Station Description: Jesus is taken down from the cross and held by His mother.
The Saints
Surrounding Jesus and Mary are 134 religious figures from all historical periods and parts of the world.
There are 117 saints, five blesseds, four venerables, and eight others (a Pope, a queen, two priests, two laymen, one religious brother, and one legendary figure).
The only living figure is Brother Guy J. Consolmagno, S.J., Director of the Vatican Observatory from 2015-2025, who is on the right panel directly above St. Peregrine with one arm outstretched.
St. Padre Pio is featured twice, as he could bilocate. He is prominently displayed behind St. Matthew on the left panel and is also on the right panel above St. Augustine’s right index finger.
Left Panel
At the top of the Station, the hand of God is shown creating the universe.
Angels descend from Heaven.
At the bottom right, St. Matthew the Evangelist, kneels as his symbol, a small angel holds an ink well behind him.
Matthew’s Gospel is opened to Matthew 11, where Jesus upbraids the unrepentant cities (Matthew 11:20-24).
Behind St. Matthew from right to left are Sts. Padre Pio, John the Baptist, Sebastian, Joseph, Maximilian Kolbe, Faustina (holding the Divine Mercy image), Theresa of Avila, and Gabriel the Archangel.
St. Jerome kneels in front of all the saints.
Middle Panel
The landscape surrounding the scene is transformed from Mount Golgotha to the entire Earth and the universe.
Mary is depicted as Queen of the Universe, with twelve stars appearing above her head (Revelation 12:1).
In the bottom left corner is St. Mark the Evangelist, with his symbol, the winged lion, above his head.
Mark’s Gospel is opened to Mark 13, portraying the Coming of the Son of Man (Mark 13:24-27).
On the right, St. Luke the Evangelist kneels, with his symbol, the winged ox, above him.
Luke’s Gospel is opened to Luke 21, also showing the Coming of the Son of Man with a person raising their hands (Luke 21:25-28).
Right Panel
To the left, St. John the Evangelist, with his symbol, the eagle, gives him a reed pen to write with from above.
John’s Gospel is opened to John 1, illustrating when the Word became flesh (John 1:1-18).
To the right of St. John, St. Patrick clenches dead snakes in his hand.
St. Peregrine displays the wounds from cancer on his left leg and holds onto a small crucifix.
St. Francis of Assisi holds a baby bird in one hand and a wolf in the other.
Behind him are St. Josephine Bakhita, who displays her scars branded while she was enslaved, and St. Clare of Assisi, holding a monstrance.
St. Augustine holds the Bible, open to Romans 13:13, which prompted his conversion.
St. Thomas Aquinas holds a bust of Aristotle.
On the far right, St. Michael the Archangel, holds the severed head of a conquered demon.