Palm Sunday

Palm Sunday, the start of Passion Week. Jesus rides into Jerusalem to the praise and adoration of the crowds, who laid palm branches on the road before Him as He passed by, singing Hosanna in the highest! Four days later He would be arrested and five days later, put to death on in a Roman crucifixion.

This is the holiest week of the liturgical year as we end the week, actually begin the next week with Easter Sunday, our redemption is made complete in the Resurrection of our Lord and Savior!

 

The Passion really begins with Holy Thursday with the "Lord's Supper," which is the first celebration of the Catholic Eucharist. Even before He dies upon the Cross, He is offering Himself in the Eucharist - "This IS My body..." and "This IS My blood..." He declares precisely - no symbolism, "IS" is not symbolic language. The same holds true for John 6, where He declares/commands that we MUST eat His flesh or we have "no life" in us - and not just once, but REPEATEDLY in just a few verses! Then when even many of His disciples said this was a hard saying - and left Him - He did not back down! He challenged The Twelve, "will you also leave?" To which Peter said, "To whom should we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God." 

The Passion continues on Holy Thursday when Jesus goes to pray in the Garden of Gethsemene - the Agony in the Garden. It is here where Judas completes his betrayal and hands Jesus over to the guards who arrested Him.

The Passion continues into Friday (Good Friday) morning, where Jesus faces Caiaphas and Pilate, is cruelly scourged and then handed over to the Roman guard to carry His Cross to Calvary, where He is crucified and died.

The culmination of Holy Week ends with the Easter Vigil, the First Mass of Easter (traditionally the Vigil starts around 10pm on Holy Saturday, then at midnight the purple veils are removed from the holy artwork and statues as Mass begins - and we celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus!

Have a blessed Holy Week!

 

Holy Thursday

The evening begins with a humble foot washing and before it is over, Jesus stands before Caiphus.

Why Is This Week Different From the Rest?

Ma Nishtana

Traditionally, during the Passover Seder, the youngest (capable) son asks, "Why is this day different from all the rest?"  Our tradition should be to ask, "Why is this week different from all the rest?"

In the Hebrew tradition, the reading of the Torah in preparation for Passover, the Ma Nishtana is one of 4 (or 3, depending on the tradition) questions asked by the youngest male child. It is a way of involving the children in the lessons/readings for this season - a great lesson we can all learn to help involve our children.

Four Questions

In light of the Hebrew Mishna tradition (Pesachim 10.4) we should have our youngest child ask four questions to reflect upon the events of Holy Thursday.
1) Why is this week different from all the rest?
2) Why does Jesus wash the feet of the Apostles?
3) What happens to the bread and wine?
4) Why is Jesus arrested on this night?

We are taken from the height of praise, singing "Hosanna in the highest!" to the lowest of lows when our Lord is betrayed by one He Himself selected. He is beaten, scourged, forced to carry His Cross, crucified, died and was buried. Oh the grief! Oh the pain! Oh the suffering! Oh that the week would end here!  But while that week ends with Jesus in the grave - the next week brings the Resurrection!

On Holy or Maundy Thursday, we celebrate the First Mass as Jesus Christ celebrated it nearly 2000 years ago on this day. Traditionally, after the sermon the priest in alter christos, washes the feet of twelve men, representing the Twelve Apostles. Then comes the Lord's Supper - the first celebration of the Eucharist. It is that SAME Sacrifice we celebrate today and at EVERY Mass. It is not a repeat of the first - it is that SAME Sacrifice - re-presented for us, just as Christ presented to the Apostles on the same night in which He was betrayed.

What Is Different About This Night?

That is the question traditionally asked by the youngest child in a Jewish family as they prepare for the Seder.  What is the Seder?  It is a remembrance mandated by God that His People remember the Passover - which brought about the freeing of the Israelites from Egypt.  It was that same Seder which Jesus was celebrating with His Apostles on what we now call Holy Thursday - or more traditionally: Maundy Thursday.  Maundy comes to us from the Latin word mandatum, which is also the root for the English word "mandate." 

The New Mandate
When Jesus Christ celebrated the First Eucharist - it was not to be a one-time deal.  He commanded, or mandated, that they were to "do this" whenever they partook in what we now call the Eucharist.  He essentially ordains the Apostles to carry on this tradition and as they were sent out in the same manner Jesus was sent by the Father - they too, in turn, were to ordain others to perpetuate this New Mandate. 

Therefore, the new mandate is to continue to celebrate the Eucharist, which, as He declares IS His body and blood given for the many so that sins would be forgiven.

Good Friday
Today is the day we remember that Jesus Christ offered Himself wholly, body and spirit, to redeem us from our sins.  This is why EVERY Friday we are mandated to offer up meat, or something equivalent (meat is still preferred by many) on EVERY Friday throughout the year, not just Good Friday.  Why?  Because EVERY Friday is like a little Good Friday and EVERY Sunday is like a little Easter Sunday.  EVERY Friday is a special time to offer up a small penance to recall Jesus' passion and death just as EVERY Sunday is a special time to recall His resurrection and victory over death.