Stations of the Cross be conducted personally by the faithful, making their way from one station to another and saying the prayers, or by having an officiating celebrant move from cross to cross while the faithful make the responses. The stations themselves must consist of, at the very least, fourteen wooden crosses, pictures alone do not suffice, and they must be blessed by someone with the authority to erect stations. Pope John Paul II led an annual public prayer of the Stations of the Cross at the Roman Colosseum on Good Friday. Originally, the pope himself carried the cross from station to station, but
Ritual of the Bacabs to Christianity in the text. Almost every incantation ends with "Amen," and the thirty-ninth uses "Jesus Mary" ("Jesuz Maria") as an exclamation. "Ritual of the Bacabs" is filled with symbolism that has long since lost its significance and meaning. In his "Maya History and Religion", J. Eric S. Thompson wrote: "The only parallel which comes to mind of the Book of Revelation. Many plants, birds, and insects, all clothed in symbolism and allusions to lost mythology, are important features...even in translation the incantations are very hard to comprehend." Ritual of the Bacabs Ritual of the Bacabs is the name given