The Stations of the Cross (or Way of the Cross; in Latin, Via Crucis; also called the Via Dolorosa or Way of Sorrows) refers to the depiction of the final hours (or Passion) of Jesus, and the devotion commemorating the Passion. The tradition exists in Roman Catholicism, Anglican/Episcopalian and Lutheranism. It may be done at any time, but is most commonly done during the Season of Lent, especially on Good Friday.

The Stations themselves are usually a series of 14 pictures or sculptures depicting the following scenes:

1. Christ is condemned to death
2. The cross is laid upon him
3. His first fall
4. He meets His Blessed Mother
5. Simon of Cyrene is made to bear the cross
6. Christ's face is wiped by Veronica
7. His second fall
8. He meets the women of Jerusalem
9. His third fall
10. He is stripped of His garments
11. His crucifixion
12. His death on the cross
13. His body taken down from the cross
14. His body is laid in the tomb

Most of these are

Pope John Paul II led an annual public prayer of the Stations of the Cross at the Roman Colosseum on Good Friday. Originally, the Pope himself carried the cross from station to station, but in his last years, he presided over the celebration from a stage on the Palatine Hill, while others carried the cross. Just days prior to his death in 2005, Pope John Paul II observed the Stations of the Cross from his private chapel in the Vatican.

Each year a different person is invited to write the meditation texts for the Stations. Past composers of the Papal Stations include several non-Catholics. In many years, the Stations meditated have not corresponded to the traditional list given above, which led some to speculate that the Pope would change the list. However, the Holy Father himself wrote the texts for the Jubilee year 2000 and used the traditional Stations.

Prayer of the Stations of the Cross is connected with a plenary indulgence according to the normal conditions of the Church. To achieve the indulgence, the person praying must walk from station to station, meditating on the Passion. There is no requirement that this meditation be of a certain duration, use specific prayers, or indeed, that the meditation correspond to the stations that are depicted. A validly erected set of the Stations of the Cross should be blessed by a Franciscan, and should include a wooden cross at each station. (Images are optional.) The same indulgence is available to those unable to visit the stations by meditating for 30 minutes on the Passion.

The celebration of the Stations of the Cross is especially common on the Fridays of Lent, and especially Good Friday. Community celebrations are usually accompanied by various songs and prayers. Particularly common as musical accompaniment is the sequence Stabat Mater Dolorosa. At the end of each station, the Adoramus Te is sometimes sung.

Many advocate today the addition of a 15th station, depicting Christ's Resurrection, so as not to end the devotion on a negative note. Others have begun the practice of the Via Lucis in Eastertide to meditate on the Resurrection and Ascension of the Lord.

See also

• Passion play
• The Passion of the Christ

• Kreuzweg

Via crucis Viacrucis Chemin de croix Via Crucis Kräizwee Kruisweg (religie) Droga Krzyżowa Korsvägsandakt