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Three Hours: Sermons for Good Friday
On Good Friday, March 30, 2018, Fleming Rutledge preached on the Seven Last Words of Jesus at St. Thomas Church Fifth Avenue, New York City. Her seven meditations, delivered over the course of three hours, were met with rave reviews. Printed in full in this volume, these sermons display Rutledge’s usual combination of resolute orthodoxy and pastoral wisdom—at once traditional and fresh.
96 pages, Hardcover
Published January 15, 2019
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
April 8, 2023
This gem of a book is a collection of seven marvelous, moving sermons by the esteemed Episcopalian preacher and minister Fleming Rutledge (who says women can't preach?). I was especially touched by her second sermon where she reflects on how the penitent thief would have been a notorious brigand and yet what astounding faith does he have to herald Jesus as Lord, to beg Jesus to "remember me when you come into your kingdom" as the two of them hang dying upon their crosses - Jesus certainly would not have looked like a coronated king. These sermons are well worth becoming an Easter tradition.
April 22, 2019
Summary: Short messages on the "seven last words" of Christ on the cross, preached on Good Friday of 2018.
One of the ways churches have remembered the death of Christ on the cross on what is called Good Friday is through a three hour service from noon until 3 pm, usually organized around the seven "words" of Jesus from the cross, interspersed with liturgy, hymns, prayers, and silence.
Fleming Rutledge gave seven meditations on these "seven last words" at St. Thomas Church Fifth Avenue, New York City on Good Friday, March 30, 2018. These meditations were published, with little alteration earlier this year, and served as my own Good Friday meditations this past Friday.
Each of these short meditations left me with a thought for reflection. This may or may not have been Rutledge's focus, but I share these as much to capture them for myself, as well as to give you a taste of what is here. There is much more to each short meditation than my summary thought!
Luke 23:32-34. "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do." What about those who know what they are doing, as is the case for all of us at times? Christ is the one who died to justify the ungodly!
Luke 23:39-43. "Verily, I say unto thee, Today thou shalt be with me in paradise." We speculate much about the afterlife. We focus little on what it means when Jesus says that it will be "with him." "In his presence is fullness of joy!"
John 19: 26-27. "Woman, behold thy son!...Behold thy mother!" Two unrelated believers become kin. "There is no other way to be a disciple of Jesus than to be in communion with other disciples of Jesus" (p, 32).
Matthew 27:45-46. "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" Jesus "steered toward the pain" and plumbed the very bottom of despair and alienation as he "became sin" and surrendered to Death. This is the one who has defeated Death and Hell, whose love, nothing can separate us from.
John 19:28-29. "I thirst." Water is life. Living water is nothing less than real water--the water from Jesus side along with his life-giving blood. The one who thirsted now says, "come to the water."
John 19:29-30. "It is finished." Rutledge writes, "The crucifixion is not just an unfortunate thing that happened to Jesus on his way to the resurrection. It is not a momentary blip on the arc of his ascent to the Father. John tells us otherwise. It is precisely on the cross that the work of Jesus is carried through to its completion" (p. 67). Tetelestai!
Luke 23:44-46. "Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit." In Flannery O'Connor's words quoted here, "The creative action of the Christian's life is to prepare his death in Christ." We each may commend our lives to the Father through this Son.
It was the reading of Rutledge's magnificent study on the crucifixion (review) that prompted me to buy this book. In much briefer form, I found the same depth of thoughtfulness, and elegance and economy of words. More than this, I was led to meditate through the Seven Words on the meaning of the cross--who Christ died for, the community Christ established, the hope of being "with him," and the cross as the consummation of Christ's work. I found myself stopping again and again and saying, "Hallelujah, what a Savior!"
This review comes too late for you to read this on Good Friday in 2019. But it is far from too late to acquire and read this book, particularly if you rushed through Passion Week preparing for Easter, or to have on hand for next year. This book will bear multiple readings and I look forward to returning to it again and again.
