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Intro Mary Garden
The Garden Way of the Cross
From information booklet and meditation-aid prepared by
Father Thomas A. Stanley, S.M.
Pastor: St. Catherine of Siena, Portage, MI.
August 1993.
Revised: July 1996, March 1997
The Fourteen Stations
I. JESUS AT THE LAST SUPPER
When it grew dark Jesus reclined at table with the Twelve. In the
course of the meal he said, "One of you is about to betray me."
Judas, his betrayer, spoke, "Surely it is not I, Rabbi?" Jesus
answered, "It is you who have said it." During the meal Jesus
took bread, blessed it, broke it, and gave it to his disciples.
"Take this and eat it," he said, "This is my body." Then he took
a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them. "All of you must drink
from it," he said, "for this is my blood, the blood of the
covenant, to be poured out in behalf of many for the forgiveness
of sins."
.
Consider the Maidenhair Fern
(Adiantum capillis veneris) a Mary
flower often used in England to decorate the
altar for the feast of Corpus Christi which
honors the Eucharist. Recall the woman who
washed Christ's feet with her tears and
wiped them with her hair; then ponder the
example of Christ washing the feet of his
disciples asking that they do as he did.
II. JESUS PRAYS IN THE GARDEN OF GETHSEMANI
Jesus made his way to the Mount of Olives. He withdrew from his
disciples about a stone's throw, went down on his knees and prayed
in these words: "Father, if it is your will, take this cup from
me; yet not my will but yours be done." An angel then appeared to
him from heaven to strengthen him. In his anguish he prayed with
all the greater intensity, and his sweat became like drops of
blood falling to the ground.
.
Consider the St. Johnswort (Hypericum
perforatum), named "Christ's Sweat"
from the blood-like red speckles dotting its
yellow petals. Consider also the Wood
Sorrel (Oxalis acetosella) a bitter
Mary flower which, together with other bitter
herbs, symbolizes the bitterness of our Lord's
passion, and the depth of our Lady's sorrows.
The triple leaf of this plant suggests the
trinitarian scene in Gethsemani - (the Son
praying to his Father and sustained by the
Spirit in his agony). The sorrel's white
flower stained with purple suggests the
passion of the innocent victim, Christ.
III. JESUS IS TAKEN PRISONER
While Jesus was still speaking, Judas, one of the Twelve, arrived
accompanied by a great crowd with swords and clubs. They had been
sent by the chief priests and elders of the people. His betrayer
had arranged to give them a signal, saying, "The man I shall
embrace is the one; take hold of him." He immediately went over
to Jesus and said to him, "Peace, Rabbi," and embraced him. Jesus
answered, "Friend, do what you are here for." At that moment they
stepped forward to lay hands on Jesus and arrested him.
Consider the Mistletoe (Viscum album). There is something very
striking about the fresh golden-green leaves and white waxen
berries of this plant as they spring from a tree in death-like
winter sleep. It suggested to Marian devotees the
Christ flowering from the root of Jesse which took place in Mary's
womb after an Old Testament winter of expectant waiting. It was
formerly much used in church decoration. It is thought that the
custom of kissing under the mistletoe originated in the ceremonia1
kiss of peace at the Christ Mass, a striking contrast to the kiss
of Judas.
IV. JESUS 1S BROUGHT BEFORE THE SANHEDRIN
They led Jesus off to the chief priests. After a time the high
priest rose to his feet and began to interrogate Jesus: "Have you
no answer to what these men testify against you?" But Jesus
remained silent. Once again the high priest interrogated him:
"Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?" Then Jesus
answered, "I am; and you will see the Son of Man seated at the
right hand of the Power and coming with the clouds of heaven." At
that the high priest tore his robes and said, "What further need
have we of witnesses? You have heard the blasphemy. What is your
verdict?" They all concurred in the verdict: gui1ty with its
sentence of death.
.
