PART ONE:
First Reading - Is 52:13-53:12
Characters:
G–God
R1– Female Reader
R2–Male
Reader
G –See, my servant shall
prosper, he shall be raised
high and greatly exalted. Even
as many were amazed at him
– so marred was his look beyond human semblance, and
his appearance beyond that
of the sons of man – so shall
he startle many nations. Be cause of him, kings shall stand
speechless; for those who have
not been told shall see, those
who have not heard shall ponder it.
R1 –Who would believe what
we have heard? To whom has
the arm of the Lord been revealed?
R2 –He grew up like a sapling
before him, like a shoot from
the parched earth. There was
in him no stately bearing to
make us look at him, nor appearance that would attract
us to him. He was spurned
and avoided by people, a man
of suffering, accustomed to
infirmity, one of those from
whom people hide their faces,
spurned, and we held him in
no esteem.
R1 –Yet it was our infirmities that he bore, our sufferings that he endured, while
we thought of him as stricken,
as one smitten by God and afflicted.
R2 –But he was pierced for our
offenses, crushed for our sins.
Upon him was the chastisement that makes us whole, by
his stripes we were healed.
R1 –We had all gone astray
like sheep, each following his
own way; but the Lord laid
upon him the guilt of us all.
R2 –Though he was harshly
treated, he submitted and
opened not his mouth. Like a
lamb led to the slaughter or a
sheep before the shearers, he
was silent and opened not his
mouth.
R1 –Oppressed and condemned, he was taken away,
and who would have thought
any more of his destiny? When
he was cut off from the land
of the living, and smitten for
the sin of his people, a grave
was assigned him among the
wicked and a burial place
with evildoers, though he had
done no wrong nor spoken any
falsehood. But the Lord was
pleased to crush him in infirmity.
G –If my servant gives his life
as an offering for sin, he shall
see his descendants in a long
life, and the will of the Lord
shall be accomplished through
him. Because of his affliction
he shall see the light in fullness
of days. Through his suffering, my servant shall justify
many, and their guilt he shall
bear.
Therefore I will give him
his portion among the great,
and he shall divide the spoils
with the mighty, because he
surrendered himself to death
and was counted among the
wicked. And he shall take
away the sins of many, and win
pardon for their offenses.
Responsorial Psalm - Ps 31
R –Father, into your hands
I commend my spirit!
* In you, O Lord, I take refuge; let me never be put to
shame. In your justice rescue
me. Into your hands I commend my spirit; you will redeem me, O Lord, O faithful
God. R.
* For all my foes I am an object of reproach, a laughingstock to my neighbors, and a
dread to my friends; they who
see me abroad flee from me.
I am forgotten like the unremembered dead; I am like a
dish that is broken. R.
* But my trust is in you, O
Lord; I say, “You are my God.
In your hands is my destiny;
rescue me from the clutches of
my enemies and my persecutors.” R.
* Let your face shine upon
your servant; save me in your
kindness. Take courage and be
stouthearted, all you who hope
in the Lord. R.
Second Reading - Heb 4:14-16;
5:7-9
Brothers and sisters:
Since we have a great high
priest who has passed through
the heavens, Jesus, the Son
of God, let us hold fast to our
confession. For we do not have
a high priest who is unable to
sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has similarly been tested in every way,
yet without committing sin. So
let us confidently approach the
throne of grace to receive mercy
and to find grace for timely help.
In the days when Christ
was in the flesh, he offered
prayers and supplications
with loud cries and tears to the
One who was able to save him
from death, and he was heard
because of his reverence. Son
though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered;
and when he was made perfect,
he became the source of eternal
salvation for all who obey him.
Verse before the Gospel
Christ became obedient
to the point of death, even
death on a cross.
Because of this, God
greatly exalted him and
bestowed on him the
name which is above every other name.
