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Home , Eastertide, Holy Wednesday, Passiontide, Tenebrae

Holy · March 31, 2021 Office of at 6:00pm

Welcome to the of Saint Agnes!

We are very glad to have you here.

We require everyone present to wear masks and keep a distance from one another. Families may group together, distanced from other individuals or groups. Your mask cover your mouth and nose at all times.

Under normal circumstances, we strongly welcome and encourage congregational singing in order to foster full, conscious, and active participation during the Holy Sacrifice of .

However, we ask that the congregation refrain from singing at this liturgy and for the entirety of in order to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.

We are extremely eager to “return to normal” and permit congregational singing once again, but for now, all singing at each liturgy must be left to the professional singers, who are singing at a safe distance from one another.

Thank you! Tenebrae Anticipated and of Holy Thursday

Matins of Holy Thursday

All stand at the sound of the bell Invitatory & Introductory Verse Sung by the Choir

Cantor Domine, labia mea aperies. Choir Et os meum annuntiabit laudem tuam. Deus in adiutorium meum intende. Choir Domine ad adiuvandum me festina. , et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto. Sicut erat in principium et nunc, et semper, et in saecula saeculorum. Amen.

Lord, open my lips. And my mouth will proclaim Your praise. God, come to my assistance. Lord, make haste to help me. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the : as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

All sit Psalm 69 (I) Ps. 69: 2-13 Tone 8c Sung by the Choir

Antiphon I am wearied with crying aloud; my throat is parched. My eyes are wasted away with waiting for my God.

Save me, O God, for the waters * have risen to my neck. I have sunk into the mud of the deep, * where there is no foothold.

I have entered the waters of the deep, * where the flood overwhelms me. I am wearied with crying aloud; * my throat is parched.

My eyes are wasted away * with waiting for my God. More numerous than the hairs on my head * are those who hate me without cause.

Many are those who attack me, * enemies with lies. What I have never stolen, * how can I restore?

O God, you know my folly; * from you my sins are not hidden. May those who hope in you not be shamed * because of me, O Lord of hosts;

may those who seek you not be put to shame * because of me, O God of Israel. It is for you that I suffer taunts, * that shame has covered my face.

To my own kin I have become an outcast, * a stranger to the children of my mother. Zeal for your house consumes me, * and taunts against you fall on me.

When my soul wept bitterly in ,* they made it a taunt against me. When I made my clothing sackcloth, * I became a reproach to them,

the gossip of those at the gates, * the theme of drunkards’ songs. The is repeated

Psalm 69 (II) Ps. 69: 14-22 Tone 8G Sung by the Choir

Antiphon For food they gave me gall; in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.

But I pray to you, O LORD, * for a time of your favor. In your great mercy, answer me, O God, * with your salvation that never fails.

Rescue me from sinking in the mud; * from those who hate me, deliver me. Save me from the waters of the deep, * lest the waves overwhelm me.

Let not the deep engulf me, * nor the pit close its mouth on me. LORD, answer, for your mercy is kind; * in your great compassion, turn towards me.

Do not hide your face from your servant; * answer me quickly, for I am in distress. Come close to my soul and redeem me; * ransom me because of my foes.

You know my taunts, my shame, my dishonor; * my oppressors are all before you. Taunts have broken my heart; * here I am in anguish.

I looked for solace, but there was none; * for consolers—not one could I find. The Antiphon is repeated Psalm 69 (III) Ps. 69: 23-37 Tone 8c Sung by the Choir

Antiphon Seek the LORD and you will live.

Let their table be a snare to them, * and for their friends, a trap. Let their eyes grow dim and blind; * let their limbs continually tremble.

Pour out your anger upon them; * let your burning fury overtake them. Let their camp be left desolate; * let no one dwell in their tents:

for they persecute one whom you struck; * they increase the pain of one whom you wounded. Charge them with guilt upon guilt; * let them have no share in your justice.

Blot them out from the book of the living; * do not enroll them among the just. As for me in my poverty and pain, * let your salvation, O God, raise me up.

Then I will praise God’s name with a song; * I will glorify him with thanksgiving: a gift pleasing God more than oxen, * more than a bull with horns and hoofs.

The poor when they see it will be glad, * and God-seeking hearts will revive; for the LORD listens to the needy, * and does not spurn his own in their chains.

Let the heavens and the earth give him praise, * the seas and everything that moves in them. For God will bring salvation to Sion, and rebuild the cities of Judah, * and they shall dwell there in possession. *

The children of his servants shall inherit it; * those who love his name shall dwell there. The Antiphon is repeated

Versicle & Response Officiant When I am lifted up from the earth: All I will draw all people to myself.

First Lesson Hebrews 4:14 – 5:10 Brothers and sisters: Since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, , the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has similarly been tested in every way, yet without sin. So let us confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy and to find grace for timely help. Every high priest is taken from among men and made their representative before God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. He is able to deal patiently with the ignorant and erring, for he himself is beset by weakness and so, for this reason, must make sin offerings for himself as well as for the people. No one takes this honor upon himself but only when called by God, just as Aaron was. In the same way, it was not Christ who glorified himself in becoming high priest, but rather the one who said to him: “You are my son; this day I have begotten you;” just as he says in another place: “You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.” In the days when he was in the flesh, he offered prayers and supplications with loud cries and tears to the one who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered; and when he was made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him, declared by God high priest according to the order of Melchizedek.

Responsory Hebrews 5: 8-9, 7 Officiant Though He was the Son of God, Christ learned obedience through what He suffered; All And now, for all who obey Him, He has become the source of eternal life. Officiant In the days of His earthly life He prayed, crying aloud, and He submitted so humbly that His prayer was heard. All And now, for all who obey Him, He has become the source of eternal life.

Second Lesson An of St. Melito of Sardis, bishop There was much proclaimed by the prophets about the mystery of the : that mystery is Christ, and to him be glory for ever and ever. Amen. For the sake of suffering humanity he came down from heaven to earth, clothed himself in that humanity in the Virgin’s womb, and was born a man. Having then a body capable of suffering, he took the pain of fallen man upon himself; he triumphed over the diseases of soul and body that were its cause, and by his Spirit, which was incapable of dying, he dealt man’s destroyer, death, a fatal blow. He was led forth like a lamb; he was slaughtered like a sheep. He ransomed us from our servitude to the world, as he had ransomed Israel from the hand of Egypt; he freed us from our slavery to the devil, as he had freed Israel from the hand of Pharaoh. He sealed our souls with his own Spirit, and the members of our body with his own blood. He is the One who covered death with shame and cast the devil into mourning, as Moses cast Pharaoh into mourning. He is the One who smote sin and robbed iniquity of offspring, as Moses robbed the Egyptians of their offspring. He is the One who brought us out of slavery into freedom, out of darkness into light, out of death into life, out of tyranny into an eternal kingdom; who made us a new priesthood, a people chosen to be his own for ever. He is the Passover that is our salvation. It is he who endured every kind of suffering in all those who foreshadowed him. In Abel he was slain, in Isaac bound, in Jacob exiled, in Joseph sold, in Moses exposed to die. He was sacrificed in the Passover lamb, persecuted in David, dishonored in the prophets. It is he who was made man of the Virgin, he who was hung on the tree; it is he who was buried in the earth, raised from the dead, and taken up to the heights of heaven. He is the mute lamb, the slain lamb, the lamb born of Mary, the fair ewe. He was seized from the flock, dragged off to be slaughtered, sacrificed in the evening, and buried at night. On the tree no bone of his was broken; in the earth his body knew no decay. He is the One who rose from the dead, and who raised man from the depths of the tomb.

Responsory Romans 3: 23-25; John 1:29 Officiant Everyone has sinned and is deprived of God’s glory. We are justified through the free gift of His grace and through the redemption of Christ Jesus. All God made Christ’s sacrificial death the means of expiating the sins of all believers. Officiant This is the Lamb of God Who takes away the sins of the world. All God made Christ’s sacrificial death the means of expiating the sins of all believers.

Collect Officiant Let us pray. God of infinite compassion, to love You is to be made holy; fill our hearts with Your love. By the death of Your Son You have given us hope, born of faith by His rising again fulfill this hope in the perfect love of heaven, through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, Who lives and reigns with You in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. All Amen.

The Lamentations of Jeremiah

The First Lamentation Lamentations 1: 1-5 Sung by a Cantor in

The beginning of the Lamentation of the Prophet Jeremiah.

Aleph. How solitary sits the city, once filled with people. She who was great among the nations is now like a widow. Once a princess among the provinces, now a toiling slave.

Beth. She weeps incessantly in the night, her cheeks damp with tears. She has no one to comfort her from all her lovers; Her friends have all betrayed her, and become her enemies.

Ghimel. Judah has gone into exile, after oppression and harsh labor; She dwells among the nations, yet finds no rest: All her pursuers overtake her in the narrow straits.

Daleth. The roads to Zion mourn, empty of pilgrims to her feasts. All her gateways are desolate, her priests groan, Her young women grieve; her lot is bitter.

He. Her foes have come out on top, her enemies are secure; Because the LORD has afflicted her for her many rebellions. Her children have gone away, captive before the foe.

Jerusalem, Jerusalem, return to the Lord your God.

The First Responsory In monte Oliveti Mode 8 Sung by the Choir

In monte Oliveti oravit ad Patrem: Pater, si fieri potest, transeat a me calix iste: Spiritus quidem promptus est, caro autem infirma. Vigilate, et orate, ut non intretis in tentationem.

On the Mount of Olives he prayed to his Father: Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak; your will be done. Watch and pray, that you enter not into temptation.

The Second Lamentation Lamentations 1: 6-9 Sung by a Cantor in Latin

Vau. From daughter Zion has gone all her glory: Her princes have become like rams that find no pasture. They have gone off exhausted before their pursuers.

Zain. Jerusalem remembers in days of wretched homelessness, All the precious things she once had in days gone by. But when her people fell into the hands of the foe, and she had no help, Her foes looked on and laughed at her collapse.

Heth. Jerusalem has sinned grievously, therefore she has become a mockery; Those who honored her now demean her, for they saw her nakedness; She herself groans out loud, and turns away.

Teth. Her uncleanness is on her skirt; she has no thought of her future. Her downfall is astonishing, with no one to comfort her. “Look, O LORD, at my misery; how the enemy triumphs!”

Jerusalem, Jerusalem, return to the Lord your God.

The Second Responsory Tristis est anima mea Mode 8 Sung by the Choir

Tristis est anima mea usque ad mortem: sustinete hic, et vigilate mecum: nunc videbitis turbam, quae circumdabit me: Vos fugam capietis, et ego vadam immolari pro vobis. Ecce appropinquat hora, et Filius hominis tradetur in manus peccatorum.

My soul is sorrowful even unto death: stay here, and watch with me: now shall you see the multitude which shall surround me. You shall take flight, and I shall go to be offered up for you. Behold, the hour draws nigh, and the Son of man shall be delivered into the hands of sinners. The Third Lamentation Lamentations 1: 10-9 Sung by a Cantor in Latin

Jod. The foe stretched out his hands to all her precious things; She has seen the nations enter her sanctuary, Those you forbade to come into your assembly. Caph. All her people groan, searching for bread; They give their precious things for food, to retain the breath of life. “Look, O LORD, and pay attention to how I have been demeaned! Lamed. Come, all who pass by the way, pay attention and see: Is there any pain like my pain, which has been ruthlessly inflicted upon me, With which the LORD has tormented me on the day of his blazing wrath? Mem. From on high he hurled fire down into my very bones; He spread out a net for my feet, and turned me back. He has left me desolate, in misery all day long. Nun. The yoke of my rebellions is bound together, fastened by his hand. His yoke is upon my neck; he has made my strength fail. The Lord has delivered me into the grip of those I cannot resist. Jerusalem, Jerusalem, return to the Lord your God.

