Texts taken from the “On Your Word” Missal March-April 2024

Easter Triduum - Good Friday «Passion of the Lord»
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FIRST READING

From the book of the prophet Isaiah (Is 52:13 - 53:12)
Behold, my servant shall prosper; he shall be exalted and honored and lifted up greatly. Just as many were astonished at him - so marred was his appearance, beyond human semblance, and his form beyond that of the children of mankind - so shall he startle many nations; kings shall shut their mouths because of him, for they shall see what has not been told them, and understand what they have not heard. Who has believed our message? To whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? He grew up before him like a young plant and like a root out of dry ground. He had no form or majesty that we should look at him, no beauty that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with suffering; like one from whom people hide their faces; he was despised, and we held him of no account. Yet he bore our sufferings and carried our sorrows; and we considered him punished, struck by God and humbled. But he was pierced for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities. Upon him was the punishment that brought us peace, and by his wounds we were healed. We all went astray like sheep; each of us turned to his own way; and the Lord laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; like a lamb led to the slaughter, like a sheep silent before its shearers, he did not open his mouth. By oppression and unjust judgment he was taken away; who will grieve for his descendants? Yes, he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was struck to death. They gave him a grave with the wicked, and with the rich was his tomb, although he had done no violence, nor was there deceit in his mouth. Yet it pleased the Lord to crush him with suffering. When he makes his life an offering for sin, he shall see his offspring, he shall prolong his days; the will of the Lord shall prosper through him. After the suffering of his soul he shall see the light and be satisfied by his knowledge; my righteous servant shall justify many, and he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the mighty, because he poured out his life unto death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many and interceded for the transgressors. - The word of the Lord.

Commentary on the first reading

The fourth song of the “Servant of Yahweh” is an impressive description of Jesus of Nazareth in his Passion. The central, decisive phrase is: «by his wounds we were healed», so much so that Saint Peter would quote it word for word in his reflection on Christian conduct (1 Pt 2:24). This phrase connects Christ's experience, his Passion, with the consequences it has for us poor sinners. What relationship is there, in fact, between the sufferings of a single man, who suffers and dies on a cross (he was not the only one crucified in history... in Roman times there were thousands of people crucified) and the life of all people of all times? What does it mean for me, living two thousand years later, that Jesus suffered? Here we must take a leap and enter into the divine plan. That death reaches me because Jesus bore «the sin of many» and prayed for the transgressors. Being God, he saved sinful humanity in his wounded flesh (the wounds), presenting our justification to the Father. What we must do is enter into this spiritual healing and never leave it.

SECOND READING

From the Letter to the Hebrews (Heb 4:14-16; 5:7-9)
Brothers and sisters, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast to our profession of faith. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses: he himself was tested in every way as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with full confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace, and so be helped at the appropriate time. [Christ, indeed,] in the days of his earthly life, offered prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to God, who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his complete surrender to him. Although he was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered and, once made perfect, became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him. - The word of the Lord.

Commentary on the second reading

Jesus offered prayers and supplications to be saved from death, and he was heard. If he died nevertheless, how can we say that he was heard? Here the reference is to the death of the soul and heart, the death people experience when they sin and rebel, which resulted in the ancient punishment of bodily death - «you are dust, and to dust you shall return!» (Gen 3:19). Jesus obeyed the Father, who longed to have us, his creatures, once again in the full integrity of our being, children full of light and grace, to love and be loved by, and through Christ's obedience everything changed. This was the true revolution! Not that of poor people who, called “revolutionaries,” do not change a thing and leave the world as they found it, if not worse. Through his cry and obedience, Jesus brought the children back to the eternal Father, restoring the contact between them that had been lost. The means? His wounds, his suffering, his death on the cross, which definitively brought light to those who wish to welcome it. Thus today, as we contemplate the drama of the Passion, we also dare to sing: «O glorious cross!».

GOSPEL OF THE DAY

C The Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John (Jn 18:1-19:42)

(Directions for dialogued reading: ✠ = Jesus; C = Narrator; D = Disciples and friends; F = Crowd; A = Other characters).
They arrested Jesus and bound him 
C At that time, Jesus went out with his disciples across the Kidron Valley, where there was a garden, which he entered with his disciples. Judas, his betrayer, also knew the place, because Jesus had often met there with his disciples. So Judas went there, after taking a detachment of soldiers and some guards supplied by the chief priests and the Pharisees, with lanterns, torches, and weapons. Then Jesus, knowing everything that was to happen to him, came forward and said to them: ✠ «Whom are you looking for?». C They answered him: F«Jesus the Nazorean». C Jesus said to them: ✠ «I am he». C Judas, his betrayer, was standing with them. When he said to them «I am he», they drew back and fell to the ground. Again he asked them: ✠ «Whom are you looking for?». C They answered: F «Jesus the Nazorean». C Jesus replied:✠ «I told you that I am he. So if you are looking for me, let these men go», C so that the word he had spoken might be fulfilled: «I have not lost any of those you gave me». Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it, struck the high priest's servant, and cut off his right ear. The servant's name was Malchus. Jesus then said to Peter: ✠ «Put your sword back into its sheath: am I not to drink the cup that the Father has given me?». 
They took him first to Annas
C Then the soldiers, with the commander and the Jewish guards, arrested Jesus, bound him, and took him first to Annas: he was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, who was high priest that year. Caiaphas was the one who had advised the Jews: «It is better that one man should die for the people». Meanwhile Simon Peter followed Jesus with another disciple. This disciple was known to the high priest and entered with Jesus into the high priest's courtyard. Peter, however, stood outside near the door. Then the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out, spoke to the doorkeeper, and brought Peter in. The young doorkeeper said to Peter: A «Are you not also one of this man's disciples?». C He answered: D «I am not». CMeanwhile the servants and guards had made a charcoal fire because it was cold, and they were warming themselves; Peter also was standing with them and warming himself. The high priest questioned Jesus about his disciples and his teaching. Jesus answered him: ✠ «I have spoken openly to the world; I have always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where all the Jews gather, and I have said nothing in secret. Why do you question me? Question those who heard what I said to them; they know what I said». C When he had said this, one of the guards standing there struck Jesus on the face, saying: A «Is that how you answer the high priest?». C Jesus answered him: ✠ «If I have spoken wrongly, testify to the wrong; but if I have spoken rightly, why do you strike me?». C Then Annas sent him bound to Caiaphas the high priest. 
Are you not also one of his disciples? I am not!
Meanwhile Simon Peter was standing and warming himself. They said to him: A «Are you not also one of his disciples?». C He denied it and said: D «I am not». C One of the servants of the high priest, a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, said: A «Did I not see you with him in the garden?». C Peter denied it again, and immediately the cock crowed. 
My kingdom is not of this world
Then they led Jesus from the house of Caiaphas to the praetorium. It was morning, and they themselves did not enter the praetorium, so that they would not be defiled and could eat the Passover. So Pilate went out to them and asked: A «What charge do you bring against this man?». C They answered him: F «If this man were not a criminal, we would not have handed him over to you». C Pilate said to them: A «Take him yourselves and judge him according to your law». C The Jews answered him: F «We are not permitted to put anyone to death». C This was to fulfill the word Jesus had spoken, indicating the kind of death he was to die. Then Pilate went back into the praetorium, summoned Jesus, and said to him: A «Are you the King of the Jews?». C Jesus answered: ✠ «Do you say this on your own, or have others told you about me?». C Pilate answered: A «Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me. What have you done?». C Jesus answered: ✠ «My kingdom is not of this world; if my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have fought to prevent my being handed over to the Jews; but my kingdom is not from here». C Pilate then said to him: A «So you are a king?». C 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». C Pilate said to him: A «What is truth?». C After saying this, he went out again to the Jews and said to them: A «I find no case against him. But you have a custom that at the Passover I release one prisoner for you. Do you want me to release for you the King of the Jews?». C They shouted again: F «Not this man, but Barabbas!». C Barabbas was a bandit.
Hail, King of the Jews!
Then Pilate took Jesus and had him scourged. And the soldiers wove a crown of thorns and put it on his head, and they dressed him in a purple robe. They came up to him and said: F «Hail, King of the Jews!». C And they struck him repeatedly. Pilate went out again and said to them: A «Look, I am bringing him out to you so that you may know that I find no case against him». C Then Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. And Pilate said to them: A «Behold the man!». C When the chief priests and the guards saw him, they cried out: F «Crucify him! Crucify him!». C Pilate said to them: A «Take him yourselves and crucify him; I find no case against him». C The Jews answered him: F «We have a law, and according to that law he ought to die, because he has made himself the Son of God». C When Pilate heard this statement, he became even more afraid. He went back into the praetorium and said to Jesus: A «Where are you from?». C But Jesus gave him no answer. Pilate then said to him: A «Do you refuse to speak to me? Do you not know that I have power to release you and power to crucify you?». C Jesus answered him: ✠ «You would have no power over me if it had not been given you from above. Therefore the one who handed me over to you has the greater sin».
Take him away! Take him away! Crucify him!
C From that moment Pilate tried to release him. But the Jews cried out: F «If you release this man, you are not a friend of Caesar! Everyone who makes himself a king sets himself against Caesar». C When Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus outside and sat down on the judge's seat at a place called the Stone Pavement, or in Hebrew Gabbatha. It was the day of Preparation for the Passover, and it was about noon. Pilate said to the Jews: A «Here is your king!». C But they cried out: F «Take him away! Take him away! Crucify him!». C Pilate said to them: A «Shall I crucify your king?».C The chief priests answered: F «We have no king but Caesar». C Then he handed him over to them to be crucified. 
They crucified him, and with him two others
So they took Jesus, and carrying the cross, he went out to what is called the Place of the Skull, in Hebrew Golgotha. There they crucified him, and with him two others, one on either side, with Jesus between them. Pilate also had an inscription written and put on the cross. It read: «Jesus the Nazorean, the King of the Jews». Many of the Jews read this inscription, because the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, Latin, and Greek. The chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate: F «Do not write: “The King of the Jews,” but: “This man said, I am the King of the Jews”». C Pilate answered: A «What I have written, I have written». 
They divided my garments among them
C When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they took his garments and divided them into four parts, one for each soldier, and also his tunic. But the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom. So they said to one another: «Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it to see whose it will be». This was to fulfill the Scripture: «They divided my garments among them, and for my tunic they cast lots». And that is what the soldiers did. 
Behold, your son! Behold, your mother!
Standing near the cross of Jesus were his mother, his mother's sister, Mary the mother of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing beside her, he said to his mother: ✠ «Woman, behold, your son!». C Then he said to the disciple: ✠ «Behold, your mother!». C And from that hour the disciple took her into his home. After this, Jesus, knowing that everything was now finished, in order that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said: ✠ «I thirst». C A jar full of vinegar was there, so they put a sponge soaked in vinegar on a hyssop branch and held it to his mouth. When Jesus had received the vinegar, he said: ✠ «It is finished». C Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. 
(Here all kneel and pause briefly)
Immediately blood and water flowed out
It was the day of Preparation, and the Jews, because it was the Sabbath and they did not want the bodies to remain on the cross during the Sabbath - for that Sabbath was a solemn day - asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken away. So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the other who had been crucified with him. But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. Instead, one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out. The one who saw this has testified, and his testimony is true; he knows that he tells the truth, so that you also may believe. These things occurred so that the Scripture might be fulfilled: «Not one of his bones will be broken». And again another passage of Scripture says: «They will look upon the one whom they have pierced». 
They took the body of Jesus and wrapped it in cloths with spices
After these things, Joseph of Arimathea, who was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly, for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate to let him take the body of Jesus. Pilate granted permission. So he came and took his body. Nicodemus, who had first come to Jesus at night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes weighing about thirty kilograms. They took the body of Jesus and wrapped it in cloths with the spices, according to the Jewish burial custom. Now in the place where he had been crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid. So, because it was the Jewish day of Preparation and the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there. - The word of the Lord. ℞. Praise to you, O Christ.

Commentary on the Gospel of the day

On Good Friday, the Passion according to John is always read. Compared with the accounts in the Synoptic Gospels, John brings out the greatness of the Lord Jesus, who lives the Sacrifice in its liturgical and mystical dimension. At the proclamation of the divine name («I am he») in Gethsemane, the soldiers fall to the ground, and Jesus contrasts Peter's ill-timed sword strike with the cup he must drink. The Lamb goes before Pilate and, with this pagan man, speaks of kingship and truth, revealing the meaning of what he is doing, since Christ's kingdom «is not of this world». Then comes the ascent to Mount Calvary, in silence, with the dignity and majesty of the act he is undergoing, up to the final words with which Jesus entrusts the mother to her children and the children to their mother, with which he declares his thirst for love, and finally the solemn and composed proclamation that the mission is accomplished, that the ransom has been paid, mercy has been delivered to the Father and to those who wish to receive it. There is something grandiose in the tragedy of Christ's Passion as narrated by John, as though the apostle were already giving us, as he writes, the theological interpretation of Christ's sacrificial death.