Holy Saturday Past and Present

I was thinking this morning that today is the last day of my fast. Well, what a wimp I can be. You see this Lent I have read and listened to a couple of talks on what Lent used to be like. It wasn't about just giving up chocolate (which I do give up and have missed greatly this Lent) or Dr. Pepper (I missed that, too) but the early Christians really gave up alot. I heard that not only did they give up meat on Fridays, but milk, eggs, cheese, all the dairy products and much more. They would mostly eat bread and grains on Fridays.


In the New Advent Encyclopedia Holy Saturday was also a day of great fasting. Read below about Holy Saturday:

In the primitive Church Holy Saturday was known as Great, or Grand, Saturday, Holy Saturday, the Angelic Night, the Vigil of Easter, etc. It is no longer, like Maundy Thursday, a day of joy, but one of joy and sadness intermingled; it is the close of the season of Lent and penance, and the beginning of paschal time, which is one of rejoicing.
By a noteworthy exception, in the early Church this was the only Saturday on which fasting was permitted (Constit. Apost., VII, 23), and the fast was one of special severity. Dating from the time of St. Irenaeus, an absolute fast from every kind of food was observed for the forty hours preceding the feast of Easter, and although the moment assigned for breaking the fast at dawn on Sunday varied according to time and country, the abstinence from food on Holy Saturday was general.
The night of the vigil of Easter has undergone a strange displacement. During the first six or seven centuries, ceremonies were in progress throughout the entire night, so that the Alleluia coincided with the day and moment of the Resurrection. In the eighth century these same ceremonies were held on Saturday afternoon and, by a singular anachronism, were later on conducted on Saturday morning, thus the time for carrying out the solemnity was advanced almost a whole day. Thanks to this change, special services were now assigned to Holy Saturday whereas, beforehand, it had had none until the late hour of the vigil.
This vigil opened with the blessing of the new fire, the lighting of lamps and candles and of the paschal candle, ceremonies that have lost much of their symbolism by being anticipated and advanced from twilight to broad daylight. St. Cyril of Jerusalem spoke of this night that was as bright as day, and Constantine the Great added unprecedented splendour to its brilliancy by a profusion of lamps and enormous torches, so that not only basilicas, but private houses, streets, and public squares were resplendent with the light that was symbolic of the Risen Christ. The assembled faithful gave themselves up to common prayer, the singing of psalms and hymns, and the reading of the Scriptures commentated by the bishop or priests. The vigil of Easter was especially devoted to the baptism of catechumens who, in the more important churches, were very numerous. On the Holy Saturday following the deposition of St. John Chrysostom from the See of Constantinople, there were 3000 catechumens in this church alone. Such numbers were, of course, only encountered in large cities; nevertheless, as Holy Saturday and the vigil of Pentecost were the only days on which baptism was administered, even in smaller churches there was always a goodly number of catechumens. This meeting of people in the darkness of the night often occasioned abuses which the clergy felt powerless to prevent by active supervision unless by so anticipating the ceremonies that all of them could take place in daylight. Rabanus Maurus, an ecclesiastical writer of the ninth century (De cleric. Instit., II, 28), gives a detailed account of the ceremony of Holy Saturday. The congregation remained silent in the church awaiting the dawn of the Resurrection, joining at intervals in psalmody and chant and listening to the reading of the lessons. These rites were identical with those in the primitive Church and were solemnized at the same hours, as the faithful throughout the world had not yet consented to anticipate the Easter vigil and it was only during the Middle Ages that uniformity on this point was established.



This is from an ancient homily for Holy Saturday:


Something strange is happening—there is a great silence on earth today, a great silence and stillness. The whole earth keeps silence because the King is asleep. The earth trembled and is still because God has fallen asleep in the flesh and he has raised up all who have slept ever since the world began. God has died in the flesh and @#!*% trembles with fear.

