Pray with me during Holy Week

Friday, Mar. 27, 2015

As we stand together on the threshold of Holy Week and the Sacred Triduum (Holy Thursday, Good Friday and the Easter Vigil), I invite all of us, brothers and sisters in Christ in this local Church, to embrace fully the sacred mysteries we are about to celebrate.  

Notice I use the word “celebrate” and not “reminisce.” Some may fall into the trap of thinking that we are simply calling to mind a very important part of our faith’s history as we recall the institution of the Eucharist on Holy Thursday, the Lord’s ultimate sacrifice for us on the cross on Good Friday and his triumphant rising from the dead at the Easter Vigil and throughout Easter Sunday. In reality, we are doing much more than calling to mind historical events, as important and pivotal as they are in salvation history. In fact, we are coming together as God’s holy people during these sacred celebrations to allow the salvific sacrifice of Christ to once again touch our hearts, turn us from sin and deepen within us his life-giving Resurrection. Christ lives in his Church to the end of time, and he joins us to himself in his death and resurrection this year just as he did so many centuries ago. Our Holy Week is holy not simply because it calls to mind our history as the people of God but because, in the words of Nathan Mitchell (Assembly, Vol. 18:1), it is a week in which we celebrate “… God’s taking possession of our hearts at their deepest core, recreating us as a new human community broken like bread for the world’s life – a community rich in compassion, steadfast in hope, and fearless in the search for justice and peace.”

Given the importance of these days ahead, I hope that everyone will be able to participate in the rich liturgies about to take place throughout the diocese. Jesus saved us as a people formed into his very image, and therefore it is of utmost importance to celebrate together. In addition, the main purpose of Lent is to prepare to renew our baptisms as we affirm once again the promises we, or our parents and godparents, made when we were baptized into the believing community of the Catholic Church. Because baptism is a sacrament that initiates us into the Church, how fitting that we gather together as a Church to renew the promises made in this sacrament.

Of course, not everyone will be able to come to church, but I hope that all will try in some way to honor and attend to the sacredness of these holiest days of the year. Perhaps you could spend some quiet time at home reading the Scriptures and prayers attached to the Triduum celebrations. If you do not receive a monthly prayer book with these prayers and readings, you will find many online sites that offer them, along with commentaries and meditation aids.  The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops is one such website: http://usccb.org/. 

Also, it would be good to gather the family together for a longer grace before meals or an informal family prayer service so all members of the family can support one another in making these days special.

In our fast-paced world, the casual observer will probably not notice that these are in fact such special days in our liturgical year. When I was growing up, there were signs everywhere of businesses that were closed during the three hours of Good Friday. Nor were we allowed to play outside during the three hours of Good Friday devotions. Easter Sunday was a huge celebration; I can still hear the bells ringing and the alleluias reverberating from our local church. It seemed as if the whole city was tuned into this most important celebration of the Church year. 

We still have the bells and alleluias of Easter, but the challenge is greater than ever to celebrate and observe these sacred days of Holy Week. Therefore, I encourage us all to mark next week and make it special through our observances. At the very least, we can be still and quiet, contemplating what Jesus’ sacrifice means for us and how we can follow his call to give of ourselves for others. Visiting friends in an assisted living facility, helping an elderly neighbor with the chores, helping out at the Weigand Homeless Day Center or the Saint Vincent de Paul Dining Hall, taking a walk with family on Holy Saturday while avoiding excessive work and activity, reading a good spiritual book, listening to uplifting music and watching an inspirational movie are all ways that we can make Holy Week holy, especially if we cannot participate in the services held in our local parish.

Jesus asked the disciples in the Garden of Gethsemane to watch and pray with him as he prepared to give his life for our ransom and salvation. He makes that same request of us this coming Holy Week. Now is a good time to say “yes” to that invitation, resolving not to fall asleep but to stay awake and open our hearts and souls to the graces of these holiest of days.