Last Supper

iStock-Jorisvo

I was raised in the Catholic Church, and every year during Holy Week, that took a literal meaning. From Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday, we practically lived at church!

Sunday Vespers, Tenebrae service, Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday, Stations of the Cross and Veneration of the Cross on Good Friday, Easter Vigil and Easter Sunday — not to mention choir practice, altar server practice, and cleaning and decorating the church with my mother. Everything else in life paused during that week for the sake of entering the sacred mystery of Jesus Christ’s passion, death and resurrection. This was good training for the priesthood, and fundamentally, it was good training to be a disciple of Jesus. The priorities of that week taught me that being a Christian in the world requires sacrifice, and practicing the faith is a continual encounter.

I am grateful for the lessons that I learned from this school of action and prayer, though I cannot recall the words of a single homily or sermon during those holy days. This is not a knock on my childhood pastors, as I am sure they were adequate preachers. In seminary I learned that the Church actually instructs priests to preach briefly on the “big days,” because the celebrations of the mysteries speak for themselves. This instruction is particularly direct on Palm Sunday as the rubrics indicate, “After the narrative of the Passion, a brief homily should take place, if appropriate. A period of silence may also be observed.” Waving palm branches, hearing the words “Crucify him! Crucify him!” come out of your own mouth, and kneeling in silence when Jesus breathes his last are more impactful and memorable than any words spoken from a pulpit. In these moments, we become active participants in the mystery, and the fruits of his sacrifice on Calvary are made present in us here and now.

If you want to learn the meaning of the words of St. Paul’s hymn to Christ in Philippians 2 about Jesus “emptying himself” and “becoming obedient to the point of death,” then cancel the plans you have for this week and walk with Jesus on the road to Calvary. Celebrate the Last Supper with Jesus and the Twelve Apostles, stay awake and keep watch with him in the garden of his agony, hear the hammer ring against the nails that tear through his hands and feet, and wait outside the tomb for the glory of the Third Day.

Christians have practiced the rituals of this week for generations, and in the drama of these days, the faith has been caught more than it has been taught. Bending our knees and confessing the Lordship of Jesus with our tongues are external actions that bear the fruit of interior conversion. Do not underestimate the power that the mysteries still hold when they are celebrated with faith and devotion. This week above all others, we live and die at our local parishes, so that we who participate in the Passion of our Lord might also share in the glory of his Resurrection.

Father VanHoose is pastor of St. Jude of the Lake in Mahtomedi.

Sunday, April 10
Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion