy cross,

O Lord, You have redeemed the world!

“The great danger in today’s world, pervaded as it is by consumerism, is the desolation and anguish born of a complacent yet covetous heart, the feverish pursuit of frivolous pleasures, and a blunted conscience. Whenever our interior life becomes caught up in its own interests and concerns, there is no longer room for others, no place for the poor. God’s voice is no longer heard, the quiet joy of his love is no longer felt, and the desire to do good fades. This is a very real danger for believers too. Many fall prey to it, and end up resentful, angry and listless. That is no way to live a dignified and fulfilled life; it is not God’s will for us, nor is it the life in the Spirit which has its source in the heart of the risen Christ” (EG 2)

First Station: Vanishing Joy of the Cross

Lord, wake up our conscience

and make us sensitive to the injustice

and inhumanity around us

and give us the courage to be the voice

of the voiceless and to defend your life

and love. Amen

II. Jesus Carries his Cross





SECOND STATION: Carrying the Cross An evangelizing community knows that the Lord has taken the initiative, he has loved us first (cf. 1 Jn 4:19). It gets involved by word and deed in people’s daily lives; it bridges distances, it is willing to abase itself if necessary, and it embraces human life, touching the suffering flesh of Christ in others. An evangelizing community is also supportive, standing by people at every step of the way, no matter how difficult or lengthy this may prove to be. It is familiar with patient expectation and apostolic endurance (EG 24).

Lord, as I thank you for the gift of this life,

help me to live it as a proclamation of your Good News.

Help be to bear witness to your Cross not just in Lent but right through the year, right

through my life.

Give me courage to do this Lord and be with me in my journey of life. Amen

III. Jesus Embraces the Mother Earth.





Being Church means being God’s people, in accordance with the great plan of his fatherly love. This means that we are to be God’s leaven in the midst of humanity. It means proclaiming and bringing God’s salvation into our world, which often goes astray and needs to be encouraged, given hope and strengthened on the way. The Church must be a place of mercy freely given, where everyone can feel welcomed, loved, forgiven and encouraged to live the good life of the Gospel. Whenever a community receives the message of salvation, the Holy Spirit enriches its culture with the transforming power of the Gospel (EG 114).

THIRD STATION: Jesus Embraces the Earth

Lord, I do not properly appreciate the wonderful power you have given me and our Christian community through your Gospel of

love.

I am sorry to have failed to transform the world through the power of your Good News.

Sorry for having let you down through my anti-witnessing life.

Renew me Lord, and give me strength to walk in your path. Amen.

IV. Jesus meets his Mother.





Only from the affective connaturality born of love can we appreciate the theological life present in the piety of Christian peoples, especially among their poor. I think of the steadfast faith of those mothers tending their sick children who, though perhaps barely familiar with the articles of the creed, cling to a rosary; or of all the hope poured into a candle lighted in a humble home with a prayer for help from Mary, or in the gaze of tender love directed to Christ crucified. No one who loves God’s holy people will view these actions as the expression of a purely human search for the divine. They are the manifestation of a theological life nourished by the working of the Holy Spirit who has been poured into our hearts (cf. Rom 5:5)(EG 125-126).

FOURTH STATION: Encountering Joy in the Other

Thank you, Jesus for your mother, who walks with us as a co-pilgrim in our life journey.

Help us to realise that our devotion to her should strengthen our efforts

to share your love with others as she herself did generously.

May we learn from our mother to encounter you in our suffering brothers and sisters.

Amen.

V. Simon Carries the Cross





FIFTH STATION: Daring to be Different

I also think of the real joy shown by others who, even amid pressing professional obligations, were able to preserve, in detachment and simplicity, a heart full of faith. In their own way, all these instances of joy flow from the infinite love of God, who has revealed himself to us in Jesus Christ. Goodness always tends to spread. Every authentic experience of truth and goodness seeks by its very nature to grow within us, and any person who has experienced a profound liberation becomes more sensitive to the needs of others. As it expands, goodness takes root and develops. If we wish to lead a dignified and fulfilling life, we have to reach out to others and seek their good. (EG 7 & 9).

Lord Jesus, Simeon is a wonderful example for us in sharing your blessings with others.

In spite of our constraints and inimical environment we can stand up against the sea of indifference and stop spreading a culture of

selfishness and pragmatism by walking with you.

Give us the courage Lord to follow in your footsteps carrying our cross. Amen.

VI. Veronica Wipes the Face of Jesus.





SIXTH STATION: Renewing the Face of Joy “The Gospel offers us the chance to live

life on a higher plane, but with no less intensity: “Life grows by being given away, and it weakens in isolation and comfort. Indeed, those who enjoy life most are those who leave security on the shore and become excited by the mission of communicating life to others”. The heart of its message will always be the same: the God who revealed his immense love in the crucified and risen Christ. God constantly renews his faithful ones, whatever their age: “They shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not be faint” . Christ is the “eternal Gospel” (Rev 14:6); yet his riches and beauty are inexhaustible. He is for ever young and a constant source of newness. …Every form of authentic evangelization is always “new” (EG 10 & 11).

