EASTER VIGIL

In the evening of Holy Saturday, we celebrate the Easter Vigil. It is the mother of all vigils in Catholic liturgical celebrations, holding preeminence over Christmas Vigil, Pentecost Vigil and other vigils in the Church’s liturgical calendar. By most ancient tradition, this is the night of keeping vigil for the Lord (Ex 12:42), in which, following the Gospel admonition (Lk 12:35-37), the faithful, carrying lighted lamps in their hands, should be like those looking for the Lord when he returns, so that at his coming he may find them awake and have them sit at his table.

The liturgical service during the Easter Vigil is replete with symbolisms that pertain to the truths of our faith. It is primarily divided into four part, namely, the Service of Light, Liturgy of the Word, Baptism and Liturgy of the Eucharist. It is arranged, moreover, in such a way that after the Service of Light and Easter Proclamation (which constitutes the first part of this Vigil), Holy Church meditates on the wonders the Lord God has done for his people from the beginning, trusting in his word and promise (the second part, that is, the Liturgy of the Word) until, as day approaches, with new members reborn in Baptism (the third part), the Church is called to the table the Lord has prepared for his people, the memorial of his Death and Resurrection until he comes again (the foruth part).

In the service of light, the paschal candle is blessed. It is the symbol of Christ who is risen again, Christ who shines brightly in the darkness. He is the new source of light of the Church, guiding her towards freedom from sin and newness of life. Thus, we pray that the light of Christ rising in glory dispel the darkness of our hearts and minds.

The liturgy of the Word includes nine readings namely seven from the Old Testament and two from the New (the Epistle and Gospel). We listen with quiet hearts to the Word of God. We meditate on how God in times past saved his people and in these, the last days, has sent us his Son as our Redeemer. Thus, we pray that our God may complete this paschal work of salvation by the fullness of redemption.

The Baptism Liturgy begins after the homily. It is a reminiscence of the ancient Christian practice of baptism during the Easter Vigil, after the intense preparations of candidates during the Lent. As the symbol of light serves a potent reminder for us of Christ’s light, the water in baptism is also an effective symbol of our faith. It reminds us of the life-giving, sustaining, cleansing, and healing brought forth by Christ resurrection. The ability of water to inflict death is not ignore, too. In as much as the water of baptism brings forth a new life, it also causes death to sin. Thus, through the water of baptism we are united in a special way with the death of Christ, and to his resurrection too.       

The vigil’s highest point in the celebration of the liturgy of the Eucharist. In the Eucharist we are invited by the risen Lord to participate in the meal he had prepared. As we remember the Paschal mystery of Christ, we offer from the gifts the Lord had given us the holy bread of eternal life and the chalice of salvation, meant to nourish our spirit with very sustenance that Christ prepare for us.

The liturgy of the Easter Vigil helps us to remember the goodness the Lord has done for us from the Old Testament to the New that climaxes with the death and resurrection of Christ.

GOOD FRIDAY

Good Friday is called “good” because it is filled with goodness. In the liturgy of Good Friday, we remember the supreme sacrifice of Jesus Christ. He showed to us the depth of God's love and did the greatest service to humanity by submitting himself to a shameful death on the cross. In this way, he freed us from sin and death and saved us. Thus, the death that came through Adam and Eve is defeated by the death of Christ. The disobedience, pride and deceit of man against God is reciprocated by the obedience, humility and love of God, which restored man’s relationship with God. Such is the goodness we witness in this holy day.

Today's liturgy gives emphasis on the centrality of the cross in the Christian life. Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me Mt 16:24)." Charles W. Everest's song written in 1833 beautifully encapsulates the place of the cross in our Christian life: 'Take up your cross', the Saviour said, 'If you would my disciple be; deny yourself, forsake the world, and humbly follow after me.' Take up your cross - let not its weight Fill your weak spirit with alarm; His strength shall bear your spirit up, and brace your heart, and nerve your arm. Take up your cross, nor heed the shame nor let your foolish pride rebel; Your Lord for you the cross endured to save your soul from death and hell. Jesus Christ shows to us the indispensable presence of suffering in Christian discipleship. This reminds us that we have to be open to the sufferings in this world as our response to Christ’s call to follow him.

But suffering is only a means and not the end of following Christ. Death on the cross was only Christ’s passageway towards his glory and exaltation. The crosses we bear are simply our means towards our own resurrection. Our sufferings may appear too heavy for us to bear, but remember, Christ suffered first. He knows the feeling of being mocked, humiliated, wounded, and killed. He knows what we are undergoing. Be assured that he is with us in everything that we are undergoing. We can even offer our sufferings and pains for the salvation of our souls and of others. In this way, our sufferings and pains attain a new dimension. They become one with Christ's suffering; a suffering that is salvific.  

However, as Christians, we ought not to overemphasize suffering to the point of treating it as the be all and end all of being Christian. It a means that we are the people of Easter morn. Good Friday ought to lead us to Easter Sunday. 

MAUNDY THURSDAY

On the mass of the Lord’s Supper, we remember three events that are of great importance in our life as Christians, namely, the institution of the holy Eucharist, the Holy Priesthood, and the new commandment of love.

In this solemn commemoration of the Lord’s Supper, we begin our celebration of the Paschal Triduum. We enter into the Paschal Mystery. Seeing his forthcoming departure from this world, and return to the Father, Jesus Christ instituted the Holy Eucharist as the memorial of his love for us. It is a farewell gift from him who is about to depart. But it is not just an ordinary memento; it is a gift of his real presence. Paradoxically, he left us physically when he ascended to heaven, but through the Eucharist, he is made present again in our midst. It is not just a memorial of his love, but the presence of Love itself. He is so in love that he is giving his own body and blood as our sustenance. He is giving himself up for us, body and blood, so that we may gain new life.

The sacrament of Holy Orders was also instituted during the Lord’s Supper. Through it, the mission entrusted by Christ to his apostles continues to be exercised in the Church until the end of time (CCC 1536). Though all baptized members of the Church participate in the one priesthood of Christ through their common priesthood, the ordained ministers participate in a special way with Christ’s ministerial priesthood, which is at the service of the common priesthood. It is directed at the unfolding of the baptismal grace of all Christians, a means by which Christ unceasingly builds up and leads his Church (CCC 1547). Through the ordained ministers, Christ is made present again through the sacraments they celebrate. The sacrament of Holy Orders was instituted through the washing of the feet of the apostles by Jesus Christ. On that last night, he told them: If I washed your feet, I who am your Teacher and Lord, then you must wash each other’s feet (Jn 13:14). Thus, the dignity of the ordained ministers and community lies primarily in the works, ministries and services they render to the people of God. They must be servants of all without neglecting their role as leaders. Jesus Christ, through the institution of the Holy Orders, teaches to us what it means to be a genuine Servant-Leader. 

  

Realizing his impending passion and death, Christ left a new commandment to his apostles, and consequently to us. He gave us a Mandatum Novum (from which Maundy Thursday got it name), a new commandment. This is the commandment of love: A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another (Jn 13:34-35). This new commandment demands that we have the love of Jesus as the sole standard of our love: to love like Jesus who washed the feet of his apostles, who fed the hungry, healed the sick, who gave up his life for us all.

Today, Maundy Thursday, Jesus showed to us his great love. He let us feel the immensity and extent of his love for us, even to the point of offering his of body and blood. In turn, may we heed his commandment of love, for only by loving like Jesus will we be truly his disciples.

PASCHAL TRIDUUM

On Maundy Thursday, we Catholics enter a brief but most significant period in our liturgical calendar: the Paschal Triduum. From the celebration of the Lord’s Supper on Maundy Thursday, through the Passion of Christ on Good Friday, to the Easter Vigil held on the nightfall of Black Saturday, up to the celebration of the evening prayer on Easter Sunday, we celebrate the Paschal Mystery -- the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Christ. Through this mystery, Christ accomplished the redemption of man from sin and death, and the glorification of God. By dying, he destroyed death, and by rising he restored life. The Paschal or Easter Triduum, celebrating this Paschal mystery, is the highest point of the liturgical calendar.

The Triduum celebrates one mystery pertaining to the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Christ. This is noticeable in the open-ended character of the celebrations. From the Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Maundy Thursday to the Easter Vigil on the midnight of Holy Thursday, there is no dismissal given between the celebrations, indicating that they are part of one great liturgy, commemorating the one great mystery.   

The Paschal Mystery with its pain and sorrows, joys and newness of life, has to be taken in its totality. Many of us Filipino Catholics think Holy Week ends on Good Friday. After the many celebrations, the visita iglesia, participation in a very long procession, the Holy Week is over. Consequently, the celebration of the Paschal Mystery ends with the death of Christ. We remain in pain and sorrow, outside the tomb of the dead Christ, crying over the loss of our loved one. We fail to celebrate the core of our Christian faith, the resurrection of Christ. We disconnect pain, death and sorrow from hope and renewed life brought forth by the resurrection. We are stuck on Good Friday, on pain and sorrow and seeming hopelessness. But the Lord is good. He does not want us to remain in pain and sorrow for our sins. He would like us to rise from our fall, together with him as he rose from the darkness of the tomb, as he rose from death.

The Paschal Mystery culminates with the resurrection of Christ, bringing hope and renewal in our lives. Let us not stop celebrating this great mystery on Good Friday. Let us proceed to the joy of Easter, to the new life Christ offers us with his resurrection.