MADISON — Queer- and trans-affirming Christians will gather Friday morning for a Good Friday observance centered on transgender solidarity and resistance to anti-trans violence.

The event, titled “Walking With Jesus,” will take place from 9 to 10:30 a.m. April 3 in downtown Madison. Organized by the Madison Stone Catchers, the procession adapts the traditional Christian Stations of the Cross to affirm transgender lives and call attention to what organizers describe as escalating legal and social attacks on trans people.

The Stations of the Cross, a devotional practice observed for more than 600 years, guides participants through key moments in the arrest, trial, crucifixion and burial of Jesus. Organizers say the ritual offers a framework to reflect on contemporary injustice.

“Transgender people are under violent assault, both physical and spiritual,” said the Rev. Liz Edman, co-founder of the Stone Catchers Project. “On Good Friday, we will walk with Jesus … and empower participants to renounce state violence against innocent people.”

Participants will gather at the Way of the Cross Garden, 31 S. Henry St., before beginning a 1.3-mile procession through downtown Madison. Stops will include the State Capitol, the federal courthouse and the County Public Safety Building — sites organizers say symbolize institutions shaping policies that affect trans lives.

At each station, participants will engage in scripture readings, meditation and reflection. The event will conclude back at the garden around 10:30 a.m.

Organizers and speakers connected the observance to broader national and state-level policy debates. Recent actions cited include federal prison policies affecting transgender inmates and state-level identification restrictions, as well as a wave of proposed legislation tracked in Wisconsin that could impact access to health care, education and legal recognition.

“The events of Jesus’s conviction and execution offer a powerful lens for perceiving the ways that many people, including trans Americans, are currently being targeted,” Edman said.

Christen Lester-Jones, a co-organizer, said the story of Good Friday resonates personally.

“I am a trans woman, and I am a Christian,” Lester-Jones said. “I look at Jesus’s last hours, and I see our story reflected in his.”

Alder and Pastor Dina Nina Martinez-Rutherford emphasized the importance of visible support from faith communities.

“Trans people are often expelled from their congregations, their families and their communities,” Martinez-Rutherford said. “Showing up and offering that community and unconditionality is needed.”

Organizers say the event also serves as a call for progressive Christians to speak out against what they describe as harmful religious messaging targeting LGBTQ+ people.

“Our group is made up of deeply spiritual Christians committed to social justice,” said organizer Beth Whitaker. “Stone Catcher actions give transgender and queer people and their allies a way to work together … and to do so publicly as a model for others.”

The event is open to the public.