From New Testament times, Christians specially observed Easter. While every Sunday recalled the Lord’s Resurrection, by the end of the first century, Christians also kept a spring-time Easter celebration near the date of the Jewish Passover. Beginning a few centuries after the birth of Christ, many Christians traveled to Jerusalem from across the Mediterranean world to re-live the Lord’s last few days on the sacred sites themselves. The ceremonies associated with Holy Week have their origins in the worship of the churches in Jerusalem during those early days of pilgrimage.
The Lenten color used in most churches today on vestments and hangings is purple. But in medieval English churches—and still today in quite a few churches in England—the Altars and churches are hung in what is called “the Lenten Array,” unbleached linen with decorations (often the “symbols of the Passion”) colored with blacks, reds and dark oxblood. It’s customary for the weeks of Passiontide to veil all the crosses, holy pictures and statues within the church. In medieval England, these veils were placed not just during Passiontide, but for the whole of Lent. Another custom, almost completely vanished, is the Lenten sanctuary veil. This giant veil was hung at the Altar rail entirely blocking the view of the sanctuary. When the sanctuary veil was used, it was drawn back during Mass just enough to let the congregation see the Altar.
The services of Holy Week include the blessing and procession of palms on Palm Sunday. The Passion Gospel (according to St Matthew) is read, the clergy and people taking the various “parts.” The Mass of Maundy Thursday celebrates the Lord’s institution of the Eucharist. After the Mass is concluded, it’s customary for the priest to wash the feet of his parishioners; then, the Altar and appointments of the church are all stripped while Psalm 22 (“My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me?”) is chanted and all leave the church in silence. On Good Friday, special readings and collects precede the unveiling and veneration of the Cross. Ancient practice forbids the celebration of the Mass from Maundy Thursday until the first Mass of Easter. The Holy Saturday services begin in the evening, with the blessing of the New Fire, the blessing of the Paschal candle, the Paschal Procession and the singing of the Exultet, an ancient Easter Proclamation.
Pope St Leo the Great, in a sermon he preached in AD 457, said, “We not only know about the reconciliation of the world wrought by the Son of God by hearing of these past events, but through the power and work of God, we ourselves experience these things through the mystery of the Liturgy and Sacraments.” For us, these services are not remembrances of the past, but the Saving Acts of God present with us now.
The services of Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday are some of the most ancient and beautiful of the Church Year. They will all be celebrated at St Joseph’s this Passiontide. They are the perfect prelude to the grand festivities of Easter Day. I hope you will join in as much as you can.—Fr Gregory Wilcox
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