the cross, He prayed even for his relentless persecutors: on the
anniversary then of his death it is fit that His church should pray
for all men, that all may be saved by the application of His merits to
their souls. The Card. Celebrant commences the beautiful, charitable,
and ancient prayers of this day with the words, Let us pray, dearly
beloved, for the holy church of God etc. The deacon then kneeling says
(according to the ancient custom mentioned by S. Cesarius of Arles
in his 36th homily, and by S. Basil in his book on the Holy Ghost c.
XXVII) Let us bend our knees, and the subdeacon answers, Stand up, as
it was customary to pray standing. This form is repeated before each
prayer, except that which is offered for the Jews[85]: for their
soldiers, bowing the knee before our Lord, mocked him saying in
derision, Hail king of the Jews. Prayers follow for the Pope, for all
the clergy, and holy people of God (formerly for the Emperor also) and
catechumens who are to receive baptism on the day following. Having
prayed for all members of the church, we then pray for heretics and
schismatics, that God may deign to "deliver them from all errors,
and bring them back to their holy mother the catholic and apostolic
church"; and these petitions are followed by others for the conversion
of Jews and Pagans[86].
[Sidenote: Exposition of the cross: ancient crucifixes and crosses.]
[Sidenote: _Adoration_ of the cross: its antiquity.]
When these prayers are ended[87] the officiating Cardinal takes off
his chasuble, and going to the epistle-side of the altar receives from
the deacon the crucifix[88] covered with a black veil. Then turning
towards the people, and uncovering the upper part of the crucifix, he
sings, Behold the wood of the cross, on which hung the salvation of
the world; in singing which words he is joined by two tenor-voices
from the choir. The choir answers, Come, let us adore[89]. The Pope
and all others kneel, except the Cardinal celebrant, who advances
nearer to the middle of the altar, and uncovers the right arm of the
crucifix, and repeats the same words in a higher tone, and again in
a still higher tone before the middle of the altar, where he uncovers
the whole cross. The choir answers as before, and all except the
celebrant kneel each time the words are repeated. The Cardinal then
places the crucifix on a rich cushion lying on the steps of the
altar[90].
[Sidenote: Trisagion.]
I observed above, that it was formerly customary for the Pope and all
others to walk bare-footed in the procession of this day, as others
royal personages have done; for instance, S. Louis of France, S.
Elisabeth of Hungary, and others. Thus to be barefooted was a sign of
mourning (1 Sam. XV, 30. Jer. II, 25) among the Jews. Their priests
were without shoes at their functions, in token of reverence (Exod.
III, 5. Jos. V, 15). Some memorial of this practice is preserved in
the present custom of taking off the shoes of the principal persons
who revere and kiss the cross on this day. The Pope's shoes are taken
off by an _Ajutante di Camera_, His cope by acolythes (_Votanti di
Segnatura_), and afterwards His Holiness then makes three profound
genuflections before the crucifix, gradually approaching nearer to it,
and then kisses it in token of his love for Him, who died upon it for
our salvation[91]. He also empties a purse, containing an offering
of 100 _scudi d'oro_, into a silver basin near the crucifix. When the
Pope is about to make the first genuflection, the choir begins to sing
the _improperii_, the sentiments of which, and the chant composed by
Palestrina [92], are admirably adapted to the pathetic ceremony. In
them God enumerates the unparalleled benefits which he lavished upon
the Jews, and the atrocious crimes by which they repaid Him. At the
end of each _improperium_ or reproach, the Trisagion is sung by one
choir in Greek, and in Latin by another "Holy God! Holy strong one!
