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TENEBRAE
April 8, 2020, 7:00 p.m.
The name Tenebrae (Latin for “darkness” or “shadows”) has for centuries been applied to the ancient
monastic night and early morning offices of the last three days of Holy Week, which in medieval times came
to be celebrated on the preceding evenings. In order that the proper liturgies of Maundy Thursday and Good
Friday may find their place as the principal services of those days, however, current liturgical practice has
made provision for Tenebrae on Wednesday evening. By drawing upon material from each of the three offices,
this service provides an extended meditation upon, and a prelude to, the suffering and death of our Lord.
Apart from the chanting of the Lamentations (in which each verse is introduced by a letter of the Hebrew
alphabet), the most conspicuous feature of the service is the gradual extinguishing of candles and other lights
in the church, symbolizing the scattering of the disciples and other followers of Jesus during his Passion, until
only a single candle, considered a symbol of our Lord, remains. Toward the end of the service this candle is
hidden, portraying the apparent victory of the forces of evil, and the church is completely dark. At the very
end, a loud noise is made, symbolizing the earthquake at the moment of Christ’s death on the cross (Matt.
27:51), the hidden candle is restored to its place, and by its light all depart in silence.
The people remain seated
At the beginning of each psalm, the antiphon will be sung by a cantor, then repeated by all. At the
conclusion of each psalm the antiphon will be sung by all.
Antiphon 1: Psalm 69:1-8, 22 Salvum me fac
Save me, O God, for the waters have risen up to my neck. *
I am sinking in deep mire, and there is no firm ground for my feet.
I have come into deep waters, *
and the torrent washes over me.
I have grown weary with my crying; my throat is inflamed; *
my eyes have failed from looking for my God.
Those who hate me without a cause are more than the hairs of my head;
my lying foes who would destroy me are mighty. *
Must I then give back what I never stole?
O God, you know my foolishness, *
and my faults are not hidden from you.
Let not those who hope in you be put to shame through me, Lord God of hosts; *
let not those who seek you be disgraced because of me, O God of Israel.
Surely, for your sake I have suffered reproach, *
and shame has covered my face.
I have become a stranger to my own kindred, *
an alien to my mother’s children.
They gave me gall to eat, *
And when I was thirsty, they gave me vinegar to drink. All repeat the Antiphon
Antiphon 2: Psalm 70 Deus, in adjutorium
Be pleased, O God, to deliver me; *
O Lord, make haste to help me.
Let those who seek my life be ashamed and altogether dismayed; *
let those who take pleasure in my misfortune draw back and be disgraced.
Let those who say to me “Aha!” and gloat over me turn back, *
because they are ashamed.
Let all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; *
let those who love your salvation say for ever, “Great is the Lord!”
But as for me, I am poor and needy; *
come to me speedily, O God.
You are my helper and my deliverer; *
O Lord, do not tarry. All repeat the Antiphon
Antiphon 3: Psalm 74: 1-10 Ut quid, Deus?
O God, why have you utterly cast us off? *
why is your wrath so hot against the sheep of your pasture?
Remember your congregation that you purchased long ago, *
the tribe you redeemed to be your inheritance, and Mount Zion where you dwell.
Turn your steps toward the endless ruins; *
the enemy has laid waste everything in your sanctuary.
Your adversaries roared in your holy place; *
they set up their banners as tokens of victory.
They were like men coming up with axes to a grove of trees; *
they broke down all your carved work with hatchets and hammers.
They set fire to your holy place; *
they defiled the dwelling-place of your Name and razed it to the ground.
They said to themselves, “Let us destroy them altogether.” *
They burned down all the meeting-places of God in the land.
There are no signs for us to see; there is no prophet left; *
there is not one among us who knows how long.
How long, O God, will the adversary scoff? *
will the enemy blaspheme your Name for ever?
Why do you draw back your hand? *
why is your right hand hidden in your bosom? All repeat the Antiphon
The People stand
Officiant: Deliver me, my God, from the hand of the wicked:
All: From the clutches of the evildoer and the oppressor.
All remain standing for silent prayer
The People sit.
THE LESSONS
Lesson 1: Lamentations 1:1-5 setting by Timothy J. Krueger (2001)
Here begin the Lamentations of Jeremiah the Prophet:
Aleph How solitary lies the city, once so full of people! How like a widow has she become,
she that was great among the nations! She that was Queen among the cities has now
become a vassal.
