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THE LITURGY OF GOOD FRIDAY

They will look upon him

whom they pierced

 

Service will be livestreamed from 1.55pm Friday 27th March at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12aDiwPa1H8

 

CHOIR INTROIT

 

THE COLLECT FOR GOOD FRIDAY

 

O God of unchangeable power and eternal light,

look favourably on your whole church,

that wonderful and sacred mystery.

By the effectual working of your providence,

carry out in tranquillity the plan of salvation.

Let the whole world see and know, 

that things which were cast down

are being raised up,

and things which had grown old

are being made new,

and that all things are being brought to their perfection

by him through whom all things were made,

your Son Jesus Christ our Lord;

who suffered for our sake this day,

and now lives and reigns with you,

in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

one God, for ever and ever.

Amen.

 

HYMN

 

O sacred head, sore wounded,
defiled and put to scorn;
O kingly head surrounded
with mocking crown of thorn:
What sorrow mars thy grandeur?
Can death thy bloom deflower?
O countenance whose splendour
the hosts of heaven adore!


In thy most bitter passion
my heart to share doth cry,
with thee for my salvation
upon the cross to die.
Ah, keep my heart thus moved
to stand thy cross beneath,
to mourn thee, well-beloved,
yet thank thee for thy death.

My days are few, O fail not,
with thine immortal power,
to hold me that I quail not
in death's most fearful hour;
that I may fight befriended,
and see in my last strife
to me thine arms extended
upon the cross of life.

 

READING Hebrews 4:14-16, 5:7-9

 

HYMN

There is a green hill far away,

Without a city wall,

Where the dear Lord was crucified

Who died to save us all.

 

We may not know, we cannot tell,

What pains he had to bear,

But we believe it was for us

He hung and suffered there.

 

He died that we might be forgiven,

He died to make us good;

That we might go at last to heaven,

Saved by his precious blood.

 

O, dearly, dearly has he loved,

And we must love him too,

And trust in his redeeming blood,

In all his works to do.

 

THE PASSION according to John

 

Then Pilate took Jesus and scourged him. And the soldiers plaited a crown of thorns, and put it on his head, and arrayed him in a purple robe; they came up to him, saying, "Hail, King of the Jews!" and struck him with their hands. Pilate went out again, and said to them, "See, I am bringing him out to you, that you may know that I find no crime in him." So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them, "Behold the man!" When the chief priests and the officers saw him, they cried out, 

"Crucify him, crucify him!"

Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and crucify him, for I find no crime in him." The Jews answered him, "We have a law, and by that law he ought to die, because he has made himself the Son of God." When Pilate heard these words, he was the more afraid; he entered the praetorium again and said to Jesus, "Where are you from?" But Jesus gave no answer. Pilate therefore said to him, "You will not speak to me? Do you not know that I have power to release you, and power to crucify you?" Jesus answered him, 

"You would have no power over me unless it had been given you from above; therefore he who delivered me to you has the greater sin."

Upon this Pilate sought to release him, but the Jews cried out,

"If you release this man, you are not Caesar's friend;

every one who makes himself a king sets himself against Caesar."

When Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judgment seat at a place called The Pavement, and in Hebrew, Gab'batha. Now it was the day of Preparation of the Passover; it was about the sixth hour.

He said to the Jews,  "Behold your King!" They cried out,

"Away with him, away with him, crucify him!"  Pilate said to them, "Shall I crucify your King?" The chief priests answered,  "We have no king but Caesar." Then he handed him over to them to be crucified.

 

CHOIR MOTET

 

So they took Jesus, and he went out, bearing his own cross, to the place called the place of a skull, which is called in Hebrew Gol'gotha. There they crucified him, and with him two others, one on either side, and Jesus between them. Pilate also wrote a title and put it on the cross; it read,  “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews."  Many of the Jews read this title, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, in Latin, and in Greek. The chief priests of the Jews then said to Pilate,     "Do not write, `The King of the Jews,' but, `This man said, I am King of the Jews.'"  Pilate answered, "What I have written I have written." When the soldiers had crucified Jesus they took his garments and made four parts, one for each soldier; also his tunic. But the tunic was without seam, woven from top to bottom; so they said to one another, "Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it to see whose it shall be." This was to fulfil the scripture,

 "They parted my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots." And this is what the soldiers did. 

 

Now standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother, and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother, and the disciple whom he loved standing near, he said to his mother,

 "Woman, behold, your son!"

Then he said to the disciple,

"Behold, your mother!"

And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home. After this Jesus, knowing that all was now finished, said (to fulfil the scripture), 

"I thirst."

A bowl full of vinegar stood there; so they put a sponge full of the vinegar on hyssop and held it to his mouth. When Jesus had received the vinegar, he said, 

"It is finished";

and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

 

Silence

 

Since it was the day of Preparation, in order to prevent the bodies from remaining on the cross on the sabbath (for that sabbath was a high day), the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away. So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first, and of the other who had been crucified with him; but when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once there came out blood and water. He who saw it has borne witness -- his testimony is true, and he knows that he tells the truth -- that you also may believe. For these things took place that the scripture might be fulfilled,

"Not a bone of him shall be broken."

