Are there any recordings of this work *without* the evangelist parts (the
half-spoken ones).  Or would it be regarded as a sacrilege?

The evangelist parts constitute a little more than a full hour, according
to my calculations (the rest being almost 182 minutes) based on K.
Richter's 1958 recording.

Do the spoken passages exclusively ritual function? Do you listen to them
(especially in German recordings if you don't know German)? I find myself
pushing buttons when listening to the Passion to omit them way too often.
Do I miss something?

Thanks for your responses!

Juozas Rimas Jr (not the one playing)
http://artists.mp3s.com/artists/141/juozas_rimas.html