Thy Almighty power help us. Accept the confession of Thy people, which we make before Thee in sorrow of heart, lamenting the sins we have committed. We humbly implore Thee, O Lord, to restore us Thy peace; bow down Thine ear, and mercifully cleanse us from the stains of our sins, and deliver us from the perils in which they have placed us. Amen. ALMIGHTY, Everlasting confess the blackness of our sins, and open to Thee the secrets of our conscience. Grant us to find medicine in the wounds of Thy Son, to see His eternal light amidst our darkness, and by the purity of His innocence to cleanse our consciences. For we desire with all our hearts to see Thy face; only the night of our sins veils our sight. We would look up to heaven, and cannot whilst blinded by the darkness of our sins: we are unable to imitate the conversation of those who, for their holy lives, are called Thy Saints. Come, O Jesu, to aid us who call upon Thee, and heal us all. Behold, we open our wounds to Thee; do Thou heal our infirmities. Help as Thou hast promised to help those who pray to Thee, Thou Who madest us out of nothing. Anoint the eyes of our hearts, that we may wander no longer in darkness. Behold, we weep at Thy feet: cast not us away, who humble ourselves before Thee; and we will not turn away from Thy paths, Who didst humble Thyself for us. Hear our prayers, and deliver us from the darkness of our sins, that we may see the glory of Thy face in everlasting beatitude; Who livest and reignest God, world without end. Amen. LMIGHTY Father, grant, AL we beseech Thee, that Thine Only-begotten Son may be with us to assist us, who desire to consecrate this holy season. May He Who thrice silenced and reproved the cunning of the Tempter with the words of His sacred mouth, drive away from us all the poisonous suggestions of temptation, and keep us from consenting to evil. May He nourish the hunger of our souls with living Bread. May He protect us against the lying in wait of the tempter with the breastplate of righteousness, and the helmet of eternal salvation. May He support our weakness from the Heaven above; that, confirmed and strengthened by Him, and passing our appointed time in self-denial and abstinence, we may subdue the rebellion of the flesh, put to flight anger, set aside gluttony and excess. and depart from all appearance of falsehood. Give health to our bodies, and Thy strength to our souls, that both may serve Thee in peace, by fasting, by devotion, by perseverance, by discipline: that we, passing this time of abstinence devoutly, He may grant it to be for the salvation of our souls, Who taught us to fast and pray, even Jesus Christ our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, world without end. Amen. ESU, Master, meet us on JE the way, as we desire to go to our home. Let Thy light go before to guide us, that we may walk in the right way, and err not in the awful darkness of this night. For Thou art our Light, Who art the Way and the Truth, and the Life. Mercifully grant us what we pray for, Who Thy. self hast taught us how to pray; Who livest and reignest God, world without end. Amen. I ADORE Thee, O God, What and devoutly praise Thee. pray to Thee, O Holy One: I worship Thee, O God. Lover of men: I glorify Thee, O Christ, for that Thou, the Only-begotten, the Lord of all, alone without sin, wast given to death for me, even the death of the Cross, that' Thou mightest deliver my soul from the chains of sin. shall I give, therefore, unto Thee, O Lord? Glory be to Thee, most merciful. Glory be to Thee, most pitiful. Glory be to Thee, most patient God; Who forgivest all their sins; Who camest down to us to save our souls. Glory be to l'hee, Who wast Incarnate in the womb of the Virgin: Who wast born for us: Who for our sakes wast taken, tied, and tempted. Glory be to Thee, Who wast scourged; Who wast spitted upon; Who wast mocked. Glory be to Thee, Who wast crucified; Who wast buried; Who didst rise from the dead. Glory be to Thee, Who wast preached to the nations; Who wast believed on in the world; Who wast received up into heaven. Glory be to Thee, Who sittest at the right hand of God the Father, with glory and majesty, : and shalt shortly come again in the glory of the Father, with the holy Angels, to judge every soul which despised Thy Holy Passion. In that fearful and terrible hour, when the powers of the heavens shall be shaken when at the same time shall come the Angels and Archangels, the Cherubim and Seraphim, fearing and trembling at the sight of Thy glory when the foundations of the earth shall be shaken, and every spirit shall fear exceedingly at the incomparable glory of Thine infinite Majesty: In that hour, I pray Thee, hide me under the wings of Thy grace, deliver my soul from the terrible fire, from the gnashing of teeth, and the everla ting weeping; that, blessing Thee and giving thanks to Thee, I may say, Glory be to Thee, O Lord, Who, in the multitude of Thy mercies, hast been pleased to save me, a sinner. Hear me, O Lord; Who livest and reignest, with the Father and the Holy Gho t one God, world without end. Amen. BESEECH Thee, O most sweet Jesu Christ, that Thy Passion may be my strength, by which I may be defended and protected. May the sprinkling of Thy Blood be the washing away of my sins; and Thy Death my everlasting joy. For in Thy suffering is my refreshment, my joy, my health, and the consolation of my heart, O Thou Who livestand reignest, world without end. Amen. GOD, Who, for the salvation of the world, didst deign to come down on earth, to be born, circumcised, rejected by the Jews, betrayed by Judas with a kiss, to be bound, and as an innocent lamb led to the slaughter, to be mocked in the presence of Annas and Caiaphas, Herod and Pilate, to be accused by false witnesses, to be abused with blows and taunts, to be spitted on, crowned with thorns, smitten with the hand, struck with the reed, blindfolded. stripped, nailed to the Cross, and lifted up between two thieves, to be given vinegar and gall to drink, and to be wounded with a spear: Thou, O Lord, by these most sacred pains of Thine, which I, an unworthy sinner, have in remembrance, and by Thy holy Cross and Death, deliver me from all the pains of hell, and take me whither Thou didst take the penitent thief: Who livest and reignest God, world without end. Amen. A Prayer before a repre- most sweet Lord Jesu, I kneel before Thy face, and adore Thee with all my heart, and implore Thee that Thou wouldest impress upon my heart a vivid sense of faith, hope, and charity, a true repentance for my sins, and a firm intention of amendment, whilst with deep affliction and sorrow of mind I consider and contemplate that which David the prophet spake concerning Thee: " They pierced my hands and my feet." ALMIGHTY GOD, our bear them, to the true proof of our faith against the latter day, and to Thy everlasting glory. Hear us, our Heavenly Father, for our Lord Jesus Christ's sake. Amen. ᎪᏞ our LMIGHTY GOD Heavenly Father, Which sufferedst Peter the Apostle, presuming of his own power, miserably to fall, not only in the denial of his Master, Christ, for fear of an handmaid,t also in foreswearing and cursing himself: Grant us, we beseech Thee, merciful Father, that we may not presume of our own might and power, but being in hearts humble and lowly, knowing our own infirmity, frailty, and weakness, may ever, in all our affairs, receive at Thy mighty hand strength and comfort, to the acceptable performance of Thy holy and blessed will. Hear us, our Heavenly Father, for our Lord Jesus Christ's sake. Amen. our Heavenly Father, we beseech Thy gracious goodness, that like as Thy Onlybegotten and Dearly-beloved Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ, according to Thy blessed will, suffered willingly death and bitter passion for our redemp-BLESSED Saviour, Jesu tion and salvation, having thereof foresight and certain knowledge, so in like manner, whensoever it shall be Thy pleasure to lay crosses and afflictions upon us, may we also willingly and patiently Christ, Who, in that great heaviness of Thy soul, and intolerable anguish, which Thou sustainedst before Thy Passion, didst fall down upon Thy face in prayer unto Thy Heavenly Father; give us grace, and the aid of Thy Holy Spirit, that we likewise, in our heaviness of mind and troubles of this world, may fly evermore, by most humble and instant prayer, unto the aid and comfort of our Heavenly Father. Hear us, our Saviour Christ, for Thy Name's sake. Amen. Dia Dolorosa. This devotion may commence with one of prayers, page 96, or with an Act of Contrition, or like an ordinary Meditation, (vide page 14), or simply with the Invocation. When many are using it together a Hymn may be sung at the commencement, and one or more verses between each part. The Collects given are all taken from the Book of Common Prayer, so that the whole as it here stands is compiled from the Bible and Prayer Book. Other Collects referring to the Passion, or on some special petition, may be substituted if desired. IN the Name. Jesus is Condemned to When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that rather a tumult was made, he took water and washed his Hands Before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this Just Person : see ye to it. Then answered all the people and said, His blood be on us, and on our children. And the voices of them and of the chief priests prevailed. And so Pilate, willing to content the people, gave sentence that it should be as they required. Consider how gladly He endured this unjust condemnation to save from the just condemnation of eternal punishment. Antiphon.-The ungodly said, reasoning with themselves, but not aright, Let us lie in wait for the righteous; because he is not for our turn, and he is clean contrary to our. doings: he professeth to have the knowledge of God; he calleth himself the Child of the Lord, and maketh his boast that God is his Father; let us see if his words be true, and let us prove what shall happen in the end of him. If he be the Son of God he will help him and deliver him from the hands of his enemies. Let us condemn him with a shameful death. LORD, have mercy, etc. Our Father, etc. Y. God spared not His own Son. |