Good Friday
The Celebration of the Passion of the Lord
First Part: Liturgy of the Word
You can follow the Readings also in other languages:
First Reading
Is 52:13—53:12
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,
because of him kings shall stand speechless;
for those who have not been told shall see,
those who have not heard shall ponder it.
Who would believe what we have heard?
To whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
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.
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.
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.
We had all gone astray like sheep,
each following his own way;
but the LORD laid upon him
the guilt of us all.
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.
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.
If he 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.
- The word of the Lord.
- Thanks be to God.
Responsorial Psalm
31:2, 6, 12-13, 15-16, 17, 25
R. Oče, u ruke tvoje predajem duh svoj!
(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.
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.
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.”
Let your face shine upon your servant;
save me in your kindness.
Take courage and be stouthearted,
all you who hope in the LORD.
Second Reading
Heb 4:14-16; 5:7-9 (will be in local language)
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 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.
- The word of the Lord.
- Thanks be to God.
Verse Before the Gospel (Phil 2:8-9)
Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ, King of endless glory!
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 name.
Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ, King of endless glory!
Gospel
Jn 18:1—19:42 (will be in local langauge, here is the text to follow)
NARRATOR: The Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John
NARRATOR: Jesus went out with his disciples across the Kidron valley to a place where there was a garden,
which he and his disciples entered. Now Judas, who betrayed him, also knew the place, because
Jesus often met there with his disciples. So Judas brought a detachment of soldiers together with
police from the chief priests and the Pharisees, and they came there with lanterns and torches and
weapons. Then Jesus, knowing all that was to happen to him, came forward and asked them,
JESUS: "Whom are you looking for?"
NARRATOR: They answered,
ALL: "Jesus of Nazareth."
NARRATOR: Jesus replied,
JESUS: "I am he."
NARRATOR: Judas, who betrayed him, was standing with them. When Jesus said to them, "I am he," they
stepped back and fell to the ground. Again he asked them,
JESUS: "Whom are you looking for?"
NARRATOR: And they said,
ALL: "Jesus of Nazareth."
NARRATOR: Jesus answered,
JESUS: "I told you that I am he. So if you are looking for me, let these men go."
NARRATOR: This was to fulfill the word that he had spoken,
Jesus: "I did not lose a single one of those whom you gave me."
NARRATOR: 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,
JESUS: "Put your sword back into its sheath. Am I not to drink the cup that the Father has given me?"
NARRATOR: So the soldiers, their officer, and the Jewish police arrested Jesus and bound him. First they took
him to Annas, who was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, the high priest that year. Caiaphas was the
one who had advised the Jews:
HIGH PRIEST: "It is better for one man to die for the people."
NARRATOR: Simon Peter and another disciple followed Jesus. Since that disciple was known to the high priest,
he went with Jesus into the courtyard of the high priest, but Peter was standing outside at the gate.
So the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out, spoke to the woman who
guarded the gate, and brought Peter in. The woman said to Peter,
WOMAN: "You are not also one of this man's disciples, are you?"
NARRATOR: He said,
PETER: "I am not."
NARRATOR: Now the slaves and the police had made a charcoal fire because it was cold, and they were
standing around it and warming themselves. Peter also was standing with them and warming
himself. Then the high priest questioned Jesus about his disciples and about his teaching. Jesus answered,
JESUS: "I have spoken openly to the world; I have always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where
all the Jews come together. I have said nothing in secret. Why do you ask me? Ask those who
heard what I said to them; they know what I said."
NARRATOR: When he had said this, one of the police standing nearby struck Jesus on the face, saying,
SOLDIER: "Is that how you answer the high priest?"
NARRATOR: Jesus answered,
JESUS: "If I have spoken wrongly, testify to the wrong. But if I have spoken rightly, why do you strike
me?"
NARRATOR: Then Annas sent him bound to Caiaphas the high priest.
Now Simon Peter was standing and warming himself. They asked him,
PERSON 1: "You are not also one of his disciples, are you?"
NARRATOR: He denied it and said,
PETER: "I am not."
NARRATOR: One of the slaves of the high priest, a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, asked,
PERSON 2: "Did I not see you in the garden with him?"
