Alone thou goest forth

Alone thou goest forth, O Lord, in sacrifice to die;

is this thy sorrow nought to us who pass unheeding by?

Our sins, not thine, thou bearest, Lord; make us thy sorrow feel,

till through our pity and our shame love answers love’s appeal.

This is earth’s darkest hour, but thou dost light and life restore;

then let all praise be given thee who livest evermore.

Grant us with thee to suffer pain that, as we share this hour,

thy cross may bring us to thy joy and resurrection power.

The Agony in the Garden, from a 14th-century Book of Hours. Christ is alone, the apostles sleeping, but in the darkness behind him a gallery of medieval faces – kings and queens and ordinary people – keeps vigil with him through the night.

(BL Yates Thompson MS. 13) pic.twitter.com/jFMFSzhPQZ

— Eleanor Parker (@ClerkofOxford) April 2, 2026