Way of the Cross followed through Carrboro
Commons Photos by Meghan Cooke
By Meghan Cooke
Staff writer
On Good Friday, prayers could be heard across Carrboro. But these prayers were not restricted to the pews and altars inside of a church.
About 30 people walked through downtown Carrboro carrying a cross, the message of Jesus’ resurrection and Christian peace.
Beginning the Way of the Cross service in front of the Carrboro Town Hall at 2 p.m., a group from the Episcopal Church of the Advocate, of Carrboro, weaved its way through Carrboro carrying a 7-foot cross, stopping at 14 locations, which represented the 14 Stations of the Cross.
The Way of the Cross is a Catholic and Episcopalian custom that began when Christian pilgrims followed what they believed was the path that Jesus walked beginning from his condemnation to his burial.
Anita Howell, of Chapel Hill, said that she had observed the Stations of the Cross in a church before, but had never done so on an outdoor walk. She said she was glad for the sunny, but cool weather.
“This is wonderful,” she said. “It’s an interesting contradiction between the solemn nature of the service and the gloriousness of the day.”
Rev. Lisa Fischbeck, vicar of the church, said that although this was a “solemn event,” the participants should not be glum but should still be mindful of Jesus’ last hours.
As the group stopped at each location, a member of the group read a passage from the Bible and a meditation on that passage with contemporary implications. A prayer was read before the cross was passed on to another participant to carry to the next stop.
Terry Milner, who read the meditation at the fourth stop, representing Jesus meeting his mother, said that he was a part of the launching congregation at the Episcopal Church of the Advocate that was started by three local parishes in 2003.
“Episcopalians are not exactly known for public displays of religion,” Milner said. “It’s important that progressive Christian values are heard, and this is a way of conveying that without imposing our views on the community.”
The group appeared to receive a positive response from those passed by the procession. Some people stepped into doorways to listen to the readings and prayer. One woman gave the group a thumbs up from her car as they passed her at a stoplight at the intersection of Weaver Street and Main Street.
Milner said that the places where the group stopped represented Christian values. Some of the stops included the offices of the Inter-faith Council for Social Services on West Main Street, where volunteers work to help community members in need, and the offices of People of Faith Against the Death Penalty. Another stop was the new home of Pa’lante, a group of Latin American teenagers who promote integration and a sense of community.
The stops were planned in contemporary locations with an emphasis on peace and justice rather than atonement, Fischbeck said.
The 14th and final station brought the group to Old Carrboro Cemetery, where participants recreated the grave of Jesus.
An icon, a painted wooden image of Jesus, was carried into the cemetery and laid on a white cloth. Brightly colored tulips were distributed to each of the participants, and as the group sang, everyone placed the flowers on the icon, representing the people that came to honor Jesus in the tomb.
At the end of the service, the tulips were removed from the icon and were placed on graves throughout the cemetery.
On Easter, the icon would be flipped over to reveal white bands of cloth to represent Jesus’ resurrection.
Gabe Lamazares, of Chapel Hill, said that the service echoes the suffering of oppressed people across the world and that people are called to serve as a hand of compassion.
“Part of what we do as Christians during Holy Week is try to walk the way Jesus walked,” Lamazares said.
“Jerusalem would have been ideal, but Carrboro works just as well because he walks here, too.”
For more information about the Episcopal Church of the Advocate, visit www.ouradvocate.org.