Consider the iris, or Mary's Sword
of Sorrow (Iris sp.), from its sword-
like foliage recalling the prophecy of
Simeon to Mary at the Presentation of the
child Jesus in the Temple that he would be
a sign that would be contradicted and Mary's
own soul would be pierced with a sword,
"that the thoughts of many hearts will be
revealed."
.
Consider also the lungwort (Pulmonaria
officinalis), also known as The
Virgin Mary's Tears or Our Lady's
Milk Herb. The leaves of this Mary-
plant are handsomely blotched and speckled
with white. When it blossoms, pink buds
open into blue flowers. It is said that
Mary, on her way out of Jerusalem after
presenting Jesus in the Temple, sat down
to nurse him. The flowers of this plant
at her feet caught the blue of her eyes,
but grew pink when they reddened with
weeping as she reflected on the
sufferings predicted for her Son. As the
baby moved suddenly, some of her milk fell
on the leaves causing the white markings
still on them.
V. JESUS IS DENIED BY PETER
While Peter was down in the courtyard one of the servant girls
said, "You were with Jesus of Nazareth." But he denied it. At
that moment a rooster crowed. Again the servant said, "This man
is one of them." Once again he denied it. Later the bystanders
said to Peter, "You are one of them. You are Galilean, are you
not? Peter cursed and said, "I don't even know the man." Just
then a second cockcrow was heard.
Consider the Passion Flower (Passiflora sp.), whose ten petals
were seen to symbolize the twelve apostles, less Judas who
betrayed and Peter who denied.
.
On the other hand, consider the
Cowslip (Primula veris)
called Our Lady's Keys because
the flowers suggest a bunch of keys by
their pendant bloom clusters - the keys
of Mary, Mediatrix to the storehouses
of heavenly grace. From its shape this
flower is also dedicated to St. Peter,
who, in spite of his denial of Christ,
was eventually given the keys to the
kingdom of heaven.
Consider also the Pansy
(Viola tricolor) a name which comes
from the French pensee (meaning thoughts),
and from its three colors also known as
Trinity Flower. It is dedicated to
Mary who "kept all these things in her
heart." So also did Peter and it led him
to repentance.
VI. JESUS IS TAKEN TO PILATE
At daybreak they brought Jesus to the praetorium. There Pilate
asked Jesus, "Are you the King of the Jews?" Jesus answered, "Are
you saying this on your own, or have others been telling you about
me?" "I am no Jew", Pilate retorted. "It is your own people and
the chief priests who have handed you over to me. What have you
done?" Jesus answered, "My kingdom does not belong to this world.
If my kingdom were of this world, my subjects would be fighting to
save me from being handed over to the Jews. As it is, my kingdom
is not here."
Consider the Sundew (Drossera rotundifolia). This plant has a
rosette of green leaves thickly covered with red hairs and on the
tip of each hair is a drop of dew. It is also called Gideon's
Fleece which is a symbol of the Incarnation achieved in Mary's
womb. This sign (a fleece dampened by dew while the ground all
around was dry) was an answer to a prayer. Pilate too seeks a
sign but does not recognize the one God gives him. Mary always
recognized God's signs.
VII. JESUS 1S SCOURGED AND CROWNED WITH THORNS
Pilate had Jesus scourged and then handed him over to be
crucified. The soldiers led Jesus away and dressed him in royal
purple. Then they wove a crown of thorns and put it on him and
began to salute him: "All hail! King of the Jews!" Continually
striking Jesus on the head with a reed and spitting at him, they
genuflected before him and pretended to pay him homage.
.
Consider Millfoil or Our Lord's Back
(Achillea millefolia) whose myriad of
red flowerets were seen to symbolize the
welts of Christ's scourged back.
.
Consider also, the Crown of Thorns or
Christ's Crown (Euphorbia splendens),
whose intense tiny red flowers brought to mind
the blood drops emerging from Christ's forehead
at the thorn-pricks.
