The Passion is the technical term for the suffering and Agony of Jesus that led directly to the Crucifixion, a central Christian event. The "Passion narratives" tell this story in the Gospels. The etymological origins of this meaning of the word lie in the Latin passio that first appears in the 2nd century, precisely to describe the travails and suffering of Jesus in this present context. All the other meanings of "passion" have been derived from this one. Agony (Greek αγωνία, agonía - the suffering, the struggle) is unbearable suffering unto death which, unrelieved, must be borne regardless. ... The neutrality and accuracy of this article are disputed. ... Religious depictions of the crucifixion of Jesus typically show him supported by nails through the palms. ... For the genre of Christian-themed music, see gospel music. ... Latin is the language that was originally spoken in the region around Rome called Latium. ...

"Passion" narratives

The canonical narratives of the Passion are found in the synoptic gospels and in the Gospel of John. The Synoptic Gospels are the Gospels of Mark, Matthew, and Luke. ... The Gospel of John is the fourth gospel in the sequence of the canon as printed in the New Testament, and scholars agree it was the fourth to be written. ...

Further details concerning the Passion are revealed in some non-canonical early writings. A more detailed account of what transpired between Christ's death on the Cross and the Resurrection is in the Gospel of Peter, which was declared to be apt to lead readers into Docetism and was not accepted into the canon. In the early history of Christianity, the Gospel of Peter had formerly been a prominent passion narrative, before it was suppressed and considered lost. ... In Christianity, Docetism is the belief that Jesus did not have a physical body; rather, that his body was an illusion, as was his crucifixion. ...

Instruments of the Passion

In Christian symbolism the Instruments of the Passion are the objects associated with the Passion Crucifixion. Religious depictions of the crucifixion of Jesus typically show him supported by nails through the palms. ...

Each of the Instruments have become an object of veneration among Christians, pictured in icons and allegedly recovered as relics. See Alleged relics of Jesus The Savior Not Made By Hands (1410s, by Andrei Rublev) An icon (from Greek εικων, eikon, image) is an artistic visual representation or symbol of anything considered holy and divine, such as God, saints or deities. ... Relics can be: Relics: the remains of saints (usually bones), honored in the Catholic and Orthodox churches. ... There are many relics of Jesus that people believe or believed to be authentic relics of the Gospel accounts. ...

Each of the Instruments has its own entry at Wikipedia. This entry describes the Instruments of the Passion as a subject of meditation, from its origins in the medieval Church.

The Instruments of the Passion:

• The Pillar or column where Jesus was whipped, in the episode of the Flagellation.
• The Whips that were used.
• The Crown of Thorns.
• The Cross on which he was crucified. See also the True Cross.
• The Nails
• The Titulus Crucis, attached to the Cross, inscribed "Iesus Nazarenus Rex Iudaeorum"
• The Lance by which a Roman soldier wounded him in the side.
• The Holy Grail, the Chalice that caught his blood.
• The Holy Sponge dipped in vinegar and gall.

Several holy textiles were involved and have had careers as relics: Veronica's Veil, the Robe, and the burial cloths represented by the Shroud of Turin. Pillar is a Christian rock band. ... Whipping on a post Flagellation is the act of whipping (Latin flagellum, whip) the human body. ... Alternate meanings: Crown-of-Thorns starfish In Christianity, the Crown of Thorns, one of the instruments of the Passion, was the woven chaplet of thorn branches worn by Jesus before his crucifixion. ... The traditional form of the Christian cross, known as the Latin cross The Christian cross is a familiar religious symbol of most Christianity. ... According to Christian tradition, the True Cross is the cross upon which Jesus was crucified. ... Relics that are claimed to be the Holy Nails with which Christ was crucified are objects of veneration among some Christians. ... INRI is a Latin acronym for Iesus Nazarenus Rex Iudaeorum (English: Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews or Jesus the Nazarene, the King of the Jews). Some Eastern Orthodox depictions of the Crucifix have a slight variation, showing instead the letters INBI, based on the Greek text of... The Spear of Destiny, sometimes known as the Lance, Spear Luin or Spear of Longinus, is claimed to be the spear that pierced the side of Jesus when he was on the cross. ... In Christian mythology, the Holy Grail was the dish, plate, cup or vessel that caught Jesus blood during his crucifixion. ... Among the Instruments of the Passion, which have all led such legendary careers, was the Holy Sponge, which Christians believe was dipped in vinegar and ironically offered to Christ during the Crucifixion, according to Matthew 27:48; Mark 15:36; and John 19:29. ... Veronicas veil, painting by Domenico Fetti (circa 1620). ... The seamless robe of Jesus is the robe said to have been worn by Jesus during his crucifixion. ... The first photo of the Shroud of Turin, taken in 1898, had the surprising feature that the image on the negative was clearer than the positive image. ...