Gospel - Jn 18:1–19:42
Characters:
J–Jesus; N1–Female Narrator; N2–Male Narrator;
P – Pilate; Pt – Peter;
C–Crowd, Chief priests and
other characters.
N1 –Jesus went out with his
disciples across the Kidron
valley to where there was a
garden, into which he and his
disciples entered. Judas, his
betrayer, also knew the place,
because Jesus had often met
there with his disciples. So Judas got a band of soldiers and
guards from the chief priests
and the Pharisees and went
there with lanterns, torches,
and weapons. Jesus, knowing
everything that was going to
happen to him, went out and
said to them,
J –Whom are you looking
for?
N2
–(They answered him,)
C –Jesus the Nazarene.
J –I AM.
N2
–(He said to them.) Judas
his betrayer was also with
them. When he said to them,
“I AM,” they turned away and
fell to the ground. So he again
asked them,
J –Whom are you looking
for?
N2
–(They said,)
C –Jesus the Nazarene.
N2
–(Jesus answered,)
J – I told you that I AM. So if
you are looking for me, let
these men go.
N2
–This was to fulfill what he
had said, “I have not lost any
of those you gave me.”
N1 –Then Simon Peter, who
had a sword, drew it, struck
the high priest’s slave, and cut
off his right ear. The slave’s
name was Malchus. Jesus said
to Peter,
J – Put your sword into its
scabbard. Shall I not
drink the cup that the Father gave me?
N1 –So the band of soldiers,
the tribune, and the Jewish
guards seized Jesus, bound
him, and brought him to Annas first. He was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, who was high
priest that year. It was Caiaphas who had counseled the
Jews that it was better that one
man should die rather than the
people.
N2 –Simon Peter and another
disciple followed Jesus. Now
the other disciple was known
to the high priest, and he entered the courtyard of the
high priest with Jesus. But
Peter stood at the gate outside.
So the other disciple, the acquaintance of the high priest,
went out and spoke to the gatekeeper and brought Peter in.
Then the maid who was the
gatekeeper said to Peter,
C –You are not one of this
man’s disciples, are you?
Pt –I am not.
N1– (He said.) Now the slaves
and the guards were standing
around a charcoal fire that
they had made, because it was
cold, and were warming themselves. Peter was also standing
there keeping warm.
The high priest questioned
Jesus about his disciples and
about his doctrine. Jesus answered him,
J –I have spoken publicly to
the world. I have always
taught in a synagogue or
in the temple area where
all the Jews gather, and in
secret I have said nothing.
Why ask me? Ask those
who heard me what I said
to them. They know what I
said.
N2–When he had said this, one
of the temple guards standing
there struck Jesus and said,
C – Is this the way you answer
the high priest?
N2 – (Jesus answered him,)
J – If I have spoken wrongly,
testify to the wrong; but if
I have spoken rightly, why
do you strike me?
N1 –Then Annas sent him
bound to Caiaphas the high
priest.
Simon Peter was standing
near a charcoal fire, keeping
warm. And they said to him,
C – You are not one of his disciples, are you?
N1 –(He denied it and said,)
Pt –I am not!
N1– One of the slaves of the
high priest, a relative of the
one whose ear Peter had cut
off, said,
C – Didn’t I see you in the garden with him?
N1 –Again, Peter denied it.
And immediately the cock
crowed.
N2 –Then they brought Jesus
from Caiaphas to the praetorium. It was morning. And they
themselves did not enter the
praetorium, in order not to be
defiled so that they could eat
the Passover. So Pilate came
out to them and said,
P – What charge do you bring
against this man?
N2 –(They answered and said to
him,)
C – If he were not a criminal,
we would not have handed him
over to you.
N2–(At this, Pilate said to them,)
P –Take him yourselves, and
judge him according to your
law.
C – We do not have the right
to execute anyone,
N1
–The Jews answered him
in order that the word of Jesus
might be fulfilled that he said
indicating the kind of death he
would die.
So Pilate went back into the
praetorium and summoned
Jesus and said to him,
P – Are you the King of the
Jews?
