Holy Week 2020

Holy Saturday
Darkness to Light

On Holy Saturday the church waits at the Lord’s tomb in prayer and fasting, meditating on his Passion and Death and on his Descent into Hell, and awaiting his Resurrection. The sacred table is left bare until the time comes for Paschal joy, which overflows to occupy fifty days. 

The Solemn Beginning

Dear brothers and sisters, on this most sacred night in which our Lord Jesus Christ passed over from death into life, the Church calls upon her sons and daughters, scattered throughout the world to come together to watch and pray. If we keep the memorial of the Lord’s paschal solemnity in this way, listening to his word and celebrating his mysteries, then we shall have the sure hope of sharing his triumph over death and living with him in God. - The Roman Missal 

The Great Easter Vigil | This Is the Night!

Begins with the lighting of the Easter fire and candle. The light (candle) is brought in to a darkened church and light begins to fill the room. We hear the words, “Exult, let them exult…”, in the great hymn of praise to God’s plan of salvation. The stories of salvation are told by the light of hundreds of candles held by the faithful as has been done for centuries.

Genesis 1:1-2:2 | God looked at all he had made and found it very good.

Genesis 22:1-18 | In your descendants all the nations of the earth shall find blessing – all this because you obeyed my command.

Exodus 14-15:1 | I will sing to the Lord, for he is gloriously triumphant; horse and chariot he has cast into the sea. 

Isaiah 54:5-14 | Though the mountains leave their place and the hills be shaken, my love shall never leave you, nor my covenant of peace be shaken.

Isaiah 55:1-11 | My word shall not return to me void, but shall do my will, achieving the end for which I sent it.

Baruch 3:9-15, 32-4:4 | Blessed are we, O Israel, for what pleases God is known to us!

Ezekiel 36:16-28 | You shall be my people and I will be your God.

Romans 6:3-11 | You must think of yourselves as being dead to sin and living for God in Christ Jesus.

St Matthew 28:1-10 | Do not be afraid.  Tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me. 

Communion Antiphon 

Christ, our Passover, has been sacrificed; therefore let us keep the feast with the unleavened bread of purity and truth, Alleluia!

The Church's One Foundation | Listen Now

Good Friday

Each Good Friday we are invited to go deeper into a personal identification with the Passion and Death of Jesus.

This year has something new: The danger, anguish and fear of death that surround us all this year is a global phenomenon and a universal threat. The things that Christians normally do in Holy Week to make transcendent meaning out of apparent loss of meaning are unavailable: palm-crosses, washing of feet, kissing of the cross, and, above all, our sharing of bread and wine — these powerful physical and sacramental expressions of our faith which are done together.

The trouble with the coronavirus “story,” of course, is that it isn’t just a story — we are in it, and for now, none of us can get out of it. 

The glory of the Passion story is that it also isn’t just a story: the mystery of the Passion binds us all together across the boundaries of time and space and even death itself.  

The fear and anguish of COVID-19 also remind us of this same fact: that we belong together for ever, in need and vulnerability and compassion and mutual longing. We are one — both in death and in life.

While we ache and yearn for the physical and spiritual comfort of the familiar sacraments, we are not empty-handed. We are stretched in new and unforeseen ways to understand the core of our baptismal faith: that the resurrected body of Christ encompasses and sustains us all, “ourselves, our souls and bodies,” even in and through death itself, and mystically unites us not only to Him but to each other.

The coronavirus story will not have the last word. These experiences may yet turn us back to the transcendent source and unity of our being. 

Participate wherever you are in the devotions of Good Friday: 

• The Stations of the Cross | Click Here
• Holy Rosary | Click Here
• Veneration of the Cross at home

Let yourself be called into a future that it is our duty as Christians to re-imagine for ourselves and for the world.
 

Were You There? | Listen Now    Were You There? | Watch Video Now 

St. John Paul II's Devotion to Divine Mercy

Among the many notable things about the life and papacy of St. John Paul II is his devotion to divine mercy. He wrote an entire encyclical on it, “Dives in Misericordia” (“Rich in Mercy”), in which he outlines the truth and meaning of mercy from biblical times to the present and beyond.

He states, “The church must profess and proclaim God’s mercy in all its truth, as it has been handed down to us by revelation,". 

He found in St. Faustina Kowalska a kindred spirit. She was a humble and holy nun of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy in Poland who received extraordinary revelations of Our Lord.  

