“We focus on Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday, but we forget to pause in the stillness of the days between. Find time today to be present in that place of waiting. There is treasure to be found in the sacred peace that comes as you breathe in that place of quiet surrender. Don’t rush through the space called “Between.” ~ Katherine J. Walden
Thursday evening and yesterday were very busy times. On Thursday, we celebrated the Mass of the Lord’s Supper as we began the Triduum. Even though the pandemic has kept us from doing the washing of the feet and the Eucharistic Procession, the Mass was rich in imagery and in sacred song. It was wonderful to hear a voices in the choir area singing four-part music after all these months of having only a cantor lead the singing.
Yesterday continued the Triduum with the Liturgy of the Lord’s Passion. We listening to sacred scripture, proclaimed the passion narrative together, venerated the cross, and received Holy Communion after which we left the church in silence. Many returned in the evening for the Tenebrae prayer service at which we recounted the pain and anguish of those who loved the Lord as they placed His body in a tomb and walked away.
Today, we “wait in silence”. Yet the silence is also filled with frenetic energy. The Environment and Art members will be in the church in order to decorate it for Easter Masses. They will have to be quick because at 2:00 p.m. there will be many people in church for the Blessing of the Easter Baskets. Tonight at 8:00 p.m. the Vigil Mass of Easter will begin. This culminates the Triduum.
That is what will take place at the church. In your own homes, today — Holy Saturday — might be busy as you prepare for Easter. You might have family or friends coming by for an Easter meal. You might be cleaning the house or preparing some of the foods of the Easter meal. There might be a lot of frenetic energy in your own households as well.
Yes, today can be quite busy. However, Walden reminds us that today has a special function: silence and surrender. Holy Saturday is serious business as it challenges us to remember the feelings of those who grieved the loss of Jesus after they placed Him in the tomb.
When we grieve the loss of someone special to us, we often find ourselves filling our days with busy work so that we don’t have to think about our sorrow. Don’t let that happen to you today. Don’t let the busy schedule of the day keep you from some silent reflection so that you can sort through your own feelings. After all, Jesus Christ suffered and died for you. He was placed in a tomb. Everyone walked away. How would you feel if you were one of them?
FAITH ACTION: If possible, make time to sit in silence today and reflect upon the “emptiness” that must have been the felt experience of the family and friends of Jesus after they laid Him in the tomb and before His resurrection.