The Holy Dice used by the soldiers to cast lots for the Robe are to be found in several locations. Passe-dix is one of the, possibly the, most ancient of all games of chance, is said to have actually been made use of by the executioners at the crucifixion of Jesus, when they parted his garments, casting lots, Matt. ...

Meditation device

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Stations of the Cross

In the Roman Catholic Church, the Passion story is depicted in the Stations of the Cross (via crucis, also translated more literally as "Way of the Cross"). This article considers Catholicism in the broadest ecclesiastical sense. ... The Stations of the Cross (or Way of the Cross; in Latin, Via Crucis or Via Dolorosa) refers to the depiction of the final days (or Passion) of Jesus, and the Roman Catholic and Anglican devotion commemorating the Passion. ...

Musical settings of Gospel narratives

The reading of the Passion during Holy Week dates back to the 4th century. It began to be intoned (rather than just spoken) in the Middle Ages, at least as early at the 8th century. 9th-century manuscripts have "litterae significativae" indicating interpretive chant, and later manuscript begin to specify exact notes to be sung. By the 1200s different singers were used for different characters in the narrative, a practice which became fairly universal by the 15th century, when polyphonic settings of the turba passages began to appear also. (Turba, while literally meaning "crowd," is used in this case to mean any passage in which more than one speaker speaks simultaneously.) In music, the word texture is often used in a rather vague way in reference to the overall sound of a piece of music. ...

In the later 15th century a number of new styles began to emerge:

• Responsorial Passions set all of Christ's words and the turba parts polyphonically
• Through-composed Passions were entirely polyphonic (also called motet Passions). Jacob Obrecht wrote the earliest extant example of this type.
• Summa Passionis settings were a synopsis of all four Gospels, including the Seven Last Words (a text later set by Haydn and Théodore Dubois). These were discouraged for church use but circulated widely nonetheless.

In the 16th century settings like these, and further developments, were created for the Catholic church by Victoria, William Byrd, Jacobus Gallus, Francisco Guerrero, Orlando di Lasso, and Cypriano de Rore. Jacob Obrecht Jacob Obrecht (November 22, around 1450–1505) was a Dutch composer. ... (Franz) Joseph Haydn (in German, Josef; he never used the Franz) (March 31, 1732 – May 31, 1809) was a leading composer of the classical period. ... François Clément Théodore Dubois (August 24, 1837 – June 11, 1924) was a French composer, organist and music teacher. ... Tomás Luis de Victoria (1548 – August 20, 1611) was a gifted Spanish composer of the late Renaissance. ... The William Byrd in this article was a composer who died in 1623. ... Jacobus Gallus Carniolus (Jacob Handl) (1550 – July 18, 1591) was a Slovenian composer. ... Francisco Guerrero (October 4 (?), 1528 – November 8, 1599) was a Spanish composer of the Renaissance. ... Orlande de Lassus, a. ... Cypriano de Rore or Cipriano de Rore (1515 or 1516 – September 1565) was a Franco-Flemish composer and teacher. ...