He said this in his homily at her canonization:

“May your message of light and hope spread throughout the world, spurring sinners to conversion, calming rivalries and hatred and opening individuals and nations to the practice of brotherhood. Today, fixing our gaze with you on the face of the risen Christ, let us make our prayer of abandonment and say with firm hope: ‘Christ Jesus, I trust in you!'
  
To prepare for Divine Mercy Sunday, Catholics can pray a novena beginning on Good Friday, nine days before the feast of mercy. Check out the LEAVEN article for all the details. 

Pie Jesu | Listen Now        Divine Mercy | Watch Now

The Three Days

The Sacred Triduum,or Easter Triduum is the summit of the Liturgical Year —from the evening of Holy Thursday to the evening of Easter Sunday. Though chronologically three days, they are liturgically one day where the unity of Christ's Paschal Mystery unfolds.

The single celebration of the Triduum marks the end of Lent, and leads to the Mass of the Resurrection of the Lord at the Easter Vigil (Holy Saturday). This, in turn, inaugurates the 50-day celebration of Easter.

The liturgical services that take place during the Easter Triduum are: 

• Mass of the Lord's Supper | Holy Thursday
• Good Friday of the Lord's Passion | Good Friday
• Mass of the Resurrection of the Lord | Easter Vigil/Easter Sunday

The word, summit, means the top, the highest aim and goal; the ideal. So, even in these times of pandemic and social distancing we must ask ourselves, What is the highest aim for these 3 days? What is the most we can do?

For many this summit will need to be reached and celebrated in our homes. We can share these celebrations through FaceTime, Zoom and other applications. We can even record them so that we have a log of what it meant in 2020 to answer our baptismal call as intentional disciples with a resounding, Yes! Amen!  I do believe! 

Evening Mass of the Lord’s Supper

Pange Lingua | Listen Now

As we begin to commemorate these sacred days, we call to mind the essential element of Christian identity, which is service. We are called to imitate Jesus in service to others.

The mass begins with the Introit, God’s invitation to us to join the heavenly hosts in worship. 

• We should glory in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, in whom is our salvation, life and resurrection, through whom we are saved and delivered.                   

Liturgy of the Word

• I give you a new commandment.  Love one another as I have loved you.

Washing of Feet

• Establishing for all time the requisite connection between love of neighbor and service to that neighbor and approaching the altar. We have an opportunity to contemplate these words from the earliest days of Christianity, “Whose feet have you washed this week? If you have not washed feet, why do you come to the table?” And the words of our Lord, "I have given you a model to follow, so that as I have done for you, you should also do.”

Liturgy of the Eucharist
  
Transfer and Adoration of the Most Blessed Sacrament

Reflection for Holy Wednesday

Holy Wednesday is variously called Spy Wednesday, Good Wednesday, or Holy and Great Wednesday. On Spy Wednesday, Christians remember that Jesus was betrayed by Judas Iscariot. The word spy, as used here, means "ambush, ambuscade, snare”.
 
One of the Twelve, who was called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, “What are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you?” They paid him thirty pieces of silver, and from that time on he looked for an opportunity to hand him over. {Matthew 26:14-25}
 
“Amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me”.

These words are spoken by Jesus while eating the Passover meal. Jesus Christ attests to and reveals an infinite holiness; an understanding of being set apart to accomplish God’s purpose. He is free, before, during and after the betrayal of Judas. Jesus does not threaten or accuse or reveal Judas’ name. He asks that Judas do quickly whatever is intended. The disciples do not really understand. They are just in great distress.

Today, meditate about this peace-filled and free behavior of Jesus. Jesus lives in complete charity toward and with humanity and is of one heart and mind (obedient) with the Father. Ask Jesus for the grace to understand and know this peace so that we may truly say, “peace be with you”. 

Crux Fidelis

Faithful cross, above all other,
One and only noble tree:
None in foliage, none in blossom,
None in fruit your peer may be.
Sweetest wood and sweetest nails,
Sweetest weight is hung on thee! 

Stations of the Cross | Via Crucis

The Way of the Cross (Via Crucis), as a devotion, may be traced to Christ's journey along the Via Dolorosa itself at Jerusalem as our Lord walked—and stumbled in pain—to his crucifixion on Mount Calvary. From the earliest years of the Church, pilgrims marked out that route in Jerusalem to revisit for themselves the scenes of Christ's passion. The concept of Stations of the Cross with stopping-places along the route, and specific prayers and meditations for each incident, did not develop until the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. This became common as representations of the events were set up in various parts of Europe, for the benefit of those who could not travel to Jerusalem to practice this devotion. In 1686 the Franciscans received from Innocent XI the right to erect Stations inside their churches. The spiritual graces and indulgences gained by making this Way of the Cross changed and developed over the centuries. Today, we are able (in our own churches) to make a pilgrimage in spirit and journey with Christ in His sufferings and death.  