Beth She weeps bitterly in the night, tears run down her cheeks; among all her lovers she has
none to comfort her; all her friends have dealt treacherously with her; they have become
her enemies.
Gimel Judah has gone into the misery of exile and of hard servitude; she dwells now among the
nations, but finds no resting place; all her pursuers overtook her in the midst of her
anguish.
Daleth The roads to Zion mourn, because none come to the solemn feasts; all her gates are
desolate, her priests groan and sigh; her virgins are afflicted, and she is in bitterness.
He Her adversaries have become her masters, her enemies prosper; because the Lord has
punished her for the multitude of her rebellions; her children are gone, driven away as
captives by the enemy.
Jerusalem, Jerusalem, return unto the Lord your God!
Choral Responsory 1: In monte Oliveti setting by Healey Willan (1880-1968)
On the Mount of Olives he prayed to his Father: “Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass
from me: The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. Watch and pray that ye enter not
into temptation.”
Lesson 2: Lamentations 1:6-9 setting by Timothy J. Krueger

Zayin Jerusalem remembers in the days of her affliction and bitterness all the precious things
that were hers from the days of old; when her people fell into the hands of the foe, and
there was none to help her; the adversary saw her, and mocked at her downfall.
Heth Jerusalem has sinned greatly, therefore she has become a thing unclean; all who honored
her despise her, for they have seen her nakedness; and now she sighs, and turns her face
away.
Teth Uncleanness clings to her skirts, she takes no thought of her doom; therefore her fall is
terrible, she has no comforter. “O Lord, behold my affliction, for the enemy has
triumphed.”
Jerusalem, Jerusalem, return unto the Lord your God!
Choral Responsory 2: Tristis est anima mea setting by Healey Willan
“My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here and watch with me; now ye
shall see the multitude come about me: Ye shall flee and I go to be sacrificed for you.
Behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.”
Lesson 3: Lamentations 1:10-13 setting by Timothy J. Krueger

Lamed Is it nothing to you, all you who pass by? Behold and see if there is any sorrow like my
sorrow, which was brought upon me, which the Lord inflicted, on the day of his burning
anger.

weigh on my neck, sapping my strength; the Lord handed me over to those whom I cannot
withstand.
Jerusalem, Jerusalem, return to the Lord your God!
Choral Responsory 3: Ecce, videte setting by Healey Willan
Behold, we have seen him without form or comeliness: his form is gone from him. He hath
borne our sins, and his sorrows are for us: he was wounded for our transgressions, and with
his stripes we are healed. Surely he hath borne our griefs and carried our sorrows.
LAUDS
Antiphon 4: Psalm 63:1-8 Deus, Deus meus
O God, you are my God; eagerly I seek you; *
my soul thirsts for you, my flesh faints for you, as in a barren and dry land where there is no water.
Therefore I have gazed upon you in your holy place, *
that I might behold your power and your glory.
For your loving-kindness is better than life itself; *
my lips shall give you praise.
So will I bless you as long as I live *
and lift up my hands in your Name.
My soul is content, as with marrow and fatness, *
and my mouth praises you with joyful lips,
When I remember you upon my bed, *
and meditate on you in the night watches.
For you have been my helper, *
and under the shadow of your wings I will rejoice.
My soul clings to you; *
your right hand holds me fast. All repeat the Antiphon
Antiphon 5: Psalm 90:1-6, 12 Domine, refugium
Lord, you have been our refuge *
from one generation to another.
Before the mountains were brought forth, or the land and the earth were born, *
from age to age you are God.
You turn us back to the dust and say, *
“Go back, O child of earth.”
For a thousand years in your sight are like yesterday when it is past *
and like a watch in the night.
You sweep us away like a dream; *
we fade away suddenly like the grass.
In the morning it is green and flourishes; *
in the evening it is dried up and withered.
So teach us to number our days *
that we may apply our hearts to wisdom. All repeat the Antiphon
Antiphon 6: Isaiah 38:10-20 The Song of Hezekiah
In my despair I said, “In the noonday of my life I must depart; my unspent years are summoned to the
portals of death.” And I said, “No more shall I see the Lord in the land of the living; never more look
on my kind among dwellers on earth. My life is rolled up like a bolt of cloth; the threads cut off from
the loom. Between sunrise and sunset my life is brought to an end; I cower and hope for the dawn.
