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Our Mission Welcome to The Episcopal Church of the Holy Communion, a welcoming and diverse community seeking to walk in the way of Jesus and to reveal Christ’s reconciling love in our city, nation, and world.

Pandemic Precautions Continue: Up-to-date vaccination is required for everyone eligible. Windows are open. In the spirit of protecting the most vulnerable members of the congregation, we ask that you attempt to distance, especially if asked. We ask that all members of the congregation respect others’ choices about masking. Please refrain from coming to church if you are sick or experiencing any new symptoms.

Communion: All are welcome to receive. When it comes time, please follow the directions of the ushers. Walk past the chalice bearer to return to your pew from the other side. If you would like to receive wine you may either “sip” or hand your wafer to the chalice bearer, who will “intinct” (dip) for you. If you would prefer not to receive, simply cross your arms across your chest and the minister will give you a blessing. Gluten free wafers are available, on request from the minister.

Donations: We welcome donations to support the work of Holy Communion, whether a payment on a pledge or simply an offering. You can also text GIVE to (833) 864-5384 or give any time on our website holycommunion.net/give

Wheelchair accessibility. Our entrances have auto-open buttons, and our elevator is ADA compliant. Both the downstairs restrooms and one of the upstairs restrooms are accessible.

Hearing Assistance: Hearing assistance devices are available from the welcome table. Just ask an usher.

Get Involved: If you begin by filling out a “Connect Card” by hitting “Next Steps” on the button on any page. You can also use the Connect Cards in the pews to update your information, request prayers, or to ask a question. Turn them in to the wooden offering box in the entryway.

The congregation is invited to say the words together in bold. If you are worshiping with us from home, to prepare for worship, you may want to place a candle or two in the place where you worship, to light during the opening prayer.

Welcome

A priest welcomes the congregation. If you are new to us, consider filling out our “get connected” form, let us get to know you better.

The Collect

The Presider leads ancient prayers that help frame our worship. You are invited to light a candle at home with us, as we light candles on the altar.

Blessed be our God, for ever and ever.

Amen.

Let us pray.

Look graciously on this your family for which our Savior Jesus Christ was willing to be betrayed, and to suffer death upon the cross; and grant us to grow into the fullness of new life in Christ who now is alive and glorified with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

The Lessons

We hear the stories of the experience of God from our spiritual ancestors. Following an ancient pattern originally from Jewish synagogue worship, readings follow a calendar shared by Christians around the globe.

A Reading from the book of the Prophet Isaiah Isaiah 52:13-53:12

Look, my servant will succeed. He will be exalted and lifted very high. Just as many were appalled by you, he too appeared disfigured, inhuman, his appearance unlike that of mortals. But he will astonish many nations. Kings will be silenced because of him, because they will see what they haven’t seen before; what they haven’t heard before, they will ponder. Who can believe what we have heard, and for whose sake has the Lord’s arm been revealed? He grew up like a young plant before us, like a root from dry ground. He possessed no splendid form for us to see, no desirable appearance. He was despised and avoided by others; a man who suffered, who knew sickness well. Like someone from whom people hid their faces, he was despised, and we didn’t think about him. It was certainly our sickness that he carried, and our sufferings that he bore, but we thought him afflicted, struck down by God and tormented. He was pierced because of our rebellions and crushed because of our crimes. He bore the punishment that made us whole; by his wounds we are healed. Like sheep we had all wandered away, each going its own way, but the Lord let fall on him all our crimes. He was oppressed and tormented, but didn’t open his mouth. Like a lamb being brought to slaughter, like a ewe silent before her shearers, he didn’t open his mouth. Due to an unjust ruling he was taken away, and his fate—who will think about it? He was eliminated from the land of the living, struck dead because of my people’s rebellion. His grave was among the wicked, his tomb with evildoers, though he had done no violence, and had spoken nothing false. But the Lord wanted to crush him and to make him suffer. If his life is offered as restitution, he will see his offspring; he will enjoy long life. The Lord’s plans will come to fruition through him. After his deep anguish he will see light, and he will be satisfied. Through his knowledge, the righteous one, my servant, will make many righteous, and will bear their guilt. Therefore, I will give him a share with the great, and he will divide the spoil with the strong, in return for exposing his life to death and being numbered with rebels, though he carried the sin of many and pleaded on behalf of those who rebelled.

The Word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

Psalm 22: 1-11
All sing the refrain after the choir, and where indicated

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
and are so far from my cry
and from the words of my distress?
O my God, I cry in the daytime, but you do not answer;
by night as well, but I find no rest. **Refrain**
Yet you are the Holy One,
enthroned upon the praises of Israel.
Our forefathers put their trust in you;
they trusted, and you delivered them.
They cried out to you and were delivered;
they trusted in you and were not put to shame. Refrain
But as for me, I am a worm and no man,
scorned by all and despised by the people.
All who see me laugh me to scorn;
they curl their lips and wag their heads, saying,
“He trusted in the LORD; let him deliver him;
let him rescue him, if he delights in him.” **Refrain**

A Reading from the book of the Hebrews Hebrews 4:14-16; 5:7-9

Since, then, we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, 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 we have one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up 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 reverent submission. Although he was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered; and having been made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him.

The Word of the Lord.

The Passion Gospel Matthew 27:11-54

While it is traditional to read John‘s Gospel on Good Friday, we will be reading Matthew, because of John‘s historic associations with antisemitism on Good Friday. Today we say the words in bold together. We remember Jesus was betrayed by his own people. We repent of the many ways in which we, the church, have wounded our Jewish siblings across time. Christians betray Jesus when they commit acts of hate in his name.

The congregation is invited to remain seated for the beginning of the Passion Gospel.
Please join in saying the words of the crowd, in bold, aloud.
At the mention of “Golgotha,” please rise in body or in spirit.

The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Luke.

Glory to you, Lord Christ.

Now Jesus stood before the governor; and the governor asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus said, “You say so.” But when he was accused by the chief priests and elders, he did not answer. Then Pilate said to him, “Do you not hear how many accusations they make against you?” But he gave him no answer, not even to a single charge, so that the governor was greatly amazed.

Now at the festival the governor was accustomed to release a prisoner for the crowd, anyone whom they wanted. At that time they had a notorious prisoner, called Jesus Barabbas. So after they had gathered, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release for you, Jesus Barabbas or Jesus who is called the Messiah?” For he realized that it was out of jealousy that they had handed him over. While he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent word to him, “Have nothing to do with that innocent man, for today I have suffered a great deal because of a dream about him.” Now the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowds to ask for Barabbas and to have Jesus killed. The governor again said to them, “Which of the two do you want me to release for you?” And they said, “Barabbas.” Pilate said to them, “Then what should I do with Jesus who is called the Messiah?” All of them said, “Let him be crucified!” Then he asked, “Why, what evil has he done?” But they shouted all the more, “Let him be crucified!”

So when Pilate saw that he could do nothing, but rather that a riot was beginning, he took some water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this man’s blood; see to it yourselves.” Then the people as a whole answered, “His blood be on us and on our children!” So he released Barabbas for them; and after flogging Jesus, he handed him over to be crucified.

Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the governor’s headquarters, and they gathered the whole cohort around him. They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, and after twisting some thorns into a crown, they put it on his head. They put a reed in his right hand and knelt before him and mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” They spat on him, and took the reed and struck him on the head. After mocking him, they stripped him of the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him.

As they went out, they came upon a man from Cyrene named Simon; they compelled this man to carry his cross. And when they came to a place called Golgotha (which means Place of a Skull), they offered him wine to drink, mixed with gall; but when he tasted it, he would not drink it. And when they had crucified him, they divided his clothes among themselves by casting lots; then they sat down there and kept watch over him. Over his head they put the charge against him, which read, “This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.”

Then two bandits were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left. Those who passed by derided him, shaking their heads and saying, “You who would destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes and elders, were mocking him, saying, “He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down from the cross now, and we will believe in him. He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he wants to; for he said, ‘I am God’s Son.’” The bandits who were crucified with him also taunted him in the same way.

From noon on, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. And about three o’clock Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” When some of the bystanders heard it, they said, “This man is calling for Elijah.” At once one of them ran and got a sponge, filled it with sour wine, put it on a stick, and gave it to him to drink. But the others said, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to save him.” Then Jesus cried again with a loud voice and breathed his last. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. The earth shook, and the rocks were split. The tombs also were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised. After his resurrection they came out of the tombs and entered the holy city and appeared to many. Now when the centurion and those with him, who were keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were terrified and said, “Truly this man was God’s Son!”

The Gospel of the Lord.

Praise to you, Lord Christ.

The Sermon:

Please be seated, at the invitation of the preacher.

The Rev. Julie Graham

The Solemn Collects

The bishop has given permission for the use of prayers written by the Rev. Bosco Peters in the Anglican Church of New Zealand and for alternative prayers approved by the General Convention of the Episcopal Church in 2022. This alternate rite introduces a new collect for the Jewish people. Historically, the church prayed on Good Friday that Jews, who had been blamed for the death of Jesus, would convert from their blindness and hardness of heart. While such a prayer has never been in the Episcopal Church’s Book of Common Prayer, it is a legacy to which we are accountable, given that it at times inspired violence against Jews.
In our own time, Christian churches have begun to repair their relationship with the Jewish people, including offering prayers on Good Friday that affirm God’s relationship with the Jewish people. Notably, the Anglican Church of Canada and the Church of England have such prayers. This solemn collect contains some of the themes found in these recent prayers. This collect states that God’s covenant with the Jewish people has never been broken and prays for their continued flourishing and safety as witnesses to God.
The collect concludes with an acknowledgment of Christian harm done to the Jewish people and envisions a new life where Jews and Christians walk together in the life of God for the sake of the world.

