The Watch Hours - Holy Week Vigil

8/19/2019 The Watch Hours - Holy Week Vigil

1/12

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The Watch HoursTwenty-four hours of prayer and reflection,

from the upper room to the foot of the cross.He has invited you to the garden.He has invited you to stay awake.Together we keep watch.Together we pray.

A time of guided prayer and meditation leading from 6 p.m. Maundy Thursday to 6 p.m. Good Friday.


2/12

Preparing a SpaceJust as Jesus invited his disciples to accompanyhim to the Garden of Gethsemane, you, too, areinvited. You are invited to stay awake, to pray withJesus during his time of grief and fear. You areinvited to go beyond the bounds of the Garden,walking with him through the day which follows. A

day which took him to a cross on a hill.

You will need a quiet space in which to read thematerials provided in this booklet, to refer to yourBible or other materials of your choosing, and topray. You are invited to come to the church anduse the Prayer Room for your designated timeslot. You may prefer to use your own quiet spaceat home. Or, weather permitting, you may chooseto pray in a garden!

A Story of TimeRoman time-keeping differs from that of Jewish tradition. We are all familiar with a twenty-four hour day whichalways begins and ends at the same point in time - midnight. We have borrowed this system from the ancientRomans.

Many of us are not as familiar with the Jewish “clock,” wherein a day begins and ends, but not always at thesame point in time. The old day ends and the new begins at sundown (when the first stars appear). Morningtechnically begins with the appearance of the North Star. As the seasons come and go, as the sun remainslonger or becomes more fleeting in the sky, a day’s beginning would vary from one point to another. But theancient timekeepers were mindful and organized and kept the hours divided into eight “equal” parts.

John Shelby Spong suggests that we look at the gospel accounts of the final twenty-four hours in the life ofJesus more as liturgy than an actual historical accounting, as, “we look at the words that Mark used when he

wrote the first narrative account of the death of Jesus and when we discover that it is organized in a twenty-four-hour cycle, neatly divided into eight three-hour segments. That makes the story of the crucifixion begin tolook less and less like history and more like liturgy. The Passover of the Jews was normally a three-hour ritualthat revolved around a common meal. In the Christian story of the cross it appears that the three-hour liturgyof the Jews has been stretched by the followers of Jesus into a twenty-four-hour observance that also revolvedaround a common meal.”

During the next 24 hours, we will journey with Jesus through the schedule he would have known, with thetraditional eight-part day and what has been beautifully, liturgically, faithfully, and lovingly recorded for us ashis final hours. We will keep watch with him in the upper room and the garden, during the night’s watch hours,when guards watched over city gates. We will stay with him as he is taken from the garden, as the hoursprogress and lead him toward the cross.

It is your choice as to how long you will remain “in the garden” with Jesus. You have been asked to sign up forat least one “shift.” Please be sure to cover that timeframe. There are materials in this booklet specifically foryour time slot. Beyond that, all choices are yours. You are free to stay awake with Jesus the entire time. Youmay come and go from whatever space you have designated as your Garden of Gethsemane.

A Final WordWherever you place yourself, however long you remain, may your time in the Garden of Gethsemane besacred and significant in your Lenten journey.

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3/12

First Watch Sunset (6 p.m.) to 9 p.m.

A Time of PreparationIt was two days before Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread. The chiefpriests and legal experts through cunning tricks were searching for a way to arrestJesus and kill him. 2 But they agreed that it shouldn’t happen during the festival;otherwise, there would be an uproar among the people.3 Jesus was at Bethany visiting the house of Simon, who had a skin disease.During dinner, a woman came in with a vase made of alabaster and containingvery expensive perfume of pure nard. She broke open the vase and poured theperfume on his head. 4 Some grew angry. They said to each other, “Why waste theperfume? 5 This perfume could have been sold for almost a year’s pay and themoney given to the poor.” And they scolded her.6 Jesus said, “Leave her alone. Why do you make trouble for her? She has done agood thing for me. 7 You always have the poor with you; and whenever you want,

you can do something good for them. But you won’t always have me. 8 She has done what she could. She has anointed mybody ahead of time for burial. 9 I tell you the truth that, wherever in the whole world the good news is announced, whatshe’s done will also be told in memory of her.”

