Holy Week Power Point Notes: 1. Today, we’re going to take a closer look at Holy Week, the Triduum, and Easter. 2. We’re getting ready to celebrate Holy Week. Let’s talk about what the word “holy” means. a. If somebody special gives you a gift, even if it’s something ordinary, you set it apart as something special. The word “holy” means “to set apart.” 3. When we consider something holy, that means that we set it apart from the ordinary. Throughout the year, we keep Sundays holy as a day set apart for God. What are some of the ways we set apart Sunday from the rest of the week? (We go to church; We avoid work; We rest; We do works of mercy.) 4. We are getting ready to set apart an entire week for God! a. Holy Week is a time set apart from the rest of the calendar so that we might recall the suffering, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. 5. Holy Week begins on Palm Sunday and reaches its climax in what we call the Triduum (TRIH-doo-uhm), which means “the three days” of Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday. 6. Let’s take a walk through Holy Week to see how we celebrate these very special days. a. Holy Week begins on Palm Sunday. Who can explain what event we recall on Palm Sunday? (Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem) b. We receive blessed palms and begin Mass with a procession, often outdoors, recalling how Jesus entered Jerusalem to shouts of “Hosanna!” as the people welcomed him as a king. We too welcome Jesus as our king. The word “hosanna” means “save us.” c. Traditionally, Catholics take the blessed palms home and place them behind a cross or crucifix or a picture on the wall. 7. On Palm Sunday, we listen to the reading of the Passion of Jesus, beginning with Judas’ betrayal and continuing all the way through Jesus’ Death on the Cross and his burial in the tomb. This reading, which is longer than a typical Sunday Gospel, is very solemn and is usually done by dividing the reading parts among the priest, the lectors, and even the assembly who often take the parts of the crowd. a. We leave Mass on Palm Sunday, knowing that we are entering into a very holy week in which we recall the events of Jesus’ suffering, Death, and Resurrection. 8. Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of Holy Week do not have special names as do Palm Sunday, Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday. However, they are still important days to set aside for walking with Jesus as the Gospels of each day lead us to the events surrounding his Crucifixion. a. Sometimes, Wednesday of Holy Week is referred to as “Spy Wednesday” since, in the Gospel of that day, Judas began to “spy” for an opportunity to betray Jesus. This day invites us to consider those times when we have betrayed Jesus by not being faithful to him. 9. There are also some other events that take place before Holy Thursday’s evening Mass. a. In many dioceses, a Chrism Mass is celebrated at the cathedral early in the week to bless the oils that are to be used in the sacraments throughout the year in all of the parishes. Parishes send representatives to the Chrism Mass to receive the blessed oils that will be taken back to the parish for use in the sacraments. There are three oils blessed by the bishop at the Chrism Mass: the Oil of Catechumens ("Oleum Catechumenorum" or "Oleum Sanctorum") used in Baptism, the Oil of the Infirm ("Oleum Infirmorum") used in the Anointing of the Sick, and Holy Chrism ("Sacrum Chrisma") used in Confirmation and Holy Orders. b. Also, beginning on Wednesday evening and continuing on Thursday and Friday evenings, some parishes pray a service called Tenebrae, which is the public singing of part of the Liturgy of the Hours. In the Tenebrae service, 15 candles in a triangular stand are extinguished one by one, leaving the congregation in darkness to recall the darkness that enveloped Calvary upon Jesus’ Death on the Cross. It is also traditional at this point for one of the ministers at this service to make a sudden loud noise—called the strepitus—by slamming a book or a door. This noise symbolizes the earthquake that Scripture says accompanied the Lord’s Death as well as the shutting of the tomb where Jesus was laid. 10. The Triduum—meaning “the three days”—begins at sunset on Holy Thursday. For the Jewish people, the day began at sunset. That means that the three days of the Triduum go from Thursday evening to Friday evening (Day 1), to Saturday evening (Day 2), to Easter Sunday evening (Day 3). a. Technically, Lent ends with the beginning of the Mass of the Lord’s Supper on the evening of Holy Thursday. There is no Mass on the morning of Holy Thursday. 11. The Triduum begins with the celebration of the Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday, as we recall the Last Supper that Jesus ate with his Apostles. a. The Mass often begins with a procession of the oils that were blessed at the Chrism Mass earlier that week at the cathedral. 12. Then, a joyful procession announces the beginning of the Triduum in which we glory in the Cross of Jesus Christ, a symbol of his victory over sin and death. We also sing the “Gloria” for the first time since Lent began, giving praise to Christ for taking away the sins of the world. 13. In the first reading for Holy Thursday, we hear the story from the Book of Exodus of how the Jewish people celebrated the Passover. We recall how they were saved from the angel of death by the blood of the lamb as they were leaving Egypt to head for the Promised Land. 14. In the second reading, which is from the First Letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians, we hear of how Jesus gave us a new Passover meal—the Eucharist—by offering his own Body and Blood under the forms of bread and wine at the Last Supper. We hear the words that Jesus spoke at the Last Supper. 15. In the Gospel, we hear how, at the Last Supper, Jesus got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist, filled a basin with water, and washed the feet of his Apostles, commanding us to do the same. We call this command the Mandatum (mahn-DOT-uhm). It is a reminder to us to follow Jesus’ example of selfless love in laying down our lives for others in service to them. a. Following the Gospel and the homily, a solemn Washing of the Feet takes place to symbolize Jesus’ washing of the feet of the Apostles. 16. After Communion, the Blessed Sacrament is carried in a solemn procession and is reserved in a tabernacle on an altar of repose. The people leave in silence, although many remain in silent prayer and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. a. It is a custom in many dioceses for people to visit churches in their area on Holy Thursday since they are open until midnight for adoration. Many parishes organize bus tours for people to visit churches. It is customary to visit seven churches, which is symbolic of visiting the seven basilicas of Rome when on pilgrimage there. The last church visited, if possible, is to be the cathedral of the diocese. b. We remain in a prayerful state of mind as we enter into Good Friday, the only day of the Church year on which the Mass is not celebrated. 17. On Good Friday, we continue the prayer begun the previous evening at the Mass of the Lord’s Supper. Just as we left in silence from that celebration, we now enter in silence for the Good Friday Celebration of the Passion of the Lord. a. Traditionally, this celebration takes place at three o’clock in the afternoon to commemorate the hour at which Jesus died. However, the time can be changed to meet the needs of parishioners, especially those who work during the day on Good Friday. b. The priest and/or deacon, wearing red to symbolize the blood that Jesus shed for us, enter in silence and prostrate themselves—an expression of profound prayer. After a few moments of silence, they invite the assembly to the Opening Prayer. 18. Once again, as we did on Palm Sunday, we listen to a proclamation of the Passion of the Lord, this time, from the Gospel of John. As was done on Palm Sunday, the parts of the Passion reading are often divided among the priest, lectors, and the assembly. 19. A very significant and solemn part of the Good Friday service is the Veneration of the Cross at which the members of the assembly are invited to come forward and to show reverence or respect for the cross of Jesus by either touching it or kissing it. a. You may think that the idea of kissing the cross is strange until you think of how, when people are awarded a trophy to symbolize their victory, they often kiss it. The cross symbolizes Jesus’ victory over sin and death, and so to kiss it is to show how grateful we are for Jesus’ sacrifice. 20. Even though there is no Mass on Good Friday, a Communion Service is included in the Good Friday service, using the consecrated hosts that were reserved from the Mass of the Lord’s Supper the previous night.