Welcome to Holy Week as we remember Jesus’ passion, death, and glorious resurrection. The three days preceding Easter—collectively known as the Triduum (Latin for “three days”)- designate the most sacred days in the church’s calendar: Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter. The liturgy during these three days is one extended service (thus, there are no dismissals in the Maundy Thursday or Good Friday liturgies).
Today is Maundy Thursday. The word “Maundy” is derived from the Latin “mandatum,” meaning “command.” It serves as a reminder of Jesus’s commandment, “As I have loved you, so you must love one another” (John 13:34). Join us tonight at 7:00 as we remember Jesus’ command to “love one another” through the washing of feet. We recall and make present now the institution of the Holy Eucharist. The altar is stripped in preparation for the desolation of Good Friday, and we are invited to watch with Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane before the Blessed Sacrament at the altar.
Tomorrow, Good Friday (April 18 at 12:10 p.m.), we will journey with Jesus from his arrest to the cross, where he gives his life for our sins and the sins of the entire world. He then dies and is laid in the tomb. We will observe the veneration of the cross and join in solemn prayer for the church and all of humanity before taking communion together.
On Saturday at the Great Vigil of Easter (Saturday, April 19 at 7:30 p.m.), we will engage in the full sweep of salvation: creation, fall, redemption, and end (in resurrection and re-creation). We renew our baptismal covenant, where we die and rise with Jesus Christ. In this service, we move from darkness to light, rejoicing that in Jesus’ resurrection, life triumphs over death and makes all of creation new. Our celebration continues through the Eucharistic feast, where we partake of his body and blood so that we may live in him and he in us.
If you have never experienced the Easter Triduum, I hope you will journey with us this week. It is not an exaggeration to say that it will forever change how you approach Easter. Join us as we enter the drama of these holy days and walk with Jesus in the greatest story ever told—the story of our salvation.
May God richly bless you this Holy Week and always,