10 Judas Iscariot, one of the Twelve, went to the chief priests to give Jesus up to them. 11 When they heard it, they were

delighted and promised to give him money. So he started looking for an opportunity to turn him in.12 On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, when the Passover lamb was sacrificed, the disciples said to Jesus, “Where do you want us to prepare for you to eat the Passover meal?”13 He sent two of his disciples and said to them, “Go into the city. A man carrying a water jar will meet you. Follow him. 14Wherever he enters, say to the owner of the house, ‘The teacher asks, “Where is my guest room where I can eat thePassover meal with my disciples?” ’ 15 He will show you a large room upstairs already furnished. Prepare for us there.” 16The disciples left, came into the city, found everything just as he had told them, and they prepared the Passover meal.17 That evening, Jesus arrived with the Twelve. 18 During the meal, Jesus said, “I assure you that one of you will betray me —someone eating with me.”19 Deeply saddened, they asked him, one by one, “It’s not me, is it?”20 Jesus answered, “It’s one of the Twelve, one who is dipping bread with me into this bowl. 21 The Human One goes tohis death just as it is written about him. But how terrible it is for that person who betrays the Human One! It would havebeen better for him if he had never been born.”

22 While they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed it, broke it, and gave it to them, and said, “Take; this is my body.” 23He took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, and they all drank from it. 24 He said to them, “This is my blood of thecovenant, which is poured out for many. 25 I assure you that Iwon’t drink wine again until that day when I drink it in a new wayin God’s kingdom.” 26 After singing songs of praise, they went

out to the Mount of Olives. Mark 14:1-26

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When Mark originally composed his story of the cross, henoted that it began “when it was evening” (14:17). In thisancient world, living without electricity, that would meanwhen the sun went down, or approximately 6 p.m. Mark,as a Jew, knew that the normal duration of the Passover

meal was three hours and that it was concluded with thesinging of a hymn. So at the end of his first segment henotes right on cue, “And when they had sung a hymn,they went out to the Mount of Olives” (14:26). It isobviously now about 9:00 p.m. The Passover meal wascomplete, and it had been reinterpreted as symbolic ofJesus’ broken body and the blood of a new covenant “which is poured out for man” (14:22-25). Jesus wasabout to become, in his death, the new paschal lamb.

John Shelby Spong

The language of body and blood points to a violentdeath. When a person dies nonviolently we speak of aseparation of body and soul. But when a person diesviolently we speak of a separation of body and blood.That is the first and basic point of Jesus’s separatedbread/body and wine/blood words. He does not simplytake bread and wine together and say, “This is mybody and blood.”

That separation of Jesus’s body and blood by violent

death is the absolutely necessary basis for anotherlevel of meaning in Mark. It would never have beenpossible to speak of Jesus’s death as a blood sacrificeunless, first, it had been a violent execution. But,granted that fate, a correlation becomes possiblebetween Jesus as the new paschal lamb and this finalmeal as a New Passover…. The point is neithersuffering nor substitution, but participation with Godthrough gift or meal.

Marcus J. Borg & John Dominic Crossan


4/12

Second Watch 9 p.m. to Midnight A Time of Grief

36 Then Jesus went with them to a place calledGethsemane; and he said to his disciples, “Sit herewhile I go over there and pray.”

37 He took with him Peter and the two sons ofZebedee, and began to be grieved and agitated. 38Then he said to them, “I am deeply grieved, even todeath; remain here, and stay awake with me.” 39 Andgoing a little farther, he threw himself on the groundand prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cuppass from me; yet not what I want but what youwant.”

Matthew 26:36-39

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Blessing for Staying Awake

Even in slumberawake, awake,even in dreamingawake my souleven in sorrowto the one who keeps vigileven in painat all times with you.