Then consider Our Lady's Seal or Black Bryony (Tamus
communis). The root stock of this plant has great efficacy when
crushed and spread in a medicinal plaster and applied to seal up a
scar or bruise. It is known to be helpful in healing wounds, even
in mending broken bones. How Mary must have wished to apply such a
seal to the wounds of her Son.
VIII. JESUS IS CONDEMNED TO DEATH
When Jesus was accused, he made no reply. Pilate said, "Surely
you hear how many charges they bring against you. He did not
reply on a single count. Now, on the occasion of a festival, the
procurator was accustomed to release one prisoner whom the crowd
would designate. It was Barabbas, not Jesus, they chose. Pilate
released Jesus to them to be crucified.
.
Consider the Lily of the Valley
(Convallaria majalis), also called Our
Lady's Tears. This flower is said to
have had its origin at the moment of the
condemnation of Christ to death, for it
was then that Mary wept, and as her tears
touched the earth, these flowers sprang
up. The same legend is also associated
with the Greater Stitchwort (Stellaria
holostea) which also bears the name
Tears of Mary.
IX. JESUS WITH SIMON OF CYRENE MEETS THE WOMEN OF JERUSALEM
As they led him away, they laid hold of Simon of Cyrene who was
coming in from the fields. They put the cross beam on his
shoulders to carry along behind Jesus. A great crowd followed,
including women who beat their breasts and lamented over him.
Jesus said to them, "Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me.
Weep for yourselves and your children. The days are coming when
they will say to the mountains, 'Fall on us' and to the hills,
'Cover us.' If they do these things in the green wood, what will
happen in the dry?"
Consider the Ground Ivy (Nepeta glechoma) which is also called
Where-God-Has-Walked and Madonna's Herb. There are bright
splashes of color wherever it grows in large patches along country
hedges and on waste ground. It's leaves are heart shaped and its
shoots, both stem and leaf, are of various shades of red and
purple. Its labiate flowers, which grow out of the stem, are
usually purple but also sometimes white: a lovely reminder that
God did walk this earth even to Calvary where he died for us.
Consider the Tiger Flower or Christ's Knee (Tigridia pavonia),
symbol of Christ's bloodied knees from his falls while carrying the
Cross.
X. JESUS IS CRUCIFIED
They brought Jesus to the site called Golgotha and crucified him.
It was about nine in the morning. The inscription proclaiming his
offense read: "The King of the Jews." With him they crucified two
insurgents. People going by kept insulting him, saying, "Ha, ha!
So you were going to destroy the Temple and rebuild it in three
days! Save yourself now by coming down from that cross!" The
chief priests and the scribes also joined in and jeered. The men
crucified with him likewise kept taunting him.
Consider the Violet (Viola
odorata), also called Our
Lady's Modesty or Humility.
It is said to be among the
flowers of which the shadow of
the cross fell on the day of
the crucifixion. It dropped
its head in sorrow and in
acknowledgement of the import
of this great event and has
always remained thus. Its
color suggests the purple of
the Church in mourning.
.
Consider also Ladies' Tresses
(Spiranthes cernua), known formerly
as Our Lady's Tresses. It takes
this name from the spiral of its flower
heads reminiscent of plaited hair and
is associated with the legend that Mary,
at the foot of the cross and in deep
agony, tore out a tress of her hair
which St. John thereafter preserved.
XI. JESUS DIES ON THE CROSS
Jesus said, "Father, forgive them; they do not know what they are
doing." Near the cross of Jesus there stood his mother, his
mother's sister, Mary the wife of Cleopas, and Mary Magdalene.
Seeing his mother there with the disciple whom he loved, Jesus
said to his mother, "Woman, there is your son." In turn he said
to the disciple, "There is your mother." From that hour onward,
the disciple took her into his care. Toward midafternoon Jesus
cried out in a loud tone, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken
me?" Then he said, "Father, into your hands I commend my spirit."
He bowed his head and delivered over his spirit.
.
Consider the red poppy or Christ's
Blood Drops (Papaver oriental) whose
red flowers were said to have sprung
up at the foot of the cross from Jesus'
redemptive blood drops.
