The
Liturgy of the Passion and the Eucharist: the traditional scripture
text from the Gospel of Luke (Luke 22:14–23:56) will be used in the
reading of the Passion, which will be chanted in an improvisational
style by members of the Choir of Trinity Wall Street, with participation
by the congregation in a sung refrain. Music also provided by the
Trinity Youth Chorus and the Family Choir.
In an interesting touch, a shortened and dissonantly-harmonized version of Fortunatus' The Royal Banners Forward Go is sung as an introduction to St. Luke's Passion; the singing of the Passion itself begins at 15:55.
The Gradual for Maundy Thursday is the same one as that for Corpus
Christi, and in fact was borrowed from that feast day. The propers for
Maundy Thursday have changed from the Tridentine era; the old Gradual was Christus factus est, today used on Good Friday.
Oculi
ómnium in te sperant, Dómine: et tu das illis escam in témpore
opportúno. Vs. Aperis tu manum tuam: et imples omne ánimal
benedictióne.
The eyes of all creatures look to
you, O Lord, and you give them their food in due season. Vs. You open
your hand and fill every living thing with your blessings.
Before
the festival of the Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come
to depart from this world and go to the Father. Having loved his
own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. The devil had
already put it into the heart of Judas son of Simon Iscariot to
betray him. And during supper Jesus, knowing that the Father had given
all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was
going to God, got up from the table, took off his outer robe, and
tied a towel around himself. Then he poured water into a basin and
began to wash the disciples' feet and to wipe them with the towel
that was tied around him. He came to Simon Peter, who said to
him, "Lord, are you going to wash my feet?" Jesus answered, "You
do not know now what I am doing, but later you will understand."
Peter said to him, "You will never wash my feet." Jesus answered,
"Unless I wash you, you have no share with me." Simon Peter said
to him, "Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!" Jesus
said to him, "One who has bathed does not need to wash, except for
the feet, but is entirely clean. And you are clean, though not
all of you." For he knew who was to betray him; for this reason he
said, "Not all of you are clean."
After he had
washed their feet, had put on his robe, and had returned to the
table, he said to them, "Do you know what I have done to you? You call
me Teacher and Lord--and you are right, for that is what I am. So
if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought
to wash one another's feet. For I have set you an example, that
you also should do as I have done to you. Very truly, I tell you,
servants are not greater than their master, nor are messengers
greater than the one who sent them. If you know these things, you
are blessed if you do them.
Jesus said, "Now the Son of
Man has been glorified, and God has been glorified in him. If God
has been glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself
and will glorify him at once. Little children, I am with you only a
little longer. You will look for me; and as I said to the Jews so
now I say to you, `Where I am going, you cannot come.' I give you a new
commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you,
you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that
you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."
The Epistle and Gospel readings for today are essentially the same as those in the Tridentine lectionary; a few verses have been added on or removed, in each case.
But
I have loved the BCP Old Testament reading for this day since the first
time I heard it; it's the Passover reading from Exodus, which
explicitly ties into the Pascha theme that's so prominent at the
Easter Vigil. This also helps tie the Hebrew and Christian scriptures
more closely together, which in turn reminds us - me, at least - how
much of what we believe comes directly out of the much older Jewish
understanding of God's acts for us in the world:
Exodus 12:1-4, (5-10), 11-14
The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in the land of
Egypt: This month shall mark for you the beginning of months; it
shall be the first month of the year for you. Tell the whole
congregation of Israel that on the tenth of this month they are to
take a lamb for each family, a lamb for each household. If a
household is too small for a whole lamb, it shall join its closest
neighbor in obtaining one; the lamb shall be divided in
proportion to the number of people who eat of it. [Your lamb shall
be without blemish, a year-old male; you may take it from the sheep
or from the goats. You shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this
month; then the whole assembled congregation of Israel shall
slaughter it at twilight. They shall take some of the blood and
put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which
they eat it. They shall eat the lamb that same night; they shall
eat it roasted over the fire with unleavened bread and bitter
herbs. Do not eat any of it raw or boiled in water, but roasted
over the fire, with its head, legs, and inner organs. You shall
let none of it remain until the morning; anything that remains
until the morning you shall burn.] This is how you shall eat it: your
loins girded, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your
hand; and you shall eat it hurriedly. It is the passover of the
LORD. For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I
will strike down every firstborn in the land of Egypt, both human
beings and animals; on all the gods of Egypt I will execute
judgments: I am the LORD. The blood shall be a sign for you on the
houses where you live: when I see the blood, I will pass over
you, and no plague shall destroy you when I strike the land of
Egypt.
