A number of psalms have been interpreted by the church in light of the Lord's passion.  In his extensive commentary on the entire psalter, St. Augustine enshrined this lens for a Christian manner of praying the psalms — and indeed the whole of the Elder Testament in his teaching that the psalms provide the voice of the "whole Christ" (totus Christus)—the Head (Jesus Christ) and the Body (the Church)—in speaking about both the Lord's passion, death and resurrection. Hence, he writes, "When we hear a psalm, a prophet, or the law, all having been written before our Lord Jesus Christ came in the flesh, our whole purpose is to see Christ there, to understand

Christ there."  The foundation for this, of course, is Christ's own use of the psalms in his own prayer and not just when he uttered from the cross his cry of dereliction, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me" — the opening verse of Psalm 22.  We may rightly assume his prayer life was continually fed by the psalter and that the several predictions of the passion recorded in the gospels may well have been inspired by the so-called "psalms of the passion."  Who knows how much he bore them in mind, and prayed them, throughout the whole course of his suffering.  For all these reasons, the Stations of the Cross presented here invite us to enter into that prayer along the way to Calvary.  Each one is introduced with a musical version of the traditional opening versicle and concludes with a collect from various sources.

 

 

 

 

All who eat of this heavenly Bread

All who drink this cup of the covenant

You will live forever for I will raise you up

 

No one who comes to Me shall ever hunger again

No one who believes shall ever thirst

All that the Father draws shall come to Me

And I will give them rest 

 

 

 

Friends and companions stand aloof from my pain;

those closest to me stand afar off.

Those who plot against my life lay snares;

those who seek my ruin speak of harm,

planning treachery all the day long.

But I, like someone deaf, do not hear;

like someone mute, I do not open my mouth.

I am like one who hears nothing,

in whose mouth is no defense.

But in you, O LORD, I hope;

it is you, LORD my God, who will answer.

I pray, “Let them not gloat over me,

exult if my foot should slip.”

For I am on the point of falling,

and my pain is always with me.

I confess that I am guilty;

and I am grieved because of my sin.

My wanton enemies live on and grow strong,

and many are my lying foes.

They repay me evil for good,

and attack me for seeking what is good.

Forsake me not, O LORD!

My God, be not far from me!

Make haste and come to my help,

my LORD and my salvation!

 

Eternal Father,

you looked with compassion on your only Son

when he was treated with derision

and condemned to death.

Through his patience in suffering,

heal our pride.

Keep us from judging others

that we may be shown mercy

on the great day of judgment.

Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,

who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

one God, forever and ever. Amen. (Congregation of the Passion)

 

 

 

 

 

O God, come to my assistance;

O LORD, make haste to help me!

Let there be shame and confusion

on those who seek my life.

O let them turn back in confusion,

who delight in my harm;

let them retreat, covered with shame,

who jeer at me and mock.

O let there be rejoicing and gladness

for all who seek you.

Let them say forever, “God is great,”

who love your saving help.

As for me, wretched and poor,

hasten to me, O God.

You are my rescuer, my help;

O LORD, do not delay.

 

O God, by the passion of your blessed Son you made an

instrument of shameful death to be for us the means of life:

Grant us so to glory in the cross of Christ, that we may gladly

suffer shame and loss for the sake of your Son our Savior

Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy

Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (ECUSA)