.
Consider also the white
flowers of Gromwell
or Mary'sTears
(Lithospermum officinalis)
mingled with them as
wellsprings of the
outpouring of Christ's
grace mediated to the
the world through Mary's
sorrowful motherly heart.
And consider the Snowdrop
(Galanthus nivalus).
It is said that when our first
parents were banished from Eden
they found winterbeyond its gates.
Eve stood sobbing, broken-hearted.
The leafless trees, the bare
ground and the biting winds were
a dreadful contrast to the bowers
of the garden of pleasure. God
sent an angel to comfort her.
The angel pointed to the ground
where her tears of penitence had
fallen and lo! there sprang up a
little plant with a teardrop for
its blossom. He gave the blossom to Eve, telling her that it was
an assurance that happiness would return to her and all her progeny.
The death and resurrection of Christ fulfills the promise of the
Snowdrop.
XII. JESUS' SIDE IS PIERCED BY A LANCE
The Jews asked Pilate that the legs of the crucified be broken and
the bodies taken away. When they came to Jesus and saw that he
was already dead, they did not break his legs. Instead, one of the
soldiers thrust a lance into his side and immediately blood and
water flowed out. These events took place for the fulfillment of
the Scripture: "Break none of his bones." There is another
Scripture passage which says: "They shall look on him whom they
have pierced."
.
Consider the Bleeding
Heart (Dicentra
spectabilis) - long
associated with the
suffering hearts of Jesus
and Mary - and thus known
both as Christ's Heart,
and also Mary's Heart;
each of whose pendant heart-
shaped blooms has at its base
a red and white droplet,
signifying the mixture of
blood and water flowing from
Christ's pierced side.
Consider also the tradition which tells us that the Bracken
(Pteridium aquilinus) was among the hay in the manger at
Bethlehem, but refused to acknowledge the presence of its Creator
and so thenceforward lost the flowers it once bore. But the
bracken repented. Now when Christmas draws near, its dry stems
when cut open bear a symbol of its sorrow: either the figure of
our first parents in Eden, one on either side of the fateful tree,
or else the sacred monogram of our Redeemer: IHS (meaning "Jesus,
Savior of Humankind"). From this mark of loving penitence it is
also called Fern of God.
XIII. JESUS IS BURIED
There was a man named Joseph, from Arimathea, and he looked
expectantly for the reign of God. He approached Pilate with a
request for Jesus' body. He took it down, wrapped it in fine
linen, and laid it in a tomb hewn out of the rock, in which no one
had yet been buried. The women who had come with him from Galilee
followed along behind. They saw the tomb and how his body was
buried. Then they went home to prepare spices and perfumes.
.
Consider the Rosemary (Rosmarinus).
Legend says that it has been aromatic and
evergreen since the time the swaddling
clothes of the Holy Infant were hung upon it,
and that since his death, it has borne purple
markings upon its lavender flowerets in
memory of Calvary. In olden times it was
customary to strew rosemary on the tombs of
the departed.
XIV. JESUS RISES FROM THE DEAD
After the Sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary
Magdalene came with the other Mary to inspect the tomb. Suddenly
there was a mighty earthquake as the angel of the Lord descended
from heaven. He came to the stone, rolled it back, and sat on it.
In appearance he resembled a flash of lightning while his garments
were as white as snow. The guards grew paralyzed with fear of him
and fell down 1ike dead men. Then the angel spoke, addressing the
women: "Do not be frightened. I know you are looking for Jesus
the crucified, but he is not here. He has been raised exactly as
he promised."
Consider the Tansey (Tanacetum vulgare). Its hard golden
flowerets will keep their color for a long time if dried when they
are at their best. Perhaps it is from this everlasting quality
that it gets its name tansey, for it is a word derived from
athanatos (the Greek word for immortality). Its health-giving
properties may also have inspired its name. In Europe it is
called Jesus-wort. Consider a1so the Rose of Jericho or
Resurrection Plant (Anastatica hierochuntica) which was
brought to Europe from the Holy Land by the Crusaders. After
flowering it dries up, but when soaked in water, opens up again.