This day shall be a day of remembrance for you.
You shall celebrate it as a festival to the LORD; throughout your
generations you shall observe it as a perpetual ordinance.
William Byrd set this Gradual text, sung here very nicely by, I'm assuming, an Hungarian choir:
This
setting includes a more explicit reference to the Eucharist, in the
form of the familiar text from John's Gospel; following is the Latin,
plus an English translation, from CPDL:
Ps.144:15 Oculi omnium in te sperant Domine: et tu das illis escam in tempore opportuno.
Ps.144:16 Aperis tu manum tuam: et imples omne animal benedictione.
Alleluia.
Jn 6:56 Caro mea vere est cibus: et sanguis meus vere est potus: Jn 6:57 qui manducat meam carnem, et bibit meum sanguinem, in me manet, et ego in eo.
Alleluia.
Ps.145:15 The eyes of all wait upon thee, [O Lord]; and thou givest them their meat in due season. Ps.145:16 Thou openest thine hand, and satisfiest the desire of every living thing.
Alleluia. John 6:55 For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. John 6:56 He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. Alleluia. (KJV)
And here's the Hungarian, too, from the YouTube page!
Mindeneknek szemei tebenned bíznak, Uram, és te adsz nekik eledelt alkalmas időben.
Feltárod kezeidet, és betöltesz mindene élőt áldásoddal.
Az én testen valóban étel, és az én vérem valóba ital., aki eszi az én
testemet, . és issza a én véremet, bennem marad, és én őbenne.
Alleluja,
Here's a beautiful setting of this text (along with an explicit grace-before-meals text) from Eric Whitacre; it's called the "Sidney Grace" (referring to Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge):
This is a table grace, in other words. From the page linked above:
The centuries-old words of the grace used here in Sidney Sussex are:
Oculi omnium ad te spectant, Domine; tu das eis escam eorum in tempore opportuno. Aperis tu manum tuam, et imples omne animal benedictione tua. Sanctifica nos, quaesumus, per verbum et orationem; Istisque tuis donis, quae de tua bonitate sumus percepturi, benedicito. Per Jesum Christum Dominum nostrum. Amen.
The traditional English translation of these words is:
The eyes of all look toward thee, O Lord;
thou givest them their meat in due season.
Thou openest thine hand
and fillest every living thing with thy blessing.
Sanctify us, we beseech thee, through word and prayer;
and give thy blessing
to these thy gifts, which of they bounty we are about to receive,
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
CPDL
calls this the "Offertory for Wednesday in Holy Week" (which is
probably what it was in the Tridentine), and notes that the source of
the text is Psalm 101:2-3 (Vulgate):
101: 2 Domine, exaudi orationem meam, et clamor meus ad te [per]veniat.
101: 3 Ne
avertas faciem tuam a me: in quacumque die tribulor, inclina ad me
aurem tuam; in quacumque die invocavero te, velociter exaudi me.
102:1 Hear my prayer, O Lord: and let my crying come unto thee.
102:2 Hide not thy face from me in the time of my trouble: incline thine ear unto me
when I call; O hear me, and that right soon.
There
is more to this tract than just that, though; see the image below,
which includes other portions of Psalm 101 (one of the "Seven Penetential Psalms"):
I am on the way out to my own Good Friday observance, so I will complete this post later. Meanwhile, ChristusRex.org provides a listing, including audio files and chant scores, of all the propers on this day:
Here's a video of a very interesting Mozarabic-ish take on this amazing tract, sung by Countertenor Eric de Fontenay.
As
you can see, he's labeled the video "XIème siècle" - i.e., "11th
Century"; I'm assuming this means he's found a date for the chant's
origin, although I can't confirm this myself. In point of fact, there
apparently was no tract in the Tridentine Maundy Thursday mass, according to ChristusRex.org.
It's important to remember that there are many possible styles in
which chants can be sung; this video is a great demonstration of
this.
CCWatershed provides the Latin and English texts (along with its own recording; see below), which are taken from, they say, Malachi 1: 11 and Proverbs 9: 5.
Ab ortu solis usque ad occásum, magnum est nomen meum in géntibus.
