Stephen Cottrell brings home, vividly and poignantly, the physical reality of the passion story.

The narrative of Holy Week is powerful and painful, and because we know how the story ends it's easy to gloss over the difficult details, and stay in the comfort zone of our understanding. The Things He Carried is a book to stimulate thought, provoke discussion and create space for contemplation.

'In order to understand the cross you need to stand under it . . . with the imagination as well as the mind... This book aims to help in that process... But however you use it – on your own or with others - I hope you will receive some small appreciation of just how much the cross weighs, and maybe even pick it up yourself.'

From the Introduction