NARRATOR: Again Peter denied it, and at that moment the cock crowed.
Then they took Jesus from Caiaphas to Pilate's headquarters. It was early in the morning. They
themselves did not enter the headquarters, so as to avoid ritual defilement and to be able to eat the
Passover. So Pilate went out to them and said,
PILATE: "What accusation do you bring against this man?"
NARRATOR: They answered,
PRIESTS AND POLICE: "If this man were not a criminal, we would not have handed him over to you."
NARRATOR: Pilate said to them,
PILATE: "Take him yourselves and judge him according to your law."
NARRATOR: The Jews replied,
ALL: "We are not permitted to put anyone to death."
NARRATOR: (This was to fulfill what Jesus had said when he indicated the kind of death he was to die.)
Then Pilate entered the headquarters again, summoned Jesus, and asked him,
PILATE: "Are you the King of the Jews?"
NARRATOR: Jesus answered,
JESUS: "Do you ask this on your own, or did others tell you about me?"
NARRATOR: Pilate replied,
PILATE: "I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me. What
have you done?"
NARRATOR: Jesus answered,
JESUS: "My kingdom is not from this world. If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be
fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not from
here."
NARRATOR: Pilate asked him,
PILATE: "So you are a king?"
NARRATOR: Jesus answered,
JESUS: "You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the
truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice."
NARRATOR: Pilate asked him,
PILATE: "What is truth?"
NARRATOR: After he had said this, he went out to the Jews again and told them,
PILATE: "I find no case against him. But you have a custom that I release someone for you at the Passover.
Do you want me to release for you the King of the Jews?"
NARRATOR: They shouted in reply,
CROWD: "Not this man, but Barabbas!"
NARRATOR: Now Barabbas was a bandit.
Then Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged. And the soldiers wove a crown of thorns and put it on
his head, and they dressed him in a purple robe. They kept coming up to him, saying,
ALL: "Hail, King of the Jews!"
NARRATOR: and striking him on the face. Pilate went out again and said to them,
PILATE: "Look, I am bringing him out to you to let you know that I find no case against him."
NARRATOR: So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them,
PILATE: "Here is the man!"
NARRATOR: When the chief priests and the police saw him, they shouted,
HEAD PRIESTS: "Crucify him! Crucify him!"
NARRATOR: Pilate said to them,
PILATE: "Take him yourselves and crucify him; I find no case against him."
NARRATOR: The Jews answered him,
CROWD: "We have a law, and according to that law he ought to die because he has claimed to be the Son of
God."
NARRATOR: Now when Pilate heard this, he was more afraid than ever. He entered his headquarters again and
asked Jesus,
PILATE: "Where are you from?"
NARRATOR: But Jesus gave him no answer. Pilate therefore said to him,
PILATE: "Do you refuse to speak to me? Do you not know that I have power to release you, and power to
crucify you?"
NARRATOR: Jesus answered him,
JESUS: "You would have no power over me unless it had been given you from above; therefore the one
who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin."
NARRATOR: From then on Pilate tried to release him, but the Jews cried out,
CROWD: "If you release this man, you are no friend of the emperor. Everyone who claims to be a king sets
himself against the emperor."
NARRATOR: When Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus outside and sat on the judge's bench at a place
called The Stone Pavement, or in Hebrew Gabbatha. Now it was the day of Preparation for the
Passover; and it was about noon. He said to the Jews,
PILATE: "Here is your King!"
NARRATOR: They cried out,
CROWD: "Away with him! Away with him! Crucify him!"
NARRATOR: Pilate asked them,
PILATE: "Shall I crucify your King?"
NARRATOR: The chief priests answered,
PRIESTS: "We have no king but the emperor."
NARRATOR: Then he handed him over to them to be crucified.
NARRATOR: So they took Jesus; and carrying the cross by himself, he went out to what is called The Place of
the Skull, which in Hebrew is called Golgotha. There they crucified him, and with him two others,
one on either side, with Jesus between them. Pilate also had an inscription written and put on the
cross. It read, "Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews." Many of the Jews read this inscription,
because the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, in
Latin, and in Greek. Then the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate,
PRIESTS: "Do not write, 'The King of the Jews,' but, 'This man said, I am King of the Jews.'"