Vs. Et in omni loco sacrificátur, et offértur nómini meo oblátio munda: quia magnum est nomen meum in géntibus.
Vs. Veníte, comédite panem meum: et bíbite vinum, quod míscui vobis.
From the place where the sun rises to the place of its setting, my name is great among the nations.
Vs. And in every place, a sacrifice is offered to my name, a pure offering, for my name is truly great among the nations.
Vs. Come, eat of my bread, and drink of the wine I have prepared for you.
I suspect that Malachi is citing Psalm (112/)113 here. Here's Malachi 11 in its entirety:
For from the rising of the sun to its setting my name will be great among the nations,
and in every place incense will be offered to my name, and a pure
offering. For my name will be great among the nations, says the Lord of
hosts.
And here's Psalm 113, verse 3:
3 From the rising of the sun to its setting, the name of the Lord is to be praised!
Isaiah used this terminology, too, in Chapter 45 v. 6; (and lo and behold, there in verse 8 we have the Advent antiphon, the Rorate Coeli!)
1 Thus says the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus,
whose right hand I have grasped,
to subdue nations before him
and to loose the belts of kings,
to open doors before him
that gates may not be closed:
2 “I will go before you
and level the exalted places,[a]
I will break in pieces the doors of bronze
and cut through the bars of iron,
3 I will give you the treasures of darkness
and the hoards in secret places,
that you may know that it is I, the Lord,
the God of Israel, who call you by your name.
4 For the sake of my servant Jacob,
and Israel my chosen,
I call you by your name,
I name you, though you do not know me.
5 I am the Lord, and there is no other,
besides me there is no God;
I equip you, though you do not know me,
6 that people may know, from the rising of the sun
and from the west, that there is none besides me;
I am the Lord, and there is no other.
7 I form light and create darkness,
I make well-being and create calamity,
I am the Lord, who does all these things.
8 “Shower, O heavens, from above,
and let the clouds rain down righteousness;
let the earth open, that salvation and righteousness may bear fruit;
let the earth cause them both to sprout;
I the Lord have created it.
And the citation from Proverbs is also fascinating! It comes from this section of Proverbs 9:
1 Wisdom has built her house;
she has hewn her seven pillars.
2 She has slaughtered her beasts; she has mixed her wine;
she has also set her table.
3 She has sent out her young women to call
from the highest places in the town,
4 “Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!”
To him who lacks sense she says,
5 “Come, eat of my bread and drink of the wine I have mixed.
6 Leave your simple ways,[a] and live,
and walk in the way of insight.”
Remember that in John's Gospel, Christ is the logos - the divine reason of creation. And that Wisdom in Scripture - particularly in the Apocrypha - is also "the divine reason of creation," fashioned into a kind of persona, a (feminine) aspect of God.
Clearly, this citation refers to the Eucharist - but it does so from a really fascinating perspective.
William Byrd set this text as a motet; CPDL
calls it a "Tract for Votive Mass of the Blessed Sacrament." Clearly,
the chant itself existed in his time - the motet was written in 1607 -
but it was not used at Maundy Thursday, evidently; there was no tract at
all for the day. But neither was there an alleluia in the old form, it seems. Maundy Thursday is an unusual day; there's no other quite like it on the Calendar. Here, Derek writes about that.
The Liber Usualis 1961
(big file! 115.5MB!) does list this chant, as - yes - the tract for a
Votive Mass of the Blessed Sacrament to be sung "After Septuagesima" in
place of the Alleluia; see p. 1282 in that document.
Here's the full chant score for this Tract:
CCWatershed offers a more straightforward rendition of the tract:
“When one door closes another opens,” goes an old and popular saying. But what about that time in between, after one door closes but before another opens? What do we do then? As a friend of mine once said, “It’s hell when you are waiting in the hallway.” That’s where we are today. The door on Good Friday has closed. Jesus is dead. The door on Easter has not yet opened. The tomb is sealed and guarded.
This is Holy Saturday, in-between time, tomb time.
Many, perhaps most, will not remember or celebrate this day, but, at some point, we all live this day. We all come to the Holy Saturday of our life, the hell of our life, and it always involves a death of some kind: the death of loved one, the death of a relationship, the death of a dream. Regardless of how it comes about someone or something has died and all the doors remain closed.
Our reading from Lamentations describes this well. We have been “brought into darkness without any light.” We are “besieged and enveloped with bitterness and tribulation.” We are walled in and cannot escape. We call and cry for help but our prayer is shut out.