One of the ways churches have remembered the death of Christ on the cross on what is called Good Friday is through a three hour service from noon until 3 pm, usually organized around the seven "words" of Jesus from the cross, interspersed with liturgy, hymns, prayers, and silence.
Fleming Rutledge gave seven meditations on these "seven last words" at St. Thomas Church Fifth Avenue, New York City on Good Friday, March 30, 2018. These meditations were published, with little alteration earlier this year, and served as my own Good Friday meditations this past Friday.
Each of these short meditations left me with a thought for reflection. This may or may not have been Rutledge's focus, but I share these as much to capture them for myself, as well as to give you a taste of what is here. There is much more to each short meditation than my summary thought!
Luke 23:32-34. "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do." What about those who know what they are doing, as is the case for all of us at times? Christ is the one who died to justify the ungodly!
Luke 23:39-43. "Verily, I say unto thee, Today thou shalt be with me in paradise." We speculate much about the afterlife. We focus little on what it means when Jesus says that it will be "with him." "In his presence is fullness of joy!"
John 19: 26-27. "Woman, behold thy son!...Behold thy mother!" Two unrelated believers become kin. "There is no other way to be a disciple of Jesus than to be in communion with other disciples of Jesus" (p, 32).
Matthew 27:45-46. "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" Jesus "steered toward the pain" and plumbed the very bottom of despair and alienation as he "became sin" and surrendered to Death. This is the one who has defeated Death and Hell, whose love, nothing can separate us from.
John 19:28-29. "I thirst." Water is life. Living water is nothing less than real water--the water from Jesus side along with his life-giving blood. The one who thirsted now says, "come to the water."
John 19:29-30. "It is finished." Rutledge writes, "The crucifixion is not just an unfortunate thing that happened to Jesus on his way to the resurrection. It is not a momentary blip on the arc of his ascent to the Father. John tells us otherwise. It is precisely on the cross that the work of Jesus is carried through to its completion" (p. 67). Tetelestai!
Luke 23:44-46. "Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit." In Flannery O'Connor's words quoted here, "The creative action of the Christian's life is to prepare his death in Christ." We each may commend our lives to the Father through this Son.
It was the reading of Rutledge's magnificent study on the crucifixion (review) that prompted me to buy this book. In much briefer form, I found the same depth of thoughtfulness, and elegance and economy of words. More than this, I was led to meditate through the Seven Words on the meaning of the cross--who Christ died for, the community Christ established, the hope of being "with him," and the cross as the consummation of Christ's work. I found myself stopping again and again and saying, "Hallelujah, what a Savior!"
This review comes too late for you to read this on Good Friday in 2019. But it is far from too late to acquire and read this book, particularly if you rushed through Passion Week preparing for Easter, or to have on hand for next year. This book will bear multiple readings and I look forward to returning to it again and again.
April 11, 2022
Before I discovered this book, I was unaware of the tradition of the “three hours” practices on the afternoon of Good Friday - and the practice of delivering 7 short devotional sermons on the 7 words of Jesus from the Cross. As a pastor, this would be a wonderful thing to be invited to do.
Fleming Rutledge does a superb job in these sermons. I read through them in the week before Holy Week - quite a good devotional aide to use anytime, but especially during Lent and Easter. Highly recommended. Easy read.
Also you can hear the sermons as originally delivered at https://www.saintthomaschurch.org/eve... - and it is well worth both hearing and reading them.
Fleming Rutledge does a superb job in these sermons. I read through them in the week before Holy Week - quite a good devotional aide to use anytime, but especially during Lent and Easter. Highly recommended. Easy read.
Also you can hear the sermons as originally delivered at https://www.saintthomaschurch.org/eve... - and it is well worth both hearing and reading them.
April 25, 2020
Seven incisive sermons, each a meditation on one of Jesus’ Last Words. Delivered as part of a 3-hour Good Friday service, they surely had a powerful impact on the congregants. Unsurprisingly, they’re somewhat less impactful when casually read over the course of a week, but still good.
