CELEBRATIONS 2021

THE CATHOLIC PARISH OF THE GOOD SHEPHERD, HURUNUI

Monday, 29 th March NB: No 7.00am Mass 7.30pm Christchurch, St Mary’s Pro Cathedral, CHRISM MASS .

Tuesday & Wednesday, 30 th & 31 st March 7.00am Amberley, Holy Mass

Holy Thursday, 1st April NB: No 7.00am Mass 7.00pm Amberley, EVENING MASS OF THE LORD’S SUPPER Silent Prayer before the of Repose (Hall) until 11.00pm

Good Friday 2nd April NB: No 7.00am Mass 3.00pm Amberley, CELEBRATION OF THE LORD’S PASSION

Amberley: 10.00am Stations of the Cross (@ of Holy Passion) Hawarden: 10.00am Ecumenical Service (@St James, Presbyterian Church) Cheviot: 9.30am Ecumenical Service (@St John, Anglican Church) Hanmer Springs: 9.00am (@Anglican Church of the Epiphany)

Holy Saturday 3rd April NB: No 7.00am Mass at Amberley 7.00pm Culverden, VIGIL MASS NB: No 5.00pm Mass at Hanmer Easter Sunday 4th April 9.00am Amberley, EASTER SUNDAY MASS 9.00am Hanmer Springs, EASTER SUNDAY MASS 11.00am Cheviot, EASTER SUNDAY MASS

HOLY WEEK commences with Passion (Palm) Sunday, reaching its climax with the Celebration of the Easter Triduum (Latin = ‘Three Days)

The Easter Triduum is the celebration of the Death, Burial and Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ. It has a beginning, a climax and a conclusion over three days of celebration but it is essentially a single ritual, one celebration. It starts with the evening Mass of the Lord’s Supper and reaches its high point in the . As the Triduum is the climax and culmination of the celebration of the entire liturgical year, it is the most important of all the liturgical celebrations of the Church.

The Liturgy of the Mass of the Lord’s Supper commemorates several mysteries: the institution of the , the institution of the Ordained Priesthood and Christ’s command of Love. It is the entrance into the three days of the Easter Triduum . The Mass of the Lord's Supper celebration emphasizes the notion of ‘service to others ’ in the Ordained Priesthood. Part of the ritual of this Mass may include the optional ritual of foot washing by the priest. The ritual re-enacts Jesus' calling of the Apostles to the priesthood. As foot-washing in former days was the task of servants, Jesus shocked the Apostle’s by being their servant. It is a great reminder that the priesthood is a call to service, not 'power', just as Jesus came ‘not to be served, but to serve’. Every Christian should take from the ritual, the idea that all believers, by virtue of their Baptismal Priesthood, are also called to serve. After the foot-washing by the priest, the altar is prepared for the Eucharistic Sacrifice (Mass). The Eucharistic sacrifice is also a great reminder of Jesus’ giving of Himself to the Heavenly Father and to us, thus another reminder that we are also to give ourselves to the Heavenly Father, and to each other. After Holy Communion, the Blessed Sacrament is taken to the altar of repose (which has been erected at Bishop Joyce Centre). The consecrated hosts will be used for Holy Communion during the Good Friday Commemoration. This is symbolic of Jesus going into the garden of Gethsemane. The church is left empty. The sense of loss is with us. We keep watch with him in prayer . After a designated time of adoration at the altar of repose, the Blessed Sacrament is locked away. The day of sorrow is about to begin.

“My sousoullll is troutroublblblbled,ed, save me from this hour” ❖ REFLECTION

❖ INTERCESSION

❖ VENERATION & COMMEMORATION Although there may be various liturgies (e.g. Ecumenical services and devotional exercises like the Stations of the Cross), the one and official celebration in the Catholic Church is the Celebration of the Lord’s Passion at 3.00pm. The Good Friday celebration of the Lord’s Passion is a continuation of the Triduum. It begins with the priest’s entrance in silence. He prostates himself, and the people response by kneeling. The silent entrance emphasizes the reflective starkness of this day’s liturgy. To prostrate and kneel is to bow down before God in deepest reverence. The Liturgy of the Word includes the Intercessions (Prayers of the Faithful). During the Solemn Intercessions, we use the silence after each invitation, to pray for the specific persons and groups. A highpoint of Good Friday celebrations is the coming forward to venerate the cross . The priest carries the crucifix in procession and intones: “Be-hold the wood of the Cross, on which hung the salvation of the world”, and the congregation responds: “Come let us adore”. This is done three times. We commemorate our Lord's Passion by expressing our profound adoration of the Saviour whose death made the cross to be the holiest of all signs. This is an opportunity for each of us to venerate the cross as we deem appropriate (i.e. kiss, touch, or bow before the cross). Following the Lord’s Prayer, we come forward to the altar, this time to receive the Body of Christ which was consecrated at the Holy Thursday liturgy. A simple post- communion prayer is prayed. We leave the church today in silence with our own thoughts. Good Friday is a day of fasting and abstention from meat. It is of course also a day for prayer and meditation. As a suggestion: Following the liturgy, we have at home a crucifix in a place of honour and a burning candle beside it.

“““…“… and bbbowingbowing his head, he gave up his spirit” The Great Easter Vigil is meant to be celebrated when the sun has set. In the darkness of the night, we prepare ourselves, full of expectancy, to participate in one of the great events of the liturgical year. The Easter Vigil is slightly longer than an ordinary Sunday Mass but it is full of actions! Come prepared to be a participant rather than a spectator. A full, conscious and active participation is required for the Vigil. Be aware at what is happening in each part!

 The Blessing of the Paschal Fire - This kicks off the Vigil. The fire is a sign of hope of purification, of new beginnings and of celebration. The Paschal Fire becomes for us a great focal point for our victory celebrations. At the beginning, the church is in complete darkness. The paschal fire is then transferred to the Paschal Candle. The Priest then processes into the into the Church, piercing the darkness with the Light of Christ, symbolized by the Paschal Candle, the joyous light of the holy glory of the heavenly, immortal Father. The Exultet (Easter Proclamation) is sung, and it covers the history of the Paschal Mystery ... ‘this is the night when Jesus Christ broke the prison-bars of death and rose victorious from the underworld’.  Liturgy of the Word - We then settle down and read a number of passages from the Old Testament, which covers the major events of salvation history. After each reading, we read or sing a psalm, then stand as the celebrant leads us in the prayer which relates the reading to our salvation and our baptism.  Liturgy of Baptism – If there are candidates to be baptized, then this is the most appropriate time to do it. From the newly blessed water, the priest blesses the community, recalling that in baptism we become a new creation in Christ Jesus. We think of the implications of our Christian calling and the community renews their own baptismal vows.  Liturgy of the Eucharist - This is the Eucharist of the Church's liturgical year: In sign and sacrament, holy story and song, the dying and rising of Jesus in the midst of the people is once again enacted. Sharing in the holy gifts of the altar, we find ourselves made one with Christ and rejoice in this foretaste of the glory of God’.

REJOICE, THE LORD HAS RISEN ALLELUIA !!!