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The Easter Triduum:Holy Thursday, Good Friday, the Easter Vigil Meditations on the Triduum by Victor Hoagland, C.P. The Easter triduum, marking the days of Jesus’ passion and resurrection, is the most important time of the church year. It begins with the evening Mass of Holy Thursday, reaches its high point in the Easter Vigil, and closes on Easter Sunday evening. Prepared by the days of Lent, Christians celebrate on these holiest of days the saving work God has accomplished in Christ. From the events remembered these days, so sorrowful and so joyful, the church learns the deepest lessons. In...

March 28, 2013 Holy Thursday: Chrism Mass   Reading 1 Is 61:1-3a, 6a, 8b-9 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me,because the LORD has anointed me;He has sent me to bring glad tidings to the lowly,to heal the brokenhearted,To proclaim liberty to the captivesand release to the prisoners,To announce a year of favor from the LORDand a day of vindication by our God,to comfort all who mourn;To place on those who mourn in Ziona diadem instead of ashes,To give them oil of gladness in place of mourning,a glorious mantle instead of a listless spirit. You yourselves shall...

April 6, 2012   Good Friday of the Passion of the Lord   Reading 1 Is 52:13-53:12 See, my servant shall prosper,he shall be raised high and greatly exalted.Even as many were amazed at him—so marred was his look beyond human semblanceand his appearance beyond that of the sons of man—so shall he startle many nations,because of him kings shall stand speechless;for those who have not been told shall see,those who have not heard shall ponder it. Who would believe what we have heard?To whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?He grew up like a sapling before him,like...

April 5, 2012 Holy Thursday: Evening Mass of the Lord's Supper   Reading 1 Ex 12:1-8, 11-14 The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt,"This month shall stand at the head of your calendar;you shall reckon it the first month of the year.Tell the whole community of Israel:On the tenth of this month every one of your familiesmust procure for itself a lamb, one apiece for each household.If a family is too small for a whole lamb,it shall join the nearest household in procuring oneand shall share in the lambin proportion to the number of persons...

April 5, 2012 Holy Thursday: Chrism Mass   Reading 1 Is 61:1-3a, 6a, 8b-9 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me,because the LORD has anointed me;He has sent me to bring glad tidings to the lowly,to heal the brokenhearted,To proclaim liberty to the captivesand release to the prisoners,To announce a year of favor from the LORDand a day of vindication by our God,to comfort all who mourn;To place on those who mourn in Ziona diadem instead of ashes,To give them oil of gladness in place of mourning,a glorious mantle instead of a listless spirit. You yourselves shall...

April 22, 2011Good Friday of the Lord’s Passion Reading 1Responsorial PsalmReading 2Gospel Reading 1Is 52:13—53:12See, my servant shall prosper,he shall be raised high and greatly exalted.Even as many were amazed at himC so marred was his look beyond human semblanceand his appearance beyond that of the sons of manC so shall he startle many nations,because of him kings shall stand speechless;for those who have not been told shall see,those who have not heard shall ponder it.Who would believe what we have heard?To whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?He grew up like a sapling before him,like a shoot...

TheMandatum of Love The Triduum begins: From light to darkness - a symbolic darkness in which the better we understand the significance of the rubrics, the closer we grow to Christ in this world of darkness. "We sadly recall that the Apostles one by one gradually left Him on this night, and that the earth was covered by darkness at His death. The single candle left burning, which is hidden behind the altar to be brought forth again when prayers are finished, causes us to remember that Christ came forth from the grave on the third day as the true...

On the Holy Triduum "Hope Is Nourished in the Great Silence of Holy Saturday" VATICAN CITY, APRIL 8, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Here is a translation of the address Benedict XVI gave today at the general audience in St. Peter's Square. * * * Dear Brothers and Sisters, Holy Week, which for us Christians is the most important week of the year, offers us the opportunity to be immersed in the central events of Redemption, to relive the Paschal Mystery, the great mystery of the faith. Beginning tomorrow afternoon, with the Mass "In Coena Domini," the solemn liturgical rites will help us...

On the Triduum "I Invite You to Seek in These Days Recollection and Prayer" VATICAN CITY, APRIL 20, 2011 (Zenit.org).- Here is a translation of the Italian-language catechesis Benedict XVI gave today during the general audience held in St. Peter's Square. The Pope focused his address on the meaning of the Easter Triduum, the culmination of the Lenten journey. * * * Dear Brothers and Sisters, We have already arrived at the heart of Holy Week, the fulfillment of the Lenten journey. Tomorrow we will enter the Easter Triduum, the three holy days in which the Church commemorates the mystery...

April 21, 2011Holy ThursdayEvening Mass of the Lord’s Supper  Reading 1Responsorial PsalmReading 2Gospel Reading 1Ex 12:1-8, 11-14The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, “This month shall stand at the head of your calendar; you shall reckon it the first month of the year.Tell the whole community of Israel: On the tenth of this month every one of your familiesmust procure for itself a lamb, one apiece for each household.If a family is too small for a whole lamb, it shall join the nearest household in procuring one and shall share in the lamb in proportion...

April 21, 2011Holy ThursdayChrism Mass  Reading 1Responsorial PsalmReading 2Gospel Reading 1Is 61:1-3a, 6a, 8b-9The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me,because the LORD has anointed me;He has sent me to bring glad tidings to the lowly,to heal the brokenhearted,To proclaim liberty to the captivesand release to the prisoners,To announce a year of favor from the LORDand a day of vindication by our God,to comfort all who mourn;To place on those who mourn in Ziona diadem instead of ashes,To give them oil of gladness in place of mourning,a glorious mantle instead of a listless spirit.You yourselves shall be named priests...

Fourteen Questions on the Paschal Triduum  1. When does the Triduum begin and end? The Easter Triduum begins with the evening Mass of the Lord’s Supper, reaches its high point in the Easter Vigil, and closes with evening prayer on Easter Sunday. 2. May another Mass besides the Mass of the Lord’s Supper be celebrated on Holy Thursday? Ordinarily, no other Mass may be celebrated on Holy Thursday. However, by way of exception, the local Ordinary may permit another Mass in churches and oratories to be celebrated in the evening, and, in the case of genuine necessity, even in...

Holy Week Passion (Palm) Sunday through Holy Saturday. Passion Sunday, formerly called Palm Sunday, marks the start of Holy Week by recalling Christ’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem at the beginning of the last week of his life (see Matthew 21:1-11). A procession and other ceremonies commemorating the event were held in Jerusalem from the fourth century and were adopted by Rome by the ninth century. At that time, the blessing of palms for the occasion was introduced. Later, in the Middle Ages, a wooden statue of Christ sitting on a donkey, the whole image on wheels, was drawn in the...

As We Approach Holy Week April 4, 2011 David In the Christian calendar Palm Sunday is the beginning of Holy Week. During this week we are reminded to reflect upon the meaning of Jesus’ death on the cross, an event that took place nearly two millennia ago at a place which still remains the epicenter of religious and political violence today.By lunar coincidence, this week also marks the festival of Pesah, or Passover, the most celebrated Jewish holiday of the year. Passover commemorates God’s deliverance of the children of Israel from slavery in Egypt. Jesus had gone to Jerusalem to celebrate...

VII. Easter Sunday of the Lord's Resurrection A. The Easter Vigil 77. According to a most ancient tradition, this night is "one of vigil for the Lord," [79] and the Vigil celebrated during it, to commemorate that holy night when the Lord rose from the dead, is regarded as the "mother of all holy vigils."[80] For in that night, the Church keeps vigil, waiting for the resurrection of the Lord, and celebrates the sacraments of Christian initiation. [81]1. The Meaning of the Nocturnal Character of the Easter Vigil78. "The entire celebration of the Easter Vigil takes place at night. It...

April 3, 2010                                                 Easter Sunday                                        The Resurrection of the Lord                                            At the Easter Vigil in the Holy Night of Easter Reading 1Responsorial PsalmReading 2Responsorial Psalm 2Reading 3Responsorial Psalm 3Reading 4Responsorial Psalm 4Reading  5Responsorial Psalm 5Reading 6Responsorial Psalm 6Reading 7Responsorial Psalm 7aResponsorial Psalm 7bEpistleResponsorial Psalm 8Gospel Reading 1 Gn 1:1—2:2 or 1:1, 26-31a In the beginning, when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless wasteland, and darkness covered the abyss, while a mighty wind swept...

“Torn Curtain” (Hebrews 9:11-14; 10:19-25; Luke 23:44-46)At just about the time that Jesus breathed his last, something very unusual happened not far away there in Jerusalem. “The curtain of the temple was torn in two,” our text in Luke 23 tells us. Matthew and Mark, in their gospels, likewise report this occurrence, and they add the fact that the curtain was torn in two “from top to bottom.” Now that’s strange, isn’t it? What does Jesus dying have to do with the curtain of the temple being torn in two? Was it just a coincidence? Or is there some connection?...

“Father, Forgive Them” (Luke 23:32-43)It’s Good Friday, and Jesus is led away to be crucified. Crucifixion was a method of execution that the Romans used, throughout their empire, but not on their own citizens, since it was the most brutal and degrading form of execution they could use. Crucifixion was extreme, slow, cruel, and, for them, not so unusual a punishment, done to common criminals, as a public display that served as a deterrent, to keep the masses under control and keep order in the realm. The Romans didn’t mess around. So Jesus is led out with two criminals to...

April 2, 2010 Good Friday of the Lord's Passion Reading 1Responsorial PsalmReading 2Gospel Reading 1Is 52:13—53:12See, my servant shall prosper, he shall be raised high and greatly exalted.  Even as many were amazed at him so marred was his look beyond human semblance and his appearance beyond that of the sons of man so shall he  startle many nations, because of him kings shall stand speechless; for those who have not been told shall see, those who have not heard shall ponder it. Who would believe what we have heard?  To whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?  He...

“Why Is This Night Different?” (Exodus 12; Luke 22:7-20)Earlier this week, in Jewish homes all around the world, families gathered and celebrated the annual Passover meal. A meal is served--the Seder meal, as it is called--with certain items of food and drink served in a set order. And a ritual is observed; the liturgical text that’s followed is called the Haggadah. As part of that ritual, the children at the table ask a series of questions about why they’re doing the things distinctive to this meal: “Why is this night different from all other nights?” the children will ask. “Why...