More than 300 people participated in the annual Good Friday procession and Passion service, which took place on April 7. The last time the event occurred was in 2019, before the pandemic.
Father Mark Riley, pastor of St. Michael the Archangel Parish on Cleveland’s West Side, said the procession is a Hispanic Holy Week tradition. They processed from St. Michael to St. Colman and finally La Sagrada Familia parishes. All three parishes have large Hispanic congregations.
The faithful gathered at St. Michael the Archangel for some brief remarks before the procession formed. Leading the way were servers, deacons, priests and Bishop Edward Malesic, accompanied by some Knights of Columbus.
(See photo gallery above.)
Two large statues – one of the crucified Christ and a one of the Blessed Mother dressed in black mourning clothes -- were throughout the procession. A young man portraying Jesus carried a cross though the procession. A group of people dressed as Roman soldiers and townspeople walked nearby.
Representatives of parish organizations, including the youth groups, and a large contingent of the faithful completed the procession. Some of the marchers carried a large banner with the diocesan logo. Procession participants were of all ages, from babies in strollers to senior citizens. Some of those unable to walk the distances between churches met the group at the worship sites for the prayer services.
The procession began at St. Michael and walked along Clark Avenue to West 53rd Street, onto Lorain Avenue to West 65th Street and into St. Colman Church. A Passion service took place in the church.
In remarks before the procession left St. Michael’s, Bishop Malesic briefly addressed the faithful who gathered in the church,
“This is my first walk with you,” he said, noting there was nothing like this in his previous diocese in Greensburg, Pennsylvania. “I’m impressed with your faith. Thank you for your faith.”
He said the procession is a way of showing our love for Jesus and the sacrifice he made for us.
“We are taking our faith outside of the walls of the Church. May it inspire others to follow. This short walk is a symbol of our journey to heaven, but first we must stop at the foot of the cross,” the bishop said.
As the group left the church, they stepped into the bright sunshine and chilly temperatures. People watched as the group processed along the street, with some peering from windows on the route. Cleveland police provided an escort for the group. As they walked, some were silent while others chatted among themselves, sang, prayed or recited the rosary.
When the procession reached St. Colman Church, nearly two miles away, they walked up the front steps and into the church where more people awaited.
The prayer service included a reading of the Passion in Spanish, a brief homily from the bishop and intercessions.
As the bishop talked, Father Francisco Honorato “Paco” Garnica, CSJ translated his remarks into Spanish.
He shared the experience of about 70 members of the Cleveland seminary community who traveled to Rome in early March and were able to have a private audience with Pope Francis, noting how special the experience was.
He said Jesus gives us witness showing an innocent man who was crucified and brutally beaten yet he returned to those he loved.
“If I was God – and I’m not – I would never have left heaven, a perfect place. But Jesus did. God loves us so much that he came and he stays with us,” the bishop said.
He told those gathered at St, Colman that Jesus experienced the same feelings and emotions we do – pain, suffering, betrayal and abuse. “He understands our pain, my pain in walking from St. Michael to St. Colman. My knees were aching, but that was nothing like the pain of Jesus,” he said.
Addressing the parents, Bishop Malesic pointed out if they have a child going in the wrong direction, they would do anything to help their child. “Jesus saw his children – us – going astray and he left heaven to help us. Listen to what the story is telling us. God was willing to leave heaven and come to this sinful, messy, painful and sometimes unjust world . We should love one another as Jesus did. Love is hard work,” he said.
The procession symbolizes how we walk together and support each other in faith.
“My faith is weak; your faith is strong. Your faith helps me. You inspire me and once in a while, I hope I inspire you,” the bishop said.
“We walk together, going forward. It may only be an inch a day, but we walk forward with Jesus,” he said.
As they continue walking through the streets on the way to the third and final church, La Sagrada Familia, the bishop urged the group to take their faith with them outside the walls of the church. “Be ambassadors of Jesus. The cross is our hope. From it we receive the saving blood of Christ as we follow him from death to life. Embrace the cross of Christ because on it hung the savior of the world.”
He said each of us has a cross to bear and as we do so, we should show our love for Jesus as witnesses for Christ.
“Going from death to life with Jesus is our greatest desire .Never lose the faith,” he said.
Although the bishop had to leave the group to return to the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist to preside at the Passion service there, they continued the procession to Sagrada Familia, where they stopped again for a prayer service.
Father Caroli Shao, AJ, pastor of St. Colman and nearby St. Stephen parishes, Father Garnica and Father Rob Reidy, former Sagrada Familia pastor and current senior parochial vicar at Mary Queen of the Apostles Parish in Brook Park, also participated in the procession and prayer services.