My weary eyes look up to you; Lord, be my refuge in my affliction.” The grave does not thank you nor
death give you praise; nor do those at the brink of the grave hang on your promises. It is the living, O
Lord, the living who give you thanks as I do this day; and parents speak of your faithfulness to their
children. You, Lord, are my Savior; I will praise you with stringed instruments all the days of my life,
in the house of the Lord. All repeat the Antiphon
Antiphon 7: Psalm 150 Laudate Dominum
Praise God in his holy temple; *
praise him in the firmament of his power.
Praise him for his mighty acts; *
praise him for his excellent greatness.
Praise him with the blast of the ram’s-horn; *
praise him with lyre and harp.
Praise him with timbrel and dance; *
praise him with strings and pipe.
Praise him with resounding cymbals; *
praise him with loud-clanging cymbals.
Let everything that has breath *
praise the Lord. All repeat the Antiphon
The People stand
Officiant: My flesh also shall rest in hope:
All: You will not let your holy One see corruption.
All remain standing for silent prayer.
The People sit.
The Song of Zechariah: Luke 1:68-79 Benedictus Dominus Deus
Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; he has come to his people and set them free. He has raised up
for us a mighty savior; born of the house of David. You, my child, shall be called the prophet of
the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way. To give his people knowledge
of salvation; by the forgiveness of their sins. In the tender compassion of our God; the dawn on
high shall break upon us, to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death; and
to guide our feet into the way of peace. All repeat the Antiphon
During the repetition of this Antiphon, the remaining candle, representing Our Lord, is taken from the stand
and hidden.
All kneel.
Anthem: Christus factus est Hernando Franco (1532-1585)
[sung in Latin] Christ for us became obedient unto death, even death on the cross; therefore God
has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the Name which is above every name.
Philippians 2:9-10
Psalm 51 Miserere mei, Deus
setting by Gregorio Allegri (1582-1652)
Sung in Latin
Have mercy on me, O God, according to your loving-kindness; *
in your great compassion blot out my offenses.
Wash me through and through from my wickedness *
and cleanse me from my sin.
For I know my transgressions, *
and my sin is ever before me.
Against you only have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight. *
and so you are justified when you speak and upright in your judgment.
Indeed, I have been wicked from my birth, *
a sinner from my mother’s womb.
For behold, you look for truth deep within me, *
and will make me understand wisdom secretly.
Purge me from my sin, and I shall be pure; *
wash me, and I shall be clean indeed.
Make me hear of joy and gladness, *
that the body you have broken may rejoice.
Hide your face from my sins *
and blot out all my iniquities.
Create in me a clean heart, O God, *
and renew a right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from your presence *
and take not your holy Spirit from me.
Give me the joy of your saving help again *
and sustain me with your bountiful Spirit.
I shall teach your ways to the wicked, *
and sinners shall return to you.
Deliver me from death, O God, *
and my tongue shall sing of your righteousness, O God of my salvation.
Open my lips, O Lord, *
and my mouth shall proclaim your praise.
Had you desired it, I would have offered sacrifice, *
but you take no delight in burnt-offerings.
The sacrifice of God is a troubled spirit; *
a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.
Be favorable and gracious to Zion, *
and rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.
Then you will be pleased with the appointed sacrifices, with burnt-offerings and oblations; *
then shall they offer young bullocks upon your altar.
Officiant: Almighty God, we pray you graciously to behold this your family, for whom our Lord
Jesus Christ was willing to be betrayed, and given into the hands of sinners, and to suffer
death upon the cross.
Nothing further is said; after an extended silence there is a loud noise, and the Christ candle is brought
from its hiding place and replaced on the stand.
By its light the ministers and people depart in silence.
HOLY WEEK & EASTER 2020 AT ST. ANDREW’S
Join us on Good Friday and Easter for live-streamed services
Fri., April 10 7:00pm Downward to Darkness
On this most solemn night, we gather for a time of meditation and
reflection, guided by poetry and music appropriate to the occasion.

St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church
2015 Glenarm Place, Denver, Colorado 80205
303-296-1712  www.standrewdenver.org