-Jan Richardson

It’s no wonder the disciples sleep. It is hard work sometimes to remainpresent with Christ, to stay awake to him, to God’s longing for us, to thedemands of resurrection. Something in us knows that to stay awake willmean traveling through the terrain of grief as well as joy. The possibility oftransformed lives asks something of us. It propels us into a landscapebeyond what is familiar and challenges us to allow Christ into the hollowsof the grave-spaces within us, the places that are dead or dying. There isgrief in this, sometimes, and the desire to go numb may be strong. Buteven in our weariness, in our numbness, in our most resistant and deadplaces, there is something that remains wakeful, open, alert. The bride inthe Song of Songs tells it this way: “I slept, but my heart was awake.Listen! My beloved is knocking’” (5.2a).

-Jan Richardson

Geerhardus Vos in his book entitled Biblical Theologyobserves that the symbol "garden" stands in the biblicalrecord as a place of fellowship between God and his people.It identifies the divine/human encounter that is played outin salvation history. "Garden" therefore represents thecontext of covenant life, the relationship of harmony andunity between God and mankind.

Gethsemane, a place not far from Mount Moriah[where Abraham built an altar and prepared tosacrifice his son Isaac]. Gethsemane, also aplace like Moriah where a test is undergone anda time arrives, a test and time that informs whatGod knows about us and, therefore, what weknow about God.

The Gethsemane story tells about the very lastaction of Jesus before he is handed over andplaced in the power of others. The preparationfor his passion that began with his anointmentfor burial (Matt 26:6-13) and was centered inthe Passover with the disciples (26:26-29)reaches its final scene in Gethsemane.

-James Mays

Photo: ashleydickson.com

I come to the garden alone.The old hymn plays in myhead. Yet, this walk differs.

Yea, I come to walk with,to be in the presence of theChrist. Yet he sees me not.

The years have separatedmy garden from hisand my voice is unheardby the One who grieves.

No solace can I bring.No burdens can I liftfrom those weary shoulders.But I shall keep watch.

http://ashleydickson.com/http://ashleydickson.com/


5/12

Third Watch Midnight to 3 a.m. Your Will Be Done

40 Then he came to the disciples and found them sleeping; and he said to Peter, “So, couldyou not stay awake with me one hour? 41 Stay awake and pray that you may not comeinto the time of trial; the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” 42 Again he wentaway for the second time and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your

will be done.” Matthew 26:40-42

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It is in this threshold story of transition to a timewhen Jesus' story becomes a story of what othersdo to him, that we are told something about him thatis different, something we have not heard before.From the time of his baptism, he has gone the wayand done the work given him by God. Neither thetesting of Satan, nor the opposition of officials, northe blind weakness of his disciples could deter him.

In full knowledge of the destiny that would climaxhis career, he walked the course without wavering.There is no word of apprehension, uncertainty,strain, or inner turmoil. It all unfolds as if there werein his very self a perfect concord with his vocation.Until Gethsemane. Now, when the time had comefor him to be handed over into the power of others,he is gripped with unsettling grief and troublinguncertainty. He tells the disciples of the deathlysorrow that has possessed him and asks theirsupport in his anguish. This one time he turns to thedisciples in need. He takes this deathly sorrow toGod in prayer, Son to Father, as child crying toparent for help. This one time he thinks of, looks to,and speaks about his own wish and want: "Let thiscup pass from me." He speaks of his own willalongside the will of God.

-James Mays

Photo: statue at Abby of Gethsemane near Bardstown, KY.

“Jesus prays for deliverance. He prays that thishour might pass from him, that this cup might beremoved. Both ‘hour’ and ‘cup’ refer to hisimpending torture and cruel death. Not surprisingly,he would rather not go through it. Yet he handshimself over: ‘Yet, not what I want, but what youwant.’ An older English translation is more familiarto many of us: ‘Yet not my will, but thy will bedone.’ …

The prayer reflects not a fatalistic resignation tothe will of God, but a trusting in God in the midstof the most dire of circumstances.”