.
Today the Easter Lily
is widely valued as
exemplary of the symbolism
of Christ's Resurrection
by the Spring re-emergence
and blooming of the many
flowers withered by the
Winter cold.
Concluding Prayer:
(The following prayer is a traditional prayer of the members of
the Society of Mary [Marianists]. It is their custom to pray it
daily as close to 3:00 p.m. as possible. For this reason they
Call it: The Three O'Clock Prayer.)
Lord, Jesus, we gather in spirit at the foot of the Cross with
your Mother and the disciple whom you loved. We ask pardon of
our sins which are the cause of your death. We thank you for
remembering us in that hour of salvation and for giving us Mary
as our Mother.
Holy Virgin, take us under your protection and open us to the
action of the Holy Spirit.
St. John, obtain for us the grace of taking Mary into our life
as you did and of assisting her in her mission. Amen.
May the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit be glorified in
all places through the Immaculate Virgin Mary.
ADDENDUM BY MARY'S GARDENS
With the discovery of the Passion Flower in Mexico by missionaries,
the many European flower symbols of the Way of the Cross, such as
those reflected on in the above by Father Stanley, were compositely
distilled, as it were, in this one symbolic flower.
When the discovery of the Passion Flower (first known as the "Flower
of the Five Wounds") was reported in Rome in 1610 - by the Mexican
Augustinian friar, Emmanuel de Villegas - monastic scholar, Jacomo
Bosio, observed, after verifying the truth of its symbolism by
viewing specimens of the actual plant:
"It may be that in His infinite wisdom it pleased (God)
to create it thus, shut up and protected, as though to
indicate that the wonderful mysteries of the Cross and
His passion were to remain hidden from the...people of
these countries until the time preordained by His Highest
Majesty."
While the origins of most of the many flower symbols of popular
religious tradition are lost in the mists of time, the historical
documentation of the discovery of the Passion Flower, and of its
recognition as a providential religious signature, serves to
corroborate the role such flower symbols are perceived as having
played, generally, in pre-literate popular religious teaching and
devotion.
Grown in the Mary Garden today, the Passion Flower vine - half-hardy
Passiflora incarnata , found growing in nature as far north as
Georgia, but requiring winter protection farther north - serves,
through its generic symbolic parts, to quicken our reflection on
the Passion.
With its historical documentation, it serves also to remind us that
in the former, pre-literate era of popular Christianity, it and
the other flower symbols recalled the Passion, the full Gospel
Story, and the creedal truths of Tradition with a simplicity,
directness and clarity not found in today's literate, catechetical
teaching of Catholicism.
.
In viewing the Passion Flower, consider first of all the ten petals,
seen to symbolize the twelve Apostles, less Judas who betrayed
and Peter who denied.
Then consider the prominent three stigma, recalling the nails fixing
Christ's hands and feet to the Cross; the central flower column seen
to signify the Cross itself and also the pillar against which
Christ was scourged; and the lower five anthers representing the
wounds of his hands, feet and side.
In addition to these prominent symbols of Christ's agony, consider
also the spiraled tendrils, suggesting the lash with which Christ
was scourged; and the 72 radial filements, seen to represent the
number of lashes he received and also the Crown of Thorns painfully
piercing his brow.
Also, the style, representing the sponge used to moisten Christ's
parched lips; the leaves (some species), the head of the
centurion's spear; the red stains, Christ's blood drops; the round
fruit, the world Christ came to save; and the flower's renowned
fragrance, the spices prepared for Christ's deposed body by the holy
women.
(More on the Passion Flower)
o O o
For Virtual Garden Meditation: Sorrowful Mary Garden
(More on the St. Catherine of Siena Mary Garden)
"Gethsemane Garden Stones" Way of the Cross
Photos: Mary's Gardens