NARRATOR: Pilate answered,
PILATE: "What I have written I have written."
NARRATOR: When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they took his clothes and divided them into four parts, one
for each soldier. They also took his tunic; now the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece from
the top. So they said to one another,
SOLDIERS: "Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it to see who will get it."
NARRATOR: This was to fulfill what the scripture says, "They divided my clothes among themselves,
and for
my clothing they cast lots."
And that is what the soldiers did.
NARRATOR: Jesus went out with his disciples across the Kidron valley to a place where there was a garden,
which he and his disciples entered. Now Judas, who betrayed him, also knew the place, because
Jesus often met there with his disciples. So Judas brought a detachment of soldiers together with
police from the chief priests and the Pharisees, and they came there with lanterns and torches and
weapons. Then Jesus, knowing all that was to happen to him, came forward and asked them,
JESUS: "Whom are you looking for?"
NARRATOR: They answered,
ALL: "Jesus of Nazareth."
NARRATOR: Jesus replied,
JESUS: "I am he."
NARRATOR: Judas, who betrayed him, was standing with them. When Jesus said to them, "I am he," they
stepped back and fell to the ground. Again he asked them,
JESUS: "Whom are you looking for?"
NARRATOR: And they said,
ALL: "Jesus of Nazareth."
NARRATOR: Jesus answered,
JESUS: "I told you that I am he. So if you are looking for me, let these men go."
NARRATOR: This was to fulfill the word that he had spoken,
Jesus: "I did not lose a single one of those whom you gave me."
NARRATOR: 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,
JESUS: "Put your sword back into its sheath. Am I not to drink the cup that the Father has given me?"
NARRATOR: So the soldiers, their officer, and the Jewish police arrested Jesus and bound him. First they took
him to Annas, who was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, the high priest that year. Caiaphas was the
one who had advised the Jews:
HIGH PRIEST: "It is better for one man to die for the people."
NARRATOR: Simon Peter and another disciple followed Jesus. Since that disciple was known to the high priest,
he went with Jesus into the courtyard of the high priest, but Peter was standing outside at the gate.
So the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out, spoke to the woman who
guarded the gate, and brought Peter in. The woman said to Peter,
WOMAN: "You are not also one of this man's disciples, are you?"
NARRATOR: He said,
PETER: "I am not."
NARRATOR: Now the slaves and the police had made a charcoal fire because it was cold, and they were
standing around it and warming themselves. Peter also was standing with them and warming
himself. Then the high priest questioned Jesus about his disciples and about his teaching. Jesus answered,
JESUS: "I have spoken openly to the world; I have always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where
all the Jews come together. I have said nothing in secret. Why do you ask me? Ask those who
heard what I said to them; they know what I said."
NARRATOR: When he had said this, one of the police standing nearby struck Jesus on the face, saying,
SOLDIER: "Is that how you answer the high priest?"
NARRATOR: Jesus answered,
JESUS: "If I have spoken wrongly, testify to the wrong. But if I have spoken rightly, why do you strike
me?"
NARRATOR: Then Annas sent him bound to Caiaphas the high priest.
Now Simon Peter was standing and warming himself. They asked him,
PERSON 1: "You are not also one of his disciples, are you?"
NARRATOR: He denied it and said,
PETER: "I am not."
NARRATOR: One of the slaves of the high priest, a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, asked,
PERSON 2: "Did I not see you in the garden with him?"
NARRATOR: Again Peter denied it, and at that moment the cock crowed.
Then they took Jesus from Caiaphas to Pilate's headquarters. It was early in the morning. They
themselves did not enter the headquarters, so as to avoid ritual defilement and to be able to eat the
Passover. So Pilate went out to them and said,
PILATE: "What accusation do you bring against this man?"
NARRATOR: They answered,
PRIESTS AND POLICE: "If this man were not a criminal, we would not have handed him over to you."
NARRATOR: Pilate said to them,
PILATE: "Take him yourselves and judge him according to your law."
NARRATOR: The Jews replied,
ALL: "We are not permitted to put anyone to death."
NARRATOR: (This was to fulfill what Jesus had said when he indicated the kind of death he was to die.)
