GREAT FRIDAY OF THE CRUCIFIXION Ramsho (Thursday evening)

GREAT FRIDAY OF THE CRUCIFIXION Ramsho

INTRODUCTION

DOXOLOGY

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as we begin and until we conclude.
May mercy and compassion be poured forth upon us
in this world and the next.
O Lord, our God, to you be glory for ever. Amen.

OPENING PRAYER
O Paschal Lamb,
by your sacrifice on the cross,
you established the new and eternal Passover.
By shedding your blood,
you put an end to the ancient bloody sacrifices.
Through your passion and death,
you have produced the mystery of the resurrection and life.
Your body is bread for those who eat it;
your blood is wine for those who drink it,
a pledge of a glorious resurrection and
a promise of eternal life.
It is a bloodless sacrifice which is continued for ever.
Make us worthy of this new Passover,
so that we may dine at your heavenly altar, for ever. Amen.

GREETING
Peace be with the Church and her children.

PRAISE OF THE ANGELS

Glory to God in the highest,
and peace on earth and good will to all.

Praise the Lord all you nations,
glorify him all you peoples!

For steadfast is his mercy towards us,
and the truth of the Lord endures for ever.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and for ever.
and peace on earth and good will to all.

PSALMODY
FIRST PRAYER
Lord, have mercy on us and save us.
O Lord,
may we share in the feast
of your body and blood during our earthly lives.
May we be sanctified by you and live with you,
as we wait to be seated at your heavenly banquet table, where we shall praise you, for ever. Amen.

PSALM OF THE DAY
Antiphon:
For behold, they lie in wait for my life:
not for nay offense or sin of mine.

Psalm 59
Rescue me from my enemies, O my God;
from my adversaries defend me.

Rescue me from evildoers;
from bloodthirsty men save me.

For behold, they lie in wait for my life;
mighty men come together against me.

Not for any offense or sin of mine, O Lord;
for no guilt of mine they hurry to take up arms.

Rouse yourself to see it, and aid me,
for you are the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel.

Arise; punish all the nations;
have no pity on any worthless traitors.

Each evening they return, they snarl like dogs
and prowl about the city.

Though they bay with their mouths,
and blasphemies are on their lips—
“Who is there to listen?”

You, O Lord, laugh at them’
you deride all the nations.

O my strength! for you I watch;
for you, O God, are my stronghold, my gracious God!

May God come to my aid;
may he show me the fall of my foes.

O God, slay them, lest they beguile my people;
shake them by your power, and bring them down,
O Lord, our shield!

By the sin of their mouths and the word of theirs lips let them be caught in their arrogance,
for the lies they have told under oath.

Consume them in wrath; consume, till they are no more; that men may know that God is the ruler of Jacob, yes, to the ends of the earth.

Each evening they return, they snarl like dogs
and prowl about the city.

They wander about as scavengers;
if they are not filled, they howl.

But I will sing of your strength
and revel at dawn in your kindness;

You have been my stronghold,
my refuge in the day of distress.

O my strength! your praise will I sing;
for you, O God, are my stronghold,
my gracious God!

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and for ever. Amen.

Antiphon:
For behold, they lie in wait for my life:
not for nay offense or sin of mine.

HYMN
For us the Son of Man suffered and died hanging on a cross.
He sent his spirit to God, the Master of the universe.
The rocks split and the tombs opened;
the entire world was afflicted.
The heart poured water and blood for the life of mankind.

Cross of the Savior,
teach me of your power.
Help me to understand why everyone prostrates
before your majesty.
I became the altar at the summit of Golgotha.
On me the Son of almighty God was crucified.
From him flowed water and blood for the forgiveness of mankind.
The Church sings the glory of the cross for ever.

SECOND PRAYER
Lord, have mercy on us and save us.
O Lord,
you promised that whoever eats your body will have eternal life and that you will raise him on the last day.
With him living in you and you living in him
he will live for ever.
We now receive your body and blood as food for our souls.
With Peter, we believe that “you have the words of eternal life,”
let your word live in us and be fulfilled in us,
that we may praise you, for ever. Amen.

EVENING PSALMS
Psalm 141: 1-4
O LORD, to you I call; hasten to me;
hearken to my voice when I call upon you;

Let my prayer come like incense before you;
the lifting up of my hands, like the evening sacrifice.

O LORD, set a watch before my mouth,
a guard at the door of my lips.

Let not my heart incline to the evil
of engaging in deeds of wickedness

With men who are evildoers;
and let me not partake of their dainties.

Psalm 142
With a loud voice I cry out to the LORD;
with a loud voice I beseech the LORD.

My complaint I pour out before him;
before him I lay bare my distress.

When my spirit is faint within me,
you know my path.

In the way along which I walk
they have hid a trap for me.

I look to the right to see,
but there is no one who pays me heed.

I have lost all means of escape;
there is no one who cares for my life.

I cry out to you, O LORD:
I say, “You are my refuge, my portion in the land of the living.”

Attend to my cry,
for I am brought low indeed.

Rescue me from my persecutors,
for they are too strong for me.

Lead me forth from prison,
that I may give thanks to your name.

The just shall gather around me
when you have been good to me.

Psalm 119: 105-112
A lamp to my feet is your word,
a light to my path.

I resolve and swear
to keep your just ordinances.

I am very much afflicted;
O LORD, give me life according to your word.

Accept, O LORD, the free homage of my mouth,
and teach me your decrees.

Though constantly I take my life in my hands,
yet I forget not your law.

The wicked have laid a snare for me,
but from your precepts I have not strayed.

Your decrees are my inheritance forever;
the joy of my heart they are.

I intend in my heart to fulfill your statutes
always to the letter.

Psalm 117

Praise the LORD, all you nations;
glorify him, all you peoples!

For steadfast is his mercy towards us,
and the truth of the Lord endures for ever.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and for ever. Amen.

[SOOGHITO/HYMN]
O Lord, we have battled in your arena to the point of exhaustion.
We have borne the day of combat and the heat of ordeal.
In the service of your covenant, we have kept watch
during the night, confident in the fulfillment of your promise, We have made use of our talents with no concern for the pain.
On the Day of reckoning, when all will be laid before your throne of judgment, in your kindness, do not forget
what we have endured.
We belong to the Church, to which you have entrusted the treasure of hope;
Do not shame us as lazy servants or strangers,
but open your door for us that we may enter into the
dwelling of your chosen ones.

HOOSOYO
PROEMION
Praise, glory an honor to the High Priest
who offered himself on the cross
and who is offered each day on the altars of the world.
To the Good One is due glory and honor this evening,
and all the days of our lives,
for ever. Amen.

SEDRO
O Christ,
you observed the Passover and through it fulfilled the law;

you perfected it and made all things new;
you desired that this meal be a sacrifice joined to the sacrifice of the cross,
which was your crown and your masterpiece.
Before supper, you washed the feet of your disciples, who except for one, were pure.
This action was at once a sign of your love,
a law of your gospel,
a call for humility in one who leads,
an example of service,
and a commandment to love.
During the meal, you ate the paschal lamb of the law
and you became the Lamb.
We receive this Lamb every day as food
which gives life and destroys death.
The paschal meal has become a new banquet to which you invite everyone,
the first fruits of the banquet which the Father will offer you and your spouse, the Church, in eternity.
During the paschal meal, you sat in the midst of your disciples as high priest with all dignity and power.
You offered the sacrifice, a sacrifice of yourself:
you offer and you are offered.
Until the end of time you instituted a new bloodless sacrifice, shedding your blood only once on the cross.
You shared your eternal priesthood with your apostles and their successors;
they are the priests of the new covenant
and through their hands a pure and acceptable sacrifice is offered to the Father.
And now, as we recall this banquet in which you have
given us your greatest Mystery,
when you instituted priests of the new covenant,
and left us the commandment of love,
we beg you to grant priests to your Church
who will offer sacrifice and distribute your Mysteries, who will spread your teaching and imitate you,
men of wisdom and holiness,
guides for those seeking you.
In this way your name will be sanctified,
your kingdom will come,
and your will be done on earth.
We shall give you glory, for ever. Amen.

QOLO
Let us join the PRAISE OF THE ANGELS
and sing:

Holy are you, O God;
Holy are you, O Strong One;
Holy are you, O Immortal One.

O Christ, crucified for us, have mercy on us. (Three times) We adore your cross, O Christ, by it you have saved us.

ETRO
O Christ,
our Victim on the cross
and our Offering on the altars,
Priests who is the offering
and the One who offers,
with the perfume of this incense and by the prayers we raise to you,
may we offer ourselves to the Father.
May we join you in serving him,
and in fulfilling his will,
now and for ever. Amen.

READINGS
MAZMOORO
The sacrifices of the priests were images of the Son
and drew their value from him.

The Son came to his people and his people did not receive him, even though he came in the name of the Father.

Blessed are you, who came from the Father.
Glory be to you, sacrifice approved by the Lord.

SYNAXARION
The Church today celebrates the great and wondrous mystery of Christ’s death upon the cross.
Jesus Christ is our new passover who gives us his body and blood as our spiritual food and drink. He replaces the bread and wine of the paschal meal with his very body and blood.
The paschal lamb

of the old covenant he abolishes, and in its place he offers himself as both priest and victim and thus inaugurates the new covenant in his own blood.
As John the Baptist proclaims, he is truly “the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.” And as St. Paul says, “Christ our passover has been sacrificed for us; therefore let us keep the feast.”
The Divine Mysteries are not celebrated today, instead the pre-sanctified liturgy of the Anaphora of the Signing of the Chalice is used. The prayers of this anaphora are among the most ancient of the Syriac Church. Holy Communion is distributed during the pre-sanctified liturgy from the Mysteries consecrated yesterday.
In addition to the celebration of the pre-sanctified liturgy the Church also recalls the mystery of the cross by the rite of adoration of the cross and the burial of the Lord.
The cross is the sign of the Lord’s sacrifice and death, and yet it is also the beacon of light and symbol of hope and victory.
The whole earth has been
enlightened by the light of the
cross, and the darkness of
ignorance has been turned back.
As we adore the cross and recall the burial of the Lord we call out: O Lord, we worship your
cross, for it is our resurrection
and renewal.
O Christ crucified for us, have
mercy on us.

SCRIPTURE READING
A Reading from the Prophet of Isaiah
Isaiah 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 that of man, and his appearance beyond that of mortals — 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 men, a man of suffering, accustomed to infirmity, One of those from whom men 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.

A Reading from the First Letter to the Corinthians
1 Corinthians 1: 10-25
I urge you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree in what you say, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and in the same purpose. For it has been reported to me about you, my brothers, by Chloe’s people, that there are rivalries among you. I mean that each of you is saying, “I belong to Paul,” or “I belong to Apollos,” or “I belong to Kephas,” or “I belong to Christ.” Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? I give thanks to God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, so that no one can say you were baptized in my name. I baptized the household of Stephanas also; beyond that I do not know whether I baptized anyone else. For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with the wisdom of human eloquence, so that the cross of Christ might not be emptied of its meaning. The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the learning of the learned I will set aside.” Where is the wise one? Where is the scribe?
Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made the wisdom of the world foolish?
For since in the wisdom of God the world did not come to know God through wisdom, it was the will of God through the foolishness of the proclamation to save those who have faith. For Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we proclaim Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those who are called, Jews and Greeks alike, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.
A Reading from the Gospel of John
John 18: 1-19: 16
When he had said this, 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, “Whom are you looking for?” They answered him,
“Jesus the Nazorean.” He said to them, “I AM.” 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, “Whom are you looking for?” They said, “Jesus the Nazorean.” Jesus answered, “I told you that I AM. So if you are looking for me, let these men go.” This was to fulfill what he had said, “I have not lost any of those you gave me.” 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, “Put your sword into its scabbard.
Shall I not drink the cup that the Father gave me?” 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.
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, “You are not one of this man’s disciples, are you?” He said, “I am not.” 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, “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.” When he had said this, one of the temple guards standing there struck Jesus and said, “Is this the way you answer the high priest?” Jesus answered him, “If I have spoken wrongly, testify to the wrong; but if I have spoken rightly, why do you strike me?” Then Annas sent him bound to Caiaphas the high priest. Now Simon Peter was standing there keeping warm. And they said to him, “You are not one of his disciples, are you?” He denied it and said, “I am not.” One of the slaves of the high priest, a relative of the one whose ear Peter had cut off, said, “Didn’t I see you in the garden with him?”
Again Peter denied it. And immediately the cock crowed. 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, “What charge do you bring against this man?” They answered and said to him, “If he were not a criminal, we would not have handed him over to you.” At this, Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves, and judge him according to your law.”
The Jews answered him, “We do not have the right to execute anyone,” 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, “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus answered, “Do you say this on your own or have others told you about me?” Pilate answered, “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests handed you over to me. What have you done?” Jesus answered, “My kingdom does not belong 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.” So Pilate said to him, “Then you are a king?” Jesus answered,
“You say 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.” Pilate said to him,
“What is truth?” When he had said this, he again went out to the Jews and said to them,
“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?” They cried out again,
“Not this one but Barabbas!” Now Barabbas was a revolutionary.
Then Pilate took Jesus and had him scourged. And the soldiers wove a crown out of thorns and placed it on his head, and clothed him in a purple cloak, and they came to him and said, “Hail, King of the Jews!” And they struck him repeatedly. Once more Pilate went out and said to them, “Look, I a
m bringing him out to you, so that you may know that I find no guilt in him.
m bringing him out to you, so that you may know that I find no guilt in him.” So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple cloak. And he said to them,
“Behold, the man!” When the chief priests and the guards saw him they cried out,
“Crucify him, crucify him!” Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and crucify him. I find no guilt in him.” The Jews answered, “We have a law, and according to that law he ought to die, because he made himself the Son of God.” Now when Pilate heard this statement, he became even more afraid, and went back into the praetorium and said to Jesus, “Where are you from?” Jesus did not answer him. So Pilate said to him, “Do you not speak to me? Do you not know that I have power to release you and I have power to crucify you?” Jesus answered:

“You would have no power over me whatever
unless it were given you from above.
That is why he who handed me over to you
Is guilty of the greater sin.”

EPHREMIAT
They sacrificed him on the infamous wood;
they placed him between two criminals,
he who vested himself in our humanity.
They scorned him with blasphemy and derision.

He called to his Father, “Forgive them, they do not know what they are doing.”
Thus, he proclaimed their ignorance.
Some of them do not understand the evil consequences of their deeds; do not punish them all.

Then he said, “I am thirsty for the tears of the penitent.”
These hard-hearted people quenched his thirst with vinegar and gall to increase his sufferings.
When he tasted it, he refused to drink it and said,
“It is finished.”
He gave them wine to drink, but they gave him vinegar mixed with bitterness.

Daughter of David, is their any pain like that in your heart?
The death of your only Son is like the sting of a serpent.
Who will give water to my head and tears to my eyes,
so that day and night, I might weep for the death of Jesus?

HOOTOMO
Let us confess, adore, and praise the holy and glorious Trinity: Father, Son, + and Holy Spirit.

TRISAGION

Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.

Holy are you, O God;
Holy are you, O Strong One;
Holy are you, O Immortal One;
have mercy on us.

Lord, have mercy on us.
Lord, forgive us and have mercy on us.
Lord, hear us and have mercy on us.
Lord, accept our worship and our prayers.
Lord, come to our assistance and have mercy on us.

LORD’S PRAYER
Our Father, who are in heaven,
hallowed be your name;
your kingdom come;
your 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 the kingdom, the power and the glory are yours,
now and for ever. Amen.

O Lord
the night and the day are yours;
you uphold the light and the sun.
Through your power you direct the sequence of the seasons.
O Lord,
you have brought the day to its close and called forth the night.
Be for us that great Day that never ends.
In the evening let your light shine in our hearts,
and in the darkness of the night,
enlighten us with the knowledge of your truth.
And so, through all the days of our lives,
we shall praise you, Father, Son, Holy Spirit.
Amen.

EXAMINATION OF CONSCIENCE
Let us thank God for all the graces he has bestowed on us this day which has passed in calm and peace.
Let us recall our failings against the commandments of God an the Church in thought, word, deed, or omission.

We ask for God’s pardon as we pray.

“Forgive us, Jesus!”

Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.

Glory be to you, O Lord.
Glory be to you, O Lord.
Glory be to you, O Lord.

God,
Father in heaven,
by your living and holy name,
keep us from evil and lead us not into temptation:
for we c all upon you, O Lord, our God, our constant hope, glory to you for ever.
O Lord, our Lord,
may our humble worship be pleasing to you;
may our prayers come before you and our actions give
you honor.
Let your mercy, kindness, help, grace and divine love be poured abundantly upon us poor sinners,
both in heaven and on the earth
which you have created in your goodness.
O Lord, our God, to you be glory for ever.
Amen.

DISMISSAL
Peace be with you.
And also with you.

O God,
through the prayers of your Mother and the saints who have believed in you;
through the prayers of the prophets, apostles, martyrs and confessors;

through the prayers of the just, the priests, the holy fathers, the pastors and doctors of true faith;
through the prayers of N., Pope of Rome, N., our Patriarch, and N., our Bishop,
forgive your people and have mercy on your flock.
May God bless, forgive, sanctify, purify, an keep each of the faithful united with us in this spiritual office.
May mercy and compassion be upon us and all the faithful who dwell here.
May peaceful rest be granted to those who have died in the faith.
May the faithful who live here experience the protection of his victorious cross.
May we and all his servants who adore him with bowed head, receive the mercy of the holy and glorious Trinity:
Father, Son, + and Holy Spirit,
to whom be glory now and for ever.
Amen.

May God forgive your sins,
pardon your failings,
and deliver you from the power of the enemy.
May he grant you the remission of your offenses.
Go in peace, and pray to Christ for me.