Three Hours' Agony
The Three Hours' Agony (also known as the Tre Ore, The Great Three Hours, or Three Hours' Devotion) is a Christian service held in many Roman Catholic, Lutheran, Anglican and Methodist churches on Good Friday from noon till 3 o'clock to commemorate the three hours of Christ's hanging at the cross. It includes sermons on the Seven Last Words from the Cross, and usually occurs between noon and 3PM (the latter being the time Jesus is said to have died on the cross and the time the Liturgy of the Lord's Passion begins), and sometimes  between 6PM and 9PM. The Jesuit priest Alphonsus Messia (died 1732) is said to have devised this devotion in Lima, Peru. It was introduced to Rome around 1788 and spread around the world to many Christian denominations. In 1815, Pope Pius VII decreed a plenary indulgence to those who practise this devotion on Good Friday.