He has gone to search for our first parent, as for a lost sheep. Greatly desiring to visit those who live in darkness and in the shadow of death, he has gone to free from sorrow the captives Adam and Eve, he who is both God and the son of Eve. The Lord approached them bearing the cross, the weapon that had won him the victory. At the sight of him Adam, the first man he had created, struck his breast in terror and cried out to everyone: “My Lord be with you all.” Christ answered him: “And with your spirit.” He took him by the hand and raised him up, saying: “Awake, O sleeper, and rise from the dead, and Christ will give you light.”
I am your God, who for your sake have become your son. Out of love for you and for your descendants I now by my own authority command all who are held in bondage to come forth, all who are in darkness to be enlightened, all who are sleeping to arise. I order you, O sleeper, to awake. I did not create you to be held a prisoner in @#!*% . Rise from the dead, for I am the life of the dead. Rise up, work of my hands, you who were created in my image. Rise, let us leave this place, for you are in me and I am in you; together we form only one person and we cannot be separated.


May you have a blessed Holy Saturday.

Holy Thursday: Litany of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus

Litany of the Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ

Lord, have mercy. (Lord, have mercy.)
Christ, have mercy. (Christ, have mercy.)
Lord, have mercy. (Lord, have mercy.)
Christ, hear us. (Christ, hear us.)
Christ, graciously hear us. (Christ, graciously hear us.)
God the Father of Heaven, (have mercy on us.)
God the Son, Redeemer of the world, (have mercy on us.)
God, the Holy Spirit, (have mercy on us.)
Holy Trinity, One God, (have mercy on us.)
Blood of Christ, only-begotten Son of the eternal Father, (save us)
Blood of Christ, Incarnate Word of God, (save us)
Blood of Christ, of the New and Eternal Testament, (save us)
Blood of Christ, falling upon the earth in Agony, (save us)
Blood of Christ, shed profusely in the Scourging, (save us)
Blood of Christ, flowing forth in the Crowning with Thorns, (save us)
Blood of Christ, poured out on the Cross, (save us)
Blood of Christ, price of our salvation, (save us)
Blood of Christ, without which there is no forgiveness, (save us)
Blood of Christ, Eucharistic drink and refreshment of souls, (save us)
Blood of Christ, stream of mercy, (save us)
Blood of Christ, victor over demons, (save us)
Blood of Christ, courage of Martyrs, (save us)
Blood of Christ, strength of Confessors, (save us)
Blood of Christ, bringing forth Virgins, (save us)
Blood of Christ, help of those in peril, (save us)
Blood of Christ, relief of the burdened, (save us)
Blood of Christ, solace in sorrow, (save us)
Blood of Christ, hope of the penitent, (save us)
Blood of Christ, consolation of the dying, (save us)
Blood of Christ, peace and tenderness of hearts, (save us)
Blood of Christ, pledge of eternal life, (save us)
Blood of Christ, freeing souls from purgatory, (save us)
Blood of Christ, most worthy of all glory and honor, (save us)
Lamb of God, who taketh away the sins of the world, (spare us, O Lord.)
Lamb of God, who taketh away the sins of the world, (graciously hear us, O Lord.)
Lamb of God, who taketh away the sins of the world, (have mercy on us, O Lord.)
Thou hast redeemed us, O Lord, in Thy Blood. (And made us, for our God, a kingdom.)
Let us pray. Almighty and eternal God, Thou hast appointed Thine only-begotten Son the Redeemer of the world and willed to be appeased by his blood. Grant, we beg of Thee, that we may worthily adore this price of our salvation and through its power be safeguarded from the evils of the present life so that we may rejoice in its fruits forever in heaven. Through the same Christ our Lord. (Amen.)

40 Days for Life Reminder

Just a reminder Ash Wednesday started 40 Days for Life. Here's the link.
http://40daysforlife.com/getinvolved.cfm

HAPPY EASTER

Palm Sunday

This coming Sunday is Palm Sunday, also, called Passion Sunday. It marks the beginning of Holy Week. Holy Week and Easter are the most important times for Christians.


Palm Sunday is a celebration of Jesus entering into Jerusalem.

