Community Corner

Stations Of The Cross Set For Good Friday

Annual event will take to Main Street, walking with a police escort to observe Good Friday.

The annual walking of the Stations of the Cross is set for Friday and has grown so large, it will have a police escort this year down Main Street.

The Church of the Redeemer and the Sarasota Ministerial Association invite the Sarasota community to observe the Passion of Jesus Christ by participating in walking the Stations of the Cross down Main Street Sarasota on Good Friday, April 6, beginning at 7:30 a.m.

Walking the Stations of the Cross is a centuries-old Christian tradition of remembering and experiencing 14 events along the way of Christ's journey to the cross. 

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The Church of the Redeemer Friday Men’s Breakfast Prayer Group founded this tradition of walking down Main Street in 1996; the event began with fewer than 15 participants and has since grown into a multi-church and community-wide event with approximately 500 "pilgrims" participating.

The Christian pilgrimage gathers at 7:15 a.m., in front of the  on Main Street, and the walking of the Stations will begin promptly at 7:30 a.m., when the Rev. Fredrick A. Robinson, Redeemer's Rector, members of the Men's Ministry of Redeemer and of the Sarasota Ministerial Association, will lead the pilgrimage in prayer and singing. 

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The cross will be carried throughout the walk by Redeemer's Youth Minister, Mr. Christian Wood. Members of the choirs of the 30-member Association will be following a Lenten Good Friday Liturgical Banner in procession behind The Cross, singing the Trisagion in refrain following each station reading.

Along the way, pilgrims stop for worship and prayer at each of the 14 stations — an opportunity for reflection upon the different moments of Christ's passion journey; a service booklet sharing the acts of worship for each station is provided to all participating pilgrims.

The procession will include stations in front of the building, the steps of the , the , and many other sites on and near Main Street, and will conclude at approximately 8:30 a.m., at the with a closing devotion.  All pilgrims are invited to stay at Redeemer for the Morning Prayer service, which will immediately follow, with Father Robinson leading the prayer, joined by the Rev. Dr. Tom Pfaff, Goodwill Industries Chaplain and Chair of the Sarasota Ministerial Association.

For those who want to park at the final station at the Church of the Redeemer, buses, beginning at 6:45 a.m., will take pilgrims from Redeemer to the Hollywood 20 location. After the 9 a.m., Morning Prayer service at Redeemer, bus transportation will again be offered from Redeemer to Hollywood 20 for pilgrims who parked at the beginning of the route.

 
STATIONS 

Opening Devotion at Hollywood 20 sidewalk (corner of Main and 301):  The Rev. Fredrick A. Robinson, Rector of the Church of the Redeemer

Station 1:  Bench on north side of Links and Main Streets: Sarasota County Commissioner Carolyn Mason

Station 2:  Front of City Center Building: The Church of the Redeemer Men

Station 3:  Steps at park at west side of City Center Building: First Presbyterian Church

Station 4:  Bench area in front of SunTrust Bank Building: Saint Jude Catholic Church (Spanish & English)

Station 5:  Plaza at the Sarasota Herald-Tribune building: Tom Tryon of Christ Church

Station 6:  Steps at First Baptist Church: Salvation Army (singing and reading)

Station 7:  Bench area in front of Bank of America building: St. Martha Catholic Church

Station 8:  Parking lot in front of C'est la Vie restaurant: New College Campus Ministries

Station 9:  Newspaper boxes at intersection of Main and Lemon Streets: The Church of the Redeemer Women

Station 10: Five Points Park turn-around: The Church of Redeemer Hispanic Ministry Assistant Marianela Ramirez (reading in Spanish

Station 11: First United Methodist Church: First United Methodist Youth Group

Station 12: Pineapple Park: Church of the Redeemer Youth (reading) & West Coast School Chorus (singing)

Station 13: Playground area at First United Methodist Church on McAnsh Square: West Coast Center for Human Development

Station 14: Front of the Church of the Redeemer: The Rev. Fredrick A. Robinson, Rector of the Church of Redeemer


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