The men and women of all ages and from different walks of life who bring their testimonies and prayers to the Way of the Cross this year, all come from lands that are wounded by bombs, gunfire, missiles or fratricidal hatred. Their stories will accompany the 14 Stations of the journey that unfolds today, 7 April, at Rome’s Colosseum. The meditations are taken from testimonies received by Pope Francis during his many apostolic visits and other occasions.
The meditation at the third station, the one where Jesus first falls, is by young people from Central America. They too speak of"falling" due to"laziness","fear","discouragement" and"empty promises of an easy but dishonest life of greed and corruption"."Too many families," they write,"continue to mourn the loss of their children".
Three migrants from Africa, South Asia, and the Middle East intertwine their stories: they are different but united. All of them are victims of hatred. What"is once experienced, is not forgotten...". Hence, a request for God's forgiveness because"we disdained you in the unfortunate" and"ignored you in those who need help".
At the tenth station, the meditations are by a young Ukrainian and a young Russian. The former recounts his flight from Mariupol to Italy, with his father stranded at the border, and his return to Ukraine."There is war on all sides, the city is destroyed". The latter remembers his oldest brother who died and his father and grandfather who disappeared: “Everyone told us we should be proud, but at home, there was only much suffering and sadness”.
Words of hope from a West Asian woman who saw her young son die under a mortar shell along with his cousin and a young neighbour:"Faith helps me to hope, for it reminds me that the dead are in the arms of Jesus”. To Christ, she asks:"An East African nun relives the death of her Sister at the hands of terrorists on the day her country celebrates the Independence Agreement."The day of victory turned into defeat". It is Christ, however, she states, who is “our true victory”.
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