The Third Responsory Ecce vidimus eum Mode 5 Sung by the Choir

Ecce vidimus eum non habentem speciem, neque decorum: aspectus ejus in eo non est: hic peccata nostra portavit, et pro nobis dolet: ipse autem vulneratus est propter iniquitates nostras: Cuius livore sanati sumus. Vere languores nostros ipse tulit, et Dolores nostros ipse portavit. Cuius livore sanati sumus.

Behold, we have seen him without comeliness or beauty: his look is gone from him; he has borne our sins and morns for us: but he was wounded for our iniquities. With his stripes we are healed. Surely he has borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows.

Homily

Lauds of Holy Thursday

Psalm 80 Tonus Peregrinus Sung by the Choir

Antiphon Look, O LORD, and see my suffering. Come quickly to my aid.

O shepherd of Israel, hear us, you who lead Joseph like a flock: * enthroned on the cherubim, shine forth upon Ephraim, Benjamin, Manasseh. * Rouse up your might and come to save us.

O God, bring us back; * let your face shine on us, and we shall be saved. How long, O LORD, God of hosts, * will you be angry at the prayer of your people?

You have fed them with tears for their bread, * an abundance of tears for their drink. You have made us the taunt of our neighbors; * our foes mock us among themselves.

O God of hosts, bring us back; * let your face shine forth, and we shall be saved. You brought a vine out of Egypt; * you drove out the nations and planted it.

Before it you cleared the ground; * it took root and filled the land. The mountains were covered with its shadow, * the cedars of God with its boughs.

It stretched out its branches to the sea; * to the River it stretched out its shoots. Then why have you broken down its walls? * It is plucked by all who pass by the way.

It is ravaged by the boar of the forest, * devoured by the beasts of the field. God of hosts, turn again, we implore; * look down from heaven and see.

Visit this vine and protect it, the vine your right hand has planted, * the son of man you have claimed for yourself. They have burnt it with fire and cut it down. * May they perish at the frown of your face.

May your hand be on the man at your right hand, * the son of man you have confirmed as your own. And we shall never forsake you again; * give us life that we may call upon your name.

O LORD God of hosts, bring us back; * let your face shine forth, and we shall be saved. The Antiphon is repeated

Canticle Isaiah 12: 1-6 Tone 3a Sung by the Choir

Antiphon God indeed is my savior; I am confident and unafraid.

I give you thanks, O Lord; * though you have been angry with me, Your anger has abated, * and you have consoled me.

God indeed is my savior; * I am confident and unafraid. My strength and my courage is the Lord, * and he has been my savior.

With joy you will draw water * at the fountain of salvation, And say on that day: * Give thanks to the Lord, acclaim his name;

Among the nations make known his deeds, * proclaim how exalted is his name. Sing praise to the Lord for his glorious achievement; * let this be known throughout all the earth.

Shout with exultation, O city of Zion, * for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel! The Antiphon is repeated

Psalm 81 Tonus Peregrinus Sung by the Choir

Antiphon But Israel I would feed with finest wheat, and satisfy with honey from the rock.

Sing joyfully to God our strength, * shout in triumph to the God of Jacob. Raise a song and sound the timbrel, * the sweet-sounding harp and the lute;

blow the trumpet at the new moon, * when the moon is full, on our feast. For this is a statute in Israel, * a command of the God of Jacob.

He made it a decree for Joseph, * when he went out from the land of Egypt. A voice I did not know said to me: “I freed your shoulder from the burden; * your hands were freed from the builder’s basket.

You called in distress and I delivered you. I answered, concealed in the thunder; * at the waters of Meribah I tested you. Listen, my people, as I warn you. * O Israel, if only you would heed!

Let there be no strange god among you, * nor shall you worship a foreign god. I am the LORD your God, who brought you up from the land of Egypt. * Open wide your mouth, and I will fill it.

But my people did not heed my voice, * and Israel would not obey me. So I left them in their stubbornness of heart, * to follow their own designs.

O that my people would heed me, * that Israel would walk in my ways! At once I would subdue their foes, * turn my hand against their enemies.

