WAY OF THE CROSS

Hundreds of Calgary Catholics join Good Friday march

Father Ephrem Kardouh was among the thousands of Calgarians who walked through the inner city streets on Good Friday for the Way of the Cross.

But during the nearly three-hour procession, his home country of Syria was never far from his mind.

“We’re suffering in my country, in the Middle East, and today in this sacred time, in the sacred holy week, I would like to join our suffering to the suffering of the Lord,” said Kardouh, who is with St. Basil’s Melkite Greek Catholic Church in southwest Calgary.

“We are asking Him for peace to my country and to the whole world.”

Kardouh joined the city’s Catholic community for the annual outdoor pilgrimage, now in its 33rd year, to mark Christ’s journey from his condemnation to his crucifixion.

Participants started and ended at St. Mary’s Cathedral, stopping at 14 stations to pray, read the Gospels and sing, all the while carrying a large wooden cross through the streets.

Eden D’Souza, event organizer and stewardship co-ordinator for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Calgary, said Calgarians are also encouraged to think about and help the less fortunate in the city; for example, those who suffer from homelessness, poverty or mental illness.

“We’re Catholics and we would like to participate in this sacred event, and give back to the community,” D’Souza said. “Whatever pain that is causing them, we try to see Christ in them. That’s what we’re called to do as Christians.”

Kardouh said he wanted to show appreciation and thank Calgarians and the church for supporting the many Syrian newcomers to the city.

According to Antoinette Godbout, sponsorship co-ordinator with the Calgary Catholic Immigration Society, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Calgary has helped sponsor 380 Syrian refugees move to the city. During the three-hour walk, she was thinking about the newcomers and their suffering.

“For the ones who have arrived here already, a big part of their suffering is behind them because they’re now in a safe place. But for many of them, the ones who are here, they’re still thinking about their relatives left behind,” said Godbout, who has never missed a Way of the Cross procession in Calgary.

“Then when they come here, there is another kind of suffering. I think the greatest thing is the loneliness for their country and their culture, and they have to adapt here. But the support of the whole community of Calgary and all the services that are made available to them helps them a lot.”

PHOTOS: ELIZABETH CAMERON Father Ephrem Kardouh, a monk who came here from Syria, was one of thousands of people to carry the cross through downtown Calgary on Good Friday.

Fred Fransisco, a volunteer at the 33rd annual Way of the Cross procession, joins with the crowd in the singing of a hymn.

Beulah Fernandes helps her father carry the cross through downtown Calgary on Good Friday. They were two of many who took turns carrying the symbolic wooden cross for a short distance during the two-hour event.

Thousands of Catholics gathered downtown on Good Friday for the traditional Way of the Cross procession organized by St. Mary’s Cathedral.

A woman uses her cellphone to snap a photo of the symbolic cross as the crowd carries it the city’s downtown on Good Friday. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Calgary organizes the annual event.

Sister Cecilia Gomes, left, and Sister Mary Laetitia Moraes help carry the cross during the 33rd annual Way of the Cross event.

Majid Shammas, centre, is joined by members of his family to carry the cross during the annual march held every year on Good Friday.