Presider: Dear People of God: God sent the Savior into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world through Christ’s self-offering love might be saved. We pray, therefore, for people everywhere according to their needs.

Silence

Intercessor: Let us pray for the one holy catholic and apostolic Church of Christ throughout the world: for unity in witness and service, for all bishops and other ministers and the people whom they serve, for Deon our bishop, and all the people of this diocese, for all Christians in this community,

for those about to be baptized, that God will confirm the Church in faith, increase it in love, and preserve it in peace.

Silence

Presider: Faithful and compassionate God, your Spirit guides the Church and makes it holy; hear the prayers we offer, that in the particular ministry to which you have called us, we may serve you faithfully, through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.

Intercessor: Let us pray for all nations and peoples of the earth, and for all who govern and judge; especially for Joseph our president, Michael our governor, and our elected representatives, for all who serve the common good, that by God’s help they may seek justice and truth, that all might live in peace and harmony.

Silence

Presider: Faithful and compassionate God, kindle, we pray, in every heart the true love of peace, and guide with your wisdom those in authority, that justice, peace, and freedom may increase, until the earth is filled with the knowledge of your love; through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.

Intercessor: Let us pray for the Jewish people who possess an eternal covenant with the Lord, who delivered them from bondage to freedom; For continued faithfulness to God’s covenant with them; For their flourishing in peace as witnesses to God’s sustaining love; For safety from all malice and harm; For the fullness of redemption for the sake of God’s Name. That unity and concord may exist between Jews and Christians, in obedience to God’s will.

Silence

Presider: O God of Abraham, you planted your people Israel as the root and grafted Gentiles as wild branches into a single olive tree of praise to you: As we come near to the cross, we lament Christian acts of prejudice and violence against your faithful people, of whom Jesus Christ was born. Bless the children of your covenant, so that together we may attain the fullness of your blessing for the world. Amen.

Intercessor: Let us pray for all who suffer: for those who are hungry and homeless, those who are ill or disabled in body, mind or spirit, for those in loneliness and in fear, for those who face temptation, doubt, and despair, for those who are sorrowful and bereaved, for those who are persecuted for the sake of Christ, for prisoners, refugees and captives, for victims of war, genocide, and traficking and all those in mortal danger, that God’s love will comfort and sustain them, and that we may be stirred up to minister to their needs.

Silence

Presider: Faithful and compassionate God, the comfort of all who sorrow, the strength of all who suffer, hear the cry of all who call on you in any trouble, grant them the joy of receiving your help in their need, and give us, we pray, the strength to serve them, through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.

Intercessor: Let us pray for all who have not embraced God’s redemptive love: for those who have never heard the word of salvation, for those who have lost their faith, for those who are indifferent to Christ, for those who actively oppose Christ by word or deed, and persecute Christ’s disciples, for those who in the name of Christ have persecuted others, that God will open their hearts to the truth, and lead them to faith and obedience.

Silence

Presider: Merciful God, the source of life and fountain of mercy, let the Gospel of your Son Jesus Christ be preached with grace and love; turn the hearts of the followers of Jesus who have harmed others in his name; lead all to repentance and amendment of life; and sustain by your loving grace all who lift their eyes to you. Amen.

Intercessor: Let us commit ourselves to God, and pray for the grace of a holy life, that with all who have died in the peace of Christ, and with those whose faith is known to God alone, we may enter the fullness of life in the joy of Christ’s resurrection.

Silence

Presider: God, our refuge and strength, accept the fervent prayers of your people, and bring to fulfillment your plan for all creation, through Jesus Christ your Firstborn, who is alive with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Anthem

Were You There? arr. Crawford Thorburn

Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
O Sometimes it causes me to tremble! tremble! tremble!
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?

Were you there when they nail’d him to the tree?
Were you there when they nail’d him to the tree?
O Sometimes it causes me to tremble! tremble! tremble!
Were you there when they nail’d him to the tree?

Were you there when they laid him in the tomb?
Were you there when they laid him in the tomb?
O Sometimes it causes me to tremble! tremble! tremble!
Were you there when they laid him in the tomb?

The Meditation on the Cross of Jesus
A wooden cross is brought into the church in silence.

Behold the cross, on which hung the Savior of the world.

Come let us worship.

My people, what wrong have I done you? How have I offended you? Answer me! Through baptism, I led you from slavery to freedom, but you led your savior to the cross.
Holy God, holy and merciful, holy and just, have mercy upon us.

I led you through the wilderness. I fed you with the bread of life, the manna from heaven, but you lead your savior to the cross.