02 April 2010

Good Friday

O God, Who by the Passion of Thy Christ, our Lord, hast loosened the bonds of death, that heritage of the first sin to which all men of later times did succeed: make us so conformed to Him that, as we must needs have borne the likeness of earthly nature, so we may by sanctification bear the likeness of heavenly grace. Through the same Christ our Lord...

Ecce lignum Crucis in quo salus mundi perpendit!
Venite, adoremus!

O My people, what have I done to thee? Or wherein have I afflicted thee? Answer Me.

Because I led thee out of the land of Egypt, thou hast prepared a Cross for thy Savior.

Hagios ho Theos! Sanctus Deus! Hagios ischyros! Sanctus fortis!
Hagios athanatos, eleison himas! Sanctus immortalis, miserere nobis!

Because I led thee out through the desert forty years: and fed thee with manna, and brought thee into a land exceeding good, thou hast prepared a Cross for thy Savior.

Hagios ho Theos! Sanctus Deus! Hagios ischyros! Sanctus fortis!
Hagios athanatos, eleison himas! Sanctus immortalis, miserere nobis!

What more ought I to have done for thee, that I have not done? I planted thee, indeed, My most beautiful vineyard: and thou hast become exceeding bitter to Me: for in My thirst thou gavest Me vinegar to drink: and with a lance thou hast pierced the side of thy Savior.

Hagios ho Theos! Sanctus Deus! Hagios ischyros! Sanctus fortis!
Hagios athanatos, eleison himas! Sanctus immortalis, miserere nobis!

For thy sake I scourged Egypt with its first-born: and thou didst deliver Me up to be scourged.

I led thee out of Egypy having drowned Pharao in the Red Sea: and thou to the chief priests didst deliver Me.

I opened the sea before thee: and thou with a spear didst open My side.

I went before thee in a pillar of cloud: and thou didst lead Me to the judgment hall of Pilate.

I fed thee with manna in the desert: and thou didst beat Me with blows and scourges.

I gave thee the water of salvation from the rock to drink: and thou didst give Me gall and vinegar.

For thy sake I struck the kings of the Chanaanites: and thou didst strike My head with a reed.

I gave thee a royal scepter: and thou didst give My head a crown of thorns.

I exalted thee with great strength: and thou didst hang Me on the gibbet of the Cross.

2 comments:

big daddy said...

If the response is to be given in both Greek and Latin, it seems to me "Hagios ho Theos! Hagios ischyros! Hagios athanatos, eleison himas! Sanctus Deus! Sanctus fortis! Sanctus immortalis, miserere nobis!" would elide better.

Unknown said...

I'll grant you that on a computer screen :)

But I like to imagine, never having heard it sung myself, that the line by line alternation between one choir singing in Greek and another in Latin would create a harmonious effect overall.

If they do it this way at the FSSP service in Vienna tonight, I'll report back on it, though.