We are homeless. There is nothing but the tomb.
This day seems like anything but holy. Where is Jesus on Holy Saturday? Reread the Apostles’ Creed. Remind yourself that on this day “He descended to the dead” or as another translation says, “He descended into hell.” Holy Saturday is when Christ descends into the hell of our life, breaking the bonds of death, and setting the captives free. Holy Saturday is the day death and Hades tremble in fear, and regret ever having tried to take captive the author and creator of life.
It is tempting in the Holy Saturday of our lives to run away, to leave the tomb and just get to Easter. But the tomb is the birthplace of Easter, “the workshop of resurrection.” Tragedy, sorrow, and death do not simply go away or get replaced. They are transformed. In that holy workshop Christ transforms tragedy into triumph, sorrow into joy, and death into life. We must, therefore, remain present to the tomb of Holy Saturday. That’s what Mary Magdalene and the other Mary are doing.
They are “sitting opposite the tomb.” They do not say anything; there is not much to say on this day. They do not do anything; there is not much to do on this day. Holy Saturday is a time of patience. This is about more than just waiting or passing time. It is the willingness to trust that there is more going on than we see or understand. It is reminding ourselves that “the steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end.” It is remaining present so that when another door opens, and it will, we will be there to walk through it.
Do you remember who were the first to see the open tomb of Christ? Mary Magdalene and the other Mary.
“By death He conquered death, and to those in the graves He granted life!”
+
This sermon is for Holy Saturday and is based on Matthew 27:57-66 and Lamentations 3:1-9, 19-24.
When he died, he did not wake from a bad dream, and find he was God. He went lower yet; descended into hell, says our creed. That is, he died, and he was dead. For hell, in this formula of words, means simply this: whatever is the condition of the dead, when they have died.
And what condition is that? What is it to have died, and to be dead? If resurrection is unimaginable, how much more unimaginably unimaginable is death? Resurrection will refashion us in the stuff of glory. We shall not be flesh and blood, but we shall be ourselves, we shall be. But death, what is death? What is the tenuous thread which spans the abyss of not-being, to join our being what we were with what we shall become? This stretch, this nakedness, what is it? I do not know, but Christ knows; for he descended into hell.
From Austin's Farrer's sermon "Gates to the City" in A Celebration of Faith.
(The painting is Georges Rouault De Profundis, 1948.)
I'm not sure if the music here comes from that recording; it would make sense that it's the same, though - otherwise why link to this page? The musicians listed there are these: La Colombina (Artist), Schola Antiqua (Artist), Josep Cabré (Performer), Juan Carlos Asensio (Performer). The recording is, it looks like, out of print now; it sure is beautiful.
Below is the track list from the above page; the first 5 pieces are from Palm Sunday - and most of the rest come from Matins of Maundy Thurday (In Coena Domini), Good Friday (In Passione Domini), and Holy Saturday (Sabbato Sancto).
In other words, the greatest part of this music was written for the Office of Tenebrae - Matins and Lauds of the great Three Days. The pieces include readings (including some from the Lamentations of Jeremiah), antiphons, responsories, hymns, and pieces from John's Passion and the Adoration of the Cross on Good Friday.
1. Dominica in Ramis Palmarum. Vexilla regis, more hispano 2. Dominica in Ramis Palmarum. Antiphona: Hosanna filio David 3. Dominica in Ramis Palmarum. Pueri Hebraeorum 4. Dominica in Ramis Palmarum. Passio secundum Mattheum 5. Dominica in Ramis Palmarum. Elevatio: O Domine Jesu Christe 6. Feria Quinta. In Coena Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Primo Nocturno. Antiphona: Zelus domus tuae (begins about 32:20) 7. Feria Quinta. In Coena Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Primo Nocturno. Versiculum: Avertantur retrorsum et erubescant 8. Feria Quinta. In Coena Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Primo Nocturno. Lectio prima: Incipit lamentatio Jeremiae 9. Feria Quinta. In Coena Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Primo Nocturno. Lectio secunda: Vau. Et egressus est 10. Feria Quinta. In Coena Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Primo Nocturno. Lectio tertia: Jod. Manum suam 11. Feria Quinta. In Coena Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Secondo Nocturno. Antiphona: Liberavit Dominus 12. Feria Quinta. In Coena Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Secondo Nocturno. Versiculum: Deus meus eripe me 13. Feria Quinta. In Coena Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Secondo Nocturno. Quartum responsorium: Amicus meus 14. Feria Quinta. In Coena Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Secondo Nocturno. Quintum responsorium: Judas mercator 15. Feria Quinta. In Coena Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Secondo Nocturno. Sextum responsorium: Unus ex discipulis 16. Feria Quinta. In Coena Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Tertio Nocturno. Antiphona: Dixi iniquis 17. Feria Quinta. In Coena Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Tertio Nocturno. Versiculum: Exsurge Domine 18. Feria Quinta. In Coena Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Tertio Nocturno. Septimum responsorium: Eram quasi agnus 19. Feria Quinta. In Coena Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Tertio Nocturno. Octavum responsorium: Una hora 20. Feria Quinta. In Coena Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Tertio Nocturno. Nonum responsorium: Seniores populi 21. Feria Quinta. In Coena Domini. Ad Missam. In Missa. Tantum ergo (Pange Lingua; 5 v.)
