click here for a printable copy of the 2020 Maundy Thursday Liturgy
WELCOME AND INVITATION
CALL TO WORSHIP
Leader:
Are you prepared
to come to the feast of Jesus, the Christ,
whose life was poured out for you?
People:
By the grace of God, we are.
Leader:
Are you able to watch with Jesus
at prayer in the garden —
indeed, to struggle to be in unity
with God’s will for you?
People:
By the grace of God, we are.
Leader:
Then let us praise God, even in this hour of darkness!
All:
God of all grace and steadfast love,
greatly is your name to be praised in all the earth.
Bring us to this feast of remembrance
with open hearts!
SILENCE
PRAYERS
CONFESSION
Leader:
O Christ, in your presence we discover who we are.
People:
You wash our feet,
and we learn how reluctant we are
to serve one another and the world around us.
Leader:
We are so like your disciples.
People:
We look to our own self-centered interests
as you give yourself for the sake of the whole world.
Leader:
You invite us to join all creation at your feast,
yet our love scarcely suffices for those closest to us.
All:
Forgive us,
and help us treasure your presence more deeply,
that we may find in this night
a celebration of overflowing joy. Amen.
INDIVIDUAL PRAYERS OF CONFESSION
ASSURANCE
Leader:
God reaches out to heal,
and to reveal again the love that will not let us go.
We are forgiven, to answer God’s love
with praise, devotion, and service.
All: Amen.
THANKSGIVING AND PRAISE
INTERCESSION AND PETITION
CHANT “Jesus, Remember Me”
A reading from the Gospel according to John (13:1-17, 31-35)
SILENCE
PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING
Leader:
Wellspring of all the waters of creation,
we thank you for your mighty acts of deliverance.
People:
You enable us to cross over from despair to hope,
from brokenness to wholeness,
from death to life.
Leader:
We thank you for the deep love of Jesus,
which moved him to give himself
for the redemption of all creation.
All:
We thank you for the grace we experience
As members of the Body of Christ,
called to live and love
as Christ did for others, and for us.
Amen.
SILENCE
ENTERING THE PASSION
Leader:
Let us join Christ in the garden of prayer.
People:
Let us join Christ in passion and victory.
A reading from the Gospel according to Matthew (26:36-46)
UNISON PRAYER
All:
Eternal One, Father and Mother of us all,
Holy is your name.
Let justice and mercy fill all Creation
and let us recognize
that every thought and thing belongs to you.
Feed us with the bread we need for today.
Forgive our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Stand with us in trial and temptation.
Free us from the grip of all that is evil.
For you invite us into creation with you,
now and forever. Amen.
HYMN “Were You There?”
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
Oh! Sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble,
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
Were you there when they nailed him to the tree?
Were you there when they nailed him to the tree?
Oh! Sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble,
Were you there when they nailed him to the tree?
Were you there when they pierced him in the side?
Were you there when they pierced him in the side?
Oh! Sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble,
Were you there when they pierced him in the side?
“Were You There” African-American spiritual
THE PEACE
Leader:
Let us pray:
Enter this dark night,
knowing that you are not alone.
The peace of God embraces us,
holding us together as one small part
of the Body of Christ.
We are in this life together, thanks be to God.
DEPART IN SILENCE
