Holy Week is the most sacred week of the year for us as Christians. It is the time when we remember the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Through the celebration of Palm Sunday, Good Friday, and Easter we are invited to enter into the life of Christ on a deeper level. We are called to die with him, so we can rise with him to new life.
Over the years I have had many people ask where the traditions of Holy Week come from. The answer is a little complicated but in general we can say that it comes from a Spanish num in the 400’s. Egeria was a widow who became a nun and then travelled to Jerusalem to see how the community there celebrated Holy Week. She wrote back to her convent in Spain about what she experienced. The sisters in Spain tried to imitate the events that were celebrated in Jerusalem. Hence, the traditions of the Holy Land were now alive in Europe. Let me give you an example…Good Friday.
Egeria wrote, “the bishop’s chair is placed on Golgotha behind the cross, and he takes his seat. A table is placed before him with a cloth on it, and the deacons stand around the table. Then a box is brought to him, a silver and gold box which contains the holy wood of the Cross. It is opened, and the Wood of the Cross is taken out and placed on the table. As long as the Holy Wood is on the table, the bishop sits with his hands resting on either end of it and holds it down. The people come by, stoop down, kiss the wood, and move on. The people touch the holy wood with their forehead and then with their eyes, and then kiss it. No one puts his hands out to touch it.”
Here we are today, keeping this tradition alive. On Good Friday, we will have the adoration of the Cross and try to bring alive reverence for the cross which has saved us.
As we celebrate Holy Week and Easter, let us all be aware that what we do is ancient and traditional. It is a way for us to teach reverence for what God has done through Jesus and for God’s amazing love. May we all enter this week with open hearts. As we celebrate the amazing events of our salvation may we be moved to tears…and moved to gratitude for what Jesus has accomplished for us. May you have a blessed and happy Easter in 2024.