John Dominic Crossan & Marcus Borg

The act of betrayal comes next, described quitepoignantly as occurring at the stroke of

midnight, so that the event that this authorviewed as the darkest deed in human historycould occur at the darkest moment of thenight. Mark then described the arrest, notingthat at this moment “all [not some but all,referring to Jesus’ disciples] forsook him, andfled” (14:50). Jesus would face this final ordealquite alone.

John Shelby Spong

“Your will be done,” is a phrase familiar to those of theJewish faith. Rabbis emphasize obedience to divine will,

as is evidenced in the prayer of Rabbi Eliezer (1st cent.):"Do Thy will in heaven above and give rest of spirit tothose that fear Thee on earth, and do what is good inThine eyes. Blessed be Thou who hearest prayer!”

Aaron M. Gale


6/12


7/12

First Hour Sunrise (6:00 a.m.) -9:00 a.m.The Trial

As soon as it was morning, the chief priests held a consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole council. Theybound Jesus, led him away, and handed him over to Pilate. Pilateasked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” He answered him, “You say so.” Then the chief priests accused him of many things.Pilate asked him again, “Have you no answer? See how many

charges they bring against you.” But Jesus made no further replyso that Pilate was amazed.

Now at the festival he used to release a prisoner for them,anyone for whom they asked. Now a man called Barabbas was inprison with the rebels who had committed murder during theinsurrection. So the crowd came and began to ask Pilate to dofor them according to his custom. Then he answered them, “Doyou want me to release for you the King of the Jews?” For herealized that it was out of jealousy that the chief priests hadhanded him over. But the chief priests stirred up the crowd tohave him release Barabbas for them instead. Pilate spoke tothem again, “Then what do you wish me to do with the man you

call the King of the Jews?” They shouted back, “Crucify him!”Pilate asked them, “Why, what evil has he done?” But theyshouted all the more, “Crucify him!” So Pilate, wishing to satisfythe crowd, released Barabbas for them; and after flogging Jesus,he handed him over to be crucified.

Then the soldiers led him into the courtyard of the palace (that is, the governor’s headquarters); and they called togetherthe whole cohort. And they clothed him in a purple cloak; and after twisting some thorns into a crown, they put it on him. And they began saluting him, “Hail, King of the Jews!” They struck his head with a reed, spat upon him, and knelt downin homage to him. After mocking him, they stripped him of the purple cloak and put his own clothes on him. Then theyled him out to crucify him.

They compelled a passer-by, who was coming in from the country, to carry his cross; it was Simon of Cyrene, the fatherof Alexander and Rufus. Mark 15:1-21

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Jesus is given a mock trial and is condemned to death. Doesthis happen at three in the morning, when he is alone, giventhe Torah law forbidding anyone to sit in judgment except inthe light of day? Probably not, but liturgy is concerned withdivine drama, not with journalism. The watch of the nightbetween three and six in the morning was called “cockcrow,”and so it is no surprise that the story of Peter’s threefolddenial is inserted here—one for each hour until daybreak.

The condemned Jesus is then led before Pilate, where a form

of Roman plea bargaining occurs, and when no fault is foundin the accused, it is suggested that Barabbas be substituted.But the crowd wants the death of one man, as if it isinevitable. The torture, mocking, and scourging play out thefamiliar drama of the scapegoat [wherein a goat is draped witha red cloth, beaten and driven out into the wilderness, thepeople “spit” their sins upon it, and then it is sacrificed], andJesus is crucified at the “third hour,” or nine in the morning.

Robin R Meyers

Pilate asks Jesus, “Are you the King of theJews?” We should probably hear a mockingemphasis on the word “you ” in Pilate’squestion. “You ”—a Jewish peasant, already

beaten, bloodied, and bound, standingpowerless before me—“are the king of theJews?” So also we should probably hear inJesus’s response a mocking emphasis on thesame word: “You say so.”

Hearing this as non responsive, Pilate presses

his question: “Have you no answer? See howmany charges they bring against you.” But,Mark tells us, “Jesus made no further reply.”To refuse to respond to authority reflects bothcourage and contempt. Authorities do not likeit. Pilate is amazed. Indeed, Jesus does notspeak again in Mark’s story until his final cryfrom the cross later in the day: “My God, myGod, why have you forsaken me?”

