Mass of the Five Wounds

I had a comment asking for the English text of the Votive Mass of the Five Wounds, featuring in the Sarum missal and the fine translation by Canon Warren. It is a very beautiful devotion, paralleling devotion to the Sacred Heart in the seventeenth-century as a reaction against Jansenism and already implicit in the devotional writings of St Bernard of Clairvaux. Devotion to the humanity of Jesus and the Passion is a part of our western spirituality, though it is important to see the wholeness of the Mystery of Christ. Please see my earlier posting The Mass of the Five Wounds.

* * *

Here beginneth the Office of the Mass of the Five Wounds of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Office.
Our Lord Jesus Christ humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore, God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name. Ps. My song shall be alway of the loving kindness of the Lord.

Glory be to God on high etc. is said, except throughout Advent and from Septuagesima to Easter.

Collect.
O Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the living God, who didst come down from heaven to earth from the bosom of the Father, and didst bear five wounds on the wood of the cross, and didst shed thy precious blood for the forgiveness of our sins, we humbly beseech thee that on the day of judgment we may be set at thy right hand, and be found worthy to hear from thee that most sweet word. Come, ye blessed, into the kingdom of my Father. Who livest etc.

One additional Collect shall also be used at pleasure, according to the number and exigency of the season, on behalf of some living or deceased person, for whom these five masses are celebrated.

The Lesson. Zech. xii. 10, 11; xiii. 6, 7
Thus saith the Lord God, I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn. In that day shall there be a great mourning in Jerusalem, as the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddon. And one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends. Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the Lord of hosts.

Gradual.
Thy rebuke hath broken my heart; I am full of heaviness: I looked for some to have pity on me, but there was no man, neither found I any to comfort me. V. They gave me gall to eat : and when I was thirsty they gave me vinegar to drink.
Alleluya. V. Hail, our king, Jesu Christ ; thou alone in pity hast borne our sins and wickednesses : obeying thy Father thou wast led to the cross, as a gentle lamb to the slaughter ; glory be to thee, osanna to thee, most high in the quire of praise and honour.

Tract.
Give sentence with me, O God, and defend my cause against the ungodly people : O deliver me from the deceitful and wicked man.
V. For thou art the God of my strength : why hast thou put me from thee, and why go I so heavily, while the enemy oppresseth me.
V. For there are false witnesses risen up against me, and such as speak wrong.
V. The plowers plowed upon my back, and made long furrows.
V. They stand staring and looking upon me. They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture.
V. They pierced my hands and my feet : I may tell all my bones : and they added sorrow upon sorrow to my wounds.

