The Meaning of Holy Week

Holy Week is most definitely a very sacred time of the year, for it is now that we will commemorate and remember the last week of Je-sus’ life
on this earth. These are the days leading up to the great Easter Feast. Historical documents tell us that as early as the fourth cen-tury the
Church celebrated this “Great Week” with a feeling of profound sanctity. Especially important for Catholics is the Easter Trid-uum. On Holy
Thursday, we reenact the Lord’s Last Supper, which He shared with His apostles on the night He was betrayed and ar-rested. This is one of the
most beautiful liturgies of the entire liturgical year. At the Mass, the priest will wash the feet of twelve, just as Jesus did. Also on this night,
priests all over the world will renew their sacred vows. This is because, at the Last Supper, Jesus not only instituted the Mass (Eucharist) but
also the ministerial priesthood. On Good Friday, the day of the crucifixion and death of our Lord, we have the veneration of the Cross. A service
is held in the afternoon and we go forward and kiss the Cross in order to show honor and respect for Christ’s sacrifice for our sake. Holy Saturday is a vigil. We keep watch for the expectant rising of Our Savior. This was the day He went down into the netherworld in order to bring
back up with Him into heaven those who had died before His coming. Up to this time, the gates to heaven were closed and no one could go
there because of the original sin of Adam. Jesus changed all that. By pay-ing the price for our sins on the Cross, He gained for us our eternal salvation, and heaven was opened once more. Holy Week is a time to clear our schedules of unnecessary activities. Our minds and hearts should be
fixed on Jesus and what He did for us. Let us bear the Cross so that may be worthy of wearing the crown He wore.