This anthem may be said or sung.
Hosanna to the Son of David.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Behold your king comes to you, O Zion,
meek and lowly, sitting upon an ass.
Ride on in the cause of truth
and for the sake of justice.
Hosanna to the Son of David.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Let us pray.
Assist us mercifully with your help,
O Lord God of our Salvation,
that we may enter with joy
upon the contemplation of those mighty acts,
whereby you have given us life and immortality;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Then is read the Gospel account of Jesus' entry into Jerusalem:
Mark 11:1-10
When they were approaching Jerusalem, at Bethphage and Bethany, near the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples and said to them, 'Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately as you enter it, you will find tied there a colt that has never been ridden; untie it and bring it. If anyone says to you, "Why are you doing this?" just say this, "The Lord needs it and will send it back here immediately."' They went away and found a colt tied near a door, outside in the street. As they were untying it, some of the bystanders said to them, 'What are you doing, untying the colt?' They told them what Jesus had said; and they allowed them to take it. Then they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it; and he sat on it. Many people spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut in the fields. Then those who went ahead and those who followed were shouting,
'Hosanna!Then may be sung this hymn:
For a version with MIDI, click here.
Refrain:
All glory, laud, and honor
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. Refrain
The company of angels
are praising thee on high;
and mortal men and all things
created make reply. Refrain
The people of the Hebrews
with palms before thee went;
our praise and prayer and anthems
before thee we present. Refrain
To thee before thy passion
they sang their hymns of praise;
to thee, now high exalted,
our melody we raise. Refrain
Thou didst accept their praises;
accept the prayers we bring,
who in all good delightest,
thou good and gracious King. Refrain
Then this prayer is said:
Let us pray.
Almighty and everlasting God,
in your tender love for the human race
you sent your Son our Savior Jesus Christ
to take upon him our nature,
and to suffer death upon the cross:
grant that we may follow the example
of his patience and humility,
and also share in his resurrection;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Our attention now turns from Jesus' triumphal entry to his path towards death and resurrection. This reading is from the apostle Paul:
Philippians 2:5-11
Let the same
mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,
who, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God
as something to be exploited,
but emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
being born in human likeness.
And being found in human form,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to the point of death
even death on a cross.
Therefore God also highly exalted him
and gave him the name
that is above every name,
so that at the name of Jesus
every knee should bend,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue should confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
Silence may be kept.
Then the story of Jesus' passion and death is read. You may use a personal bible or click on the link below for a web version.
The service continues with a period of silence and then possibly a hymn such as this one:
For a version with MIDI, click here
Ah, holy Jesus, how hast thou offended,
that man to judge thee hath in hate pretended?
By foes derided, by thine own rejected,
O most afflicted.
Who was the guilty? Who brought this upon thee?
Alas, my treason, Jesus, hath undone thee.
'Twas I, Lord Jesus, I it was denied thee:
I crucified thee.
Lo, the Good Shepherd for the sheep is offered;
the slave hath sinned, and the Son hath suffered;
for our atonement, while we nothing heedeth,
God intercedeth.
For me, kind Jesus, was thy incarnation,
thy mortal sorrow, and thy life's oblation;
thy death of anguish and thy bitter passion,
for my salvation.
Therefore, kind Jesus, since I cannot pay thee,
I do adore thee, and will ever pray thee,
think on thy pity and thy love unswerving,
not my deserving.
The service concludes with prayer, in this form or a form of your own devising.
We stand with Christ in his suffering.
For forgiveness for the many times we have denied Jesus, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
For grace to seek out those habits of sin which mean spiritual death, and by prayer and self-
discipline to overcome them, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
For Christian people, that through the suffering of disunity there may grow a rich union in
Christ, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
For those who make laws, interpret them, and administer them, that our common life may be
ordered in justice and mercy, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
For those who still make Jerusalem a battle ground, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
For those who have the courage and honesty to work openly for justice and peace, let us pray to
the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
For those in the darkness and agony of isolation, that they may find support and encouragement,
let us pray to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
For those who, weighed down with hardship, failure, or sorrow, feel that God is far from them,
let us pray to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
For those who are tempted to give up the way of the cross, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
That we, with those who have died in the faith, may find mercy in the day of Christ, let us pray
to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
Almighty God,
whose most dear Son went not up to joy
but first he suffered pain,
and entered not into glory
before he was crucified:
Mercifully grant that we,
walking in the way of the cross,
may find it none other
than the way of life and peace;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
- The Lord's Prayer is said.
May the life-giving cross
be the source of all our joy and peace. Amen.
Material in this service was derived from:
The Book of Common Prayer, 1979, Episcopal Church;
and Lent, Holy Week and Easter, 1985, Church of England.