N1
–(Jesus answered,)
J – Do you say this on your
own or have others told
you about me?
N1 –(Pilate answered,)
P –I am not a Jew, am I?
Your own nation and the chief
priests handed you over to me.
What have you done?
N1 – (Jesus answered,)
J – My kingdom does not be-
long to this world. If my
kingdom did belong to
this world, my attendants
would be fighting to keep
me from being handed
over to the Jews. But as it
is, my kingdom is not
here.
N1– (So Pilate said to him,)
P – Then you are a king?
N1 – (Jesus answered,)
J –You say I am a king. For
this I was born and for this
I came into the world: to
testify to the truth. Every-
one who belongs to the
truth listens to my voice.
N1
–(Pilate said to him,)
P – What is truth?
N2– When he had said this, he
again went out to the Jews and
said to them,
P – I find no guilt in him. But
you have a custom that I release one prisoner to you at
Passover. Do you want me to
release to you the King of the
Jews?
N2
–(They cried out again,)
C – Not this one but Barabbas!
N1
–Now Barabbas was a revolutionary. Then Pilate took
Jesus and had him scourged.
The soldiers wove a crown out
of thorns and placed it on his
head; they clothed him in a
purple cloak, and came to him
and said,
C – Hail, King of the Jews!
N1
–And they struck him repeatedly. Once more Pilate
went out and said to them,
P –Look, I am bringing him
out to you, so that you may
know that I find no guilt in
him.
N2– So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and
the purple cloak. And Pilate
said to them,
P – Behold, the man!
N2– When the chief priests
and the guards saw him, they
cried out,
C – Crucify him, crucify him!
N2– (Pilate said to them,)
P – Take him yourselves and
crucify him. I find no guilt in
him.
N2 – (The Jews answered,)
C – We have a law, and according to that law he ought to
die, because he made himself
the Son of God.
N1 – When Pilate heard this
statement, he became even
more afraid, and went back
into the praetorium and said
to Jesus,
P – Where are you from?
N1
–Jesus did not answer him.
So Pilate said to him,
P –Do you not speak to me?
Do you not know that I have
power to release you and I
have power to crucify you?
N1 – (Jesus answered him,)
J – You would have no power
over me if it had not been
given to you from above.
For this reason the one
who handed me over to
you has the greater sin.
N2 – Consequently, Pilate tried
to release Jesus; but the Jews
cried out,
C – If you release him, you are
not a friend of Caesar! Everyone who makes himself a king
opposes Caesar.
N2– When Pilate heard these
words, he brought Jesus out
and seated him on the judge’s
bench in the place called Stone
Pavement, in Hebrew, Gabbatha. It was preparation day
for the Passover, and it was
about noon. And he said to the
Jews,
P – Behold your king!
N2 – (They cried out,)
C – Take him away, take him
away! Crucify him!
N2 – (Pilate said to them,)
P – Shall I crucify your king?
N2 – (The chief priests answered,)
C – We have no king but Caesar!
N1 – Then Pilate handed him
over to them to be crucified.
So they took Jesus, and, carrying the cross himself, he went
out to what is called the Place
of the Skull, in Hebrew, Golgotha. There they crucified
him, and with him two others,
one on either side, with Jesus
in the middle.
N2 –Pilate also had an inscription written and put on the
cross. It read, “JESUS THE
NAZARENE, THE KING OF
THE JEWS.”
Now many of the Jews read
this inscription, because the
place where Jesus was crucifi ed was near the city; and it
was written in Hebrew, Latin,
and Greek. So the chief priests
of the Jews said to Pilate,
C – Do not write ‘The King of
the Jews,’ but that he said, ‘I
am the King of the Jews.’
N2– (Pilate answered,)
P – What I have written, I
have written.
