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Stations of the Cross Series, Station #5, Wed., March 15th by Fr. Ben Daghir & Luke Daghir


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One Thing, Jesus Christ.
Stations of the Cross Series, Station #5, Wednesday, March 15th by Fr. Ben Daghir & Luke Daghir

Editor's Note: Fr. Ben Daghir and Luke Daghir will have 14 articles based upon the stations of the cross. The 14th article will conclude on Easter Sunday.  

Article:
The 5th Station: Simon of Cyrene helps Jesus to carry his cross.

We don’t know much about Simon of Cyrene. He exits the Gospel narrative as quickly as he enters it. Yet, there is something about Simon of Cyrene which has engaged the imagination of Christians since the early Church.

The encounter between Simon of Cyrene and Jesus is captured in two Gospel accounts (Mark 15:21 and Luke 23:26). 

We read in the Gospel of Mark, “And they [the Roman soldiers] compelled a passer-by, Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country…to carry his cross” (Mk 15:21).

Pope John Paul II on Good Friday at the Roman Colosseum in 2003 reflected on this encounter between Jesus and Simon of Cyrene. The Holy Father posed these questions: “How long did Simon of Cyrene continue to resent being forced into this?” “How long did Simon of Cyrene continue to walk beside this condemned man?” 

The Holy Father’s questions challenge us to place ourselves in the footsteps of Simon of Cyrene.  We don’t know what Simon of Cyrene was feeling or thinking. We don’t know how his life might have been changed. We don’t know if there was an exchange of words between Jesus and Simon of Cyrene. 

We do know that Simon of Cyrene carries Jesus’s cross. We also know that the Gospel of Mark is all about discipleship and the distinctive mark of a disciple is one who “denies himself, takes up his cross, and follows me” (Mark 8:34). The narrative of Mark’s Gospel tells us that the Apostles have fled from the cross. The night before Simon of Cyrene carried Jesus’s cross, the Apostles were with Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. Judas then betrays Jesus as he arrives with a crowd carrying swords and clubs (Mark 14:43). Then, we read one of the saddest lines in Scripture…the Apostles deserted Jesus and fled (Mark 14:50). 

As Simon of Cyrene, a mere passer-by, is carrying Christ’s cross, the Apostles are nowhere to be found. The Gospel of Mark challenges us with this thought, “Shouldn’t the Apostles be carrying their cross alongside Jesus?” 

The second verse in which we read about Simon of Cyrene is found in the Gospel of Luke, “And as they led him away, they seized one Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country, and laid on him the cross, to carry it behind Jesus” (Lk 23:26). 

The Gospel of Luke mentions an interesting detail: Simon of Cyrene carried the cross behind Jesus. What was Simon of Cyrene looking at while he carried Jesus’s cross? Was he looking at the ground in disgust and annoyance? Was he looking at the Roman soldiers in hatred and fear? 

Was he looking at the crowd in humiliation and embarrassment? Was he looking at Jesus Christ in front of him? Did he follow the bloody footsteps marked by Christ in front of him? Did he know that those footsteps lead to eternal life? 

Can we find ourselves in the position of Simon of Cyrene? 

“We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you; because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world.”

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Fr. Ben Daghir is a priest for the Diocese of Erie. He is a graduate of Elk County Catholic High School in Saint Marys, Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, and St. Mary's Seminary & University in Baltimore, Maryland. He considers writing one of his favorite hobbies.
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