Then Pilate entered the headquarters again, summoned Jesus, and asked him,
PILATE: "Are you the King of the Jews?"
NARRATOR: Jesus answered,
JESUS: "Do you ask this on your own, or did others tell you about me?"
NARRATOR: Pilate replied,
PILATE: "I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me. What
have you done?"
NARRATOR: Jesus answered,
JESUS: "My kingdom is not from this world. If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be
fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not from
here."
NARRATOR: Pilate asked him,
PILATE: "So you are a king?"
NARRATOR: Jesus answered,
JESUS: "You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the
truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice."
NARRATOR: Pilate asked him,
PILATE: "What is truth?"
NARRATOR: After he had said this, he went out to the Jews again and told them,
PILATE: "I find no case against him. But you have a custom that I release someone for you at the Passover.
Do you want me to release for you the King of the Jews?"
NARRATOR: They shouted in reply,
CROWD: "Not this man, but Barabbas!"
NARRATOR: Now Barabbas was a bandit.
Then Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged. And the soldiers wove a crown of thorns and put it on
his head, and they dressed him in a purple robe. They kept coming up to him, saying,
ALL: "Hail, King of the Jews!"
NARRATOR: and striking him on the face. Pilate went out again and said to them,
PILATE: "Look, I am bringing him out to you to let you know that I find no case against him."
NARRATOR: So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them,
PILATE: "Here is the man!"
NARRATOR: When the chief priests and the police saw him, they shouted,
HEAD PRIESTS: "Crucify him! Crucify him!"
NARRATOR: Pilate said to them,
PILATE: "Take him yourselves and crucify him; I find no case against him."
NARRATOR: The Jews answered him,
CROWD: "We have a law, and according to that law he ought to die because he has claimed to be the Son of
God."
NARRATOR: Now when Pilate heard this, he was more afraid than ever. He entered his headquarters again and
asked Jesus,
PILATE: "Where are you from?"
NARRATOR: But Jesus gave him no answer. Pilate therefore said to him,
PILATE: "Do you refuse to speak to me? Do you not know that I have power to release you, and power to
crucify you?"
NARRATOR: Jesus answered him,
JESUS: "You would have no power over me unless it had been given you from above; therefore the one
who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin."
NARRATOR: From then on Pilate tried to release him, but the Jews cried out,
CROWD: "If you release this man, you are no friend of the emperor. Everyone who claims to be a king sets
himself against the emperor."
NARRATOR: When Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus outside and sat on the judge's bench at a place
called The Stone Pavement, or in Hebrew Gabbatha. Now it was the day of Preparation for the
Passover; and it was about noon. He said to the Jews,
PILATE: "Here is your King!"
NARRATOR: They cried out,
CROWD: "Away with him! Away with him! Crucify him!"
NARRATOR: Pilate asked them,
PILATE: "Shall I crucify your King?"
NARRATOR: The chief priests answered,
PRIESTS: "We have no king but the emperor."
NARRATOR: Then he handed him over to them to be crucified.
NARRATOR: So they took Jesus; and carrying the cross by himself, he went out to what is called The Place of
the Skull, which in Hebrew is called Golgotha. There they crucified him, and with him two others,
one on either side, with Jesus between them. Pilate also had an inscription written and put on the
cross. It read, "Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews." Many of the Jews read this inscription,
because the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, in
Latin, and in Greek. Then the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate,
PRIESTS: "Do not write, 'The King of the Jews,' but, 'This man said, I am King of the Jews.'"
NARRATOR: Pilate answered,
PILATE: "What I have written I have written."
NARRATOR: When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they took his clothes and divided them into four parts, one
for each soldier. They also took his tunic; now the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece from
the top. So they said to one another,
SOLDIERS: "Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it to see who will get it."
NARRATOR: This was to fulfill what the scripture says, "They divided my clothes among themselves,
and for
my clothing they cast lots."
And that is what the soldiers did.
NARRATOR: Jesus went out with his disciples across the Kidron valley to a place where there was a garden,
which he and his disciples entered. Now Judas, who betrayed him, also knew the place, because
Jesus often met there with his disciples. So Judas brought a detachment of soldiers together with
police from the chief priests and the Pharisees, and they came there with lanterns and torches and
weapons. Then Jesus, knowing all that was to happen to him, came forward and asked them,
JESUS: "Whom are you looking for?"