N1– When the soldiers had
crucified Jesus, they took his
clothes and divided them into
four shares, a share for each
soldier. They also took his tunic, but the tunic was seamless,
woven in one piece from the
top down. So they said to one
another,
C – Let’s not tear it, but cast
lots for it to see whose it will
be,
N1 – in order that the passage
of Scripture might be fulfilled
that says: “They divided my
garments among them, and for
my vesture they cast lots.” This
is what the soldiers did.
N2– Standing by the cross of
Jesus were his mother and his
mother’s sister, Mary the wife
of Clopas, and Mary of Magdala. When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple there whom
he loved, he said to his mother,
J – Woman, behold, your son!
N2– Then he said to the disciple,
J – Behold, your mother!
N2– And from that hour the
disciple took her into his home.
N1– After this, aware that everything was now finished, in
order that the Scripture might
be fulfilled, Jesus said,
J – I thirst.
N1–There was a vessel filled
with common wine. So they
put a sponge soaked in wine on
a sprig of hyssop and raised it
to his mouth. When Jesus had
taken the wine, he said,
J –It is finished!
N1– And bowing his head, he
handed over the spirit.
(Pause. All kneel down
in silence for a while.)
N2– Since it was Preparation
Day, in order that the bodies
might not remain on the cross
on the sabbath, for the sabbath day of that week was a
solemn one, the Jews asked
Pilate that their legs be broken and that they be taken
down. So the soldiers came
and broke the legs of the first
and then of the other one who
was crucified with Jesus.
But when they came to Jesus
and saw that he was already
dead, they did not break his
legs, but one soldier thrust his
lance into his side, and immediately blood and water fl owed out.
N1– An eyewitness has testified, and his testimony is true;
he knows that he is speaking
the truth, so that you also may
come to believe.
N2– For this happened so that
the Scripture passage might
be fulfilled: “Not a bone of it
will be broken.” And again another passage says: “They will
look upon him whom they have
pierced.”
N1–After this, Joseph of Arimathea, secretly a disciple
of Jesus for fear of the Jews,
asked Pilate if he could remove
the body of Jesus. And Pilate
permitted it. So he came and
took his body.
N2–Nicodemus, the one who
had first come to Jesus at
night, also came, bringing a
mixture of myrrh and aloes
weighing about one hundred
pounds. They took the body of
Jesus and bound it with burial
cloths along with the spices,
according to the Jewish burial
custom.
N1– Now in the place where he
had been crucified there was
a garden, and in the garden
a new tomb, in which no one
had yet been buried. So they
laid Jesus there because of the
Jewish Preparation Day, for
the tomb was close by.
Solemn Intercessions
1. For the Holy Church
L –Let us pray, dearly beloved, for the holy Church of
God, that our God and Lord
be pleased to give her peace,
to guard her and to unite her
throughout the whole world
and grant that, leading our
life in tranquility and quiet,
we may glorify God the Father almighty.
(Silent Prayer)
P –Almighty ever-living
God, who in Christ revealed
your glory to all the nations,
watch over the works of your
mercy, that your Church,
spread throughout all the
world, may persevere with
steadfast faith in confessing
your name. Through Christ
our Lord.
All –Amen!
2. For the Pope
L –Let us pray also for our
most Holy Father Pope Francis, that our God and Lord,
who chose him for the Order
of Bishops, may keep him
safe and unharmed for the
Lord’s holy Church, to govern the holy People of God.
(Silent Prayer)
P –Almighty ever-living
God, by whose decree all
things are founded, look with
favor on our prayers and in
your kindness protect the
Pope chosen for us, that, under him, the Christian people,
governed by you their maker,
may grow in merit by reason
of their faith. Through Christ
our Lord.
All – Amen!
3. For all orders and degrees
of the Faithful
L –Let us pray also for our
Bishop N., for all Bishops,
Priests, and Deacons of the
Church and for the whole of
the faithful people.
