For about two decades, Augustans have taken to the streets on Good Friday to walk a solemn path carrying crosses in remembrance of that significant day in Christian church history.

The walk is about 1.5 miles traversing down Lumpkin Road to Ascension Lutheran Church on Wells Road across Deans Bridge Road to Hillcrest Baptist Church and ending at St. Joseph Catholic Church.

At each church, there’s about 15 to 20 minutes of music and a Good Friday-related message. The event lasts about two hours.

Between 500 and 600 people participate in the walk itself. Transportation is provided behind the group in a van as a safety net, catching any of the walkers who might not be able to complete it. Some people travel from out of the area just to participate.

Along the route people tend to come out of their houses and sit on their porches to silently join in.

The event brings different denominations together on common ground, said Nancy Garner. When everyone is participating, there are no labels to identify anyone as a member of a certain church or certain denomination. They are all simply Christians.

“This is the first time a lot of them have said they’ve ever carried a cross in public,” she said.

They may have doctrinal differences on other matters, but the crucifixion of Christ and his resurrection on Easter are at the foundation of all the denominations. Good Friday is one of the days out of the year when Christians all over the globe join together in unity.