Sequence.
Thou, Christ, with thy disciples, the feast didst celebrate.
Thy death to the apostles didst openly relate ;
And Judas, the arch-traitor, all-knowing didst foreshow,
And forthwith thence departing didst to the garden go.
Upon the earth then falling the Lord did prostrate lie,
And prayed that cup might from him, if possible, pass by.
Unto the Father’s judgment he yet commended all,
And lo ! his sweat as blood-drops upon the ground did fall.
To kiss that face so sacred then Judas did presume,
Whereat the Lord said gently, “Friend, wherefore art thou come?
Him thou hast sold already with a kiss dost thou betray ?”
Forthwith the soldiers seized him, and led the Lord away.
Jesus through those night hours in sleepless watch remained.
Nor sympathy nor respite on any side obtained.
By magistrates ungodly reviled and mocked he stands ;
And innocent is buffeted and smitten by men’s hands.
While Jesus to deliver Pilate himself essayed.
The madness of the people more fiercely is arrayed ;
And crowds a mighty uproar stirred up on every side,
In wrath their voices thundered, and ” Crucify him !” cried.
Captive and bound the Saviour away the soldiers bore,
With cruel blows his body they mangled then full sore ;
Upon the king of glory they set a thorny crown ;
Then all, to do him despite, with bended knees bowed down.
The pitiful Redeemer, who in tender flesh is found,
With thongs is to the pillar iniquitously bound.
The torturer’s vile scourging he then doth undergo,
His precious blood in rivers on every side doth flow.
Next Jesus through the city in slow procession came.
Bearing upon his shoulder the cross of bitter shame.
Unto the gates of outlet streamed forth the populace.
To all men was revealed his manifold disgrace.
Indignity most crowning, of clothing all bereft.
To winds and cold, O Jesu, exposed thou wast left ;
The curse of sin, all sinless, thou on the cross didst bear ;
And ‘midst the malefactors chief ignominy share.
With outstretched arms his hands, lo ! are nailed to the tree ;
Flesh, nerves, and veins, with iron are tortured piteously;
His feet and soles transfixed in like wise torn we see.
Then, after these things speaking, “I thirst !” the Saviour said.
Forthwith one ran and vinegar with gall commingled.
And on a sponge he put it unto his mouth with haste.
And yet he would not drink it, but scarce thereof would taste.
O Jesu, wonder-worker, how dost thou this explain?
Thou of the cross art silent, yet dost of thirst complain.
Didst thou feel thirst more keenly than all that bitter pain .
Or rather, our salvation didst thou so thirst to gain.
Then, on the Father calling, of words thou mad’st an end.
And to his holy keeping thy spirit didst commend ;
At length, with loud voice crying, thou gavest up the ghost,
And so thy work didst finish — the saving of the lost.
Now I, alas ! deal proudly ; thou dost full lowly lie :
Mine are the foul transgressions ; thine is the penalty :
I eat the fruit forbidden; thou drink’st the cup of gall:
I seek mine ease and pleasure ; dread sorrows on thee fall.
What mind or tongue, moreover, of living men can tell
The bitter pain and grief which the virgin’s heart befell,
When she beheld them pierce his already lifeless side,
And her Son’s holy body by a lance riven wide .
That lifeless body, truly, no more the pang could feel ;
But her sad heart was pierced by the soldier’s spear of steel,
When standing by she saw it in her Son’s side infixed,
And forthwith thereout flowing came blood and water mixed.
Rivers of blood most precious the Saviour’s fountains give;
With speedy steps run hither, O sinner’s soul, and live.
Let all with thirsty longing that sacred draught drink in.
That each may oft gain healing of all the wounds of sin.
Unto that Saviour’s fountain betake thee then with speed,
That on the sweets thence flowing thy inmost soul may feed ;
Purchased by that blood’s shedding, the fount of life we see ;
May healing for thy sickness thence flow eternally !

The Gospel. John xix. 28-35
At that time, Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, saith, I thirst. Now there was set a vessel full of vinegar: and they filled a spunge with vinegar, and put it upon hyssop, and put it to his mouth. When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost. The Jews therefore, because it was the preparation, that the bodies should not remain upon the cross on the sabbath day, (for that sabbath day was an high day,) besought Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away. Then came the soldiers, and brake the legs of the first, and of the other which was crucified with him. But when they came to Jesus, and saw that he was dead already, they brake not his legs: But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water. And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true.

Offertory.
False witnesses did rise up against me : without mercy they sought to slay me, and they spared not to spit upon my face ; and with their spears they wounded me, and all my bones were out of joint.

Secret.
O Lord Jesu Christ, who for the redemption of the world didst mount upon the wood of the cross, that all the world which was in darkness might be enlightened, pour forth, we beseech thee, that light upon our souls and bodies through which we may be found worthy to attain unto light everlasting. Who livest etc.

Preface.
Who hast established the salvation etc

Communion.
They pierced my hands and my feet : I may tell all my bones.

Postcommunion.
O Lord Jesu Christ, who at the sixth hour of the day didst ascend upon the cross for the redemption of the world, and didst shed thy precious blood for the forgiveness of our sins, grant, we humbly beseech thee, that through the merits of thy passion and thy wounds we may, after our death, be found worthy to enter with joy the gate of paradise. Who livest etc.

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10 Responses to Mass of the Five Wounds

  1. Dale says:

    Father, I noticed that after the Collect the rubrics allow for the possibility of one additional collect. In the Sarum use is it possible to have an even number of collects? In the Roman, as you know, the rubrics regarding numbers of collects is different.

