Good Friday

Passion Chorale

For Good Friday — 1 O sacred head, sore wounded,Defiled and put to scorn:O kingly head, surroundedWith mocking crown of thorn;What sorrow mars thy grandeur?Can death thy bloom deflow’r?O countenance whose splendorThe hosts of heav’n adore! 2 Thy beauty, long desired,Hath vanished from our sight:Thy pow’r is all expired,And quenched the light of light.Ah me!Continue reading “Passion Chorale”

Altar

Holy Week. Good Friday, specifically. I sat with the host at the Altar of Repose for an hour before the Good Friday liturgy at the Church of Saint Michael and Saint George. The second photo is after Eucharist on Easter Sunday. Arranged by Andy did some fine work on making the Mary chapel a placeContinue reading “Altar”

Social distance, day 26

Twenty-five days now since I hugged a child, or shook a hand, or patted a back, or experienced the same. For this 26th day of physical distance, and this surreal Good Friday, I offer a poem for today by the 19th-century cleric (and one of the leaders of the Oxford Movement) The Rev. John Keble.

Good Friday

I am home today. The home altar is quiet, but adorned with the site and scent of lilac, the freshest flower in the garden at this moment. I have watched and wept with the streamed Good Friday service from Washington National Cathedral. And I’m mindful today, for some reason, of the Good Friday 20 yearsContinue reading “Good Friday”