March 31, 2021
It puts heart in you
This short book is perfect for Passion Week (or any week). Readable, deep, challenging, inspiring and beautifully worded. My first book by her but not my last.
This short book is perfect for Passion Week (or any week). Readable, deep, challenging, inspiring and beautifully worded. My first book by her but not my last.
April 24, 2019
Very Sobering!
Just what I needed to put Easter in prospective this year. A thought provoking look at the present through a new visualization of the past. So much to consider.
Just what I needed to put Easter in prospective this year. A thought provoking look at the present through a new visualization of the past. So much to consider.
Read
October 20, 2024Seven beautiful meditations on the seven last words of Christ given on Good Friday 2018 during a three hour service from noon until 3pm. Read during Holy Week 2019 and was enriched.
Read for a silent retreat October 2024
Read for a silent retreat October 2024
February 3, 2019
I have participated in Good Friday services for the past twenty plus years, which feature the "Seven Last Words of Christ." I published one set from my days in Santa Barbara under the title "Cries from the Cross." I have found these services, which I share with other clergy to be meaningful (our services have been designed to last one hour). I have not tried to preach on all seven words over a three hour period, which is the traditional format. Fleming Rutledge, however, did just that at St. Thomas Fifth Avenue Episcopal Church of New York. I commend her for having the stamina to take this on. The sermons are insightful as well.
Good Friday services are a rarity among Protestants, though Episcopalians and some Lutherans do make a habit of it. The danger here is that we might move from the Triumphanal Entry to Easter, without a stop at the Cross. Thus, the need for Good Friday to be observed. The Seven Last Words seem to be the best vehicle for doing this.
The sermons focus on three texts drawn from the Gospel of John, three from Luke, and one from Matthew. We begin with Jesus granting forgiveness in Luke 23 to those who "know not what they do." This is a powerful word, but Rutledge asks what to make of those who know what they're doing. She suggests that when it comes to the ungodly, including ourselves as Christians, perhaps forgiveness is too weak a word. Perhaps we need to draw upon the word justification. She closes the first word with reference to the hymn "Ah, holy Jesus, how hast thou offended,"
The Second word also comes from Luke 23, which invites us to consider Jesus' response to the one hanging on a cross next to him, asking that Jesus remember him in the kingdom. Jesus' response is the promise that "Today shalt thou be with me in paradise." She makes the good point that the focus here is not on the word paradise, but the words "with me." Yes, the invitation is to join Jesus in entering the realm of God.
The third word is the one I will reflect on this year (2019), and that is Jesus conversation in John 19 with the Beloved Disciple and his mother. Rutledge notes that John never names his mother who appears only at Cana and here. Thus, the word here is two unrelated believers, creating a new form of kinship. That is the message here then, the new kinship of the church.
For many the fourth word is the most powerful, because it's the one many identify with most. That is the cry of dereliction, found here in Matthew, in which the Gospel acknowledges the feeling of abandonment and divine silence that Jesus experienced on the cross. This word is a reminder that Jesus was fighting a spiritual battle on the cross, in which he faced the forces of hell, that sense of absence of love, light, and God.
The fifth word returns to the Gospel of John, where we hear the words of Jesus "I Thirst." Rutledge places this cry from the cross in contrast to Jesus' conversation in John 4 with the Samaritan woman, in which he speaks of the living water. Living in Michigan I appreciated her reference to the poisoned waters of Flint. What is the relationship between living water and natural waters?
The sixth word, the penultimate word again from John, in which Jesus cries out "It is Finished." Rutledge brings out the question of what Jesus is saying here. Is he simply giving up the battle to live? Or, as she believes, he is declaring that he has finished his vocation. He has brought his life calling to completion. Referring to the Resurrection, it doesn't cancel out the cross, it vindicates the crucified one. In other words, this declaration in John is one of victory.
