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Invitation to Worship
The Lamb of God is slain for us:
Come, let us follow him on the Way of the Cross
O Holy One,+ open my lips.
~And my mouth will proclaim your praise.
You have given them Bread from heaven
~Having all sweetness within it!
Hymn for Holy Thursday
The Word of God proceeding forth Yet leaving not his Abba’s side,
Went forth upon his work of love And labored there until he died.
His enemies were gathering; He was betrayed by one he loved.
Before he died he gave them food: His own most sacred flesh and blood.
He gave them there the living bread, He let them drink the precious wine
To feed their bodies and their souls To walk in strength with love divine.
His human birth made us his friends At table he becomes our food.
He paid our ransom with his blood; He will himself be our reward.
O Saving Victim — Sacrifice, Who opened heaven’s gate for us.
Our fears press on from every side; Save us, Our Love, in you we trust!
Unending glory be to you, Immortal Godhead One in Three,
May we who share this feast of love rejoice with you eternally.
Text: VERBUM SUPERNUM Thomas Aquinas, tr. SSSF (1965) alt.; Tune: GREATEST GUEST. L.M. Mode VIII
PSALMODY
Antiphon One
This day will be an everlasting memorial for you unto countless generations.
Psalm 83/84
How glorious is your dwelling place,
O Adonai Sabbaoth!
My soul longs, yes aches,
yearning for the courts of Adonai.
My body and soul ring out their joy
to the Living Heart of Love!
As the sparrow herself seeks a home
and the swallow a nest for her brood,
I am eager to rest near your altars,
Adonai Sabbaoth! My God and my Love!
To live in your presence is joy,
to praise you and never stop.
Those you bless with strength and courage,
will bless you with grateful hearts.
When they cross the Valley of Thirst
they find the ground spaced with springs,
blessed with the rains of autumn.
They travel with growing excitement
to reach the God of gods in Zion.
Hear me, Adonai Sabbaoth!
Heed me, O God of Jacob!
Turn your eyes, O God, our Shield,
behold the face of your anointed.
One day within your courts
is worth a thousand spent elsewhere!
I would rather stand outside your Gates
than dwell in splendor with the wicked.
God is our support and our shield,
the giver of grace and glory.
Adonai never fails to bless
those who walk with integrity.
How blest, Adonai Sabbaoth,
are all those who trust in you!
This day will be an everlasting memorial for you unto countless generations..
Antiphon Two
With great longing I want to keep this Passover with you before I suffer.
Psalm 41/42
Like the deer that yearns
for running streams,
so my soul is yearning
for you, my God.
My soul is thirsting for God,
the God of my life;
when can I enter and see,
the face of God.
My tears have become my bread,
by night, by day,
as I hear it said all day long:
“Where is your God?”
Why are you cast down my soul,
why groan with- in me?
Hope in God and praise the Holy One:
my savior and my God.
Deep is calling on deep
in the roar of mighty waters;
your torrents and all your waves
have swept over me.
By day Adonai will send
com-passion and loving kindness;
by night I will sing a song of thanks;
praise the God of my life.
Why are you cast down my soul,
why groan with- in me?
Hope in God and praise the Holy One:
my savior and my God.
With great longing I want to keep this Passover with you before I suffer.
Antiphon Three
I will not drink of the fruit of the vine again until I drink it in the reign of my Abba.
Psalm 147
O Praise Adonai, Jerusalem,
Zion, praise the Holy One.
God’s-Love gives strength to the little ones,
And courage to face their fears.
Peace to be their sure refuge,
Golden wheat to share at the feast.
God’s-Word cuts through the resistance
That fosters greed and conceit;
Sends snow heavy as wool
And scatters frost like ashes;
Hurls down hail like crumbs,
Freezes the waters with Winter.
God’s-Word melts them with Spring,
God’s-Breath makes the waters flow.
The Word is written on our hearts
To guide us with wisdom and justice;
That together we may share with all people
God’s ways of justice and truth.
I will not drink of the fruit of the vine again until I drink it in the reign of my Abba.
READING Hebrews 2: 9-10
We see Jesus crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, that through God’s gracious will he might taste death for the sake of all humanity. Indeed, it was fitting that when bringing many children to glory, God, for whom and through whom all things exist, should make their leader in the work of salvation perfect through suffering.
Responsory
R. As for you, the blood will be a sign: when I see the blood I will pass over you.
V. You were ransomed with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish; *when I see the blood I will pass over you.
Gospel Canticle
Antiphon
At the Passover meal, Jesus took bread,
and when he had said the blessing, he broke it and gave it to his disciples.
Canticle of Zachariah
Blessed + be Adonai, the God of Israel,
Who visits this people to set us free
Raising for us a sign of salvation
In the house and family of David.
God promised throughout past ages
In words of holy prophets
To save us from our enemies,
And from the control of our oppressors.
Adonai favored our ancestors
And remembered the sacred covenant.
The pledge to Abraham and Sarah
Is now renewed for us;
That freed from the grip of our foes
We might worship without fear
And be both just and holy
For the rest of our days.
And you, child, called “prophet of the Most High,”
Will go ahead to prepare the way,
By teaching this people of salvation
Through forgiveness of their sins.
For the loving compassion of the Holy One
As the Rising Sun will shine upon us
To illumine the darkness and dispel death’s shadow
To Guide our feet on the way of peace.
Glory to the One and to the Word
and to the Breath of Love;
As always before s
o now and evermore. Amen
At the Passover meal, Jesus took bread,
and when he had said the blessing, he broke it and gave it to his disciples.
.
SERVICE OF PRAYER
Litany of Intercession
You were anointed by the Spirit to proclaim liberty to all those in bondage to oppression and sin; ~ free us from all that keeps us from following you.
You went up to Jerusalem to suffer and enter into your glory,
~bring us all to the Passover feast where humanity and the rest of Earthkind celebrate liberation.
You took up the unleavened bread of liberation, blessed God for it, broke it and gave it to your disciples as a sacrament of your self-giving life and love ~ may we who share this bread break ourselves in loving service.
You were tortured, stripped, crucified and pierced with a soldier’s lance;
~heal our wounds and the wounds of all who are tortured by injustice and sin.
You forgave both the repentant thief and the unrepentant who condemned and nailed you to the cross; ~forgive us our sins and help us to forgive those who sin against us.
You made the cross into the tree of life,
~share its fruit with all those reborn in the Easter sacraments so they may share this fruit with a starving world.
Prayer of Jesus
Our Father…
Closing Prayer
Gracious God of infinite Compassion, you sent Jesus as an example of unselfish love whose way of life would free us from sin and whose way of dying would destroy the power of death. May our celebration of these Three Holy Days enable us to enter more deeply into the Mystery of his suffering, death, and burial, so that we may more fully experience the new life and joy of his resurrection, both here on earth and in heaven where you live and love, One God, forever and ever. Amen
Blessing
May the God of Compassion + bless and guide us as we follow Jesus on the way of the cross. ~Amen.
Let us bless the world with peace. ~And give thanks to God.