We remember what God has done for us
and for all human beings in and through the death and Resurrection of Jesus
Christ. We remember with love and gratitude what Jesus Christ willingly suffered
for us. We remember God’s action in
Christ, and we resolve to live in and for the one “who loved us, and loved us
to the end.”
These are the high holy days of the
Church of Christ: Passion (Palm) Sunday;
Holy Thursday with the Mass of the Lord’s Supper; the Good Friday liturgy; the
Easter Vigil of the Lord’s Resurrection; and Easter Sunday, the joyful
celebration that “God has raised Christ from the dead.” We who love Christ Jesus suffer, die, and
rise with him.
I urge our parishioners to attend
each of the liturgies of Holy Week. Each
service is unique, and repeated only once a year, in a somewhat different form
or style, depending on the celebrant and ministers. All of the liturgies of Holy Week focus on
the suffering, death, and Resurrection of Christ, but each with its own
emphasis: On Passion (Palm) Sunday, we
are presented with an overview of the climatic events of Christ’s life through
the reading of the entire Passion narrative.
On Holy Thursday, our attention is drawn to Jesus’ Last Supper, in which
he interpreted for us the meaning of the Passion, symbolized under the form of
bread and wine, and symbolized in Christ’s washing the feet of his
disciples: death in love for each and
for all. On Good Friday, we remember the
suffering and death of Jesus by listening to the Passion narrative from the
Gospel of John, and we experience our gratitude and willingness to share in
Christ’s suffering as we venerate the cross and receive holy communion.
Holy Week reaches its dramatic high
point in the Easter Vigil, the most beautiful and meaningful liturgy celebrated
by the Catholic Church. “This is the night when Christ rose triumphant” from
death. This is also the night when the
faithful renew their faith and commitment to Jesus Christ, to the community of
disciples through space and time, to all of our fellow human beings, and to
creation itself. This is the night when
we receive with joy new members into the Body of Christ, celebrated through
baptism, confirmation, and holy Eucharist.
The Masses of Easter Sunday continue the celebration of Christ’s
Resurrection, and invite each of the faithful present to renew his baptismal
vows. So beautiful and rich in meaning
is the Resurrection of Christ from the dead that we continue this feast through
50 days of Eastertide, up to the Feast of Pentecost.
We all live busy lives, but I invite
and urge all of our people to “come to the waters,” to enter into these
liturgies with faith and loving attentiveness, in order to be renewed from
within by the unsurpassable gift of the Holy Spirit. We present ourselves to the Lord, open
ourselves to his word, resolve to follow Christ faithfully all the days of our
lives, and we participate afresh in the inflowing of the Holy Spirit—God’s
loving Presence in us, for us, with us.
