The penitential season of Easter continues into April this year, culminating in Holy Week which begins on Palm Sunday and concludes with the breaking of the fast for the vigil for the festival of the Resurrection on Easter Sunday. Holy Week begins with Palm Sunday which commemorates Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem and is sometimes referred to as “Lazarus Sunday” in some Eastern practices. The traditional procession of palms can be documented as far as the fourth century. Palm Sunday is also Passion Sunday and the duality of Christ's joyful entrance into Jerusalem stands in stark contrast to the horror of trial and crucifixion that followed. The feast of Maundy or Holy Thursday is one of contrasts. Christ's new order (mandatum novum) that His followers love one another may be demonstrated by ritual footwashing between both laity and clergy. The feast also commemorates the Last Supper as the institution of the Eucharist. The Lenten fast is broken with the Lord's Supper after which the altar is stripped of its vestments and all bells are silenced in remembrance of Christ's dark night in Gethsemane. The Service of Shadows (Tenebrae) may be celebrated on Holy Thursday or Good Friday. In Tenebrae, fourteen candles, along with a Christ candle, are lit at the beginning of the service and extinguished one by one as the story of Christ's Passion unfolds. The Christ candle is extinguished last, as the light of the Messiah was extinguished on the Cross. The first service of Easter is the Paschal Vigil. It, traditionally, begins in darkness and ends as the light of Easter dawns. Easter, also called Resurrection Sunday, begins the season of Eastertide which continues until Pentecost. The chancel is vested in a joyful white, and the return of alleluias, absent during Lent, celebrates the victory of the resurrected Christ over sin. The Paschal candle is lit for worship during the Sundays of Eastertide (its flame represents Christ’s illuminating light) and thereafter lit for occasions such as funerals and baptisms. For the community of faith, our sorrow turns to joy. Alleluia, Christ is Risen!
Resources
Thurston, Herbert. "Holy Week." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 7. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 21 Feb. 2009
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The United Methodist Book of Worship. 1992. United Methodist Publishing House: Nashville, Tennessee.
Hickman, Hoyt. United Methodist Worship. 1993. Abingdon Press: Nashville, Tennessee.
