Solidarity Way of the Cross

March/April 2012

Return to Table of Contents

Print Article

REFRAIN: “We long for justice that protects the whole Earth community. We believe that another world is possible.”

FIRST STATION

Jesus is condemned to death

By condemning Jesus to death, the powerful believed they could keep their own privilege. They imposed laws that burdened ordinary people and strengthened their own power. Responding to special interests, some politicians today ignore the needs of people and the planet by failing to heed evidence of climate change. Climate change affects the world’s most vulnerable people in the Global South than those living in developed countries. The Earth itself carries the deep scars of neglect and abuse. Both are oppressed by the appetites of the wealthy and powerful for resource exploitation.

O God, we confess that we are often disengaged. We fail to support those politicians and agencies who strive to do justice. We pray that our governments will become places of honest debate and servants to the impoverished of the world.

REFRAIN: We long for justice that protects the whole Earth community. We believe that another world is possible.

SECOND STATION

Jesus bears the Cross

We understand that the coffee we drink, the tomato we eat, and the cellphone we use may be products of unjust exploitation of resources or labour that should benefit poor communities. We ask for the creation and enforcement of international trade policies that guard against exploitation.

O God, please forgive us for our ignorance in not seeing how our consumption patterns contribute to the exploitation of others. Please enlighten our politicians to enact laws that put people above profits.

REFRAIN

THIRD STATION

Jesus falls for the first time

Groups of small-scale farmers in the Global South farm in ways that are sensitive to their local environments and feed local people nutritious food. Their methods could reduce the amount of carbon in the atmosphere and help cool down the Earth.

O God, we mourn the destruction of the natural world. We pray for support to organized groups of small-scale farmers who contribute to the flourishing of all creation.

REFRAIN

FOURTH STATION

Jesus meets his mother

Mary has endured much suffering here on Earth, including witnessing the execution of her beloved son. Mary also fled to Egypt with her husband, Joseph, and newborn infant. She could relate to the suffering of the growing number of people in our time who are displaced from their lands by natural disasters. As the climate changes, these calamities occur with greater intensity.

O God, we pray for a new vision of community that recognizes our global humanity in Christ.

REFRAIN

FIFTH STATION

Jesus is helped by Simon

Simon helped Jesus to bear the burden of the Cross. Like Simon, our Earth must bear the burden of unsustainable agricultural practices. Corporations have patented some plants so that small-scale farmers cannot save, trade or reuse seeds after harvest. This runs directly contrary to our belief that all life is the creation of God.

O God, we confess our own misguided attempts to change your creation. We pray that international organizations will support the efforts of small-scale farmers in the Global South to grow local food varieties in harmony with the natural environment.

REFRAIN

SIXTH STATION

Veronica wipes the face of Jesus

We are living through one of the greatest crises of all times, an imminent ecological collapse. We have overwhelmed the carrying and caring capacity of our home, Earth, by relying on a global economic model that puts consumption and profits before a flourishing planet and healthy communities. The majority of people in the world may never have their basic needs met or experience a life of

dignity.

O God, help us to follow Veronica in serving you. Help us support sustainable communities where the highest priority is life in abundance for all.

REFRAIN

SEVENTH STATION

Jesus falls for a second time

God has given us the gift of creation, but we also fall and do not care for creation as we should. Some Canadian extractive industries working in the Global South damage the environment and destroy traditional communities living nearby. Development and Peace members asked the Canadian government to create effective safeguards for such communities, but our government has not done this.

O God, we confess that we do not always care for your creation as we should. We exploit natural resources, causing damage to the Earth, destruction of local economies and suffering among the world’s most vulnerable people. We pray that our government’s policies and our own actions may reflect respect and care for all of your creation.

REFRAIN

EIGHTH STATION

Jesus speaks to the women of Jerusalem

As the number of people living in poverty around the world grows, it is women who usually bear the greatest part of the burden. Small-scale women farmers feed their communities, care for their families and care for creation. They need access to land and recognition of their work.

