Stations of the Cross on the Road

On Friday, February 12, as I drove to Fort Scott, I listened to the Wyoming Catholic College CD of The Way of the Cross: Meditations by John Henry Cardinal Newman (recorded in 2009 before his beatification), which also includes musical selections performed by the Wyoming Catholic College choir. You may purchase the CD from the college's webstore. EWTN has the texts of Blessed John Henry Newman's meditations here.

I also stopped at St. Martin of Tours in Piqua, Kansas. Although there is no active Catholic parish there anymore, Catholics in the area maintain the church and keep it open for visitors (including a nice WC). It was chilly in the church, but the light was good inside and here are some pictures. First, the exterior--I wish I could have taken a picture of the church as it appeared on the side of the highway, with the bell tower rising above the plains:

A view of the altar and sanctuary from the choir loft and a close up of the crucifix:

And two of the lovely Stations of the Cross:

The reminder above the Pieta is "Save Your Soul":

Speaking of the bell tower, how about climbing this stairway to heaven from the choir loft? (two wooden ladders nailed together!):

And the patron saint himself, St. Martin of Tours:

You might notice the poinsettia flowers; that's because Mass is offered usually (I saw a folder from a funeral Mass in the choir loft) just once a year: on Christmas Eve. The rest of the year it is maintained as an oratory, a place of prayer.

Finally, I'll close this photo post with an interesting sight in Fort Scott: the doorway to the Scottish Rite Temple with the cross and the pelican:

The Scottish Rite Temple closed in 2014 due to declining membership and financial losses, according to this Fort Scott Tribune story.

All pictures (c) 2016 Stephanie A. Mann. Taken with Canon PowerShot S95, my husband's nice point and shoot (for me) camera.