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Reflecting on a modernized Way of the Cross

By VERONICA PULUMBARIT, GMA News

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With the Holy Week upon us, an upscale mall in Manila is offering a modern interpretation of the "Way of the Cross" for the Catholic faithful who would like to meditate on the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ in a different way. In most Catholic churches in the Philippines, the Stations of the Cross are depicted by religious art mounted on the walls. Some cathedrals even have life-size sculptures and other artwork within the church compound. At the Bonifacio Global City in Taguig City, however, the outdoor exhibit “Walkway: Reflections on the Stations of the Cross" features modern art installations such as:

  • a giant glass mirror mounted in the middle of the garden to depict Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane;
  • a glass-encased golden crown surrounded by thorns to depict the scourging of Jesus;
  • a glass jar filled with prayer requests to depict the eighth Station of the Cross, when Jesus is helped by Simon to carry the cross. Going through the walkway along the nearly one kilometer-long landscaped garden of the Bonifacio High Street offers visitors a different experience in reflecting on the meaning of Holy Week. At the eighth station, "Jesus is helped by Simon to carry His cross," people are asked to pick up one prayer request from a large glass jar. After praying for the intentions written on the piece of paper, they are asked to write their own prayer requests for other people to pick up, and so on. Scriptural Way of the Cross The walkway traces the footsteps of Jesus Christ from the Garden of Gethsemane to the crucifixion at Calvary, using the Scriptural Way of the Cross inaugurated as a Roman Catholic devotion in 1991 by Pope John Paul II. The updated prayer offers new points for reflection based on the Holy Bible, but does not invalidate the traditional Stations of the Cross that was first prayed, according to church history, by Jesus’ mother Mary. Biblical accounts say that when Jesus was dying on the cross at Mount Calvary, he entrusted Mary to Saint John, the youngest of the apostles. After the death and resurrection of Jesus, Mary placed 14 large rocks on a grassy hill near the house where she lived with Saint John. The rocks came to represent the 14 stations in the traditional Stations of the Cross. However, according to the Catholic Encyclopedia, displaying the Stations of the Cross in churches did not become a common practice until the end of the 17th Century. Mary was said to have prayed the Way of the Cross, also known as Via Dolorosa or Way of Sorrows, everyday as a way of honoring the suffering and death of her beloved son. The devotional prayer eventually became popular because of the "indulgences" – defined in the Catholic Encyclopedia as "the extra-sacramental remission of the temporal punishment due, in God's justice, to sin that has been forgiven" – that are granted to those who say the prayer. Church Simplified The reflections at the BGC exhibit were done by a group called Church Simplified, described in their website thus: "We’re a group of friends from various backgrounds wrestling with questions of faith, church, and God. Most of us were tempted to regard these questions with apathy or indifference, but were consequently thwarted by individual experiences with the person of Jesus Christ. We will never claim to have it all figured out, but here’s what we’ve learned so far: Faith is a journey. Each person is on a different part of that journey, and is responsible for what they believe in. While the journey is intensely personal, we also believe that it is lived out in the context of relationships, and so we place a ridiculous amount of value in each other." Those who visit the walkway exhibit can expect roughly a 45-minute "reflective journey" if they will pause and pray at each of the 14 Stations of the Cross. The park is in the middle of high-end shops and restaurants, so while people are praying in the garden, others are moving about the mall. For some reason, shoppers who are out strolling with their family, friends, and even pets which are welcome at the Bonifacio High Street do not distract those who are praying the Way of the Cross in the garden. Each station is carefully placed, so that people can pray privately and intently even in the middle of the mall. The Stations of the Cross at the Bonifacio High Street are open from 11:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. throughout the Holy Week. from Palm Sunday (April 17) to Easter Sunday (April 24). – YA/HS, GMA News
    • Tags: bonifacioglobalcity, wayofthecross, cbcp
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