The Via Dolorosa is an intriguing concept to me. It is not something I ever learned about with my Protestant upbringing. The Via Dolorosa (translated as "way of sorrow") is a route that begins at the Praetorium (or at the Lion's gate near Antonia Fortress) and ends at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Tradition holds that this is the route that Jesus took to the crucifixion, although the actual route has been modified slightly over the centuries. The route has been consistent for the past five centuries. The route has noteworthy locations along the path known as "Stations of the Cross." There are nine along the Via Dolorosa and five inside the church.
Rather than backtracking to the Lion's Gate, where we started, we proceeded from the Church of Saint Anne directly to the Praetorium which is the first station of the cross. There are technically two stations together, but I will break it down one at a time. There are two churches at the first station. The Church of the Flagellation (pictured above) and The Church of the Condemnation and Imposition of the Cross. This is the site where tradition held that Jesus was tried and flogged. The consensus now is that the judgment happened at Herod's Palace.
Station 2, which is nearby, is the Church of Ecce Homo (pictured above) that commemorates Pilate's speech following the scourging. John 19:5 reads: When Jesus came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe, Pilate said to them, “Here is the man!”
The third Station of the Cross (along with the Seventh and Ninth) commemorate places where Jesus fell while he carried the weight of the cross. These events were not recorded in the Gospels, so I tend to view them more as folklore or legend than of any actual significance. Station 3 is located near the Polish Catholic Chapel.
Station 4 represents an interaction Jesus had with his mother, Mary, while carrying the cross. There is no mention of this even in the Gospels. There is a Nineteenth century church nearby built on a Byzantine era church, so there is apparently some significance to the precise location, I would imagine. The current church is called Our Lady of the Spasm (pictured above).
Station 5 represents the interaction between Jesus and Simon of Cyrene. This account is well documented in three of the gospels and inferred in the fourth (John, who talks about the portion where Jesus carried the cross himself). The church built at this site (pictured above) is called The Chapel of Simon of Cyrene and only dates to the nineteenth century.
Station 6 is held to be an interaction between Jesus and Veronica. This encounter is not recounted in the Gospels. It is more a medieval Catholic tradition that a woman called Saint Veronica wiped the sweat and tears from Jesus face. The veil subsequently carried Jesus' image (not the Shroud of Turin, which purports to be Jesus burial cloth). Another recent church was place nearby in the nineteenth century called The Church of the Holy Face and Saint Veronica (pictured above).
Station 7 is another place where Jesus fell. This spot marks the location where legend suggests that Jesus fell the second time. This is where the original Via Dolorosa ended. It was once considered the eighth station.
Station 8 was previously earlier along the route, making the previous station the eighth. This has been the eighth for the past five centuries or so. It marks a place recounted in the Gospel of Luke, where Jesus stopped to give a sermon to pious women nearby. Luke 23 reads: 27 And there followed him a great multitude of the people and of women who were mourning and lamenting for him. 28 But turning to them Jesus said, “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me, but weep for yourselves and for your children. 29 For behold, the days are coming when they will say, ‘Blessed are the barren and the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!’ 30 Then they will begin to say to the mountains, ‘Fall on us,’ and to the hills, ‘Cover us.’ 31 For if they do these things when the wood is green, what will happen when it is dry?”
Station 9 is located at the Monastery of Saint Anthony. It represents the third and final time that Jesus fell on this journey. This is the last of the noteworthy points on the Via Dolorosa, although the Stations of the Cross finish inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre which I will be talking about in another post. I hope you enjoyed reading about the Via Dolorosa. Be sure to check out my other posts about my trip to Israel!
A Christian Guide to Israel
Hotels
Cinema Hotel Tel Aviv, Israel
Ron Beach Hotel, Tiberias, Israel
Prima Park Hotel Jerusalem, Israel
Attractions
Caesarea National Park Caesarea, Israel
Mount Precipice Mount Kedimum, Israel
Sea of Galilee Boat Ride Tiberias, Israel
Yigal Alon Museum (Jesus Boat) Ginosar, Israel
Capernaum, Israel
St. Peter’s Restaurant Kinneret, Israel
Caesarea Phillipi Banias, Israel
Gadot Lookout and Memorial Golan Heights, Israel
Jordan River Baptismal Site Yardenit, Israel
Beit She’an National Park Beit She’an, Israel
Mount of Olives, Jerusalem, Israel
Garden Tomb Jerusalem, Israel
Western Wall Jerusalem, Israel
Western Wall Tunnels Jerusalem, Israel
Via Dolorosa, Jerusalem, Israel
Bethlehem New Store Gift Shop
Pools of Bethesda Jerusalem, Israel
Israel Museum, Jerusalem, Israel
Yad Vashem, Jerusalem, Israel
House of Caiaphas the High Priest, Jerusalem, Israel
The Upper Room, Jerusalem, Israel
Tomb of King David, Jerusalem, Israel
Masada National Park, Masada, Israel
The Dead Sea, Masada, Israel
Churches
Discalced Carmelite Monastery Muhraqa, Israel
Basilica of the Annunciation Nazareth, Israel
St. Peter’s Church Capernaum, Israel
Church of the Multiplication Tabgha, Israel
Church of the Beatitudes Tabgha, Israel
Church of All Nations Jerusalem, Israel
Church of Saint Anne Jerusalem, Israel
Church of the Holy Sepulcher, Jerusalem, Israel
Church of the Nativity, Bethlehem, West Bank
Unless otherwise indicated, these photos are my own. They may be used with permission.