Holy immortal, have mercy on us"[93]. The Pope then returns to his
throne; he resumes his previous vestments and reads the _improperii_
from the Missal held as usual by an assist. bishop kneeling. The
Cardinal celebrant and all the other members of the sacred college,
after their shoes have been taken off, assisted by the _Ceremonieri_
revere and kiss the crucifix in the same manner as the Pope has done;
and each of them leaves an offering of a _scudo d'oro_ according to
an ancient custom.[94] When they return to their places, their shoes
are put on by their respective _camerieri_, who afterwards leave the
chapel. The patriarchs and bishops assistant and non-assistant and the
generals of religious orders without shoes, and all the other prelates
etc. wearing their shoes, _adore_ and kiss the cross in like manner,
observing the same order as in going to receive palms on the preceding
sunday; and they also make their offerings before the cross. When
the sacred college has finished the _adoration_, the choir having
ended the _improperii_ sings the anthem _Crucem tuam_, the psalm
_Deus misereatur nostri_, the hymn _Pange lingua gloriosi lauream
certaminis_[95] etc. Towards the end of this beautiful ceremony the
candles are lighted, the deacon spreads out the corporal[96] as usual,
placing the purificator near it. He then respectfully takes the cross,
and places it on the altar amid the candlesticks.
[Sidenote: Chant of _Pange lingua_ etc.]
A procession, arranged like that of the preceding day, now goes to
the Pauline chapel. Assisted as usual by the first Card. priest, the
Pope kneels and incenses the B. Sacrament three times. _M. Sagrista_
delivers the B. Sacrament to the Cardinal celebrant, who presents it
to the Pope; His Holiness covers it with the end of the veil placed
over his shoulders[97] and the procession returns to the Sixtine
chapel [98]. In the mean time the choir sings the hymn "_Vexilla Regis
prodeunt_". When the Pope arrives at the altar, he delivers the B.
Sacrament to the Card. Celebrant, who places it on the altar. His
Holiness then incenses it and returns to his throne.
During the procession the crucifix on the altar of the Sixtine chapel
is removed, and a larger cross containing a considerable relic of the
true cross is substituted for it. This relic was sent to Pope Leo the
Great in the 5th century by Juvenal Bishop of Jerusalem. It was lost,
but found again by Pope Sergius I in 687: it was stolen at the sack
of Rome in 1527, and removed from its case of silver: however it was
recovered by Clement VII, who ordered the rich cross, in which it
is at present preserved, to be made: in 1730 it was again stolen but
recovered once more by Clement XII. At the close of the last century,
though the candlesticks, and the statues of the Apostles belonging
to the papal chapel were lost, this cross was preserved. In 1840 His
present Holiness Gregory XVI ordered it to be again exposed to the
public veneration in the Sixtine chapel: He gave it to the charge
of the chapter of S. Peter's, who deliver it to _M. Sagrista_ on
Good-friday morning: and it remains in the Sixtine chapel till the
end of Tenebrae on that day. Moroni _Cappelle Pontificie etc._
The _Mass_ of the _Presanctified_, as it is called, is next
celebrated; Card. Tommasi, following S. Cesarius of Arles, calls
it the office, and not the mass of good-Friday; for mass, strictly
speaking, is not offered up on this day, since no consecration takes
place, and the B. Sacrament is received by the celebrant under the
form of bread alone, as it could not be preserved with safety under
the form of wine[99].
[Sidenote: Mass of the Pre-Sanctified.]
The Card. Celebrant places the B. Sacrament on the paten[100] and
thence on the corporal. In the meantime the deacon puts wine into the
chalice, and the subdeacon water, which however are neither blessed or
consecrated[101] on this day. The cardinal then places the chalice on
the altar, and the deacon covers it with the _palla_ or pall (a small
square piece of linen, which serves to prevent flies etc. from falling
into it). The Cardinal incenses the offerings and the altar, washes
his hands, and recites the _Orate Fratres_ and Our Father. All then
kneel to adore the blessed Sacrament, which he raises over the paten.
He divides it as usual, but without saying any prayer [102], into
three parts, putting one of them into the chalice. Striking his
breast, and acknowledging his own unworthiness, he receives communion,
taking the sacred host, and afterwards the consecrated particle with
the wine in the chalice [103]. He then receives the ablution, washes
his hands, and returns to the sacristy with the sacred ministers.
[Sidenote: Vespers.]
