Good Friday Reflection with Canon Robin Gibbons

Cross painted by Frere Yves osb, Abbey La Ouerre qui Vire.

April 3rd 2026

When I Survey the Wondrous Cross

The Liturgy of Good Friday has a solemn simplicity that takes us back to earlier times, in fact the structure has its roots in the 4th century Liturgy in the basilica of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, mainly the veneration of the Cross and reading of the Passion, mentioned by the pilgrim Egeria in her account of the ceremonies. It also has links to the structure of the ancient Roman rite particularly in the prayers of intercession and the chants used.

The whole rite has a direct simplicity which divides into three parts, the Liturgy of the Word and the solemn proclamation of John's account of the passion and death of Jesus followed by the intercessions. Then there is the showing and veneration of the Cross which is then followed by the distribution of communion and a solemn prayer over the people without a blessing or formal dismissal. A reminder that the Triduum is one whole, a continuous sequence of liturgical action.

One of the hymns most suitable for this day is 'When I survey the Wondrous Cross', a gift from the English non-conformist tradition, and a wonderfully poetic evocation of the Cross, the death and sacrifice of Christ, and its meaning for us all. It was written by Isaac Watts (1674-1748) an English Congregational minister known as the "Father of English Hymnody" who revolutionized worship by writing over 700 hymns in a style that was accessible, innovative and based on New Testament themes rather than on rigid biblical paraphrasing.

Its simplicity touches the emotional intensity of Good Friday and a devotional aspect of Christian discipleship in the broader English spiritual tradition which avoids the more exuberant Spanish style of embracing the passion in a grand , and instead leads us to a more interior, personal meditation on the Cross as a symbol of the love Christ has for each of us and of our sharing in his sacrifice by acts of love and service. It is a commitment to his command to love as his disciples, very much as the last verse puts it so poignantly :' Love so amazing, so divine, Demands my Soul, my Life, my All'.

Ancient Prayer of the Cross 803CE

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

O Adorable Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ,
Thou has suffered death on the Cross for our sins.

O Holy Cross of Jesus, be my true Light!
O Holy Cross, fill my soul with good thoughts.
O Holy Cross, ward off from me all things that are evil.
O Holy Cross, ward off from me all dangers and deaths
and give me life everlasting!

Hymn : When I Survey the Wondrous Cross

When I survey the wond'rous Cross
On which the Prince of Glory dy'd,
My richest Gain I count but Loss,
And pour Contempt on all my Pride.

Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast,
Save in the Death of Christ my God:
All the vain Things that charm me most,
I sacrifice them to his Blood.

See from his Head, his Hands, his Feet,
Sorrow and Love flow mingled down!
Did e'er such Love and Sorrow meet,
Or Thorns compose so rich a Crown?

His dying Crimson, like a Robe,
Spreads o'er his Body on the Tree;
Then I am dead to all the Globe,
And all the Globe is dead to me.

Were the whole Realm of Nature mine,
That were a Present far too small;
Love so amazing, so divine,
Demands my Soul, my Life, my All.