Martin Luther wrote, "The Passion of Christ should not be acted out in words and pretense, but in real life." Despite this, sung Passion performances were common in Lutheran churches right from the start, in both Latin and German, beginning as early as Laetare Sunday (three weeks before Easter) and continuing through Holy Week. Luther’s friend and collaborator Johann Walther wrote responsorial Passions which were used as models by Lutheran composers for centuries, and “summa Passionis” versions continued to circulate, despite Luther’s express disapproval. Later 16th-century passions included choral “exordium” (introduction) and “conclusio” sections with additional texts. In the 17th century came the development of “oratorio” passions which led to J.S. Bach’s passions, accompanied by instruments, with interpolated texts (then called “madrigal” movements) such as sinfonias, other Scripture passages, Latin motets, chorale arias, and more. Such settings were created by Bartholomeus Gesius and Heinrich Schütz. Thomas Strutz wrote a passion (1664) with arias for Jesus himself, pointing to the standard oratorio tradition of Schütz, Carissimi, and (later) Handel, although these composers seem to have thought that putting words in Jesus’ mouth was beyond the pale. The practice of using recitative for the Evangelist (rather than plainsong) was a development of court composers in northern Germany and only crept into church compositions at the end of the 17th century. Martin Luther (originally Martin Luder or Martinus Luther) (November 10, 1483 – February 18, 1546) was a German theologian and an Augustinian monk whose teachings inspired the Protestant Reformation and deeply influenced the doctrines of Lutheran, Protestant and other Christian traditions (a broad movement composed of many congregations and church bodies). ... Laetare Sunday is a name formerly often used, and less commonly used today, to denote the fourth Sunday of the season of Lent in the Christian liturgical calendar. ... For other people named Bach and other meanings of the word, see Bach (disambiguation). ... In music, a sinfonia can be one of three things: 1) In the very late Renaissance and early Baroque, a sinfonia was an alternate name for a canzona, fantasia or ricercar. ... In Western music, motet is a word that is applied to a number of highly varied choral musical compositions. ... Heinrich Schütz Heinrich Schütz ( October 9, 1585 – November 6, 1672) was a German composer and organist, generally regarded as the most important German composer before Johann Sebastian Bach and is often considered to be one of the most important composers of the 17th century along with Claudio Monteverdi. ... An oratorio is a large musical composition for orchestra, vocal soloists and chorus. ... Giacomo Carissimi (baptized April 18, 1605 – January 12, 1674, Rome), was an Italian composer, one of the most celebrated masters of the early Baroque, or, more accurately, the Roman School of music. ... George Frideric Handel (German Georg Friedrich Händel), (February 23, 1685 – April 14, 1759) was a German-born British Baroque music composer. ... Recitative, a form of composition often used in operas, oratorios, cantatas and similar works, is described as a melodic speech set to music, or a descriptive narrative song in which the music follows the words. ...

The best known Protestant musical settings of the Passion are by Johann Sebastian Bach, who wrote two Passions which have survived intact to the present day, one based on the Gospel of John (the St. John Passion), the other on the Gospel of Matthew (the St. Matthew Passion). In more recent times, the 20th century Polish composer Krzysztof Penderecki has written a St. Luke Passion, based on the Gospel of Luke. ... The Gospel of John is the fourth gospel in the sequence of the canon as printed in the New Testament, and scholars agree it was the fourth to be written. ... Originally meant to be performed for the first time in the St Thomas’s church in Leipzig, the St John Passion was first performed in 1724 in the St Nicholas’s church It is shorter and more dramatic than the St Matthew Passion. ... The Gospel of Matthew is one of the four Gospels of the New Testament. ... Bachs St. ... Krzysztof Penderecki (born November 23, 1933) is a Polish composer of classical music. ... The Gospel of Luke is the third of the four canonical Gospels of the New Testament, which tell the story of Jesus life, death, and resurrection. ...

A relative of the musical Passion is the custom of setting the text of Stabat Mater to music. Mater dolorosa became an iconic type, as in this 16th-century Spanish version by Luis de Morales (ca 1510 - 1586) Stabat Mater is a Roman Catholic hymn of the 13th century, attributed to Jacopone da Todi, that meditates on the suffering of Mary, mother of Jesus during his crucifixion. ...

Passion plays

Non-musical settings of the Passion story are generally called Passion plays. One famous cycle is performed at intervals at Oberammergau. The Passion figures among the scenes in the English mystery plays in more than one cycle of dramatic vignettes. There have also been a number of films telling the passion story, with a prominent recent example being The Passion of the Christ. A Passion play is a dramatic presentation depicting the suffering and death of Jesus. ... Oberammergau from the summit of Kofel Oberammergau is a village in Bavaria in Germany, most famous for its production of a passion play depicting the life and death of Jesus. ... Mystery plays are one of the earliest formally developed plays in medieval Europe. ... The Passion of the Christ (2004) is an independent film about the last twelve hours of the life of Jesus Christ. ...

External link

• "Why is it called the Passion?" (http://slate.msn.com/id/2096041)