Disc: 2
1. Feria Sexta. In Passione Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Primo Nocturno. Antiphona: Astiterunt reges terrae (begins about 1:14:25) 2. Feria Sexta. In Passione Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Primo Nocturno. Versiculum: Diviserunt sibi vestimenti mea 3. Feria Sexta. In Passione Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Primo Nocturno. Lectio prima: Heth. Cogitavit Dominus 4. Feria Sexta. In Passione Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Primo Nocturno. Lectio secunda: Lamed. Matribus suis dixerunt 5. Feria Sexta. In Passione Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Primo Nocturno. Lectio tertia: Aleph. Ego vir videns 6. Feria Sexta. In Passione Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Secondo Nocturno. Antiphona: Vim faciebant 7. Feria Sexta. In Passione Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Secondo Nocturno. Versiculum: Insurrexerunt in me testes iniqui 8. Feria Sexta. In Passione Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Secondo Nocturno. Quartum responsorium: Tamquam ad latronem 9. Feria Sexta. In Passione Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Secondo Nocturno. Quintum responsorium: Tenebrae factae sunt 10. Feria Sexta. In Passione Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Secondo Nocturno. Sextum responsorium: Animam meam dilectam 11. Feria Sexta. In Passione Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Tertio Nocturno. Antiphona: Ab insurgentibus in me 12. Feria Sexta. In Passione Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Tertio Nocturno. Versiculum: Locuti sunt adversaum me lingua dolosa 13. Feria Sexta. In Passione Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Tertio Nocturno. Septimum responsorium: Tradiderunt me 14. Feria Sexta. In Passione Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Tertio Nocturno. Octavum responsorium: Jesum tradidit impius 15. Feria Sexta. In Passione Domini. Ad Matutinum. In Tertio Nocturno. Nonum responsorium: Caligaverunt oculi mei 16. Feria Sexta. In Passione Domini. Ad Laudes. Antiphona: Posuerunt super caput eius - Benedictus Deus Dominus Israel 17. Feria Sexta. In Passione Domini. Ad Solemni Actione Liturgica. Passio secundum Ioannem (begins about 2:03:00) 18. Feria Sexta. In Passione Domini. Ad Solemni Actione Liturgica. In Adoratione Crucis.
