Redeemer leads the way with Stations of the Cross

Church of the Redeemer invited members of all congregations in Sarasota to join in the recreation of the Stations of the Cross Good Friday morning.

The walk began with approximately 200 followers at the start in front of Regal Cinemas Hollywood 20 but grew to more than 800 by the end of the route at Church of the Redeemer. 

“They see the cross come by and they’re attracted by it and join in,” said the Rev. Charleston Wilson.

 The walk is designed to recreated the path Jesus took from his arrest to his passion and death. As followers moved from station to station, they recited songs and scripture. The exercise included the fourteen stations in with eight marking events recorded in the Gospels and six stations recognizing events known in tradition or legends. 

“It’s important because it makes the cross more present in our lives and it reminds us the way of the cross our savior walked,” Wilson said. “The act of physical doing it reinforces what the cross means to us.”

At stops in along the route local clergy and elected officials, including Mayor Willie Shaw and Sarasota County Commissioner Carolyn Mason, were invited to read scripture to the crowd. The route concluded with morning prayer on the lawn of Church of the Redeemer and an invitation for followers to join in a service.