Good Friday Tenebrae

ABOUT A TENEBRAE SERVICE:

The name Tenebrae (Latin for “darkness” or “shadows”) has for centuries been applied to the ancient monastic night and early morning offices of the last three days of Holy Week. By drawing upon material from each of the three offices, this service provides a meditation upon, and a prelude to, the suffering and death of our Lord. Apart from the chanting of the Lamentations, the most significant feature of the service is the gradual extinguishing of candles and other lights in the church, symbolizing the scattering of the disciples and other followers of Jesus during his Passion, until only a single candle, considered a symbol of our Lord, remains. Toward the end of the service this candle is hidden, portraying the apparent victory of the forces of evil, and the church is completely dark. At the very end, a loud noise is made, symbolizing the earthquake at the moment of Christ’s death on the cross (Matt. 27:51), the hidden candle is restored to its place, and by its light all depart in silence.