Those who hate the LORD would cringe before him, * and their subjection would last forever.” The Antiphon is repeated

Lesson Hebrews 2: 9-10 We see Jesus crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, that through God’s gracious will he might taste death for the sake of all men. Indeed, it was fitting that when bringing many sons to glory God, for whom and through whom all things exist, should make their leader in the work of salvation perfect through suffering.

Responsory Officiant By Your own blood, Lord, All You brought us back to God. Officiant From every tribe, and tongue, and people, and nation, All You brought us back to God. Officiant Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: All By Your own blood, Lord, You brought us back to God.

All stand Benedictus The of Zechariah: Luke 1: 68-79 Tone 1g Sung by the Choir

Antiphon I have longed to eat this meal with you before I suffer.

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; He has come to His people and set them free. He has raised up for us a mighty Savior, born of the house of His servant David. Through His holy prophets He promised of old that He would save us from our enemies, from the hands of all who hate us. He promised to show mercy to our fathers and to remember His holy covenant. This was the oath He swore to our father Abraham: to set us free from the hands of our enemies, free to worship Him without fear, holy and righteous in His sight all the day of our life. You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare His way, to give His people knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of their sins. In the tender compassion of our God the dawn from on high shall break upon us, to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, and to guide our feet into the way of peace. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. The Antiphon is repeated

Intercessions Officiant The Father announced Christ with the Holy Spirit to proclaim forgiveness to those in bondage. Let us humbly call upon the eternal priest: All Lord, have mercy on us. Officiant You went up to Jerusalem to suffer and so enter into your glory, All bring your Church to the Passover feast of heaven. Officiant You were lifted high on the cross and pierced by the soldier’s lance, All heal our wounds. Officiant You made the cross the tree of life, All give its fruits to those reborn in . Officiant On the cross you forgave the repentant thief, All forgive us our sins.

The Lord’s Prayer Officiant Now let us offer together the prayer our Lord Jesus Christ taught us: All Our Father, Who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name; Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

Collect Officiant Let us pray. God of infinite compassion, to love You is to be made holy; fill our hearts with Your love. By the death of Your Son You have given us hope, born of faith by His rising again fulfill this hope in the perfect love of heaven, through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, Who lives and reigns with You in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. All Amen.

Anthem 1 Were you there when they crucified my Lord? Were you there when they crucified my Lord? Oh! Sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble. Were you there when they crucified my Lord?

2 Were you there when they nailed Him to the Tree

3 Were you there when they laid Him in the tomb?

All pray in silence for a moment.

After some silence, the Strepitus – the “great noise” – sounds throughout the church.

All depart in silence.

Please consider making a contribution to the Church of Saint Agnes during and . There are many ways to give:

. Online giving page: www.stagneschurchnyc.org/online-giving

. Venmo direct link: www.venmo.com/code?user_id=2968471663017984368

Holy Week Liturgies at the Church of Saint Agnes

April 1, 2021 | Holy Thursday Confessions (heard downstairs in the lower level): 12:40pm-1:40pm

Mass of the Lord’s Supper 8:00am Said Mass 12:10pm Said Mass 5:10pm with the Schola Cantorum

April 2, 2021 | The church opens at 11:00am. Confessions (heard downstairs in the lower level): 8:00am-9:00am & 12:00pm-2:00pm

The Seven Last Words of Christ from the Cross 12:00pm with the Schola Cantorum Visiting Preacher: The Most Reverend Edmund Whalen, Auxiliary Bishop of New York

The Celebration of the Passion of the Lord (The Solemn Afternoon Liturgy) 3:10pm with the Schola Cantorum followed by (approximately 5:10pm)

April 3, 2021 | The church opens at 11:00am and closes at 1:00pm. Confessions (heard downstairs in the lower level): 12:00pm-1:00pm

The church re-opens at 5:00pm.

The in the Holy Night 8:00pm with the Schola Cantorum

April 4, 2021 | Easter

8:00am Said Mass 9:00am (Latin) with the Schola Cantorum 11:00am Mass with the Schola Cantorum 12:30pm Mass with the Schola Cantorum No evening Masses