The 8th Station
Jesus Meets the Women of Jerusalem

Jesus asks for their solidarity in suffering, not merely sympathy. He asks for a resolve to be reborn, to look to the future, to advance with faith and hope that comes to all who journey with their eyes fixed on God. Let us weep for ourselves if we do not yet believe in Jesus. Let us weep for the sins we have not confessed. 

The 9th Station
Jesus Falls a Third Time

May our contemplation of Jesus, who falls yet rises once more, help us to overcome our fears for the future, especially at this time of crisis. Jesus who stumbles and falls, but then rises, points us to a sure hope which, nourished by intense prayer, is born in the moments of trial. 

The 10th Station
Jesus is Stripped of His Clothing

Jesus was stripped naked. He was stripped as an act of utter humiliation. God did not prevent his naked body from being exposed on the cross. He did this to show that he, God, is irrevocably and unreservedly against oppression and abuse and on the side of the least among us. 

The 11th Station
Jesus is Nailed to the Cross

Sickness does not ask permission. It always comes unannounced. It is a bitter gall. Whenever someone shares our infirmities out of love, even in the night of pain there dawns the paschal light of Christ, crucified and risen. So it was for the martyrs and saints. 

We Pray

Loving Jesus, 
you went up to Golgotha without hesitation, in utter love,
and let yourself be crucified without complaint.
Lowly Son of Mary,
you shouldered the burden of our night
to show us the immense light
with which you wanted to fill our hearts.
In your suffering is our redemption;
in your tears we see “the hour”
when God’s gracious love is revealed.
In your final breath, as a man among men,
you lead us back, seven times forgiven,
to the heart of the Father,
and you show us, in your last words,
the path to the redemption of all our sorrows.
You, the Incarnate All, empty yourself on the cross,
understood only by her, your Mother,
who stood faithfully beneath that gibbet.
Your thirst is a wellspring of hope,
a hand extended even to the repentant thief,
who this day, thanks to you, enters paradise.
To all of us, crucified Lord Jesus,
grant your infinite mercy, 
a fragrance of Bethany upon the world,
a cry of life for all humanity.
And at last, as we commend ourselves into the hands of your Father, 
open unto us the doors of undying Life! Amen.  

H.E. Msgr. Giancarlo Maria Bregantini,
Archbishop of Campobasso-Boiano 

Draw Near

Refrain 
Draw near, draw near!  
Take the body of your Lord.  
Draw near, draw near!  
Drink the Blood for you outpoured.  

1. Draw near and take the Body of the Lord, and drink with faith the Blood for you outpoured. Saved by Christ’s Body and his holy Blood, with souls refreshed we give our thanks to God
2. Christ, our Redeemer, God’s eternal Son, has by his cross and blood the vict’ry won. He spent his life for greatest and for least. Praise Christ, the Paschal Victim, Christ the Priest.
3. Let us approach with faithful hearts sincere and claim the promise of salvation here. Christ rules our hearts, and all his saints defends; he gives believers life that never ends.
4. With heav’nly bread Christ makes the hungry whole; his living water fills the thirsting soul. Alpha – Omega, unto whom shall bow  all nations of the earth, be with us now. 

Reflection | Relying upon God’s Guidance and Direction | Holy Monday 

Today, I ask our loving Heavenly Father for guidance and direction. The Lord very much desires to answer prayers and will speak to us.

Drawing near to God requires effort on my part. I can only develop my spiritual self by practice. Holy Week is the perfect time to  train my spiritual self with the same care as I train my physical body. 

Our spiritual fathers and mothers tell us to, “take time to be holy each day of our lives”. This should be especially true in the time where each day is named, “Holy". If you have time now, set aside moments to meditate, ponder, and turn your heart toward heaven. This helps us receive, recognize, and understand the promptings of the Holy Spirit.  This Holy Week, whatever our circumstances, is a journey of faith and destiny, a true Via Dolorosa.  

During this time while we are making a spiritual communion with God, let us renew our covenant with Him. Let’s use this time to strengthen our relationships with God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Don’t let anything distract or distance you.  

Special thanks to Mrs. Margaret Hochla, Liturgy & Music Director for providing these beautiful reflections and musical accompaniments.