On March 12, you will have an opportunity to participate in the Stations of the Cross. Growing up my family was not regular church goers. We would definitely not go to the Lenten Friday Stations of the Cross, but we did refrain from eating meat and we would choose to give up something for the 40 days of Lent.
Lent is a time of reflection. It is a time where we prepare ourselves for the death Christ endured for us on the cross. He decided to give up His life so that we may have eternal life. Again, I will say this, "He decided to give up His life so that we may have eternal life." Reflect on that during this upcoming Season of Lent. A great way to reflect on this is by attending the Stations of the Cross on Friday evenings at Church. They begin with Soup at 6:30pm and then follow with 7p.m. stations. I encourage you to not only attend the Teen Stations, but to attend every Friday during Lent.
I remember clearly, my first experience of the Stations of the cross as a teenager. My boyfriend at the time invited me to attend and I really thought it was going to be boring. It was just the traditional way of praying the stations. We walked from station to station knelt and responded. I can not tell you how focused I was during that prayer. There was movement, there was response, there was reflection and most importantly, I was an active participant! I was very touched by every step that Christ had to take in order for me to have salvation. It was a moving experience.
The Stations of the Cross is a tradition that has been going on for centuries in our church. It has been such a beautiful reflection of prayer that even our Protestant brother's and sister's participate in the Stations of the Cross. They have realized that this tradition of prayer brought a lot of people in a closer relationship with their God. I pray that it will do the same for you!
See you at Stations of the Cross on March 12 at 7pm!
**If you'd like to particpate in anyway, please email me at Cvasquez@stmel.org