PALM SUNDAY

Today God’s people embark on the way of Christ’s passion. Today begins the Holy Week which leads into the mystery of our salvation. Christ calls us to follow him on his triumphant path into the holy city; but for the Lamb of God the way of triumph becomes the way of the cross. Glory to you, O Lord, glory to you! With the children and the disciples we take up your cross and cry aloud: Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!

The Procession of Palms

Meet on the common. Palm crosses are given out. When the ministers arrive, the priest briefly introduces the service. The palm crosses are held up and blessed.

The Palm Gospel (Luke 19.28-40) is read. When the gospel is announced, all respond: Glory to you, O Lord!
At the end the deacon says This is the Gospel of Christ. All: Praise to you, O Christ!
When the ministers have all received their palms, the Deacon sings: Let us proceed in peace: In the + name of Christ. Amen.
All process to the church, singing the Processional Hymn:

All glory, laud and honour to thee, Redeemer King,
To whom the lips of children made sweet hosannas ring.

Thou art the king of Israel, thou David’s royal Son
Who in the Lord’s name comest, the King and blessed One.
The company of angels Are praising thee on high,
And humankind and all things Created make reply.
The people of the Hebrews With palms before thee went;
Our praise and prayer and anthems Before thee we present.
To thee before thy passion They sang their hymns of praise;
To thee, now high exalted, Our melody we raise.
Thou didst accept their praises, Accept the prayers we bring,
Who in all good delightest, Thou good and gracious King.
Thy sorrow and thy triumph Grant us, O Christ, to share,
That to the holy city Together we may fare.
For homage may we bring thee Our victory o’er the foe,
That in the Conqueror’s triumph This strain may ever flow:
(Repeat verses from the beginning if necessary.)

As soon as the ministers arrive at the altar step, the Introit Hymn follows immediately:

Ride on, ride on in majesty!
Hark, all the tribes hosanna cry;
thy humble beast pursues his road
with palms and scattered garments strowed.
Ride on, ride on in majesty!
In lowly pomp ride on to die;
O Christ, thy triumphs now begin
o’er captive death and conquered sin.
Ride on, ride on in majesty!
The wingèd squadrons of the sky
look down with sad and wond’ring eyes
to see th’approaching sacrifice.
Ride on, ride on in majesty!
Thy last and fiercest strife is nigh;
The Father, on his sapphire throne,
awaits his own anointed Son.
Ride on, ride on in majesty!
In lowly pomp ride on to die;
bow thy meek head to mortal pain,
then take, O God, thy pow’r, and reign.

The Mass continues with the Collect for the Day:

Almighty and everlasting God, who in your tender love towards the human race sent your Son our Saviour Jesus Christ to take upon him our flesh and to suffer death upon the cross: grant that we may follow the example of his patience and humility, and also be made partakers of his resurrection; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

The Liturgy of the Word

Epistle: Philippians 2.5-11
Gradual Hymn:

Morning glory, starlit sky,
soaring music, scholars’ truth,
flight of swallows, autumn leaves,
memory’s treasures, grace of youth:
Open are the gifts of God,
gifts of love to mind and sense;
hidden is love’s agony,
love’s endeavour, love’s expense.
Love that gives, gives ever more,
gives with zeal, with eager hands,
spares not, keeps not, all outpours,
ventures all, its all expends.
Drained is love in making full
bound in setting others free,
poor in making many rich,
weak in giving power to be.
Therefore he who shows us God
helpless hangs upon the tree;
and the nails and crown of thorns
tell of what God’s love must be.
Here is God: no monarch he,
throned in easy state to reign;
here is God, whose arms of love
aching, spent, the world sustain.

St Mark’s Passion

Remain standing for the dramatic reading of St Mark’s Passion, and face the action for each scene. All join in the following crowd parts:

(Scene 3)
N Now the men who were holding Jesus began to mock him and beat him. They also blindfolded him, and kept asking him:
All Prophesy! Who was hitting you?
N They kept heaping many other insults on him. When day came, the assembly of the elders of the people, both chief priests and scribes, gathered together, and they brought him to their council. They said
All If you are the Messiah, tell us
J If I tell you, you won’t believe; and if I question you, you won’t answer. But from now on the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the power of God.
All So you are the Son of God?
J You say that I am.
All What more evidence do we need? We heard him! He said it himself!

(Scene 4)
N Then the assembly rose as a body and brought Jesus before Pilate. They began to accuse him, saying
All He’s been turning the nation upside down! He tells us not to pay taxes to Caesar! He says he’s the Messiah! he says he’s a king!
Pil Are you the king of the Jews?
J You say so.
Pil I find no basis for an accusation against this man.
All He stirs up the people with his teaching! first in Galilee, then all through Judaea, and now here!
Pil He has done nothing to deserve death. I will therefore have him flogged and release him.
All Away with this fellow! It’s Barabbas we want free!
N (This was a man who had been put in prison for an rebellion that had taken place in the city, and for murder.) Pilate, wanting to release Jesus, addressed them again; but they kept shouting,
All Crucify him! crucify him!