Anciently on fasting days nothing was allowed to be eaten till sunset;
and Vespers used therefore to be said before dinner: now that the one
meal allowed on such days may be eaten as early as noon, the ancient
practice of saying Vespers before dinner is still preserved. Vespers
are therefore sung immediately after the mass of the Presanctified:
they consist of the Our Father and Hail Mary said in secret, of five
psalms with their anthems, and the _Magnificat_ with its anthem. At
the verse 'Christ became obedient unto death', all kneel down to adore
Him, and the _Miserere_ and the usual prayer are recited, but without
the solemnity of Tenebrae[104].
[Sidenote: Tenebræ.]
[Sidenote: Principal relics.]
In the afternoon at Tenebrae, the office, being that of Holy Saturday
anticipated as usual, refers to the repose of the body of our blessed
Lord in the tomb. When it is finished, the Pope wearing his stole,
and the Cardinals having taken off their _cappe_, go to S. Peter's in
procession, accompanied by the Papal _Anticamera segreta_, the guards
and others, to venerate the relics of the Cross, the Lance, and the
_Volto Santo_, which are shewn by the Canons from the gallery above
the statue of S. Veronica [105]. The Pope meantime, and the Cardinals
and others arranged on each side of Him, remain kneeling. The
Pontifical cross is borne as usual before the Pope, when going to S.
Peter's by an _Uditore di Rota_, and when returning to His apartments
by His cross-bearer who is one of His chaplains.
[Sidenote: Grounds of belief in relics.]
Catholics are bound to believe with divine faith only those doctrines,
which the church defines to be doctrines taught by God; and hence with
regard to particular images or relics or miracles, concerning which
Christ has taught nothing, they believe them to be genuine or reject
them, according to the evidence which accompanies them. We shall
therefore briefly examine what evidence there is in favour of the
relics in question.
[Sidenote: 1. Relic of the cross.]
1. The relic of the cross was placed here in 1629 by Urban VIII; but
it was formed of some pieces taken from the churches of S. Anastasia
and S. Croce in Gerusalemme. The Jews were accustomed to bury the
instruments of punishment in or near the place where the persons
executed were buried; but on this subject I must content myself with
referring to Baronius, Calmet, Menochius, Gretser etc. who cite the
Rabbins in proof of this assertion. Now according to the ancient
historians, Eusebius, Sozomen and Socrates: the Emperor Adrian erected
a temple of Venus over the tomb of the God of purity, after he had
covered it with a great quantity of rubbish. Helen the saintly mother
of the emperor Costantine, after many searches (according to Eusebius
in his life of that emperor) at length discovered the sacred tomb, in
which was found, according to Sozomen, the inscription placed over the
cross by Pilate, "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews"[106]. Near the
tomb in another part of the cave were found three crosses: but here a
difficulty arose on which of these three was our Saviour crucified?
At the suggestion of Macarius Bp. of Jerusalem, a woman at the point
of death, as Ruffinus, Socrates, Theodoret, Sozomen and Nicephorus
relate; or a dead man, according to Paulinus and Severus Sulpicius,
was brought to the spot, and restored to health or to life, when
placed on _one_ of the three crosses. If we consider, that it is
related in the 2nd book of Kings c, XIII, that when some persons "were
burying a man, they cast the body into the sepulchre of Eliseus.
And when it had touched the bones of Eliseus, the man came to life
and stood up on his feet," we may not be unwilling to admit the
possibility or probability, that such a miracle may have occurred at
the sepulchre of the God of Eliseus. Besides the authors whom I have
mentioned, this history is attested by S. Ambrose, S. Chrysostom, and
S. Cyril of Jerusalem. This great bishop and Eusebius lived at the
time when the event is said to have happened: the other writers lived
not long after, and Ruffinus and Theodoret passed part of their lives
in Syria. The same historians mention, that S. Helen divided the
Cross into three parts, one she left in Jerusalem, another she sent
to Costantine, according to the author of the life of Pope Sylvester
published by Pope Damasus towards the close of the 6th cent.; and the
third she reserved for herself, to Rome. She placed the last mentioned
piece in the Sessorian Basilica, called also the Basilica of Helen,
because erected by her, in the Horti Variani: hence is derived
its title of S. Croce in Gerusalemme. On this subject additional
information may be found in the work of the late Padre De Corrieris,
De Sessorianis praecipius D.N.J.C. reliquiis, in Trombelli De cultu
SSrum and Ben. XIV. De festis. From Santa Croce a piece of the cross
was taken to S. Peter's, and is one of the relics shewn on good
friday. Even in the fourth century S. Cyril of Jerusalem testifies,
that particles of the true cross had been sent to every Christian
country.
