Second Station of the Cross
Jesus is given the cross to carry
There are a series of pictures representing certain aspects in the Passion of Christ, and each one corresponds to a particular incident.
This series is known as The Way of the Cross and this page introduces the Second Station.
Second Station
He is given the cross to carry
Near the school, the Second Station is at the entrance of the twelfth century monastery (restored in 1929) where we see the ruins of the Roman Arch of Ecce Homo (Greek: Idou ho Anthrôpos - 'Behold the Man'). Those are from the words Pilate used as he presented the bound Jesus to the hostile crowd (John 19:5).
The arch was built in 135 AD by Hadrian to celebrate the capture of Jerusalem. There are some ancient paving stones on the floor of the chapel which bear grooves used for playing dice. We are reminded of the Roman soldiers who threw dice to determine who could keep Jesus' clothes as a souvenir (John 19:24).
What did Jesus think when the heavy wooden cross beam was laid on his shoulders by the Roman soldiers? What level of humility is required to take the weight of all the sins of mankind?
Compare this weight with the puny amount we are willing to bear for the sake of others. We love God, we love our family, we love ourselves. But sometimes this love seems too great a burden. How weak we are. How much we need the example shown by Jesus.