The Sacred Paschal Triduum is the most solemn three days of the Catholic liturgical year. It includes Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter Vigil and is period that recalls greatest mysteries of the redemption, the paschal mystery of the passion, death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, as narrated in the canonical Gospels. It symbolizes the passing of the Lord from this world to his Father.
“Paschalis Sollemnitatis” (The Preparation And Celebration Of The Easter Feasts), prepared by the Office of the Congregation for Divine Worship to guide the faithful, says, “the Church by the celebration of this mystery, through liturgical signs and sacramentals, is united to Christ her Spouse in intimate communion.” The Triduum although celebrated in a span of three days, is a single feast that begins on the evening of Holy Thursday also known as Maundy Thursday and ends with evening prayer on Easter Sunday.
On Holy Thursday, the faithful commemorate the Mass of the Holy Supper, the final meal before the crucifixion. During the Last Supper, Jesus breaks bread with his apostles, saying: “This is my body which is given for you.” For Catholics, this words signify Jesus’ institution of the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. At this time Jesus predicts the betrayal by Judas Iscariot for 30 pieces of silver, washes the feet of his apostles, as a gesture of humility and charity, gives them a new commandment “to love one another as I have loved you,” calling them “friends and not servants,” as he prepares for the supreme sacrifice. Traditionally, the washing of the feet of chosen men is performed on this day. It symbolizes the humility and charity of Christ, who came “not to be served, but to serve.”
By way of tradition, the Filipino faithful visit several churches often numbering seven, hence, the name Visita Iglesia, to pray before the Blessed Sacrament and perform other acts of devotion and piety.
Good Friday is traditionally the day that the faithful commemorate Christ’s passion and death on the cross. The synoptic Gospels give us a detailed account of Christ’s suffering and death on Calvary, also called Golgotha or Skull in Aramaic. The Gospel starts with the temple guards arresting Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. He is then brought before Annas and Caiphas the High Priest. Peter denies Jesus three times. He is brought before the Roman governor Pontius Pilate under charges of subverting the nation, opposing taxes to Caesar, and making himself a king. Pilate has Jesus flogged and brought out to the crowd who at the instigation of his enemies demand that he be crucified. Mass is not celebrated on this day; instead, the church reflects on the seven last words of Jesus while hanging on the cross.
On Good Friday, the faithful observe the Veneration of the Cross to commemorate the cross as the instrument of salvation. Legend has it that St. Helena, mother of Emperor Constantine, discovered the true cross in 326. The Church of the Holy Sepulcher now stands on the site where the cross was found. Superstitions are common on this day. Foregoing a bath, especially after three o’clock, empowering anting-antings or amulets, and prohibiting children from making unnecessary noise are some of the many folk beliefs and practices that have been deeply engrained in our consciousness. While the Catholic Church frowns upon these practices, they remain as constant reminders of our syncretic past.
Fasting and abstinence are obligatory on Good Friday, but those who are old, sick, or have special nutritional needs, are exempt. Good works, as in the case of the whole of the Lenten season, are welcome in addition to fasting and abstinence. This Holy Week, one might want to do a good deed by consoling with poor people whose family members have been killed in the war against drugs. Bishop Pablo David has given us a really authentic example of Christian charity by presiding over the funeral and going out of his way to condole with the family of Raymart Siapo, the person with disability who was killed in the massacre of the poor after he was wrongly accused of being a drug addict.
Holy Saturday is also popularly known as Black Saturday. Here we remember the Lord as he lay on the tomb. As it was Sabbath day, his disciples rested on this day. According to the Catechism of the Roman Catholic Church, Christ went down to the abode of the dead, “hell”—Sheol in Hebrew or Hades in Greek—because those souls are deprived of the vision of God. He did not go down to hell as we know it to deliver the damned but to free the holy souls as they await their redemption. The church strictly abstains from celebrating the Holy Mass and Holy Communion may only be given in the form of Viaticum.
Finally, the Easter vigil is the last part of the Paschal Triduum, held the night before Easter of the resurrection, the climax of the Christian faith and hope. Easter Vigil means waiting for the coming of the Lord, and Easter being the greatest feast on the Liturgical Year. Explaining the significance of a night vigil, the Paschales Solemnitatis says: “From the very outset the Church has celebrated that annual Pasch, which is the solemnity of solemnities, above all by means of a night vigil. For the resurrection of Christ is the foundation of our faith and hope, and through Baptism and Confirmation we are inserted into the Paschal Mystery of Christ, dying, buried, and raised with him, and with him we shall also reign.”
The three-day Paschal Triduum is a solemn period to show how to honor our Lord for giving up his life for our salvation. It is a time of both gratitude and conversion. To my readers, I wish you all a truly holy week.
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