[Sidenote: 2. of the lance.]
2. The lance also with which our divine Saviour's side was pierced,
was found by S. Helen, as the Bollandists shew: and it was preserved
in Jerusalem, as S. Gregory of Tours and our venerable Bede observe:
but towards the end of the 6th cent., the iron part of it was
transfered to Costantinople; of this the point was placed in the
imperial palace; the other part in the church of S. Sophia, and
afterwards in that of S. John. William of Tyre and Anna Comnena
mention it as existing there in the 11th and 12th centuries. Towards
the close of the 13th century the point of the lance with other
relics passed into the possession of S. Louis of France: the other
part of the lance still remained at S. John's in Constantinople,
as Buondelmount, who saw it, bears witness. When Mahomet subdued
Costantinople, he preserved all the relics, as Theodore cited by
Benedict XIV relates in his history of the Turks, and his son Bajazet
sent an ambassador with the relics of the lance to Pope Innocent VIII,
in order to induce his Holiness not to protect Zizimus, who disputed
with him the succession to the Turkish throne. The Pope received it
with great reverence, and placed it in the Vatican. As some suspicion
was entertained about the veracity of the Turkish ambassador, Benedict
XIV, as he mentions in his very learned work on the Canonisation
of the Saints, from which I have extracted this account, sent for
an exact cast of the point preserved at Paris, which perfectly
corresponded with the piece preserved in the Vatican; and thus were
confirmed the assertion of the Turk[107].
[Sidenote: 3. _Volto Santo_.]
3. As for the _Volto Santo_, or image of our Saviour it was placed in
an Oratory of the Vatican Basilica by John VII as long ago as 707,
as may be seen in Marlinetti, Dei pregii della Basilica Vat. Who S.
Veronica or Berenice was, who is said to have wiped our Saviour's face
with the handkerchief is another question, as Benedict XIV observes,
to whom and to Marlinetti I shall content myself with referring. It
appears that this ancient likeness of our Saviour was afterwards kept
at S. Spirito: six Roman noblemen had the care of it; and to each of
them was confided on of the six keys, with which it was locked up.
They enjoyed various privileges, and among others, says an ancient MS.
Chronicle quoted by Cancellieri, "havevano questi sei ogni anno, da
Santo Spirito, due vacche in die S. Spiritus le quali se magnavano
li con gran festa". In 1410 the _Volto Santo_ was carried back to S.
Peter's, where it has ever since remained[108].
[Sidenote: Reflections.]
The Council of Trent, in the 25th Session, teaches that veneration and
honour are due to relics of the Saints, and that they and other sacred
monuments are honoured by the faithful not without utility. We all
honour the memorials of the great, of the wise and of the brave; who
has not venerated the oak of a Tasso or the house of a Shakespeare?
While _We_ revere the relics of a Borromeo at Milan, of a Francois
de Sales at Annecy, of a Luigi Gonzaga, a Filippo Neri, a Camillo de
Lellis at Rome, others respect the chair and table of Wickliffe at
Lutterworth, or the room of Luther at Eisenach. If infidels unite in
paying homage to the house of the impious _philosopher_ of Ferney, let
all Christians, however they may be otherwise unhappily divided, join
in shewing their respect for the image of their Saviour, and for those
instruments which touched his sacred body, and were sanctified by his
precious blood. O let them gaze with reverential awe on that lance
which entering into his adorable side drew from it blood and water,
and on that cross to which he was nailed and on which he died for
our salvation. The early Christians, our forefathers in the faith,
manifested great respect for the bodies and the blood of the martyrs,
because they were faithful _followers_ of Christ. Thus, in the letter
of the faithful of Smyrna preserved by Eusebius, they mention that
they gathered up the bones of their bishop Polycarp, (a disciple of
S. John the Apostle) "more precious than pearls, and more tried than
gold, and buried them. In this place, God willing", say they "we shall
meet and celebrate with joy and gladness the birthday of this martyr".
