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The most
important week of the year
PRAISED BE JESUS
CHRIST!
(Now and Forever)
The most important week of the Catholic calendar is upon us. April 1 is
Palm Sunday. The Sacred Triduum (three days) begins the evening of April
5, Holy Thursday.
Some years back, one of our pastors summed up Holy Week in this way: “If
you’re fasting, praying, doing good works, have confessed your sins, had
ashes smeared on your forehead on Ash Wednesday, have found the Lenten
liturgies in any way impacting your thinking and living, then this
week is your week. It’s the one week out of 52 that makes all
the difference. This is the Church’s Final Four, the Super Bowl, the
World Series, all rolled into one.” I doubt if Benedict XVI would put it
that way, but it’s a good description of the excitement which should be
ours as Catholics as we approach this special week. I urge you to avail
yourselves of the beautiful Holy Week liturgies.
The Gospel account of the Passion is proclaimed on Palm Sunday. This
year it is the Passion of Jesus Christ according to St. Luke. Mass
begins with a general introduction to Holy Week in the form of an
exhortation from the celebrant and the blessing of palms. In areas where
palms are not readily available, other branches are utilized, such as
olive or willow branches. In these parts we use palms. In the ideal
order there is a procession. Singing hymns to Christ the Messiah and
King, this allows the congregation to spiritually as well as physically
and symbolically “enter” Jerusalem and ascend with Jesus to the temple
and to his Passion.
One of our parishes does this grandly by processing from the local
Catholic hospital through the streets of the city to the parish church,
a walk of more than a mile. Another gathers at a central point with
several Protestant congregations for the blessing of palms and then
processes to church for Mass. The rites are meant to impress. They truly
can do that, reminding those who take part that we are to welcome Christ
into our lives and bear witness to his lordship over us.
Tuesday of Holy Week, the great Chrism Mass is celebrated in the
cathedral. The priests of the diocese concelebrate. Laity come from all
63 of our parishes to receive the holy oils which will be used in the
administration of the sacraments during the coming year. These are
carried back to their parish where they are formally received on Holy
Thursday. During the Chrism Mass, as bishop, I ask the faithful to pray
for their priests and for myself. For their part, the priests renew
their commitment to priestly service: “Are you resolved to unite
yourselves more closely to Christ and to try to become more like him by
joyfully sacrificing your own pleasure and ambition to bring his peace
and love to your brothers and sisters? Are you resolved to be faithful
ministers of the mysteries of God, to celebrate the Eucharist and the
other liturgical services with sincere devotion? Are you resolved to
imitate Jesus Christ, the head and shepherd of the Church, by teaching
the Christian faith without thinking of your own profit, solely for the
well-being of the people you were sent to serve?”
The Sacred Triduum (or three days) begins with the evening Mass of the
Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday. That Mass commemorates the institution
of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, the priesthood and Christ’s great
gift to the Church: the Blessed Sacrament. Mass is followed by an
opportunity for extended adoration as we symbolically follow Christ into
the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus prayed after the Last Supper and
where he was arrested by the temple guard.
As we observe Holy Thursday this year, I urge my readers to think long
and hard about the importance of the priesthood and the need we have for
priests in sufficient numbers to staff our parishes. Your priests are
stretched to the breaking point. At present, 13 parishes do not have a
resident priest. Any debilitating illness or death will mean there will
be more placed in that category. Although three men will be ordained to
the priesthood in June (praise God), they have to be given time to
season as associates before they can be moved into a pastorate. The good
news is that God is calling men to the priesthood of our Local Church. I
do not doubt that for a moment. But, given the cultural swirl that pulls
us away from thoughts of the priesthood, it is not easy to perceive that
call.
Pray that those whom God is calling will open their ears and have the
courage to say “yes.” Ask the Lord to call someone from your extended
family and from your parish. It is, you know, a fantastic life, the
priesthood. It is not a dirty job that we have to stick to someone to
keep our church doors open. It is a profound privilege. It is a
demanding life at times, but it is not easy for anyone who takes their
vocation seriously, be that marriage, parenthood, the consecrated
religious life, or the single celibate life. Do think about it. Christ
himself tells us that we need to ask.
The liturgy of Good Friday is unique, extremely moving and most
powerful. There is no Mass. But, the Passion of Jesus Christ according
to St. John is proclaimed and the cross is venerated. Holding the cross
high the celebrant proclaims: “This is the wood of the cross on which
hung the Savior of the world.” The response: “Come let us worship.”
Those in the congregation then approach in procession to venerate the
cross. After the liturgy, the altar is stripped, candles are
extinguished, the Blessed Sacrament is removed, and the Church goes into
mourning for its Redeemer as he waits in the tomb for the resurrection.
The Easter Vigil celebrated after nightfall on Holy Saturday is the
great liturgy of the Catholic Church year. It is a long ceremony … a
true vigil. Yet, although it is not advisable for the young whose
attention span is limited, it is something every Catholic should
experience. In fact, our churches should be packed for the Easter Vigil
(they are not) because it is at that liturgy that our faith community
welcomes those who seek full communion with us by being baptized, by
receiving the sacrament of confirmation, and Holy Communion for the
first time. It is a magnificent liturgy that recalls scripturally the
history of salvation and proclaims the resurrection.
For those who do not participate in the Easter Vigil, there is a
uniqueness about the Masses celebrated on Easter Sunday. That uniqueness
is rooted in the renewal of baptismal promises. It is that moment when
Catholics are invited and expected to make their pledge of allegiance to
the Catholic Church whose sacraments of initiation they have received
and to recommit themselves to the obligations and responsibilities we
have as Catholics. Just as the Easter Vigil is a special moment for
those who have been preparing to enter the Church through the Rites for
the Initiation of Adults, the renewal of baptismal promises is the goal
the rest of us are supposed to set for ourselves during our “Lenten
retreat.”
While the liturgy of Holy Week is unrushed and lengthy, motivation is to
be found in two primary sources. The first is reflection on what Jesus
endured for us. It, too, was lengthy. It, too, was demanding. The other
is the image of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane when he returned from
prayer to find Peter, James and John asleep. His words echo through the
centuries: Could you not spend this time with me! |