  2. William Dumbar says:

    Thank you very much for posting this, I had been looking everywhere for it. It’s a beautifull mass…..is it still celebrated? From what I’ve heard, the Sarum rite has been falling in disuse, sadly. It’s a rich and beautifull tradiction which should be revived and mantained.

    Also, how do I subscribe to your blog?

    • I celebrate according to the Sarum Use, but I know of no other priest who celebrates it other than occasionally. You have no need to subscribe to this blog (I don’t know if such is possible). You can simply send comments as you have been doing.

  3. William Dumbar says:

    Sadly, my arrival to Anglicanism has been quite recent, I’m afraid [although I would say I’m an Old Catholic with strong Anglican tendencies], so I’m quite a newbie in the middle of all this. Here where I live, the only Anglican priest doesen’t even knows the sarum rite.

    And normaly, wordpress blogs have means of notifying people that the author posted stuff. I found it strange that this one doesen’t. I guess I’ll just have to check in often.

    • I have just put in a “Follow New Goliards” button, just above “recent posts”. You are welcome to use it. I avoid putting in too many gadgets like Facebook plugins, etc. This widget is quite simple.

      No, you won’t find the Sarum Use in your local Anglican parish, and Salisbury Cathedral only uses some of the trappings. I don’t think any movement to revive it will be successful – like setting up a grocery shop next to a supermarket. Most liturgy is “genetically modified”. I use Sarum, but I rarely have a cat in attendance in my chapel. That’s the way it is, and changing the rite of the liturgy would make no difference.

  4. Stephen K says:

    Apart from the Scriptural readings (q.v.) I’ve composed a brand new Mass Proper for the Feast of the Five Wounds, suitably rendered in plain and simple English. Perhaps you can use these next time you celebrate the Mass of the Feast, Father.

    Collect
    O God, who in Jesus the Son of Man is revealed, in whose suffering and death is made manifest the nature of Thy Love, give us strength and courage to endure pain like Jesus and offer it up to Thee, in humble oblation that the suffering of the weak and forgotten may be lessened. Through Jesus, thy Son, Amen.

    Sequence (inspired by Stabat mater)
    Jesus who, with his disciples,
    Didst prepare for his great off’ring
    On the altar of the Cross

    Even gave his love to Judas
    Sent him on his ordained mission:
    No life was a worthy loss.

    In the garden Jesus sweated
    Fearful of the doom that waited
    Prayed-he for an angel’s hand.

    Blood that dripped, all red and flowing,
    Loneliness and fear, not knowing,
    Ready for the Lord’s command.

    Blood that spurts, the servant striking,
    Blood that flows, the soldier lashing
    Blood that washes from a crown.

    Blood from shoulders, burden bearing,
    Blood from side his flesh all-tearing,
    Flesh with grime, all red and brown.

    Nails that pierce the hands and feet
    Sweat that pours because of heat
    Lance that ushers water’s flow.

    Jesus utters a last crying
    As he hung there all a –dying
    All God’s love for us on show.

    Offertory
    O God, join our offerings of wine and bread and the hearts of thy faithful gathered here to the blood from the wounds of thy special Son who offered himself in love and worship of Thee. Amen.

    Secret
    As we prepare to enter into these sacred Mysteries, send forth thy Holy Spirit, that we may see in thy Son’s wounds the ablutions unto salvation. Amen

    Postcommunion
    Having partaken spiritually of the body and blood of thy Son, may we be joined to his sacrifice and suffering, unto thy eternal glory. Amen

  5. David Llewellyn Dodds says:

    Thank you! To participate in a celebration would be wonderful.(Are there musical examples online you can recommend? What must that Sequence be like?)

    I am reminded, among modern poets, of both David Jones, who variously attends to the Five Wounds, and Charles Williams’s “Divites Dimisit” revised and expanded into ‘The Prayers of the Pope” – I wonder if they knew this Mass?

  6. Pingback: The Cross, The Grove, and a Busted Refrigerator – O Crux Ave

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