SS. Praxedes and Pudentiana, and many other devout females used
to collect the blood of the martyrs with sponges and cloths, as
if they feared that one drop of it should be lost. Read the poems
of Prudentius, observe the phials of blood[109] placed before the
martyrs' tombs in the catacombs, and you will not doubt the truth of
such assertions[110]. The shadow of Peter, the handkerchiefs which
had touched the body of Paul, could cure diseases, as the Scripture
witnesseth; but here are the relics of a greater than Paul, of a
greater than Peter: O then let us kneel, and love, and venerate them;
for they were closely united to Him who is the author and object
of our faith, the only foundation of our hope, the centre and the
consummation of our love.
[Sidenote: Recapitulation.]
It does not fall within my plan to speak of the devotion of the three
hours of agony, practised on this day in many churches, as at the
Gesù, S. Lorenzo in Damaso etc. or of that which is practised after
the _Ave Maria_ at S. Marcello, Caravita etc. or of the elegies
recited by the Arcadian pastors over their Redeemer. Let us rather
briefly recapitulate with Morcelli the principal ceremonies of
the day: Station at S. Croce; service in the Sixtine chapel,
the veneration of the Cross; the B. Sacrament carried thither in
procession from the Pauline chapel, Mass of the Presanctified and
Vespers. In the afternoon Tenebræ, and veneration of the relics at S.
Peter's.
[Footnote 82: See a MS. Apamean Pontifical ap. Marthene T. 3, p.
132, Benedict Canon of S. Peter's in his _Ordo Romanus_, Marangoni,
_Istoria dell antichissimo Oratorio o Cappella di S. Lorenzo nel
Patriarchio Lateranense_. Roma 1747. S. Louis of France used to walk
barefooted on this day to the churches, praying and giving abundant
alms, as did also William, king of the Romans. (Chronicon Erphordense
ad ann. 1252), S. Elisabeth of Hungary used to devote the day to
similar acts of piety, walking barefooted and in the dress of a poor
woman to the churches, and there making her humble offerings at the
altars, and distributing copious alms. On her practices of piety
during holy-week see her life by Le Cte de Montalembert c. 9.]
[Footnote 83: The Corporal, which was anciently much longer than at
present, was spread in this manner at all masses before the offertory.
See Cancellieri, De Secretariis T. I, Fleury, Moeurs des Chretiens.]
[Footnote 84: The lessons, the prayer, and the passion are found in
the ancient ordo Gelasianus for this day.]
[Footnote 85: According to the Gelasian Sacramentary all were to
genuflect at the prayer for the Jews, as well as at the other prayers;
not so according to the Gregorian Sacramentary.]
[Footnote 86: "God our Saviour", says S. Paul (1 Tim. II, 4) "wishes
all men to be saved, and to come to the knowledge of the truth". The
Catholic church is animated by the same spirit of charity, as the
admirable prayers of this day might alone prove. If she teaches
exclusive salvation. Christ taught the same "He that believeth and
is baptised shall be saved: he that believeth not shall be condemned"
Mark XVI, 26. We cannot therefore consistently accuse the church
of want of charity, when she proclaims the general conditions of
salvation, without at the same time charging Christ himself, who first
taught them, with the same fault. True charity desires the salvation
of all but she warns others of their danger; and does not cruelly
conceal it from them till it is too late.]
[Footnote 87: After these prayers the faithful used anciently to leave
the church, and the Priests to go to their own churches, to perform
the ceremonies till the evening-service: so that what follows was then
a totally distinct service. See Sacram S. Gregorii, ant. Ord. Roman,
etc. ap. Martene lib. IV, c. 23.]