Lord I am often vain about my appearance and convenience.

Help me to come out of my comfort zones and join those evangelizers of our present time in wiping out the dirt of corruption and injustice

from the face of our society.

Help me to realize that my cowardice to challenge the evil disfigures your face on the

earth. Amen.

VII. Jesus falls Second Time.





The worship of the ancient golden calf (cf. Ex 32:1-35) has returned in a new and ruthless guise in the idolatry of money and the dictatorship of an impersonal economy lacking a truly human purpose. A new tyranny is thus born, invisible and often virtual, which unilaterally and relentlessly imposes its own laws and rules….. To all this we can add widespread corruption and self-serving tax evasion, which have taken on worldwide dimensions. The thirst for power and possessions knows no limits. In this system, which tends to devour everything which stands in the way of increased profits, whatever is fragile, like the environment, is defenceless before the interests of a deified market, which become the only rule (EG 55-56).

SEVENTH STATION: The Burden of Joy

Lord, we are really sorry that we have plundered the earth and destroyed the

environment and worship false gods of vain glory and greed.

Give us real conversion to get from the dust of of consumerism and hedonism

and help us to lead a life-style that is also eco-friendly, nurturing the entire universe as your

reign entrusted with us.

Amen.

VIII. Jesus Consoles the Women





EIGHT STATION: Joy of Togetherness Jesus, the evangelizer par excellence and the Gospel in person, identifies especially with the little ones. This reminds us Christians that we are called to care for the vulnerable of the earth. I have always been distressed at the lot of those who are victims of various kinds of human trafficking. How I wish that all of us would hear God’s cry: “Where is your brother?” . Where is your brother or sister who is enslaved? Where is the brother and sister whom you are killing each day in clandestine warehouses, in rings of prostitution, in children used for begging, in exploiting undocumented labour? Let us not look the other way. There is greater complicity than we think. The issue involves everyone! (EG 209,211). Why don’t we realise that they are buried as a result of our comfortable and silent complicity.

Lord Jesus, we are sorry indeed that we, though call ourselves Christians, but continue

to nurture hatred, enmity, dividing and humiliating others in the name of gender, age,

education, caste, language, status, etc.

Help us to stop our lip-service to the marginalized and exploited people, the abused

women and misused children.

Let us build a reign of God here on earth where all live as the children of one family of

God. Amen

IX. Jesus falls the third time.





Finally an evangelizing community is filled with joy; it knows how to rejoice always. It celebrates every small victory, every step forward in the work of evangelization. Evangelization with joy becomes beauty in the liturgy, as part of our daily concern to spread goodness… The parish is the presence of the Church in a given territory, an environment for hearing God’s word, for growth in the Christian life, for dialogue, proclamation, charitable outreach, worship and celebration. In all its activities the parish encourages and trains its members to be evangelizers. It is a community of communities, a sanctuary where the thirsty come to drink in the midst of their journey, and a centre of constant missionary outreach (EG 24, 38).

NINTH STATION: Living by the River of Joy

Lord, we are sorry that we part-take in our liturgical celebration without real commitment

to live by it.

Help us to stop our superstitious practices of piety and learn to live by the power of your

Eucharist and under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

May our parish community become a witnessing church for your Good News.

Amen.

X. Jesus Stripped of his Garments.





The Christian ideal will always be a summons to overcome all the defensive attitudes which today’s world imposes on us. Many try to escape from others and take refuge in the comfort of their privacy or in a small circle of close friends, renouncing the realism of the social aspect of the Gospel. For just as some people want a purely spiritual Christ, without flesh and without the cross, they also want their interpersonal relationships provided by sophisticated equipment, by screens and systems. Meanwhile, the Gospel tells us constantly to run the risk of a face-to-face encounter with others, with their physical presence which challenges us, with their pain and their pleas, with their joy which infects us in our close and continuous interaction. True faith in the incarnate Son of God is inseparable from self-giving, from reconciliation with others. The Son of God, by becoming flesh, summoned us to the revolution of tenderness. (EG 88-89)

TENTH STATION: Joy of Giving Fully…..

Lord, help us to encounter you in our brothers and sisters

who are bruised and battered by injustice and violence in our society

and step forward to alleviate their pain and liberate them from their clutches.

Amen

XI. Jesus Nailed to the Cross.





Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross is nothing else than the culmination of the way he lived his entire life. Moved by his example, we want to enter fully into the fabric of society, sharing the lives of all, listening to their concerns, helping them materially and spiritually in their needs, rejoicing with those who rejoice, weeping with those who weep; arm in arm with others, we are committed to building a new world. But we do so not from a sense of obligation, not as a burdensome duty, but as the result of a personal decision which brings us joy and gives meaning to our lives. (EG 269)

ELEVENTH STATION: Joy of Dying for Love

Lord, thank you for giving me an example on how to make my life happy and meaningful.

Help me not to cling to my own selfish desires and wants but surrender them for the good of

the others.

