You Have Redeemed the World:
Praying the Stations in the Holy Cross Tradition
Andrew Gawrych C.S.C.
Kevin Grove C.S.C.
ISBN 9781594712623
ISBN 159471262X
I picked this and another stations up after an email from Ave Maria Press during Lent in 2026. Over the years I have developed the habit of trying to pray a Stations of the Cross each Friday throughout the year and each day through let. I am not certain if I have ever completed it for a whole year. But I try. Recently I went through the collection of Stations I had and found I had about 10 I have never read or reviewed and have made the commitment to try and make it through them this Lent, and I added 2 more after that email arrived.
The description of this volume is:
“Voices from around the world invite us to travel the Way of the Cross in every time and place. Steeped in the spirituality and mission of the religious communities of Holy Cross, these Stations help us contemplate the saving power of Christ's death and resurrection in unexpected places. Available in both English and Spanish.
Blessed Basil Moreau, founder of the Congregation of Holy Cross, wrote Human life is like a great way of the cross. This way of the cross is everywhere and we travel it every day, even in spite of ourselves and without being aware of it. This booklet is written from the depths of that understanding. The fourteen traditional Stations of the Cross are presented through depictions of contemporary human lives as witnessed by members of Holy Cross religious communities in ministry around the world. Contributors include James Phalen, Joan Marie Steadman, Arthur J. Colgan, Peter Jarret, and Mary Kay Kinberger.”
About the authors we are informed:
“Rev. Andrew Gawrych, C.S.C., & graduated with a Master of Divinity degree from the University of Notre Dame in 2007 and was ordained a Holy Cross priest in 2008.”
and
“Rev. Kevin Grove, C.S.C., graduated with a Master of Divinity degree from the University of Notre Dame in 2009 and was ordained a Holy Cross priest in 2010.”
In the introduction we are informed:
“By his Holy Cross, Jesus Christ has redeemed the world. The steps he took on the way to Calvary were not only for you or for me, but also for all humanity. The more profoundly we are able to walk these steps with our Lord, the more his passion, death, and resurrection bear fruit in our lives.”
And also:
“Drawing upon this conviction that we each walk the Way of the Cross in our own lives, the following fourteen stations unite the steps of ordinary people with the steps of Jesus. As we enter into their steps, we are drawn ever more fully into Christ's.”
The chapters in the volume are:
Introduction
Opening Prayer
Jesus is Condemned to Die
Jesus Takes Up His Cross
Jesus Falls the First Time
Jesus Meets His Sorrowful Mother
Simon Helps Jesus Carry the Cross
Veronica Wipes the Face of Jesus
Jesus Falls the Second Time
Jesus Meets the Women of Jerusalem
Jesus Falls the Third Time
Jesus Is Stripped of His Garments
Jesus is Nailed to the Cross
Jesus Dies on the Cross
Jesus Is Taken Down from the Cross
Jesus Is laid in the Tomb
Closing Prayer
There is no Stabat Mater, and no prayers at the end of each station, but they can easily by added personally.
A sample station is:
“The THIRD STATION
Jesus Falls the First Time
Leader: We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you.
All: Because by your Holy Cross you have redeemed the world!
Leader: A farmer plants grain in an act of sheer faith. As each tiny kernel falls from coarse hands to the soil, the farmer knows that grain is being lost to decay in the dark earth, but that this death is necessary for a crop that yields thirty, sixty, or one hundredfold. A single grain falls to the ground and does not remain a single grain, but provides bread in abundance.
All: Jesus, you fell out of exhaustion, pain, and the sheer difficulty of your Way of the Cross. But your every step, your every fall, was not in vain. You offered your steps, your falls, and ultimately your whole life as a single grain of wheat that your father might reap an abundant harvest in our lives.
Lord Jesus, help us to see you in our every step and stumble as we strive to be faithful to you. Through your grace, may our failings yield a bountiful harvest in our lives, our Church, and our world.
Leader: Hail the Cross,
All: Our only hope.”
I hope that sample meditation and the quotes from the introduction gives you a feel for this volume. One of the features of this stations is that each station has an image of a different cross or crucifix. Each station has a very personal reflection. It is a very moving version of this devotion. The contributors are:
First Station: Rev. Gary Chamberland, C.S.C., Director of Campus Ministry, University of Portland
Second Station: Rev. James Phalan, C.S.C., Director of Family Rosary International
Third Station: Rev. Andrew Gawrych, C.S.C., and Rev. Kevin Grove, C.S.C., Associate Pastors in Arizona and Indiana
Fourth Station: Sr. Joan Marie Steadman, C.S.C., Scholar of Healthcare Ethics
Fifth Station: Rev. James Gallagher, C.S.C., Director of Holy Cross Office of Vocations
Sixth Station: Br. Kenneth Haders, C.S.C., President of Archbishop Hoban High School
Seventh Station: Rev. Aaron Michka, C.S.C., Director of Seminarian Formation, Monterrey, Mexico
Eighth Station: Rev. Donald Fetters, C.S.C., Director of Novices, Peru
Ninth Station: Br. John Britto, C.S.C., Superior of Holy Cross Brothers in India
Tenth Station: Rev. Arthur J. Colgan, C.S.C., Provincial Superior of the Eastern Province of Priests and Brothers of Holy Cross
Eleventh Station: Br. Paul Bednarczyk, C.S.C., Director, National Religious Vocations Conference
Twelfth Station: Rev. Peter Jarret, C.S.C., Superior of the Holy Cross Community at the University of Notre Dame
Thirteenth Station: Sr. Mary Kay Kinberger, M.S.C., Superior General for the Marianites of Holy Cross
Fourteenth Station: Rev. James Burasa, C.S.C., District Superior of the Holy Cross in East Africa
This was a Way of the Cross I am very thankful I have worked through and look forward to praying it again. If it was available as an eBook it would be one I used often. I have prayed a few versions of Biblical Stations over the years. But this one is an excellent resource.
This is a great Lenten resource, a wonderful version of this devotion. I can easily recommend that Way of the Cross. I encourage you to pick it up and give it a try, if you can track it down!
Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: 2026 Catholic Reading Plan! For all Stations of the Cross review click here.
Books by Andrew Gawrych, C.S.C.:
Basil Moreau: Essential Writings
The Cross, Our Only Hope
The Gift of Hope
The Gift of the Cross
…
Books by Kevin Grove C.S.C.:
Art, Desire, and God
Basil Moreau: Essential Writings
The Cross, Our Only Hope
…
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