We will be offering Tenebrae at St. Blaise on Good Friday, so I thought it would be helpful to share a video provided by Wyoming Catholic College. The video presents a sense of Tenebrae before the changes that were made to the Divine Office a bit before Vatican II. While many have experienced a Tenebrae service composed of gospel readings and hymns relevant to our Lord’s passion, providing a valuable opportunity for meditation, we will be offering a service closer to the original, rooted in the Liturgy of the Hours.
Tenebrae is essentially composed of Matins (the Office of Readings – containing 3 “nocturns”: psalm/reading and lesson) and Lauds (morning prayer: Psalm / Canticle of Habakkuk / Psalm / Benedictus [Canticle of Zachariah]). It will probably take us around an hour. It will primarily be in English, with a verse in Latin at the end. Although it is a bit more challenging than Vespers, I believe it will be very accessible to anyone who has taken part thus far, and a beautiful prayer experience for any new comer.
We will have an intro/practice class on Saturday (April 13th) at 6pm in St. Blaise parish office. I will post practice videos after that Saturday so that you can prepare throughout the week. Tenebrae will begin at 8pm on Good Friday. I hope you can join us!
