Stations of the Cross

The devotional service of Stations of the Cross is offered at 5:30 p.m. each Friday during Lent at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 200 Pleasant St., Bennington, VT. The service begins “We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you: Because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world.”

The term "Stations of the Cross" refers both to a series of fourteen representations of events on Christ’s journey to the Cross and to the devotional service of passing before the stations in meditation on Christ’s sacrifice. The devotion reflects the practice of pilgrims to Jerusalem who, from earliest times to the present, have followed the Way of the Cross, from the house of Pilate to Calvary. The traditional pilgrimage route in Jerusalem starts at the site of Pilate’s Judgment Hall and follows the Via Dolorosa through the narrow streets of Old Jerusalem to the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre on Calvary Hill. Pilgrims sought to re-enact this journey after they returned to their homes.

After the Franciscans received custody of the holy places in medieval times, they encouraged the placement of tableaux representing Christ’s sacrificial journey in their own churches. The custom of placing “stations” or pictorial representations of Christ’s sacrificial journey soon spread widely to other churches.

The content and number of the stations has varied throughout the ages, but the number was settled at fourteen under Clement XII in the 18th century. Eight of the stations directly reflect incidents recorded in the Gospels; the remaining six are based on inferences from the Gospel or from pious legend.

The Stations at St. Peter’s are enameled reliefs mounted on wooden plaques. They are placed on the walls of the nave. These fourteen Stations were a gift from Sacred Heart Church to St. Peter’s Church.