Lenten cross-walk touches Catholic youths

A scorching sun beat down on more than 100 Catholics as they trekked up the winding Makapuu Lighthouse trail, pausing 14 times on their way to the top for Stations of the Cross devotionals.

Between stations about 20 youngsters took turns carrying an 8-foot mahogany cross weighing about 15 pounds. Among them was Cody Tinu, 12, who had volunteered to take on the role of Jesus on impulse.

He never complained, said youth minister Jessica Russell of St. John the Baptist Church. The boy, who serves as altar boy at her Kalihi church, wore an alb, or ankle-length, long-sleeved garment, over his regular clothes, but he didn’t show any sign of discomfort and it was “very hot,” she said.

“He was very respectful the whole time. You could tell that he wasn’t doing it to please anyone, he was just doing it to please God, and that really impressed me. He was in a very prayerful mode, and he didn’t break from that,” Russell said.

While assuming the role, Cody said, “I was thinking about how painful it was when Jesus fell three times, as they ripped his garments. … It was a lot harder than I thought, being Jesus. Yeah, I was tired but then I was still peaceful.”

The pre-Easter event, which recounts Jesus’ walk to his crucifixion, is organized annually during Lent by West Honolulu Vicariate Youth and Young Adults, said Dann Ebina, a youth minister of Co-Cathedral of St. Theresa.

Nine parishes participated in the March 5 “cross-walk,” a relatively easy 1-mile climb to the lighthouse area along a recently repaved pathway, Ebina said.

“The pope asked us to take evangelism out of our church and into the public. We’re trying to show people that Jesus is alive and well,” Ebina said. “It’s really gratifying for them (the youth)” and the staff, especially when other hikers join them, he said.

“Once, this guy joined us; he felt he was not worthy to carry the cross. And when he was carrying it, he was crying. That was really touching,” Ebina said. While participating youngsters from various parishes usually don’t shed tears, “it touches them,” he said. “They tell us their feelings afterwards” during a wrap-up session.

During the recent trek teens chatted happily between stations but quickly became “very somber” during the devotionals, involving prayers, recitations, acting out scenes and songs, said Ebina, who built the mahogany cross several years ago. It’s light enough for a teenager to carry alone or for a few to share the weight.

Russell said this year’s hike was one of the best, with the most hikers she’s seen in the five years she’s participated.

“As churchgoers we’re empowered by it. Just to be able to endure, just a little bit. Just walking up that hike, to me, it brought it on a personal level … to try to imagine what Jesus must have felt,” she said. “I feel that it definitely brought me closer to (Jesus) and increased my faith.”

The Stations of the Cross ritual dates back to the 1300s when Early Christian pilgrims to Jerusalem retraced Jesus’ trek to his death on Calvary, erecting shrines or stations along the way depicting the sequence of events leading to crucifixion. In modern parishes these scenes are represented by pictures or images mounted on church walls.

To watch a video of a previous cross-walk, visit vimeo.com/60434700.