Borg & Crossan


8/12

Third Hour 9:00 a.m.-NoonThe Crucifixion of Jesus

Then they brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means the place of a skull). And they offered himwine mixed with myrrh; but he did not take it. And they crucified him, and divided his clothes among them,casting lots to decide what each should take.

It was nine o’clock in the morning when they crucified him.

The inscription of the charge against him read, “The King ofthe Jews.” And with him they crucified two bandits, one on hisright and one on his left. Those who passed by derided him,shaking their heads and saying, “Aha! You who would destroythe temple and build it in three days, save yourself, and comedown from the cross!” In the same way the chief priests, alongwith the scribes, were also mocking him among themselvesand saying, “He saved others; he cannot save himself. Let theMessiah, the King of Israel, come down from the cross now, sothat we may see and believe.” Those who were crucified withhim also taunted him.

Mark 15:22-32

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Roman crucifixion was state terrorism…. Its function was todeter resistance or revolt, especially among the lower classes;and… the body was usually left on the cross to be consumedeventually by the wild beasts.

John Dominic Crossan

Cristo de DonatelloMark tells us that Jesus was crucified between two “bandits.” The Greek word translated “bandits” is

commonly used for guerrilla fighters against Rome,who were either “terrorists” or “freedom fighters,”depending upon one’s point of view. Their presencein the story reminds us that crucifixion was usedspecifically for people who systematically refused toaccept Roman imperial authority. Ordinary criminalswere not crucified. Jesus is executed as a rebelagainst Rome between two other rebels againstRome.

The common impression that they were “robbers”rather than insurrectionists is based upon Luke’sstory of the dialogue between Jesus and “therepentant thief,” which ends with Jesus saying, “Today you will be with me in Paradise” (23:39-43).But in Mark there is no such dialogue. Indeed, weare told that “those who were crucified with himalso taunted him” (15:32).

Borg & Crossan

Jesus of Nazareth underwent Jewish and Romantrials, was flogged, and was sentenced to death bycrucifixion. The scourging produced deep stripelikelacerations and appreciable blood loss, and itprobably set the stage for hypovolemic shock, asevidenced by the fact that Jesus was too weakenedto carry the crossbar (patibulum) to Golgotha. At thesite of crucifixion, his wrists were nailed to thepatibulum and, after the patibulum was lifted onto theupright post (stipes), his feet were nailed to thestipes. The major pathophysiologic effect ofcrucifixion was an interference with normal

respirations. Accordingly death resulted primarilyfrom hypovolemic shock and exhaustion asphyxia.Jesus' death was ensured by the thrust of a soldier'sspear into his side. Modern medical interpretation ofthe historical evidence indicate that Jesus was deadwhen taken down from the cross.

Edwards, Gabel, and Hossmer


9/12

Sixth Hour Noon-3:00 p.m.The Darkness

When it was noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon.Mark 15:33

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Psalm 22My God! My God, why have you left me all

alone? Why are you so far from saving me —so far from my anguished groans?

Keep walking, though there’s no placeto get to.

Don’t try to see through the distances.That’s not for human beings.Move within, but don’t move the way fear

makes you move.Today, like every other day,

we wake up empty and frightened.Don’t open the door to the study

and begin reading.Take down a musical instrument.

Let the beauty we love be what we do.There are hundreds of ways to kneel andkiss the ground.