And again another scripture says,

"They shall look on him whom they have pierced."

 

Silence

 

CHOIR MOTET  

 

Behold the wood of the Cross, whereon was hung the Saviour of the world.

Come let us worship him    (sung)

 

INTERCESSIONS

Dear people of God, our heavenly Father sent his Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved, that all who believe in him might be delivered from the power of sin and death, and become heirs with him of everlasting life.

 

Let us pray for the holy, catholic, and apostolic church of Christ throughout the world:

for its unity in witness and service,

for all who are called to serve. 

for John our bishop and all the people of this diocese,

for all Christians in this community. We pray that that the Lord will confirm his church in faith, increase it in love, and preserve it in peace.

 

Almighty and everlasting God, by whose Spirit the whole body of your faithful people is governed and sanctified, receive our supplications and prayers which we offer before you for all members of your holy church, that in their vocation and ministry they may truly and devoutly serve you;

 

RESPONSE

Holy God, Holy and strong, Holy and immortal, have mercy on us.

 

Let us pray for all nations and peoples of the earth, and for those in authority among them: for the leaders of our nation at Westminster and Holyrood.

For all in local and national government.

For all who serve the common good. 

that by God’s help they may seek justice and truth,

and live in peace and concord.

 

Almighty God, kindle, we pray, in every heart the true love of peace, and guide with your wisdom those who take counsel for the nations of the earth, that justice and peace may increase, until the earth is filled with the knowledge of your love; through Jesus Christ our Lord..

 

Holy God, Holy and strong, Holy and immortal, have mercy on us.

 

Let us pray for all who suffer and are afflicted in body or in mind:

for the hungry and the homeless, the destitute and the oppressed,

and all who suffer persecution or prejudice,

for the sick, the wounded, and the handicapped,

for those in loneliness, fear, and anguish,

for those who face temptation, doubt, and despair,

for the sorrowful and bereaved,

for prisoners and captives and those in mortal danger,

that God in his mercy will comfort and relieve them, and grant them the knowledge of his love, and stir up in us the will and patience to minister to their needs.

 

Gracious God, the comfort of all who sorrow, the strength of all who suffer, hear the cry of those in misery and need. In their afflictions show them your mercy, and give us, we pray, the strength to serve them for the sake of him who suffered for us, your Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

 

Holy God, Holy and strong, Holy and immortal, have mercy on us.

 

Let us pray for all who have gone from this world into the world of the risen Christ.

For those who have died unexpectedly

For those who have suffered.

For those whose lives have been taken by force

For those who have fallen in battle.

For those who have died in childhood or childbirth.

For those who have died from hunger or the neglect of their fellow man.

 

 Let us commit ourselves to God, and pray for the grace of a holy life, that with all who have departed this life and have died in the peace of Christ, and those whose faith is known to God alone, we may be accounted worthy to enter into the fullness of the joy of our Lord, and receive the crown of life in the day of resurrection.

 

Holy God, Holy and strong, Holy and immortal, have mercy on us.

 

HYMN  

 

          When I survey the wondrous Cross,

          On which the Prince of glory died,

          My richest gain I count but loss,

          And pour contempt on all my pride.

 

          See from his head, his hands, his feet,

          Sorrow and love flow mingled down;

          Did e’er such love and sorrow meet,

          Or thorns compose so rich a crown?

 

          His dying crimson like a robe,

          Spreads o’er his body on the Tree;

          Then am I dead to all the globe,

          And all the globe is dead to me.

 

          Were the whole realm of nature mine,

          That were an offering far too small;

          Love so amazing, so divine,

          Demands my soul, my life, my all.

 

THE LORD’S PRAYER     (kneel/sit)

As our Saviour Christ has commanded and taught us, we are bold to say:

Our Father, who art in heaven,

hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come;

thy will be done; on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread;

and forgive us our trespasses,

as we forgive those who trespass against us.

And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil.

For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory,

for ever and ever. Amen.

 

PRAYER OF HUMBLE ACCESS

We do not presume

to come to this thy Holy Table, O merciful Lord,

trusting in our own righteousness,

but in thy manifold and great mercies.

We are not worthy so much as to

gather up the crumbs under thy Table:

but thou art the same Lord,

whose property is always to have mercy.

Grant us therefore, gracious Lord,

so to eat the Flesh of thy dear son Jesus Christ,

and to drink his Blood,

that our sinful bodies may be made clean

by his most sacred Body,

and our souls washed through his most precious Blood,

and that we may evermore dwell in him

and he in us. Amen.

 

AGNUS DEI

 

COMMUNION

 

POST COMMUNION PRAYER

 

Almighty and everlasting God, by the cross and passion of your son, you have saved and redeemed the world. May we, kneeling at the foot of his cross, find within us the redemption he has wrought. Send your abundant blessings upon your people who have recalled this day the death of your son. Grant them Pardon. Bring them comfort. May their faith grow stronger, their salvation be assured.

 

The De Profundis is sung.

 

All depart in silence.

© 2014 Holy Trinity Episcopal Church ~ 20 High Cross Avenue Melrose Scotland TD6 9SU ~ Tel: 01896 822626

Scottish Registered Charity Number SC000966

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