Sunday, March 28, 2021 through Sunday, April 4, 2021

Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord page 3

Holy Thursday page 5 The Triduum begins with the Evening Mass of the Lord’s Supper

Good Friday page 8

Holy Saturday page 12 The Vigil

1 Welcome!

We are happy that you have chosen to celebrate with us during .

May our Worship during these Most Holy Days bring us closer to Christ and one another.

This Worship Aid during this challenging year is being used as a teaching tool for the faithful.

St. FRANCIS OF ASSISI PARISH

2021

2 of the Passion of the Lord

The Solemn Entrance On this day the Church celebrates Christ’s entrance into to accomplish his paschal mystery.

“Entrance” is the key to understanding the liturgy of Passion Sunday. We enter into Jerusalem with Christ. We enter into our holiest week. We enter into our final preparation for the Easter feast.

We begin by proclaiming a Gospel account of ’ triumphant entrance into Jerusalem.

The branches are blessed by the priest and deacon as we stand in place and are kept as blessed objects in our homes.

The palm are returned to the church to be burned for the ashes of Ash Wednesday the following year.

Many cultures enhance the beauty of the palm branches by weaving them into many objects that remind them of the pas- sion of Christ.

3 The Sacred Triduum

During the Sacred Triduum, God gathers us together to remember the events that constitute the paschal mystery: the life, passion, death, and resurrection of our Savior Jesus Christ.

The Triduum is one continuous feast—not a collection of separate celebrations. For that reason there are no concluding or dismissal rites on Holy Thursday or . When the Triduum begins, the Church is at prayer throughout the three days.

In baptism we enter into the new paschal mystery: we die to sin and rise to new life in Christ. Those who are preparing for baptism enter these days surrounded by signs and symbols that will plunge them into the paschal mystery.

We stand at the threshold between our forty-day celebration of and the Sacred Triduum. Let us enter these days with hearts open to God’s action, for this truly is the summit of the liturgical year.

4 With this evening’s liturgy Lent ends and the Church enters the . Tonight the Holy Oils are received into the church. These oils, were blessed by the Archbishop during the yearly Chrism Mass which occurred earlier this week. Today they are delivered to the parish for use this coming year.

In the Liturgy of the Word, we listen to the story of the Passover, the event that marked the Israelites’ freedom from their Egyptian captors. This provides the backdrop for the Eucharist, celebrated by Christ and His friends.

This evening, we do what Jesus commanded: a representative group from the parish have their feet washed to accentuate the evangelical command of the Lord, “who came to serve and not be served” that all members of the Church must serve one another in love.

We celebrate Eucharist tonight. Following the sharing of com- munion, the sacred Body of Christ is taken, in solemn , to the Place of Repose, which is located in the main church. We are called to spend time in the presence of the Lord. Tonight, adoration will continue until 9:00 p.m.

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Following communion, The presider carries the Eucharist in solemn procession to the Place of Repose located in the main church. All are welcome to spend time before the Blessed Sacrament.

The Holy Thursday liturgy ends without a dismissal. We are encouraged to continue our fasting, silence and stillness through , so that we come to the hungry and attentive, ready to receive the risen Christ in Word and Sacrament.

6 Stripping of the Altar in the Church This action contains several levels of meaning:

It reminds us of Christ's agony in the garden, arrest, and imprisonment. Our Lord Jesus Christ gave of Himself freely, and was stripped of his garments, treated harshly, and unjustly tormented. It visually signifies the suspension of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass until the Easter Vigil.

The altar is stripped completely in silence. No music, singing, or talking should occur.

Please join us tomorrow for Stations of the Cross at 3:00 pm and for our Good Friday Service at 7:00 pm.

All depart in silence.

7 The Sacred Triduum continues as God gathers us once again before the cross. We listen to the readings about Jesus, our great high priest. We read together the Christ as recorded by John.

The altar is bare in recognition of the death of Christ.

We are called today to venerate the wood of the cross, the sign of both struggle and victory. We remember those who are still unjustly condemned; those who are still being crucified with Christ. We remember the crosses that we are all asked to bear, and bring all our struggles to the wood of the cross on which Jesus hung.

Finally, we are called to come forward to receive the Body of Christ. Whenever we eat this bread, we proclaim His death until He comes again.

8 Celebration of the Lord’s Passion

The ministers prostrate themselves in reverent silence.

Prostration is a posture that signifies the seriousness of today’s prayer. It imparts a sense of humbling oneself in total worship, while also recognizing the grief and sorrow of the Church. Please join them in this sacred moment by kneeling and/or bowing your head.

Gospel: The Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Solemn Intercessions Response: AMEN

Veneration of the Cross Following each intonation of : “Behold the Wood of the Cross”

Please sing the response: “Come, Let Us Adore”

Veneration of the cross will occur from your pews.

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The Good Friday liturgy ends without a dismissal. We are encouraged to continue our fasting, silence, and stillness through Holy Saturday, so that we come to the Easter Vigil hungry and attentive, ready to receive the risen Christ in Word and Sacrament.

Those who wish to remain for private veneration of the cross are invited to do so at this time. To maintain proper social dis- tancing, please do not touch the cross.

The focal point of the Triduum celebration is the Easter Vigil on Saturday evening at 8:45 PM. This year, we will gather in the main church as only the ministers will gather at the fire.

10 Gabriel Wuger (1829-1892) published in the US before 1923 and public domain in the US.

11 The long preparation of the candidates and the fasting and prayer of all the faithful culminate in the Easter Vigil liturgy.

On this night the Church gathers to listen to scriptures, pray psalms, and acclaim the death and resurrection of the Lord. The Elect are called forward and we pray for them. They affirm their faith in God and are led to the font and baptized in the blessed water. The newly baptized and others joining in full communion with the Catholic Church are anointed with chrism and the entire assembly joins in the intercessions. The Vigil reaches its high point in the great Eucharistic Prayer of praise and thanksgiving, and finally in the sharing of the Eucharist itself.

12 Service of Light

The Vigil begins outside around the . The is lit from the flames of the newly blessed fire. The night vigil of Easter signifies Christ's passage from the dead to the living by the liturgy which begins in darkness (sin, death) and is enlightened by the Holy Fire and the candle representing --the Light of Christ--just as the Church, the Mystical Body of Christ, the community of believers, is led from spiritual darkness to the light of His truth.

Blessing of the Fire

Lighting of the Paschal Candle

Procession This year the faithful remain in the church while only those who are to receive the Easter Sacraments and their sponsors follow the Easter Candle in procession into the church. Once they enter the main church, the following is sung three times:

Deacon: “The Light of Christ “ Response: “Thanks be to God”

Easter Proclamation: The In this ancient chant the church gives thanks and praise to God for all in our salvation history that is recalled this night.

13 Liturgy of Christian Initiation

Celebration of Baptism

Those to be baptized come forward to the baptismal font at the front of the altar as the litany of saints is sung.

Thereby, we invoke the ho- ly women and men of all centuries to pray for us.

14 Congratulations to all our newly initiated

Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist

Jeffery Mays, Jr. & Dylan James Burton

Joining us in the Fullness of our Faith

Christopher Corkern, Gina Gentile, Steven Gentile, Gregg Nicholl

St. Francis of Assisi Parish 6245 Wilmington Pike, Centerville, Ohio 45459-6639 937-433-1013 sfacc.org

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