Rumi

Then, Mark says, “the sixth hour had come” (15:33)—that is, it wasnow 12:00 noon— and at that moment, as if on cue, darknesscovered the whole earth. It was the apocalyptic darkness such asthat which was expected to accompany the end of the world. Howlong did it last? For three hours, Mark states, in order to carry thedrama to 3:00 p.m., at which time Jesus utters the words known asthe cry of dereliction: “My God, my God, why hast thou forsakenme?” (15:34). This cry, we are told, was mistaken by the crowd tobe a call for Elijah to come. We once again meet this gigantic figure

in Jewish thinking, Elijah, who is yet another apocalyptic symbol.Jesus then “uttered a loud cry,” the content of which Mark does notdescribe, “and breathed his last” (15:37). At that dramatic momentMark inserts two additional powerful messianic symbols into thestory. The veil in the temple that separates the Holy Place, in whichpeople could gather, from the Holy of Holies, God’s very dwellingplace (from which the people were prohibited), was torn from top tobottom (15:38), signifying that access to God had been opened in anew way. Next a Gentile, a Roman centurion, interpreted the dramaby identifying the deceased person as the “Son of God”—that is,one in whom God had been dramatically present (15:39).

John Shelby Spong

I believe we make better sense of the strangecircumstances surrounding Jesus' death if wethink of the curtain as a visual representationof the cosmos. Then the tearing of the curtainbecomes one of two events (the other is thedarkening of the sun) that express nature'sgrief over Jesus' death.How does this work? If the curtain representsthe natural world, then in its torn condition itsymbolizes the mourning of the entireuniverse. In antiquity, universal sympathy for adeceased loved one is an important feature ofpoetry and, to a lesser degree, of the visualarts.

David E. Fredrickson

Darkness is shorthand for anything that scares me—either because I am sure that I do not have theresources to survive it or because I do not want to findout. If I had my way, I would eliminate everything fromchronic back pain to the fear of the devil from my lifeand the lives of those I love. At least I think I would.The problem is this: when, despite all my best efforts,the lights have gone off in my life, plunging me into the

kind of darkness that turns my knees to water, I havenot died. The monsters have not dragged me out of bedand taken me back to their lair. Instead, I have learnedthings in the dark that I could never have learned in thelight, things that have saved my life over and over again,so that there is really only one logical conclusion. I needdarkness as much as I need light.

Barbara Brown Taylor


10/12

Ninth Hour 3 p.m. - SunsetThe Death of Jesus

34 At three, Jesus cried out with a loud shout, “Eloi, eloi, lama sabachthani,” which means, “MyGod, my God, why have you left me?”

35 After hearing him, some standing there said, “Look! He’s calling Elijah!” 36 Someone ran, filled

a sponge with sour wine, and put it on a pole. Heoffered it to Jesus to drink, saying, “Let’s see ifElijah will come to take him down.” 37 But Jesuslet out a loud cry and died.

38 The curtain of the sanctuary was torn in twofrom top to bottom. 39 When the centurion, whostood facing Jesus, saw how he died, he said, “This man was certainly God’s Son.”

40 Some women were watching from a distance,including Mary Magdalene and Mary the motherof James (the younger one) and Joses, and

Salome. 41 When Jesus was in Galilee, thesewomen had followed and supported him, along with many other women who had come to Jerusalem with him.

42 Since it was late in the afternoon on Preparation Day, just before the Sabbath, 43 Joseph from Arimathea dared toapproach Pilate and ask for Jesus’ body. (Joseph was a prominent council member who also eagerly anticipated thecoming of God’s kingdom.) 44 Pilate wondered if Jesus was already dead. He called the centurion and asked him whetherJesus had already died. 45 When he learned from the centurion that Jesus was dead, Pilate gave the dead body toJoseph. 46 He bought a linen cloth, took Jesus down from the cross, wrapped him in the cloth, and laid him in a tombthat had been carved out of rock. He rolled a stone against the entrance to the tomb. 47 Mary Magdalene and Mary themother of Joses saw where he was buried. Mark 15: 34-47

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As with all those condemned to crucifixion, Jesus would havebeen forced to carry the crossbeam himself to a hill situated

outside the walls of Jerusalem, directly on the road leading intothe city gates—perhaps the same road he had used a few daysearlier to enter the city as its rightful king. This way, everypilgrim entering Jerusalem for the holy festivities would have nochoice but to bear witness to his suffering, to be reminded ofwhat happens to those who defy the rule of Rome. Thecrossbeam would be attached to a scaffold or post, and Jesus’swrists and ankles would be nailed to the structure with three ironspikes. A heave, and the cross would be lifted to the vertical.Death would not have taken long. In a few short hours, Jesus’slungs would have tired, and breathing become impossible tosustain.

