Category Fenor Stations of The Cross

Feb 4 2014

The Fifth Station

The Fifth Station

Jesus Is Aided By Simon

Simon wasn’t given the chance to volunteer for this task –
“And they compelled a passer-by, Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to carry his cross.” [Mark 15:21]

The tableau shows two men who are both holding the cross. Which one of them is Simon?  There may be two clues that suggest that the man in blue is Simon. First, in all of the fourteen stations only two people are not barefoot – so far as we can see. The man in blue is one of the two and is wearing brown boots. That makes him different from almost all of the rest. Second, Luke tells us that Simon was behind Jesus –
“And as they led him away, they seized one Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country, and laid on him the cross, to carry it behind Jesus.” [Luke 23:26]

We will meet Simon again at the eighth station.

The words, “As they led him away” suggest that this should be the second or third station, rather than the fifth.

The dedication at the bottom of the tableau is:

IN MEMORY OF JOHN PHELAN, CAHIR, AND HIS CHILDREN.
Feb 4 2014

The Fourth Station

The Fourth Station

Jesus Meets His Mother

This is another event that is not recorded in the gospels. In fact, there is no mention of Jesus’ mother in any of the gospel passion narratives except for the occasion when, in John’s gospel, she stood at the foot of the cross as Jesus was dying.

There is another woman present at the meeting. She is one of the women who accompanied Jesus on his journey from Galilee –
“There were also many women there, looking on from a distance, who had followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering to him, among whom were Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James and Joseph and the mother of the sons of Zebedee.” [Matthew 26:55-56]

The dedication at the bottom of the tableau is:

IN MEMORY OF JAMES CURRAN,
BALLYSCANLON, AND HIS WIFE MARGARET
Feb 4 2014

The Third Station

The Third Station

Jesus Falls The First Time

This event is not recorded in the gospels, but it is likely to have occurred because Jesus had already been beaten and scourged and was, therefore, very weak.

In the background are the walls of Jerusalem. The place of crucifixion was just outside the walls so it wasn’t a long walk – but long enough when carrying such a weight.

Notice the two men in yellow and blue garb observing Jesus. They represent the onlookers – followers of Jesus, opponents, curious people, passers by, you and me.

The Roman (?) soldier stands in the background, too, unconcerned and uninvolved – it’s just another crucifixion.

The dedication at the bottom of the tableau is:

PRAY FOR THE MULCAHY FAMILY, FENOR
Feb 4 2014

The Second Station

The Second Station

Jesus Is Laden With His Cross

It is unlikely that Jesus would have carried a complete cross. Rather, he would have carried only the horizontal cross-piece. The vertical shaft of the cross was usually left in situ after the previous crucifixion and ready for the next.

Pontius Pilate is still in the background of the tableau holding what looks like a tablet with writing on it. Perhaps it is the inscription that was affixed to the cross –

“Pilate also wrote an inscription and put it on the cross. It read, ‘Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.'” [John 19:19]

Of course, that is an English translation. It was actually written in Hebrew, in Latin, and in Greek.

The dedication at the bottom of the tableau is:

IN MEMORY OF THE RELATIONS
OF ROBERT PHELAN OF ISLANDIKEANE
Feb 4 2014

The First Station

The First Station

Jesus Is Condemned To Death

Here we see Jesus being led away, hands bound, to be crucified. At this point the Romans were in charge, but that doesn’t look like any Roman soldier that we ever saw. Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor of Judaea, wanted to release Jesus who he thought was innocent but the crowd wanted crucifixion –

“So when Pilate saw that he was gaining nothing, but rather that a riot was beginning, he took water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, ‘I am innocent of this man’s blood; see to it yourselves.’ And all the people answered, ‘His blood be on us and on our children!’ Then he released for them Barabbas, and having scourged Jesus, delivered him to be crucified.” [Matthew 27:24-26]

We can see Pilate at the rear of the tableau washing his hands aided by a servant.

The dedication at the bottom of the tableau is:

PRAY FOR THE DONOR, THE REVD. WILLIAM BROWNE P.P.
Feb 4 2014

Stations Of The Cross, Fenor

Stations Of The Cross, Church of the Immaculate Conception, Fenor

Michelangelo's Pieta
[ The picture opposite is of Michelangelo’s Pieta. Click to zoom. ]

In this section of the web site we show you the Stations of the Cross tableaux that are on the walls of Immaculate Conception church. You will be able to see them in close-up as you have probably never seen them before. Also, we will describe the scenes depicted at each station.

Please note that, if you wish to partake of the Stations as a devotion by contemplating the scenes and praying at each one, we would advise you to make use of other web sites such as THIS at Charles Borromeo Catholic Church.

If you are interested in the history and development of the Stations, we recommend The Way of the Cross on the Vatican web site.

You can see our own Stations of the Cross by using the menu on the left.