Serving God in the heart of our community since 1881

St Andrew's Church, Taunton

The St. Andrew's Stations of the Cross:

an introduction

The Stations of the Cross have a long history. Early Christian visitors to Jerusalem would walk 'The Way of the Cross' from Pilate's house to Calvary - stopping at various places for scripture readings and prayer. The pilgrims took this method of devotion home with them and the representations of the stopping points eventually became 'The Stations of the Cross'.

The number of Stations has varied down the centuries. However in the 18th century the number was fixed at 14 reflecting a mixture of Biblical stories and popular tradition.

'The Stations' at St. Andrew's number 8, but some of them incorporate, or suggest, other traditional Stations - e.g. 'The Women of Jerusalem' can be seen in the background of Station 3.

The Stations, which are displayed in the South Aisle, were undertaken as a project by St Andrew’s Banner Group.  The Stations were designed by St. Andrew's member, Val Goodwin, who approached the task in the manner of an icon painter – praying and reflecting on the scriptures before beginning work.

The framing and presentation of the Stations is the gift of the Lock family, in memory of Percy and Joan Lock who were faithful members of St Andrew’s.

The congregation at St. Andrew's thanks God for the vision, skill and generosity of all who have made these Stations such a rich and beautiful resource for the Church.

The Stations were made during Advent 2000.

The reflections which accompany the Stations, were written by St. Andrew's Reader Katharine Smith for Good Friday 2007, and based upon reflections in her book The Way of the Cross, which is published by Redemptorist Publications.

Photographs are by Adrian Smith.

Please feel free to use the photographs of the Stations and Katharine's reflections for personal prayer and meditation. If you use them in small groups please acknowledge St. Andrew's Church Taunton. Larger format photos of the images can be obtained from the .

First Station