Disc: 3
1. Sabbato Sancto. Ad Matutinum. In Primo Nocturno. Antiphona: In pace in idipsum 2. Sabbato Sancto. Ad Matutinum. In Primo Nocturno. Versiculum: In pace in idipsum 3. Sabbato Sancto. Ad Matutinum. In Primo Nocturno. Lectio prima: Heth. Misericordiae Domini 4. Sabbato Sancto. Ad Matutinum. In Primo Nocturno. Lectio secunda: Aleph. Quomodo obscuratum 5. Sabbato Sancto. Ad Matutinum. In Primo Nocturno. Lectio tertia: Incipit oratio Jeremiae 6. Sabbato Sancto. Ad Matutinum. In Secondo Nocturno. Antiphona: Elevamini portae aeternalis 7. Sabbato Sancto. Ad Matutinum. In Secondo Nocturno. Versiculum: Tu autem Domini Miserere mei 8. Sabbato Sancto. Ad Matutinum. In Secondo Nocturno. Quartum responsorium: Recessit pastor noster 9. Sabbato Sancto. Ad Matutinum. In Secondo Nocturno. Quintum responsorium: O vos omnes, qui transitis per viam 10. Sabbato Sancto. Ad Matutinum. In Secondo Nocturno. Sextum responsorium: Ecce quomodo moritur 11. Sabbato Sancto. Ad Matutinum. In Tertio Nocturno. Antiphona: Deus adiuvat me 12. Sabbato Sancto. Ad Matutinum. In Tertio Nocturno. Versiculum: In pace factus est locus e 13. Sabbato Sancto. Ad Matutinum. In Tertio Nocturno. Septimum responsorium: Astiterunt reges 14. Sabbato Sancto. Ad Matutinum. In Tertio Nocturno. Octavum responsorium: Aestimatus sum 15. Sabbato Sancto. Ad Matutinum. In Tertio Nocturno. Nonum responsorium: Sepulto Domino 16. Sabbato Sancto. Ad Laudes. Antiphona: O mors, ero mors tua. Psalmus 50: Miserere mei Deus 17. Sabbato Sancto. Ad Laudes. Antiphona: Christus factus est pro nobis obediens usque ad mortem
Gregorianische Gesange aus Assisi, Gregorian Chants from Assisi - Laudes Antiquae Medieval Lauds, In Cena Domini de Missa Solemni Vespertina - Coro della Cappella Papale di San Francesco d 'Assisi, Padre Maestro Alfonso Del Ferraro. (1967)
In cena domini : de missa solemni vespertina = Plainsong melodies for the commemoration of the Lord's Supper on Maundy Thursday.
De missa 1.Nos autem gloriari oportet 2. Christus factus est pro nobis obediens.
De lotione pedum: 3.Mandatum novum do vobis 4. Postquam surrexit Dominus 5. Dominus Jesus, postquam cenavit 6. Domine, tu mihi lavas pedes? 7. Si ego Dominus et Magister vester 8. In hoc cognoscent omnes 9. Maneant in vobis fides, spes, caritas 10. Ubi caritas et amor, Deus ibi est
De missa: 11. Dextera Domini fecit virtutem 12. Sanctus
De solemni translatione ac repositione sacramenti: 13.Pange lingua gloriosi Corporis mysterium
Cantus Poenitentiae: 14.Parce Domine, parce populo tuo
In festo Corpore Christi: 15.Verbun supernum prodiens 16.Lauda Sion Salvatorem.
Do the disciples understand the nature of the bond? Jesus has blessed his food, to be the body he will offer in his sacrifice; do they know that they are committed to membership in such a body as that? A body flogged, broken, crucified - see, he crumbles the loaf before their eyes. Do they perceive the new meaning in the ancient custom, the breaking of the bread? Are they willing to be parts of such a body, are they willing that his body, with its sacrificial destiny, should be theirs? The disciples were not yet fully willing, but they came to be, and so we all must; for if we do not want to be given and surrendered to God, why touch religion at all? By partaking of the sacrificial body, we are to be made capable of sacrifice, taken up, as we are, into the sacrificial being of Christ.
From Austin Farrer's address "This is my Body", given at the 1958 Eucharistic Congress, in Said and Sung.
(The painting is Georges Rouault Christ and the Apostles.)
Take the Passion of Christ in S. Matthew or S. Luke, and merely look with all your eyes on one scene at a time. Begin at the upper room; see Jesus give himself away with his own hands to his Father and to his friends, in bread and wine that are his body and blood. Go on to the garden, see him give himself again, and confirm his gift in the agony of prayer; see him, by standing to the truth of his mission, call death on his own head in Caiaphas's court and in Pilate's. See him, half flogged to death, wear that crown and that robe which assert the kingdom of God's will on earth through mockery and annihilation. See him receive the cross on which he is to die, and see him die on it. Then see if the overflowing mercy which unites you to him will not make something more of your giving yourself to God, if only for a day. We must live one day at a time, but we cannot do that if we do not return every day into the life of Jesus, and above all into his death.
From Austin Farrer's sermon "Dying to Live" in Said or Sung.
(The painting is Georges Rouault Head of Christ, 1937.)
Christoph Prégardien, tenor Tobias Berndt, baritone Dorothee Mields, soprano Hana Blažíková, soprano Damien Guillon, countertenor Robin Blaze, countertenor Colin Balzer, tenor Hans Jörg Mammel, tenor Matthew Brook, bass Stephan MacLeod, bass
Collegium Vocale Gent Conducted by Philippe Herreweghee
