Walk of the Cross in Beaverton
On Good Friday this year, over 200 Christians took to the streets of Beaverton, Oregon, to pray and reflect on Christ's passion and on social justice issues. Twelve congregations, Catholic and Protestant, participated in the ecumenical Good Friday Walk of the Cross. It was organized by the Beaverton suburban vicariate for Peace and Justice, including Maryknoll Affiliates Mary and Manny Hotchkiss.
In the Walk of the Cross a large, rough wooden cross, topped with a circle of thorny vines, is carried at the head of the procession. Participants walk behind the cross, stopping at eight stations, each of which addresses a current social justice issue. Readings relate that station to events of Christ's passion almost 2000 years ago.
The issues this year were housing, sanctity of life, war and peace, immigration, education, health care, sustainability, and a new station for 2009, torture. The station at the Elsie Stuhr Center for senior citizens addressed respect for life “from conception to natural death.” Participants were challenged to make a connection between Christ's death sentence on Good Friday and the death penalty in Oregon. The reflection on war and peace at the Beaverton Veterans Memorial implored us to “stop believing in war” and to remember that Jesus taught us to “love your enemies.”
We also stopped at a county health office, a farmers' market, and a school. The station on affordable housing told of one parish's work with Habitat For Humanity. A Latino community presented the station on immigration and compared the immigrants in the U.S. to the immigrant, Simon of Cyrene, carrying Christ's heavy burden. In recognition of the numerous Latino participants, our written program of songs and readings included Spanish.
We were very moved, remembering Christ's crucifixion and praying with our neighbors in God's beautiful creation. We hope that in the future we will be able to work further with the Beaverton congregations to address problems in our community. One participant told us,“We felt happy because we were with Jesus on His walk.”
We have traditionally participated in a Walk of the Cross in nearby Portland. We enjoy praying and singing outdoors with other Christians and recognizing social justice issues in our community. The organizers of the Walk in Portland inspired and mentored us to start a Good Friday Walk of the Cross in our suburban community. Some people warned us,”There aren't enough sites in Beaverton to walk to. Everyone in Beaverton drives.” But we found many meaningful sites for a mile walk. The first Walk in Beaverton in 2008 was so warmly received that it has now become an annual event.
The Denver Chapter of the Maryknoll Affiliates also had a very successful Good Friday Way of the Cross walk through downtown Denver. The station readings correspond with specific municipal and private landmarks, such as, the city jail, veterans memorial, the World Bank building, and the Federal Court House.
This year’s event had 100 participants, with volunteers carrying a cross and driving a nail at each station. You can read more about the Denver Chapter’s way of the cross, see pictures and download a brochure at our website.