Let me do it freely as you did and joyfully to save the world in that let me also realize the

fact that unless the wheat falls and dies it cannot bear fruits.

Amen.

XII. Jesus dies on the Cross.





To be evangelizers of souls, we need to develop a spiritual taste for being close to people’s lives and to discover that this is itself a source of greater joy. Mission is at once a passion for Jesus and a passion for his people. When we stand before Jesus crucified, we see the depth of his love which exalts and sustains us, but at the same time, unless we are blind, we begin to realize that Jesus’ gaze, burning with love, expands to embrace all his people. We realize once more that he wants to make use of us to draw closer to his beloved people. He takes us from the midst of his people and he sends us to his people; without this sense of belonging we cannot understand our deepest identity. (EG 268)

TWELFTH STATION: Fountain of Joy

Thank you Lord for dying for my sins and for enwrapping me with you boundless love.

Help me to be generous with other in sharing your blessings. Amen.

XIII. Jesus’ Body in his Mother’s Lap





On the cross Jesus left us his mother to be our mother. Only after doing so did Jesus know that “all was now finished” . At the foot of the cross, at the supreme hour of the new creation, Christ led us to Mary. He brought us to her because he did not want us to journey without a mother, and our people read in this maternal image all the mysteries of the Gospel. As mother of all, she is a sign of hope for peoples suffering the birth pangs of justice. She is the missionary who draws near to us and accompanies us throughout life, opening our hearts to faith by her maternal love. As a true mother, she walks at our side, she shares our struggles and she constantly surrounds us with God’s love. (EG 285).

THIRTHEENTH STATION: A Missionary of Joy

Hail Mary, full of grace!

Walk with me, dear mother and teach me to share the joy of the Gospel even when I am

dejected and deserted by others.

May I sing with you the Magnificat with undying trust in the infinite love of your Son.

Amen.

XIV. Jesus Laid in the Tomb.





FOURTEENTH STATION: Seeds of Joy“Those wounded by historical divisions find it difficult to accept our invitation to forgiveness and reconciliation, since they think that we are ignoring their pain or are asking them to give up their memory and ideals. But if they see the witness of authentically fraternal and reconciled communities, they will find that witness luminous and attractive. It always pains me greatly to discover how some Christian communities, and even consecrated persons, can tolerate different forms of enmity, division, calumny, defamation, vendetta, jealousy and the desire to impose certain ideas at all costs, even to persecutions which appear as veritable witch hunts. Whom are we going to evangelize if this is the way we act? Let us not allow ourselves to be robbed of the ideal of fraternal love!” (EG100 ,101).

Lord Jesus, often we are discouraged and near to despair.

We are sad and depressed by the evil of the world; by cruelty, injustice and disaster.

But we don’t realize that we are also part of this tyranny of evil spreading a culture of death.

Wake us up and infuse in our hearts your compassionate love so that we’ll rise up and

resurrect our brothers and sisters buried in the sea of injustice and violence. Amen.

We may be sure that none of our acts of love will be lost, nor any of our acts of sincere concern for others. No single act of love for God will be lost, no generous effort is meaningless, no painful endurance is wasted. All of these encircle our world like a vital force. Sometimes it seems that our work is fruitless, but mission is not like a business transaction or investment, or even a humanitarian activity. Let us learn to rest in the tenderness of the arms of the Father amid our creative and generous commitment.

CONCLUDING MEDITATION

Let us keep marching forward; let us give him everything, allowing him to make our efforts bear fruit in his good time… (EG 276-279)……………

When we live out a spirituality of drawing nearer to others and seeking their welfare, our hearts are opened wide to the Lord’s

greatest and most beautiful gifts. Whenever we encounter another person in love, we learn something new about God.

Whenever our eyes are opened to acknowledge the other, we grow in the

light of faith and knowledge of God. If we want to advance in the spiritual life, then, we must constantly be missionaries. The work of evangelization enriches the mind

and the heart; it opens up spiritual horizons;

……it makes us more and more sensitive to the workings of the Holy Spirit, and it takes us

beyond our limited spiritual constructs. ….A committed missionary knows the joy of

being a spring which spills over and refreshes others. Only the person who feels happiness

in seeking the good of others, in desiring their happiness, can be a missionary. (EG 272)

Concluding Prayer with Mary, Our Blessed Mother:

Mary, Virgin and Mother,you who, moved by the Holy Spirit,welcomed the word of lifein the depths of your humble faith:as you gave yourself completely to the Eternal One, help us to say our own “yes”to the urgent call, as pressing as ever,to proclaim the good news of Jesus.Star of the new evangelization, help us to bear radiant witness to communion,service, ardent and generous faith,justice and love of the poor,that the joy of the Gospelmay reach to the ends of the earth,illuminating even the fringes of our world.Mother of the living Gospel,wellspring of happiness for God’s little ones, pray for us. Amen. Alleluia!

Date post:	14-Jul-2015
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Joy of the Cross. Way of the Cross Meditation with Evangelii Gaudium

Spiritual