Finally we come to the seventh word, which reflects upon the Gospel of Luke once again. We begin with Luke and end with Luke. Here Jesus commends his spirit to God. I will admit that I felt like Rutledge ran out of steam in this sermon. It seemed less deep than some of the others. This might just be me, but it is more summation than exploration of the final word.
All in all this will be a valued reflection for Good Friday. It's brief enough that one can read through in a couple of hours, perhaps on Good Friday, so as to take in the message that Paul believes is foundational to the Gospel.
Good Friday services are a rarity among Protestants, though Episcopalians and some Lutherans do make a habit of it. The danger here is that we might move from the Triumphanal Entry to Easter, without a stop at the Cross. Thus, the need for Good Friday to be observed. The Seven Last Words seem to be the best vehicle for doing this.
The sermons focus on three texts drawn from the Gospel of John, three from Luke, and one from Matthew. We begin with Jesus granting forgiveness in Luke 23 to those who "know not what they do." This is a powerful word, but Rutledge asks what to make of those who know what they're doing. She suggests that when it comes to the ungodly, including ourselves as Christians, perhaps forgiveness is too weak a word. Perhaps we need to draw upon the word justification. She closes the first word with reference to the hymn "Ah, holy Jesus, how hast thou offended,"
The Second word also comes from Luke 23, which invites us to consider Jesus' response to the one hanging on a cross next to him, asking that Jesus remember him in the kingdom. Jesus' response is the promise that "Today shalt thou be with me in paradise." She makes the good point that the focus here is not on the word paradise, but the words "with me." Yes, the invitation is to join Jesus in entering the realm of God.
The third word is the one I will reflect on this year (2019), and that is Jesus conversation in John 19 with the Beloved Disciple and his mother. Rutledge notes that John never names his mother who appears only at Cana and here. Thus, the word here is two unrelated believers, creating a new form of kinship. That is the message here then, the new kinship of the church.
For many the fourth word is the most powerful, because it's the one many identify with most. That is the cry of dereliction, found here in Matthew, in which the Gospel acknowledges the feeling of abandonment and divine silence that Jesus experienced on the cross. This word is a reminder that Jesus was fighting a spiritual battle on the cross, in which he faced the forces of hell, that sense of absence of love, light, and God.
The fifth word returns to the Gospel of John, where we hear the words of Jesus "I Thirst." Rutledge places this cry from the cross in contrast to Jesus' conversation in John 4 with the Samaritan woman, in which he speaks of the living water. Living in Michigan I appreciated her reference to the poisoned waters of Flint. What is the relationship between living water and natural waters?
The sixth word, the penultimate word again from John, in which Jesus cries out "It is Finished." Rutledge brings out the question of what Jesus is saying here. Is he simply giving up the battle to live? Or, as she believes, he is declaring that he has finished his vocation. He has brought his life calling to completion. Referring to the Resurrection, it doesn't cancel out the cross, it vindicates the crucified one. In other words, this declaration in John is one of victory.
Finally we come to the seventh word, which reflects upon the Gospel of Luke once again. We begin with Luke and end with Luke. Here Jesus commends his spirit to God. I will admit that I felt like Rutledge ran out of steam in this sermon. It seemed less deep than some of the others. This might just be me, but it is more summation than exploration of the final word.
All in all this will be a valued reflection for Good Friday. It's brief enough that one can read through in a couple of hours, perhaps on Good Friday, so as to take in the message that Paul believes is foundational to the Gospel.
April 11, 2025
This is a fantastic collection of sermons specifically about Jesus’s crucifixion. This collection is originally meant to be part of a three-hour Good Friday service. The book is a perfect length to read as a Good Friday observance, or really any other day you might want to spend a little extra time remembering the Savior’s sacrifice. The individual sermons are also a perfect length for a shorter study.
