The Way of the Cross

Around The Landway

Passiontide 2026

A printable version

LOCATION OF STATIONS

1. Jesus in agony

The first station is 1c The Laurels, The Landway. This is at the Ashford Rd end on the town side.

On the night before he died, Jesus took his friends into a garden to pray. He went off a little way by himself. He knelt down on the ground. ‘Father,’ he prayed, ‘take this suffering away from me. Yet I will do what you want, not what I want.’ God gave him the strength he needed. He was in very great distress, and prayed with all his heart. So much sweat poured off him, it was as if he was bleeding.

Luke 22: 39-44

Agony and pain come to all of us. Jesus asked God to help him bear it bravely. He wants his friends to do the same, and to pray as he did: ‘I will do what you want, God, not what I want.’

Continue up The Landway. The next station is a little beyond the junction with Fauchons Lane at

17 The Landway.

2. Jesus is betrayed by his friends

As Jesus was praying in the garden, his friend Judas came with a gang, armed with swords. He went straight up to Jesus. ‘Sir’, Judas said, and kissed him. The men grabbed Jesus and put him under guard. Everybody left him and ran away. Mark 14: 43-50

When it came to the crunch, Jesus was left on his own. All his friends let him down. Judas, a very close friend, turned against him. Peter, whom Jesus had chosen as a leader, pretended he didn’t know him. The rest ran away, and Jesus was on his own.

Lord we’ve all suffered from loneliness. We’re glad you know what it is like.

The next station is next door at Oakleigh,

19 The Landway.

3. The crown of thorns

Jesus was taken to the Roman Governor, Pilate. Pilate had him flogged, and then turned him over to the soldiers to make fun of him. They made a crown out of some thorn twigs, and pressed it on his head. Then they kept saluting him with the words, ‘Long live your Majesty’ and slapped him on the face. John 19: 1-3

Which is worse …. people pushing sharp spikes into you, or people making fun of you?

Jesus had both.

Because we know this, we pray that we may find it a bit easier when the same pain comes to us.

The next station is at 81 The Landway opposite The Almonds.

4. Jesus takes up his cross

When the soldiers had finished making fun of Jesus, they led him out to die. They marched him off, and made him carry his own cross on his shoulders. John 19:17

Crosses come in different shapes.

Each one of us will have some cross to carry, whether we like it or not.

Jesus said the way you could tell who were his friends was the way they took up their cross.

The next station is at 107 The Landway at the junction with Birling Avenue.

5. Simon helps Jesus

As Jesus went on his way to die, the soldiers made a passer-by help him with his cross. His name was Simon. His home was in North Africa. Mark 15:21

Simon helped Jesus carry his cross. Thank God for all the people who have helped us carry ours.

Are there some people who need me to help them carry theirs?

Please cross the road carefully and start walking back towards the Ashford Road. The next station is at

106 The Landway.

6. The women comfort Jesus

On his way to Calvary, a large number of people followed Jesus. Among them were a group of women, who cried for him and tried to comfort him. Jesus told them, ‘Don’t cry for me. Cry for yourselves and your children. Luke 22: 27-28

Many people felt sorry for Jesus when they saw him on the way of the cross. His mother. The woman who wiped his face. The woman who cried for him.

Jesus felt sorry for them.

The trouble with us, Lord, is that so often we feel sorry only for ourselves.

Forgive us.

Continue towards the Ashford Road, the next station is at 92 The Landway.

7. Jesus on the cross

When Jesus reached Calvary, the soldiers took his clothes off him and nailed him to the cross he’d carried. Then they tossed up for his clothes, to share among themselves.

Mark 15: 22-25

When people die, one of the saddest sights is seeing the clothes they used to wear, which they’ll never wear again.

It’s worse when other people wear them.

Worse still if they’ve stolen them.

When Jesus dies, who’s going to step into his shoes?

Continue towards the Ashford Road, the next station is at 60 The Landway.

8. Jesus dies

As Jesus hung on his cross, he kept on praying: ‘Father forgive them. They don’t know what they’re doing.’ And he prayed the words of an old hymn: ‘Father, I put my whole life in your hands.’ With these words he died. Luke 23: 34-46

Death comes to all of us, and to all those close to us. No one can avoid it. It depends then how you react, whether you blame anyone – the world we live in, other people, God.

Jesus blamed no one.

He was like God, always forgiving.

Continue towards the Ashford Road, the next station is at 40 The Landway, opposite The Morlings

9. Jesus is buried

The friends of Jesus took his body down from the cross and wrapped it in a linen sheet. They put the body in a cave which had already been dug out of the rock, and rolled a stone across the front to close it. Mark 15: 46-47

When someone has died, he is dead

No more life.

When you bury him, you say, that’s it. It’s like bricking up the doors of an empty house.

That’s the end.

But burying is what you do to seeds. Is that the end of them?

Continue down The Landway, cross over Plantation Lane, the final station is at 10 The Landway.

10. Jesus is raised from the dead

Very early on the Sunday morning, three women friends of Jesus came to his grave. They found the stone had been rolled away. They went into the cave, and were amazed to see an angel sitting there. He said ‘Don’t be frightened. You are looking for Jesus. You won’t find him here. He has been raised from the dead. He is alive.’ Mark 16: 1-6

If you leave seeds in a packet, they remain just what they are – seeds.

If you bury them in the ground, they turn into grain and grass and flowers.

Jesus said his death would be like planting a seed.

Today the life of Jesus is everywhere!

You have now completed the Stations of the Cross, we hope that you have found it meaningful. If you want to hear more of the Easter story, you may like to attend one of the services held in Bearsted churches during Holy Week (see next page).

Sunday 29th March – Palm Sunday

Holy Cross Church – 9.30 am

New Way – 10.30 am

St Peter’s Roman Catholic Church – 8.45 and 10.30 am

Methodist Church (joint service at Sittingbourne) – 10.30 am

Thursday 2nd April – Maundy Thursday

Holy Cross Church – 7 pm

St Peter’s Roman Catholic Church

Friday 3rd April – Good Friday

Holy Cross Church – 11 am quiet prayer; 2 pm service of Holy Communion

St Peter’s Roman Catholic Church

Saturday 4th April – Easter Egg Hunt, Bearsted Woodland Trust: 9 am

Sunday 5th April – Easter Sunday

Holy Cross Church – 9.30 am

New Way – 10.30 am

St Peter’s Roman Catholic Church

Methodist Church – 10.30 am

For more information see: