THE PASSION OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST
O sacred Head now wounded,
With grief and shame weighed down
Now scornfully surrounded with thorns
Thine only crown
What Thou, my Lord, hast suffered
Was all for sinners’ gain
Mine, mine was the transgression,
But Thine the deadly pain
What language shall I borrow
To thank Thee, dearest friend
For this, Thy dying sorrow,
Thy pity without end?
O make me Thine forever.
And should I fainting, be
Lord, let me never,
Never outlive my love for Thee. Amen.
There follows a reading of the Passion Story as recorded in the
Gospel according to Luke.
A Prayer To Follow
O Jesus,
Humbly, I kneel at Your wounded feet.
I am unable to lift my eyes higher than Your pierced feet. My horizontal gaze takes every attempt to look into Your eyes hostage. Everywhere, I see faces bearing signs of heart-wrenching grief, indications of failure and paralyzing defeat; I see the marginalized and the forgotten. Everywhere I look, I see people who lived with the hope of meeting You and experiencing Your transforming love, but, alas, they conclude that the way of Faith is too challenging to continue.
No, Lord, I am not living about 2000 years ago. I am in this present moment! I cannot bear to look into Your eyes now, so long after that first Good Friday, and see that our accomplishments for You seem to be so small. I am haunted by what You once said while here on earth “Inasmuch as you have not done it unto the least among these, you have not done it unto me.”
Then, reassuringly, the sounds of the world that diminish every human effort to do better, become lost in the sound of a voice gently speaking to me. ” The LORD does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:17). Punctuated with whispers of gratitude, I request:’ O come to my heart, Lord Jesus. There is room in my heart for Thee. Together, we will make a difference in the world where we live. Amen.
Hymn:O Sacred Head Now Wounded