(Scene 5)
N And they cast lots to divide his clothing. And the people stood by, watching; but the leaders scoffed at him, saying
All He saved others; let him save himself, if he is God’s Messiah, his chosen one!
N The soldiers also mocked him, coming up and offering him sour wine, and saying
All If you’re the King of the Jews, save yourself!

At the words ‘ he breathed his last’ all kneel in silence for a while; then stand again when the narrative is resumed. A period of silence leads to the intercessions.

Liturgy of the Eucharist

Offertory Hymn:

My song is love unknown, my Saviour’s love to me,
Love to the loveless shown, that they might lovely be.
O, who am I, that for my sake My Lord should take frail flesh and die?
He came from his blest throne, salvation to bestow:
But all made strange, and none the longed-for Christ would know.
But O, my Friend, my Friend indeed, Who at my need his life did spend!
Sometimes they strew his way, And his sweet praises sing;
Resounding all the day Hosannas to their King.
Then ‘Crucify!’ is all their breath And for his death they thirst and cry.
Why, what hath my Lord done? What makes this rage and spite?
He made the lame to run, He gave the blind their sight.
Sweet injuries! yet they at these Themselves displease, and ‘gainst him rise.
They rise, and needs will have My dear Lord made away;
A murderer they save, The Prince of Life they slay.
Yet cheerful he to suffering goes, That he his foes from thence might free.
In life no house, no home, My Lord on earth might have;
In death no friendly tomb, But what a stranger gave.
What may I say? heav’n was his home; But mine the tomb wherein he lay.
Here might I stay and sing, No story so divine;
Never was love, dear King, Never was grief like thine!
This is my Friend, in whose sweet praise I all my days could gladly spend.

Eucharistic prayer 1

Hymns during Communion:

There in God’s garden stands the tree of wisdom
whose leaves hold forth the healing of the nations:
tree of all knowledge, tree of all compassion, tree of all beauty.
Its name is Jesus, name that says, ‘Our Saviour’:
there on its branches see the scars of suffering:
see where the tendrils of our human selfhood feed on its lifeblood.
Thorns not its own are tangled in its foliage;
our greed has starved it, our despite has choked it;
yet, look, it lives! its grief has not destroyed it, nor fire consumed it.
See how its branches reach to us in welcome;
hear what the voice says, ‘Come to me, ye weary:
‘give me your sickness, give me all your sorrow: I will give blessing.’
All heaven is singing, ‘Thanks to Christ whose passion
offers in mercy healing, strength and pardon:
peoples and nations, take it, take it freely’.
Amen, my Master.

Glory be to Jesus, who in bitter pains,
poured for me the life-blood from his sacred veins.
Grace and life eternal in that blood I find:
blest be his compassion, infinitely kind.
Blest through endless ages be the precious stream
which, from endless torments, did the world redeem.
Abel’s blood for vengeance pleaded to the skies,
but the blood of Jesus for our pardon cries.
Oft as it is sprinkled on our guilty hearts,
Satan in confusion terror-struck departs.
Oft as earth exulting wafts its praise on high,
angel-hosts rejoicing make their glad reply.
Lift ye then your voices; swell the mighty flood;
louder still and louder praise the precious blood.

O Cross of Christ, immortal tree on which our Saviour died,
the world is sheltered by your arms that bore the crucified.
From bitter death and barren wood the tree of life is made;
its branches bear unfailing fruit and leaves that never fade.
O faithful cross, you stand unmoved while ages run their course:
foundation of the universe, creation’s binding force.
Give glory to the risen Christ and to his cross give praise,
the sign of God’s unfathomed love, the hope of all our days.

Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom!

All stand to say the Lent Prayer together:

Grant, Lord, that we may hold to you without parting, worship you without wearying, serve you without failing; faithfully seek you, happily find you, and for ever possess you, the only God, blessed now and for ever. Amen.

The Blessing is given: please respond Amen to each section.

Recessional hymn:

Lord, through this Holy Week of our salvation,
which thou hast won for us who went astray,
in all the conflict of thy sore temptation
we would continue with thee day by day.
We would not leave thee, though our weak endurance
makes us unworthy here to take our part;
yet give us strength to trust the sweet assurance
that thou, O Lord, art greater than our heart.
Thou didst forgive thine own who slept for sorrow,
thou didst have pity: O have pity now,
and let us watch through each sad eve and morrow
with thee, in holy prayer and solemn vow.
Along that sacred way where thou art leading,
which thou didst take to save our souls from loss,
let us go also, till we see thee pleading
in all-prevailing prayer upon thy cross.
Until thou see thy bitter travail's ending,
the world redeemed, the will of God complete,
and, to thy Father's hands thy soul commending,
thou lay the work he gave thee at his feet.