(Silent Prayer)
P –Almighty ever-living
God, by whose Spirit the
whole body of the Church is
sanctified and governed, hear
our humble prayer for your
ministers, that, by the gift of
your grace, all may serve you
faithfully. Through Christ our
Lord.
All – Amen!
4. For catechumens
L –Let us pray also for (our)
catechumens, that our God
and Lord may open wide the
ears of their inmost hearts and
unlock the gates of his mercy,
that, having received forgiveness of all their sins through
the waters of rebirth, they,
too, may be one with Christ
Jesus our Lord.
(Silent Prayer)
P –Almighty ever-living
God, who make your Church
ever fruitful with new offspring, increase the faith and
understanding of (our) catechumens, that, reborn in the font of Baptism, they may be
added to the number of your
adopted children. Through
Christ our Lord.
All – Amen!
5. For the unity of Christians
L –Let us pray also for all
our brothers and sisters who
believe in Christ, that our God
and Lord may be pleased, as
they live the truth, to gather
them together and keep them
in his one Church.
(Silent Prayer)
P –Almighty ever-living
God, who gather what is scattered and keep together what
you have gathered, look kindly on the flock of your Son,
that those whom one Baptism has consecrated may be
joined together by integrity of
faith and united in the bond of
charity. Through Christ our
Lord.
All – Amen!
6. For the Jewish people
L –Let us pray also for the
Jewish people, to whom the
Lord our God spoke first, that
he may grant them to advance
in love of his name and in
faithfulness to his covenant.
(Silent Prayer)
P –Almighty ever-living
God, who bestowed your
promises on Abraham and his
descendants, hear graciously
the prayers of your Church,
that the people you first made
your own may attain the fullness of redemption. Through
Christ our Lord.
All –Amen!
7. For those who do not believe
in Christ
L –Let us pray also for those
who do not believe in Christ,
that, enlightened by the Holy
Spirit, they, too, may enter on
the way of salvation.
(Silent Prayer)
P –Almighty ever-living
God, grant to those who do
not confess Christ that, by
walking before you with a
sincere heart, they may find
the truth and that we ourselves, being constant in mutual love and striving to
understand more fully the
mystery of your life, may be
made more perfect witnesses to your love in the world.
Through Christ our Lord.
All – Amen!
8. For those who do not
believe in God
L –Let us pray also for those
who do not acknowledge
God, that, following what
is right in sincerity of heart,
they may find the way to God
himself.
(Silent Prayer)
P –Almighty ever-living
God, who created all people
to seek you always by desiring you and, by finding you,
come to rest, grant, we pray,
that, despite every harmful
obstacle, all may recognize
the signs of your fatherly
love and the witness of the
good works done by those
who believe in you, and so in
gladness confess you, the one
true God and Father of our
human race. Through Christ
our Lord.
All – Amen!
9. For those in public office
L –Let us pray also for those
in public office, that our God
and Lord may direct their
minds and hearts according
to his will, for the true peace
and freedom of all.
(Silent Prayer)
P –Almighty ever-living
God, in whose hand lies every
human heart and the rights of
peoples, look with favor, we
pray, on those who govern
with authority over us, that
throughout the whole world,
the prosperity of peoples, the
assurance of peace, and freedom of religion may, through
your gift, be made secure.
Through Christ our Lord.
All – Amen!
10. For those in tribulation
L –Let us pray, dearly beloved, to God the Father almighty, that he may cleanse
the world of all errors, banish
disease, drive out hunger, unlock prisons, loosen fetters,
granting to travelers safety,
to pilgrims return, health to
the sick, and salvation to the
dying.
(Silent Prayer)
P –Almighty ever-living
God, comfort of mourners,
strength of all who toil, may
the prayers of those who cry
out in any tribulation come
before you, that all may rejoice, because in their hour
of need, your mercy was at
hand. Through Christ our
Lord.
All – Amen!
PART TWO: VENERATION
OF THE CRUCIFIX
PART THREE: HOLY COMMUNION
CONCLUDING RITES