"When they drew near Jerusalem and came to Bethphage  on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, "Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find an @#!*% tethered, and a colt with her.  Untie them and bring them here to me. And if anyone should say anything to you, reply, 'The master has need of them.' Then he will send them at once." This happened so that what had been spoken through the prophet might be fulfilled: "Say to daughter Zion, 'Behold, your king comes to you, meek and riding on an @#!*% , and on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.'" The disciples went and did as Jesus had ordered them. They brought the @#!*% and the colt and laid their cloaks over them, and he sat upon them. The very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and strewed them on the road. The crowds preceding him and those following kept crying out and saying: "Hosanna to the Son of David; blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord; hosanna in the highest." And when he entered Jerusalem the whole city was shaken and asked, "Who is this?" And the crowds replied, "This is Jesus the prophet, from Nazareth in Galilee."  Matthew 21: 1-11


This event is told in all four Gospels. The event is celebrated by the blessing and distribution of palm branches, a solemn or simple procession into the Church before the start of the Mass.

In Jerusalem the people were showing honor to the King of kings. This is what we are doing still. Jesus loves us so much and wants to be King in our lives because He loves us. Just like a parent wants the best for their children, so does Jesus want the best for us. So, we honor Him because he has done so much for us, for our good. There is a good reason for remembering the first Palm Sunday and celebrating Palm Sunday today; to show Jesus He is our Lord and King.

Lenten Activities: Stations of the Cross

Of all the Catholic memories I have from growing up in the Church, Lenten activities remain the strongest. I, especially, remember attending the Stations of the Cross in the evenings. I remember,  back in the 1960's, that not many attended.  Not as many as there are at Mass, for sure.  The reason I remember that is because it would be quiet. It was a quiet prayer time. The pews would creak as people would genuflect at the appropriate time. The Church too, would always have a special feel about it.  It was dark outside giving the stained glass windows a special look about them. Without the light shining in the images on the windows seemed so much more real. The pictures in the prayer book were very sad. They showed the sufferings of Jesus and his mother and the look of Simon of Cyrene being asked to help carry the cross. I can still see the sadness on Jesus's face when he met the women of Jerusalem. There was the smell of the incense that can't be forgotten either. The prayer before each station the Priest would pray, "We adore Thee, O Christ, and bless Thee," and we would respond with, "because by Thy holy cross Thou hast redeemed the world."
The evening would end with the singing of,  "Holy God, We Praise Thy Name."  It is still the same today, the same holy feeling,  the same prayers and music,the same awesome God who doesn't change. I even purchased some of the prayer books to have in our homeschool.
I always knew Lent was a time before Easter when we remembered the suffering and death of our Lord Jesus, but it wasn't until recently that I researched the history of Lent and came to understand what it meant.
The word Lent actually means "spring" or March, which is the month most of Lent falls in.
Lent is a season of about 40 days set aside by the Church in order for the faithful Christians to prepare for the celebration of the Lord’s passion, death and resurrection. It is a time when Christians prepare for Easter by a recalling of their Baptism and Baptismal promises and by doing works of penance, that is, prayer, fasting and giving of alms.
This time coincides so well with spring, calling to mind new life and growth, a hope and change that we should be about during this beautiful season.  It is a time when days become longer and the sun seems to shine more.  By the time Easter is here there will be flowers blooming and some green showing.  It is a time to start fresh. A time to remember what Jesus did for us and a time for us to show our love for Jesus by doing for others because as our Lord said,  "Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me."  Maybe the word "Lent" is not mentioned in the Bible, but prayer, fasting and almsgiving definately are.  It is awesome for me to think that because Jesus left us the Church we can all be one, participating in this seeking of the Lord at the same time.  There are many websites that talk about the history of Lent and it's importance. One place to seek out information is EWTN.  Their library has a very long article on the history of Lent and tells that many of the early Church fathers assure us that Lent was instituted by the apostles.  http://www.ewtn.com/library/liturgy/histlent.txt
At this point on the Liturgical calendar, and I love the Liturgical calendar because it causes us to yearly stay focused on the life of Jesus, we draw closer to the Lord by remembering His passion, death and resurrection.
I hope and pray all of you are able to draw yourself and your family closer to the Lord during this Lenten season, also.