Sitting in Palm Sunday Mass this morning I couldn’t help but wonder to myself just how many times we have all been guilty of repeating the same process that we hear detailed in this kick-off to Holy Week. I know that I, for one, have a tendency to go sprinting into moments of moments of spiritual awakening with palm frond in hand and “hosanna” on my lips, and within a few short days (if I’m lucky – sometimes it’s just hours) all of that energy and excitement is drained as I head back to my normal routine. We marvel every year at how quickly Palm Sunday turns into Good Friday, how ready Judas is to sell his friend Jesus down the river for his 30 pieces of silver, but how often do we get sucked into that very same cycle? Probably too often, if we’re being honest.
Luckily for us, patience and love exist in equal and infinite amounts when it comes to the God of All. No matter how many times one’s personal pendulum may swing from “Hyperactive Jesus Freak” to “Listless Judas Lite” God will still be there waiting for us to come back around. This is God practicing what Dizzy and I have come to call “the expectant elephant” – that silent and specific posture which says (over and over again) “Come on, I know you can do this. In fact, you’re going to do this. I’m not going anywhere, and you’re going to help me…eventually.”
So my goal for Holy Week is to answer God’s expectant elephant posture with a follow-through on my spiritual exuberance. Instead of squelching my Palm Sunday Hosannas and putting my nose back to the grindstone, I’m hoping to journey with Jesus all the way to the cross. To help with this, I’ll be using the following Stations of the Cross playlist to help me pray and stay focused. I find that digging through the lyrics of my favorite songs often helps me to enter more fully into the true meaning behind each of the stations. If you like these songs, feel free to use this list throughout Holy Week and beyond. If you Spotify, here’s a full playlist you can use. If they’re not your cup of tea, then I encourage you to make a Stations of the Cross playlist that speaks to you. Feel free to post your own version in the comments below or e-mail it to us, but most importantly use it as a way to join together with people of faith around the world as we walk with Jesus this week. Enjoy!
Station I: Jesus is Condemned – “Vestiges” by Family and Friends
Station II: Jesus Carries the Cross – “Burdens” by the Last Bison
Station III: Jesus Falls the First Time – “What Makes a Good Man?” by The Heavy
Station IV: Jesus Meets His Mother – “Blind in the Fray” by The Last Revel
Station V: Simon Helps Jesus Carry the Cross – “Lanterns” by Birds of Tokyo
Station VI: Veronica Wipes the Face of Jesus – “Shelter From the Storm” by Bob Dylan
Station VII: Jesus Falls the Second Time – “Even the Darkness Has Arms” by Barr Brothers
Station VIII: Jesus Meets the Holy Women – “Heavy” by Birdtalker
Station IX: Jesus Falls the Third Time – “Over” by Johnnyswim
Station X: Jesus is Stripped of His Garments – “This is Why We Fight” by Decemberists
Station XI: Jesus is Nailed to the Cross – “Hurt” by Johnny Cash
Station XII: Jesus Dies – “Come On Up to the House” by Tom Waits
Station XIII: Jesus is Taken Down from the Cross – “Salvation” by Langhorne Slim
Station XIV: Jesus is Laid in the Tomb – “The Tale of You & Me” by Wild Child
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