NARRATOR: They answered,
ALL: "Jesus of Nazareth."
NARRATOR: Jesus replied,
JESUS: "I am he."
NARRATOR: Judas, who betrayed him, was standing with them. When Jesus said to them, "I am he," they
stepped back and fell to the ground. Again he asked them,
JESUS: "Whom are you looking for?"
NARRATOR: And they said,
ALL: "Jesus of Nazareth."
NARRATOR: Jesus answered,
JESUS: "I told you that I am he. So if you are looking for me, let these men go."
NARRATOR: This was to fulfill the word that he had spoken,
Jesus: "I did not lose a single one of those whom you gave me."
NARRATOR: 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,
JESUS: "Put your sword back into its sheath. Am I not to drink the cup that the Father has given me?"
NARRATOR: So the soldiers, their officer, and the Jewish police arrested Jesus and bound him. First they took
him to Annas, who was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, the high priest that year. Caiaphas was the
one who had advised the Jews:
HIGH PRIEST: "It is better for one man to die for the people."
NARRATOR: Simon Peter and another disciple followed Jesus. Since that disciple was known to the high priest,
he went with Jesus into the courtyard of the high priest, but Peter was standing outside at the gate.
So the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out, spoke to the woman who
guarded the gate, and brought Peter in. The woman said to Peter,
WOMAN: "You are not also one of this man's disciples, are you?"
NARRATOR: He said,
PETER: "I am not."
NARRATOR: Now the slaves and the police had made a charcoal fire because it was cold, and they were
standing around it and warming themselves. Peter also was standing with them and warming
himself. Then the high priest questioned Jesus about his disciples and about his teaching. Jesus answered,
JESUS: "I have spoken openly to the world; I have always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where
all the Jews come together. I have said nothing in secret. Why do you ask me? Ask those who
heard what I said to them; they know what I said."
NARRATOR: When he had said this, one of the police standing nearby struck Jesus on the face, saying,
SOLDIER: "Is that how you answer the high priest?"
NARRATOR: Jesus answered,
JESUS: "If I have spoken wrongly, testify to the wrong. But if I have spoken rightly, why do you strike
me?"
NARRATOR: Then Annas sent him bound to Caiaphas the high priest.
Now Simon Peter was standing and warming himself. They asked him,
PERSON 1: "You are not also one of his disciples, are you?"
NARRATOR: He denied it and said,
PETER: "I am not."
NARRATOR: One of the slaves of the high priest, a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, asked,
PERSON 2: "Did I not see you in the garden with him?"
NARRATOR: Again Peter denied it, and at that moment the cock crowed.
Then they took Jesus from Caiaphas to Pilate's headquarters. It was early in the morning. They
themselves did not enter the headquarters, so as to avoid ritual defilement and to be able to eat the
Passover. So Pilate went out to them and said,
PILATE: "What accusation do you bring against this man?"
NARRATOR: They answered,
PRIESTS AND POLICE: "If this man were not a criminal, we would not have handed him over to you."
NARRATOR: Pilate said to them,
PILATE: "Take him yourselves and judge him according to your law."
NARRATOR: The Jews replied,
ALL: "We are not permitted to put anyone to death."
NARRATOR: (This was to fulfill what Jesus had said when he indicated the kind of death he was to die.)
Then Pilate entered the headquarters again, summoned Jesus, and asked him,
PILATE: "Are you the King of the Jews?"
NARRATOR: Jesus answered,
JESUS: "Do you ask this on your own, or did others tell you about me?"
NARRATOR: Pilate replied,
PILATE: "I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me. What
have you done?"
NARRATOR: Jesus answered,
JESUS: "My kingdom is not from this world. If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be
fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not from
here."
NARRATOR: Pilate asked him,
PILATE: "So you are a king?"
NARRATOR: Jesus answered,
JESUS: "You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the
truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice."
NARRATOR: Pilate asked him,
PILATE: "What is truth?"
NARRATOR: After he had said this, he went out to the Jews again and told them,
PILATE: "I find no case against him. But you have a custom that I release someone for you at the Passover.
Do you want me to release for you the King of the Jews?"
NARRATOR: They shouted in reply,
CROWD: "Not this man, but Barabbas!"
NARRATOR: Now Barabbas was a bandit.
Then Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged. And the soldiers wove a crown of thorns and put it on
his head, and they dressed him in a purple robe. They kept coming up to him, saying,
ALL: "Hail, King of the Jews!"
NARRATOR: and striking him on the face. Pilate went out again and said to them,
PILATE: "Look, I am bringing him out to you to let you know that I find no case against him."
NARRATOR: So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them,
PILATE: "Here is the man!"
NARRATOR: When the chief priests and the police saw him, they shouted,
HEAD PRIESTS: "Crucify him! Crucify him!"
NARRATOR: Pilate said to them,
PILATE: "Take him yourselves and crucify him; I find no case against him."
NARRATOR: The Jews answered him,
CROWD: "We have a law, and according to that law he ought to die because he has claimed to be the Son of
God."
NARRATOR: Now when Pilate heard this, he was more afraid than ever. He entered his headquarters again and
asked Jesus,
PILATE: "Where are you from?"
NARRATOR: But Jesus gave him no answer. Pilate therefore said to him,
PILATE: "Do you refuse to speak to me? Do you not know that I have power to release you, and power to
crucify you?"
NARRATOR: Jesus answered him,
JESUS: "You would have no power over me unless it had been given you from above; therefore the one
who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin."
NARRATOR: From then on Pilate tried to release him, but the Jews cried out,
CROWD: "If you release this man, you are no friend of the emperor. Everyone who claims to be a king sets
himself against the emperor."
NARRATOR: When Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus outside and sat on the judge's bench at a place
called The Stone Pavement, or in Hebrew Gabbatha. Now it was the day of Preparation for the
Passover; and it was about noon. He said to the Jews,
PILATE: "Here is your King!"
NARRATOR: They cried out,
CROWD: "Away with him! Away with him! Crucify him!"
NARRATOR: Pilate asked them,
PILATE: "Shall I crucify your King?"
NARRATOR: The chief priests answered,
PRIESTS: "We have no king but the emperor."
NARRATOR: Then he handed him over to them to be crucified.
NARRATOR: So they took Jesus; and carrying the cross by himself, he went out to what is called The Place of
the Skull, which in Hebrew is called Golgotha. There they crucified him, and with him two others,
one on either side, with Jesus between them. Pilate also had an inscription written and put on the
cross. It read, "Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews." Many of the Jews read this inscription,
because the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, in
Latin, and in Greek. Then the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate,
PRIESTS: "Do not write, 'The King of the Jews,' but, 'This man said, I am King of the Jews.'"
NARRATOR: Pilate answered,
PILATE: "What I have written I have written."
NARRATOR: When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they took his clothes and divided them into four parts, one
for each soldier. They also took his tunic; now the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece from
the top. So they said to one another,
SOLDIERS: "Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it to see who will get it."
NARRATOR: This was to fulfill what the scripture says, "They divided my clothes among themselves,
and for
my clothing they cast lots."
And that is what the soldiers did.
Meanwhile, standing near 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 beside her, he said to his mother,
JESUS: "Woman, here is your son."
NARRATOR: Then he said to the disciple,
JESUS: "Here is your mother."
NARRATOR: And from that hour the disciple took her into his own home.
After this, when Jesus knew that all was now finished, he said (in order to fulfill the scripture),
JESUS: "I am thirsty."
NARRATOR: A jar full of sour wine was standing there. So they put a sponge full of the wine on a branch of
hyssop and held it to his mouth. When Jesus had received the wine, he said,
JESUS: "It is finished."
NARRATOR: Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.
When the death of the Lord is proclaimed, all kneel and pause briefly.
Since it was the day of Preparation, the Jews did not want the bodies left on the cross during the
sabbath, especially because that sabbath was a day of great solemnity. So they asked Pilate to have
the legs of the crucified men broken and the bodies removed. Then 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. Instead, one of the soldiers pierced
his side with a spear, and at once blood and water came out. (He who saw this has testified so that
you also may believe. His testimony is true, and he knows that he tells the truth.) These things
occurred so that the scripture might be fulfilled, "None of his bones shall be broken." And again
another passage of scripture says, "They will look on the one whom they have pierced."
After these things, Joseph of Arimathea, who was a disciple of Jesus, though a secret one because
of his fear of the Jews, asked Pilate to let him take away the body of Jesus. Pilate gave him
permission; so he came and removed his body. Nicodemus, who had at first come to Jesus by
night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, weighing about a hundred pounds. They
took the body of Jesus and wrapped it with the spices in linen cloths, according to the burial
custom of the Jews. Now there was a garden in the place where he was crucified, and in the garden
there was a new tomb in which no one had ever been laid. And so, because it was the Jewish day
of Preparation, and the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.
- The Gospel of the Lord.
- Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
The Solemn Intercessions
will be in local language
I. For Holy Church
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.
Prayer in silence. Then the Priest says:
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.
R. Amen.
II. For the Pope
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.
Prayer in silence. Then the Priest says:
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.
R. Amen.
III. For all orders and degrees of the faithful
Let us pray also for our Bishop Stanislav,
for all Bishops, Priests, and Deacons of the Church
and for the whole of the faithful people.
Prayer in silence. Then the Priest says:
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.
R. Amen.
IV. For catechumens
Let us pray also for 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.
Prayer in silence. Then the Priest says:
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.
R. Amen.
V. For the unity of Christians
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.
Prayer in silence. Then the Priest says:
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.
R. Amen.
VI. For the Jewish people
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.
Prayer in silence. Then the Priest says:
Almighty ever-living God,
who bestowed your promises on Abraham and his descendants,
graciously hear the prayers of your Church,
that the people you first made your own
may attain the fullness of redemption.
Through Christ our Lord.
R. Amen.
VII. For those who do not believe in Christ
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.
Prayer in silence. Then the Priest says:
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.
R. Amen.
VIII. For those who do not believe in God
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.
Prayer in silence. Then the Priest says:
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.
R. Amen.
IX. For those in public office
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.
Prayer in silence. Then the Priest says:
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.
R. Amen.
X. For those in tribulation
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.
Prayer in silence. Then the Priest says:
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.
R. Amen.
Second Part: The Adoration of the Holy Cross
The Showing of the Holy Cross (will be in local language)
- Ecce lignum Crucis,
in quo salus mundi pepéndit.
Veníte, adorémus.
- Veníte, adorémus.
or
- Behold the wood of the Cross,
on which hung the salvation of the world.
Come, let us adore.
- Come, let us adore.
The Adoration of the Holy Cross
Hymn: "O sacred Head, now wounded"
O sacred Head, now wounded,
with grief and shame weighed down,
now scornfully surrounded
with thorns, thine only crown!
O sacred Head, what glory,
what bliss till now was thine!
Yet, though despised and gory,
I joy to call thee mine.
What thou, my Lord, hast suffered
was all for sinners’ gain.
Mine, mine was the transgression,
but thine the deadly pain.
Lo, here I fall, my Savior!
’Tis I deserve thy place.
Look on me with thy favor,
and grant to me thy grace.
What language shall I borrow
to thank thee, dearest Friend,
for this, thy dying sorrow,
thy pity without end?
Oh, make me thine forever,
and should I fainting be,
Lord, let me never, never
outlive my love to thee.
Be near when I am dying,
oh, show thy cross to me,
and for my rescue, flying,
come, Lord, and set me free!
These eyes, new faith receiving,
from Jesus shall not move,
for one who dies believing
dies safely, through thy love.
Third Part: Holy Communion
- At the Saviour’s command and formed by divine teaching, we dare 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.
- Deliver us, Lord, we pray, from every evil,
graciously grant peace in our days,
that, by the help of your mercy,
we may be always free from sin
and safe from all distress,
as we await the blessed hope
and the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ.
- For the kingdom,
the power, and the glory are yours
now and for ever.
...
- Behold the Lamb of God,
behold him who takes away the sins of the world.
Blessed are those called to the supper of the Lamb.
- Lord, I am not worthy
that you should enter under my roof,
but only say the word
and my soul shall be healed.