| 27 Friday | |
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| red | FRIDAY OF THE PASSION OF THE LORD [GOOD FRIDAY] | |
| Day of fast and abstinence. Celebration of the Mass and the sacraments is strictly prohibited, except for Penance and Anointing of the Sick. Communion may be taken to the sick, but otherwise is not distributed outside today's Celebration of the Lord's Passion. | |
| Hours of the day. The Office of Readings and Morning Prayer are recommended for public celebration in parishes.
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| Celebration of the Passion of the Lord. |
| The celebration has three parts:
I. Liturgy of the Word (readings, homily, intercessions)
II. Veneration of the Cross
III. Holy Communion.
The celebration begins about 3 p.m.
The altar is completely bare, without candles, cloth or cross. The ministers vest with red Mass vestments. They enter in silence and prostrate before the altar. This act of prostration, which is proper to the rite of the day, should be observed (whenever the ministers are physical able) for it signifies both the abasement of "earthly man," and also the grief and sorrow of the Church. As the ministers enter, the faithful should be standing, and thereafter should kneel in silent prayer. [PS 65]
The Passion is proclaimed as on Palm Sunday. |
| Readings:
[40] Isa 52:13-53:12; Ps 31:2+6, 12-13, 15-16, 17+25; Heb 4:14-16; 5:7-9; John 18:1-19:42. |
| The Intercessions must follow "the form and wording" handed down by tradition, but the celebrant may make a selection of some more relevant to local conditions, provided the range of intentions is preserved. [PS 67]
The cross is presented to each of the faithful individually for their
adoration, since the personal adoration of the cross is a most
important feature in this celebration. The celebrant may remove his
chasuble and shoes for the veneration. Only if necessitated by the large numbers of faithful present may the rite of veneration be made simultaneously by all present. Only one cross should be used for the veneration. [PS 69] | |
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The communion rite is as described in the Missal. There is no sign of peace.
After Holy Communion, the Blessed Sacrament is carried from the church by a priest or deacon wearing a humeral veil and accompanied by two candles. The Sacrament is reserved privately outside the church for the needs of the sick and dying.
The altar is stripped at a suitable time, but the cross remains with four candles, placed so that the faithful may venerate and kiss it and spend some time in meditation. [PS 71] | |
| | Evening Prayer is not said by participants in the afternoon liturgy. Night Prayer is said after the Celebration of the Lord's Passion at a suitable hour, with the special verse in place of the responsory. | |
| Today after the Veneration of the Cross, all
genuflect toward the cross when passing it. | |
| Anniversary: | 109th anniversary of the death of P. Isidore Lallemand (82) d. 1945 at Cape Town, RSA.  |
| Anniversary: | 43rd anniversary of the death of F. William Nash (87) d. 2011 at London, England. |
| Anniversary: | 34th anniversary of the death of P. Roland Lesseps (UCS) (87) d. 2020 at Grand Coteau, LA, USA. |
On this day in our Jesuit history...
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| 1540 | Simon Rodriguez sets out for India. He is the first Jesuit missionary. 1547. Ignatius wrote a letter to Jesuits in Spain on religious perfection. |
| 1540 | Xavier, chosen in Father Nicholas Bobadilla's place left Rome for the Indies... St. Ignatius' parting words were, "Ite omnia incendite et inflammate." |
| 1548 | Fr. Anthony Corduba, rector of the College of Salamanca, begged Ignatius to admit him into the Society so as to escape the cardinalate which Charles V intended to procure for him. |
| 1587 | The death at Messina of Thomas Evans, a Jesuit who had suffered imprisonment for his defense of the Catholic faith in England. He was 28 at the time of his death. |
| 1708 | By a decree of Pope Clement XI the convent of Port Royal, a nest of Jansenism, was suppressed. |
| 1766 | A forged letter (the work of Choiseul) from Father General Ricci to the Spanish Provincial, imputing illegitimacy to King Charles III, was shown to that monarch, who at once became the Society’s implacable enemy. |
| 1840 | Among the North American Indians, Father Peter de Smet was welcomed with great joy, being the first "Blackrobe" seen among them since the Suppression. |
| 1840 | Peter de Smet set out from St. Louis on his first trip to the Rocky Mountains at the invitation of a delegation from the Salishan people in what is now Montana. This exploratory trip resulted in starting amission to the Indians a year later. |
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