There are seven sermons in this collection. Each on is focused on one of Christ’s final seven statements from the cross. This has the effect of giving these sermons an impressive breadth, covering topics from stewardship over the environment to looking after each other to more theological and philosophical topics. Rutledge accomplishes this while still keeping the sermons focused exclusively on Jesus Christ. The sermons are a good balance of informative, introspective, and entertaining, Rutledge uses scriptures, works of other writers and theologians, and personal experience to explore the implications and connections of each of Jesus’s final seven statements. I like the way that she balances the more intellectual aspects of discipleship with the more practical aspects of daily life following Jesus Christ.
One of my favorites of the sermons is the one about Jesus creating a whole new family from the cross when He tells His beloved disciple to behold his mother and His mother to behold her son. I think it tied in well to the next sermon about despair and what despair means to us as Christians and our responsibility to each other.
I also loved the sermon about Living Water. She explains that Jesus is the Living Water in that we need Him but also connects it to the idea that water is also meant to remind us of Jesus and that we have a responsibility to protect the water that gives life to so many people. She further links this to Jesus saying from the cross “I thirst” which is significant because Jesus was deprived of water when He was on the cross, experiencing the worst thing that a person can experience which signifies both how much He sacrificed for us as well as what we should not allow any other person to go through.
Her final two sermons are focused on the very last words that Christ spoke from the cross. She focuses on the triumph of the crucifixion and what it means for us, including both the pain and suffering that the crucifixion points to that we all experience, and the joy that we can have as a result of His sacrifice.
Overall, I think this is a wonderful book to consider for anyone who is hoping to ponder on the different aspects of Jesus’s crucifixion and what it means for us.
There are seven sermons in this collection. Each on is focused on one of Christ’s final seven statements from the cross. This has the effect of giving these sermons an impressive breadth, covering topics from stewardship over the environment to looking after each other to more theological and philosophical topics. Rutledge accomplishes this while still keeping the sermons focused exclusively on Jesus Christ. The sermons are a good balance of informative, introspective, and entertaining, Rutledge uses scriptures, works of other writers and theologians, and personal experience to explore the implications and connections of each of Jesus’s final seven statements. I like the way that she balances the more intellectual aspects of discipleship with the more practical aspects of daily life following Jesus Christ.
One of my favorites of the sermons is the one about Jesus creating a whole new family from the cross when He tells His beloved disciple to behold his mother and His mother to behold her son. I think it tied in well to the next sermon about despair and what despair means to us as Christians and our responsibility to each other.
I also loved the sermon about Living Water. She explains that Jesus is the Living Water in that we need Him but also connects it to the idea that water is also meant to remind us of Jesus and that we have a responsibility to protect the water that gives life to so many people. She further links this to Jesus saying from the cross “I thirst” which is significant because Jesus was deprived of water when He was on the cross, experiencing the worst thing that a person can experience which signifies both how much He sacrificed for us as well as what we should not allow any other person to go through.
Her final two sermons are focused on the very last words that Christ spoke from the cross. She focuses on the triumph of the crucifixion and what it means for us, including both the pain and suffering that the crucifixion points to that we all experience, and the joy that we can have as a result of His sacrifice.
Overall, I think this is a wonderful book to consider for anyone who is hoping to ponder on the different aspects of Jesus’s crucifixion and what it means for us.
May 21, 2019
This marvelous collection of seven brief homilies, preached by The Rev. Fleming Rutledge during a three-hour period on Good Friday 2018 at St. Thomas Church in New York City, is nothing short of a treasure-trove of material on which to reflect. As a priest and preacher, Rev. Rutledge has in her journey through the three hours on Golgotha opened up entirely new ways for me to look at (and experience) the final hours of the crucified Jesus in my own preaching. But everyone will benefit from spending time with these powerful prompts for reflection and prayer. Anyone who wants to dive more deeply into the power of Good Friday and consider the true meaning of the crucifixion for us today would be well served in getting this book and reading .... and re-reading ... and re-reading.
December 29, 2021
Rutledge is such a great thinker and preacher. She has taken some of the bigger concepts of her book The Crucifixion and made them more palatable in sermon form. The ideas are all less spelled out as you would expect (and most are only there in seed form anyway), but it's a very accessible version. I read it in a few hours :)
April 29, 2019
Another excellent collection of sermons from Fleming Rutledge. All done on Good Friday in 2018 at St. Thomas Church in Manhattan. Once again, Ms. Rutledge opens up the text and provides a fresh perspective on Christianity. Great read!
April 18, 2022
Good Source for Reflection
Fleming Rutledge never disappoints. These sermons give the reader something to think about on Good Friday and Resurrection day. The demons are not long, but are full of depth.
Fleming Rutledge never disappoints. These sermons give the reader something to think about on Good Friday and Resurrection day. The demons are not long, but are full of depth.
April 18, 2022
Based on an older Anglican practice of a 3 hour Good Friday service, this book has 7 sermons preached in that service by Fleming Rutledge. All are based on the cross and crucifixion. A good easy read.
April 13, 2023
A collection of seven sermons preached at a Good Friday service. Rutledge does a masterful job of looking at the crucifixion through different angles and lenses. I found myself looking at passages of Scripture I've read hundreds of times with new eyes. What a gift.
April 23, 2019
Powerful sermons by the teacher of sermons to seminarians. This collection from sermons is humbling and soul shaking to read. I am renewed and filled by Fleming’s chosen words.
August 18, 2019
This beautiful, sophisticated piece can easily be incorporated into anyone's devotions during holy week, lay or ordained. A gift worth giving.
April 1, 2021
Helpful insights; thoughtful, brief meditations.
September 17, 2021
Worth revisiting each Holy Week.
April 29, 2022
Yet another collection of Rutledge’s remarkable sermons and meditations. The seventh meditation in this collection is deeply enriching and inspiring.
April 27, 2022
I wish I had discovered Fleming Rutledge earlier. I had never heard of her before my eye was all but dragged to her book, "The Crucifixion: Understanding the Death of Jesus Christ," on the bookstore shelf. That one is a daunting book I have not yet scaled, but finding it found me her. She is an excellent writer and, best of all, a deep believer, learned and aware, with a gift for expressing profundities in everyday language.
This book is a series of sermons she gave in 2018 during a Good Friday service in New York City where she ministered for most of her career. She takes us through the Seven Last Words from the cross in brief but powerful lessons drawing out some of the meanings contained in them. I say "some of the meanings" not because she is shallow but because who among us can exhaust them all? And though that event, these sayings, have had innumerable treatments through the millennia, this is a stellar addition to the lot.
This book is a series of sermons she gave in 2018 during a Good Friday service in New York City where she ministered for most of her career. She takes us through the Seven Last Words from the cross in brief but powerful lessons drawing out some of the meanings contained in them. I say "some of the meanings" not because she is shallow but because who among us can exhaust them all? And though that event, these sayings, have had innumerable treatments through the millennia, this is a stellar addition to the lot.
November 20, 2022
“There is no other way to be a disciple of Jesus than to be in communion with other disciples of Jesus. Why do you suppose the Lord didn’t separate out each one of his followers, stand us up separately, pronounce us each a unique individual, and then bid us go off and create ourselves? He did the opposite; instead of making us independent and self-centered, he makes us mutually interdependent and other-directed.”
March 20, 2025
Exquisite. Powerful. Superb. Preached between noon and 3 p.m. on Good Friday, Rutledge considered the seven last words of Christ. Reading (or hearing) these words is the only way to really say what's true about them.
December 22, 2024
Reading this may become a Holy Week tradition for me. Complex theology of the cross preached in an incredibly relatable way.
September 30, 2018
Wonderfully written, I would gladly use this book as a resource for my own sermons. The author writes with the insight of an expert.
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews