This weekend we will celebrate the Mass of Palm Sunday, Jesus’ triumphant entrance into
Jerusalem as they greeted Him as the Messiah and King, yet within just a few short days these fickle followers turned on Him and betrayed Him, giving Him up to death.
Holy Week begins a most sacred and venerable time for Christians and most specifically for Roman Catholics alike. We will celebrate the Passion, death and Resurrection of the Savior of the world. As last week’s gospel noted, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat, but if it dies it will produce much fruit. Father Raymond Brown, scripture scholar, asks us to look upon the crucified Christ as a grain of wheat and in His self-emptying death He fell to the ground and died, producing the greatest harvest of all, the best fruit, and the gift of Eternal Life for all of us—those who choose to follow and live as Christ in our world. We too must die to ourselves and produce the fruit of our faith by living as Christ in this world, loving,
forgiving and compassionately being Him to the world around us. Let us look at the Passion of Holy Week, the death and Resurrection of Jesus and contemplate how we will follow Him and so produce much fruit.
A Look at Holy Week: The first thing Roman Catholics should do is not to look at Holy Week, or the Sacred Triduum, as three separate and distinct events (Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter) but rather we attend as one liturgy—one that begins on Holy Thursday with the Mass of the Lord’s Supper and ends with the Resurrection of Jesus Christ on Easter morning. And so in that understanding, we must realize that in order to celebrate the Triduum or Holy Week we should do our best to attend all three liturgies and fully and actively participate in the whole of the passion, death and Resurrection of Christ.
On Holy Thursday we celebrate the Lord’s Last Supper which comprises the institution of the Priesthood of Jesus Christ and the institution of the Sacred Eucharist as two powerful Sacraments in His Catholic Church. In the midst of this Mass, we participate in the Mandatum or the washing of the feet, symbolizing the suffering servant of Christ and the type of universal Kingship He shall proclaim. The Mass does not close not with a final blessing or the great commissioning, “The Mass has ended go in peace!” for this Mass does not end but continues with the Good Friday service after on Holy Thursday we repose the Blessed Sacrament and pray before the Body of Christ.
On Good Friday the service begins (and concludes) in silence. There is no entrance hymn but rather the priest enters the church in silence, prostrates himself on the floor in silent prayer and then goes to the Presider’s Chair and offers a prayer to begin this service of the Word, the Veneration of the Cross, and Holy Communion from the pre-consecrated hosts from Holy Thursday’s Mass (Good Friday is not a Mass as there is no consecration). We leave in silence as we recall the death of our Lord and the sadness it bestows on the unsuspecting and unknowing world.
On Holy Saturday and Easter Sunday we celebrate the Resurrection of Christ our Lord and the gift of Eternal Life. Salvation! By His dying and falling to the ground as a simple grain of wheat, He has produced the greatest harvest of all—The Resurrection and Life Everlasting! Intended for us!!! The Great Easter Vigil which begins at 8 p.m. on Holy Saturday is a magnificent and beautiful multi-part Mass: the Service of Light, the Liturgy of the Word with all the readings and psalms, the Sacraments of Baptism, Holy Communion and Confirmation, and then the closing of the Mass and beginning of the Easter Season, begun the beautifully played and sung music by our choir and topped off by the Parish’s Alleluia Party! What a way to kick of the 50 days of Easter!
It is my sincere hope that you will join us this Holy Week—the Triduum—and fully participate in the joy of the gift of Love and Eternal Life from God to you. If you have never attended the whole of Holy Week, perhaps this is the year to do so. When we experience the fullness of our faith, its depth and breadth of beauty and meaning, then and only then can we know what God has given to us. And once we know it, how can I stop from singing?!?