Suffering Servant Songs

Suffering Servant Songs

Often, when we think of Holy Week (if we think of Holy Week as more than that empty space between Palm Sunday and Easter), we focus on the Triduum, those three days dedicated to the Last Supper, Passion, and Rising of Jesus, celebrated on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.  But in fact all of Holy Week is special in its preparation for the Triduum!

During Holy Week, the first readings for Mass on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday are three of the four “Suffering Servant Songs,” taken from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah.  (The fourth, longest, and perhaps most beautiful Suffering Servant Song is used on Good Friday.)  The Christian tradition reads Jesus’ story back into these texts:  Jesus is God’s loyal servant, called to lead the nations, who suffers for his commitment to God, undergoing much abuse and rejection.  Like the Suffering Servant, Jesus sacrifices himself, taking upon himself the punishment due to mankind.  And, like the Servant, he is ultimately triumphant, bringing salvation to the world.

In Monday’s reading from Isaiah 42, the Servant is presented as an agent of justice, yet not through force or even proclamation:  it is his quiet confidence and gentle manner that are notable:  a bruised reed he shall not break, and a smouldering wick he shall not quench.

On Tuesday, we read from Isaiah 49 of the Servant who was called before birth and equipped by God for his mission, a vehicle for the demonstration of God’s glory:  He made me a polished arrow, in his quiver he hid me.

In Wednesday’s reading from Isaiah 50, the eloquent Servant is beaten and abused, yet he follows the path God has given him to take:  I have not rebelled, have not turned back.  I gave my back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who plucked my beard.  My face I did not shield from buffets and spitting.

We, too, are called to be Servant.  Take a moment to revisit these three beautifully rendered texts in preparation for the fourth Servant Song that you will hear at the Good Friday liturgy.  Listen for the echoes of Jesus throughout, and wonder at the gift he made to us, a gift of self, a gift of salvation.

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