Friday, February 19, 2016

Palm Sunday: The Liturgy of the Palms and Procession

Palm Sunday
Matins can be said as usual before the Liturgy of the Palms or if the Liturgy of Palms be omitted it shall be said before the Mass, unless there is not a priest in which case it shall be after the Procession and before the Ante Communion.

The Liturgy of the Palms

When circumstances permit, the congregation may gather at a place apart from the church, so that all may go into the church in procession.

Before the service shall begin a deacon or lector shall read the following, first saying “a prophecy from the book of  Zechariah, Chapter Nine, beginning at the Ninth verse”

Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass. And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim, and the horse from Jerusalem, and the battle bow shall be cut off: and he shall speak peace unto the heathen: and his dominion shall be from sea even to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth.

The Celebrant begins the liturgy with the Salutation following

V: Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord.
R: Peace in heaven and glory in the highest.

Celebrant    Let us pray.
Assist us mercifully with thy 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.

Here a Deacon or other person appointed reads the following

Luke 19:29‑40
And it came to pass, when he was come nigh to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount called the mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples, Saying, Go ye into the village over against you; in the which at your entering ye shall find a colt tied, whereon yet never man sat: loose him, and bring him hither. And if any man ask you, Why do ye loose him? thus shall ye say unto him, Because the Lord hath need of him. And they that were sent went their way, and found even as he had said unto them. And as they were loosing the colt, the owners thereof said unto them, Why loose ye the colt? And they said, The Lord hath need of him. And they brought him to Jesus: and they cast their garments upon the colt, and they set Jesus thereon. And as he went, they spread their clothes in the way. And when he was come nigh, even now at the descent of the mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen; Saying, Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory in the highest. And some of the Pharisees from among the multitude said unto him, Master, rebuke thy disciples. And he answered and said unto them, I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out.
The Celebrant then says the following blessing

Celebrant      The Lord be with you.
People                        And with thy spirit.
Celebrant      Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
People                        It is meet and right so to do.

It is right to praise thee, Almighty God, for the acts of love by which thou has redeemed us through thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord. On this day he entered the holy city of Jerusalem in triumph, and was proclaimed as King of kings by those who spread their garments and branches of palm along his way.
Let these branches be unto us signs of his victory, and grant that we who bear them in his name may ever hail him as our King, and follow him in the way that leads unto eternal life; who lives and reigns in glory with thee and the Holy Ghost, unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Then shall  be sung or said

V:        Blessed is he who cometh in the name of the Lord.
R:        Hosanna in the highest.

The Procession

Deacon           Let us go forth in peace.
People                        In the name of Christ.  Amen.

During the procession, all hold branches in their hands, and appropriate hymns, psalms, or anthems are sung. The Traditional Sarum Processional Hymn for this procession is “All Glory Laud and Honor”
In the absence of a bishop or priest, the preceding Liturgy of Psalms and Procession may be led by a deacon or lay reader.

At the Eucharist
The Communion service proceeds as usual until the reading of the Passion Gospel which is announced in the following manner.

The Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew

The customary responses before and after the Gospel are omitted.

The congregation may be seated for the first part of the Passion. At the verse which mentions the arrival at Golgotha Matthew 27:33, all stand.


This reading may also be used at a separate Prone or Preaching service on this day.

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