Here is the Good Friday confession litany and reflection from my church. Leaders from the church are doing videos for each day of Holy Week, going through our prayerbook liturgy for the day and offering some personal reflections. You can also find the audio version on our podcast.
Litany of Confession
Most holy and merciful Father: I confess to you
that I have sinned by my own fault in thought, word, and deed;
by what I have done, and by what I have left undone.
I have not loved you with my whole heart, and mind, and strength
I have not loved my neighbors as myself.
I have not forgiven others as I have been forgiven.
Have mercy on me, Lord.
I confess to you, Lord, all my past unfaithfulness:
the pride, hypocrisy, and impatience of my life.
I confess to you, Lord.
My self-indulgent appetites and ways,
and my exploitation of other people,
I confess to you, Lord.
My anger at my own frustration,
and my envy of those more fortunate than I,
I confess to you, Lord.
My intemperate love of worldly good and comforts,
and my dishonesty in daily life and work,
I confess to you, Lord.
My negligence in prayer and worship,
and my failure to commend the faith that is in me,
I confess to you, Lord.
My deafness to your call to serve, as Christ served us,
and how I grieve your Holy Spirit,
I confess to you, Lord.
Accept my repentance, Lord.
By the cross and passion of your Son, our Lord,
Bring me with all your saints to the joy of his resurrection.
Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
Amen.
— Adapted from Eastertide, by Phyllis Tickle
~ Silent Confession & Reflection ~
Read
Selection from Mark 15
Then the soldiers led him into the courtyard of the palace (that is, the governor’s headquarters); and they called together the 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 down in homage to him. After mocking him, they stripped him of the purple cloak and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him out to crucify him.
When it was noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. At three o’clock Jesus cried out with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” When some of the bystanders heard it, they said, “Listen, he is calling for Elijah.” And someone ran, filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on a stick, and gave it to him to drink, saying, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to take him down.” Then Jesus gave a loud cry and breathed his last. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. Now when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, “Truly this man was God’s Son!”
Practice
On this most somber of days, practice an imaginative reading of this text. See the Prayerbook preface for a more general guide into this practice, or you may use the prompts below to lead you. You may journal through this, but the practice itself is meant to be done in prayerful silence in one’s mind over the course of at least 10-15 minutes. Let it take whatever time necessary.
You may use the prompts to lead your imaginative reading.
- Become quiet and still. Close your eyes and count your breaths until you feel stilled. This could take 3-4 minutes. Get in touch with your desire to see Jesus.
- Read the text slowly and carefully, taking in all the details.
- Close your eyes once more and imagine yourself as one of the characters. Imagine the scene as vividly as you can—its light, sound, feel. What do you see, feel, smell, do?
- Now turn your thoughts to Jesus’ experience. What is it like for Jesus to be abandoned by those he counted on? What is it like for Jesus to find that God is silent? What is it like for him to submit to the aloneness, the pain, the nakedness? What desire drives Jesus to the cross?
- Finally, let Jesus summon you into prayer, asking him to reveal to you what the text has for you.