That is how, on a bald hill covered in crosses, beset by the criesand moans of agony from hundreds of dying criminals, as amurder of crows circled eagerly over his head waiting for him tobreathe his last, the messiah known as Jesus of Nazareth wouldhave met the same ignominious end as every other messiah whocame before or after him.

Except that unlike those other messiahs, this one would not beforgotten.

Reza Aslan

There is no neat doctrinal phrase in the Celticworld to contrast with substitutionary atonement.

But if one phrase had to be chosen to point to thedifference, it would be the title of Dame Julian’sseries of dreamlike visions of Christ, “TheRevelation of Love.” Her visions are filled withharrowing depicting of the blood and suffering ofChrist on the cross. But they are never aboutpayment. They are always about revelation or “showings,” as she calls them. They are adisclosure of God. “Whoever sees me sees theOne who sent me.” (John 12:45), Saint Johndescribes Jesus as saying. And in the Celtictradition, the cross is the greatest showing ofGod.

It discloses the first and deepest impulse of God,self-giving. It reveals that everything God does isa pouring out of love, a sharing of lifeblood. Andso the whole of creation is an ongoing offering ofself, a showing of the Eternal Heart that is pulsingwith love in the life of all things. Not only doesthe cross disclose love, but it also discloses thecost of love.

J. Philip Newell


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A Story of Time• Spong, John Shelby, Jesus for the Non Religious, Harper San Francisco, 2007, p. 101-2.

First Watch Notes• ibid, Spong, Jesus for the Non Religious, p. 102.• Borg, Marcus J., & Crossan, John Dominic, The Last Week, What the Gospels Really Teach About Jesus’s Final Days in

Jerusalem, HarperOne, 2006, pp. 118-9.

Second Watch Notes• Richardson, Jan,• Mays, James L., “Now I Know: An Exposition of Genesis 22:1-19 and Matthew 26:36-46,” Theology Today, January 1,

2002

Third Watch Notes• Gale, Aaron M., The Jewish Annotated New Testament, Oxford University Press, 2011, p. 13.• op cit, Borg, Marcus J., & Crossan, John Dominic, The Last Week.• op cit, Mays, James L., “Now I Know: An Exposition of Genesis 22:1-19 and Matthew 26:36-46”• op cit, Spong, John Shelby, Jesus for the Non Religious, p. 102.

Fourth Watch Notes

• Hermanson, George, director of the Madawaska Institute of Culture and Religion, quote reprinted from a sermon

printed at http://www.holytextures.com/2011/03/matthew-26-14-27-66-year-a-lent-6-passion-sermon.html• op cit, Borg & Crossan.

First Hour Notes• op cit. Borg & Crossan, The Last Week, p. 143.• Meyers, Robin R., Saving Jesus From the Church, HarperOne, 2009, p. 66.

Third Hour Notes• Crossan, John Dominic, Jesus: A Revolutionary Biography, Harper Collins, 1995, p. 127• Edwards, MD, William D., Gabel, MDiv, Wesley J., Hosmer, MS, AMI, “On the Physical Death of Jesus Christ,” “The

Journal of the American Medical Association,” March 21, 1986, Volume 256.• op cit, Borg & Crossan, The Last Week, p. 147.

Sixth Hour Notes• op cit, Spong, John Shelby, Jesus for the Non Religious, p. 104.• Fredrickson, David E., “Nature’s Lament for Jesus,” Word and World, Winter 2006, v. 26, No. 1., pp. 38-39.• Brown Taylor, Barbara, Learning to Walk in the Dark, HarperOne, 2014, pp. 4-5.

Ninth Hour Notes• Aslan, Reza, Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth, Random House Books, 2013, pp. 158-9.• Newell, J. Philip, Christ of the Celts: The Healing of Creation, Jossey-Bass, 2008, p. 84.

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http://www.holytextures.com/2011/03/matthew-26-14-27-66-year-a-lent-6-passion-sermon.html


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