O God, we ask forgiveness for not heeding the voices of our sisters around the world. We pray that all voices may be heard and that justice and mercy shall govern humanity and all of your creation.

REFRAIN

NINTH STATION

Jesus falls for the third time

We must live our lives as Christ lived; we must treat everyone as our brothers and sisters. Instead of directing scarce resources to build military might, we should direct them toward the urgent needs of our brothers and sisters in communities throughout the world.

O God, we confess that violence and injustice are destroying your daughters and sons. We ask that resources be used to help bring the world an economic order that is just and sustainable without the intervention of violence.

REFRAIN

TENTH STATION

Jesus is stripped of his clothes

Today we strip the Earth of its natural resources. Global institutions such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund have shaped the model of economic development in the Global South. Under this model, poverty has increased in many places, while environmental degradation has worsened. The welfare of the poorest person and the integrity of creation should be the standard by which the policies of these institutions are judged.

O God, we confess our failure to protect the integrity of creation. We pray for a sustainable, people- and Earth-centered development that meets the needs of the impoverished majority of humanity and allows creation to flourish.

REFRAIN

ELEVENTH STATION

Jesus is nailed to the Cross

Jesus was tortured and killed by the powers and authorities of his day. He identified with all whose human rights were denied. Development and Peace partners in the Global South ask that small-scale farmers be free to develop their own agricultural systems to feed their own people: food sovereignty.

O God, we pray for international trade agreements to honour human rights and God’s creation, and that Canada, with its role in international bodies such as the G20, should speak out for small-scale farmers and food sovereignty.

REFRAIN

TWELFTH STATION

Jesus dies on the Cross

Jesus’ apostles had imagined that he would establish an earthly kingdom. Knowing he was about to die in a brutal fashion because of his commitment to his mission, Jesus takes a moment to illustrate this. He says that all the beauty and richness of the harvest results from the fact that the grain died; otherwise it would never have germinated.

O God, we recognize the need to respond with generosity and inclusion to the cry of the Earth and the cry of the poor. We commit ourselves to change, to live more lightly on Earth and more justly with others.

REFRAIN

THIRTEENTH STATION

Jesus is taken down from the Cross

Many small-scale farmers in the Global South work long hours to feed themselves and their neighbours. Yet they face the threat of losing their land to large plantations that will grow inexpensive agricultural products to export for Western consumers. We may seem to benefit from the exploitation of our sisters and brothers through cheap food or fuel. But injustice harms all of us. Paying more for fair trade products would support living wages for producers, as well as higher social and environmental standards.

O God, we pray today for all who labour in the fields. Forgive us for our own unfair treatment of others and for benefiting from the oppression of others. We seek a renewed commitment to the dignity of all.

REFRAIN

FOURTEENTH STATION

Jesus is placed in the tomb

Jesus was laid in the tomb after giving his life to free all of creation from bondage to the effects of sin. Today, the future of our only home, Earth, and all creation is threatened by climate change. We in developed countries have contributed disproportionately to greenhouse gas emissions through our lifestyles. Small-scale farmers in the Global South increasingly must deal with unpredictable weather and smaller yields.

O God, forgive us for our contributions to this ecological crisis. Move us with love to reduce our consumption so that others may live in dignity.

REFRAIN

FIFTEENTH STATION

The resurrection of Jesus

Mindful of our own complicity in the global crises of our times, but claiming the hope that is rooted in the Resurrection, we reflect on our lives and choices. We claim our God-given power as individuals and as a community to effect meaningful change, to name the signs of Resurrection— Shalom—that we can see, even in our broken world.

To our own greed... open our eyes. To our habits of consumption... open our eyes. To social systems and structures that oppress the most vulnerable... open our eyes. Loving God, open our eyes to signs of hope in our world. Help us to believe that a better world is possible, and to act on that belief.

Amen.

Return to Table of Contents
Print Article