{"id":1356,"date":"2022-04-07T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-04-07T13:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/holytrinityparish.net\/holy-week-2022\/"},"modified":"2023-12-15T10:54:51","modified_gmt":"2023-12-15T15:54:51","slug":"holy-week-2022","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/holytrinityparish.net\/holy-week-2022\/","title":{"rendered":"Holy Week 2022"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n\n\n
Today we begin the holiest of weeks \u2013 Holy Week<\/strong>. It is an incredible week in history and in our Faith. It is so important that our public schools will move their Spring Break to coincide with Holy Week each year! It is the God-man\u2019s triumph over the devil, death and sin. It is the raising of fallen humanity from death to life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The latter part of Holy Week is especially worth experiencing through the Church Liturgy. Each day brings with it much to ponder and experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Holy Thursday<\/em><\/strong> is the celebration of the institution by Jesus of two sacraments: the Holy Eucharist and the Priesthood. There is only one morning Mass in our diocese this day, the Chrism Mass at the cathedral. It is the opportunity for all the priests of the diocese to renew and re-affirm their solemn promises to God through His bishop. The priests again promise obedience to the bishop and his successors; to live and love chastity in the celibate state; to give of oneself to Our Lord and His people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Evening of Holy Thursday<\/em><\/strong> begins the most important of Church seasons \u2013 and shortest: Easter Triduum<\/em><\/strong>. We offer the Mass of the Last Supper wherein we celebrate Jesus\u2019 institution of the Holy Eucharist and Priesthood. The two are intimately linked: we cannot have the Eucharist without the Priesthood; nor does the Priesthood make any sense without the Eucharist. As Catholics, we do not remember the Last Supper, we celebrate the actual event. How? The Last Supper was the First Mass. It is the same Jesus Who offers Himself in the Mass now Who offered Himself at the Last Supper \u2013 and on the Cross. It is the same Jesus in the Holy Eucharist Who comes down upon our altar and Who we are able to receive in Holy Communion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Good Friday<\/em><\/strong> is a stark contrast to Palm Sunday when Jesus was welcomed by the crowds exultantly as He entered Jerusalem. We see the fickleness of humanity. We see the created reject the Creator! We see the sinful condemn the sinless! We see the finite kill the infinite!<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is the only day of the year wherein we, as priests, are forbidden from offering the Mass. Why? The Mass is the Holy Sacrifice of Jesus as He offered Himself on the Cross although without any suffering or death. The Church requires us to suffer the loss of the Greatest Event in history, the Greatest Prayer on the day that Our Lord Suffered to the point of death.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And yet, we call this day, Good<\/em><\/strong>, because the reality is that Jesus, the Son of God and Son of Man, redeems us by His Suffering and Death. This is how much each of us is worth!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Finally, after the starkness and penance of Good Friday and Holy Saturday, we celebrate the glorious joy of the Resurrection of Jesus from the dead. We begin our celebration at the Easter Vigil<\/em><\/strong>. This Mass is THE MASS<\/em><\/strong> for Catholics. It is the Mass of the year for converts to be received into the Catholic Church and receive the sacraments for the first time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Easter is our opportunity to rejoice with the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Apostles and Mary Magdalene at the Resurrection of Jesus! For, through the Mass we are present at Jesus\u2019 Resurrection. Jesus is alive in the Holy Eucharist. It is the same Jesus in the Host and Precious Blood<\/em><\/strong> on our altar Who Rose from the dead that first Easter. We are there with Our Lady, the Apostles and Mary Magdalene!<\/p>\n\n\n\n May we strive to participate in the Church\u2019s Liturgy this Holy Week that we may share in Our Lord\u2019s Easter peace and and joy!<\/p>\n\n\n\n God bless
FRVW<\/p>\n\n\n