Beloved in Christ,
"Christ became obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross" (Phil 2: 8). Palm Sunday begins Holy Week, a period of intense commemoration of Christ's passion. This Sunday, we highlight Christ's Messianic entrance into Jerusalem to fulfill his Paschal Mystery. In the following days of the week, we will celebrate the several sacred moments of Jesus's last days, the Passiontide.
The Chrism Mass will be celebrated on Monday at St Patrick's Cathedral (you are encouraged to attend). The Sacred Triduum begins on Thursday. We will celebrate the Evening Mass of the Lord's Supper, including the symbolic rite of the washing of feet, followed by veneration of the Blessed Sacrament till midnight. On Good Friday, we will have the service of the Passion of the Lord. A pious devotion, the Divine Mercy, will precede the liturgy of the Passion of the Lord. On the evening of Good Friday, our Youth Group will continue meditating on the passion of the cross with their portrayal of the Living Stations. The triduum continues on Holy Saturday with the Office of Reading and Morning Prayer. We will wrap up the Triduum with the mother of all Liturgies, the Easter Vigil.
The Holy Week offers us abundant spiritual space to open our hearts, souls, and minds to the renewing grace of the Holy Spirit as we prepare to celebrate the joyful feast of Easter. The choice is not ours. Will we make this year's lent the best of our life? Will we actively follow in the footsteps of Christ as we call to mind his passion? Will we surrender our entire being to the redeeming grace of Christ's passion? This choice is entirely ours. What is guaranteed is God's enduring love and mercy. God wants us to be transformed and renewed in our baptismal confession. God is ever ready to embrace us and increase his life in us. But, do we want to embrace the passion with Christ and become more Christlike, falling deeper in love with the Savior who loves us to his crucifixion and death? Will we allow Christ's death on the cross to be a waste or a blessing to us?
May you have the most life-changing Holy Week of your life.
In Christ's Passion,
Fr. Bernard Alayode, OP
"Christ became obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross" (Phil 2: 8). Palm Sunday begins Holy Week, a period of intense commemoration of Christ's passion. This Sunday, we highlight Christ's Messianic entrance into Jerusalem to fulfill his Paschal Mystery. In the following days of the week, we will celebrate the several sacred moments of Jesus's last days, the Passiontide.
The Chrism Mass will be celebrated on Monday at St Patrick's Cathedral (you are encouraged to attend). The Sacred Triduum begins on Thursday. We will celebrate the Evening Mass of the Lord's Supper, including the symbolic rite of the washing of feet, followed by veneration of the Blessed Sacrament till midnight. On Good Friday, we will have the service of the Passion of the Lord. A pious devotion, the Divine Mercy, will precede the liturgy of the Passion of the Lord. On the evening of Good Friday, our Youth Group will continue meditating on the passion of the cross with their portrayal of the Living Stations. The triduum continues on Holy Saturday with the Office of Reading and Morning Prayer. We will wrap up the Triduum with the mother of all Liturgies, the Easter Vigil.
The Holy Week offers us abundant spiritual space to open our hearts, souls, and minds to the renewing grace of the Holy Spirit as we prepare to celebrate the joyful feast of Easter. The choice is not ours. Will we make this year's lent the best of our life? Will we actively follow in the footsteps of Christ as we call to mind his passion? Will we surrender our entire being to the redeeming grace of Christ's passion? This choice is entirely ours. What is guaranteed is God's enduring love and mercy. God wants us to be transformed and renewed in our baptismal confession. God is ever ready to embrace us and increase his life in us. But, do we want to embrace the passion with Christ and become more Christlike, falling deeper in love with the Savior who loves us to his crucifixion and death? Will we allow Christ's death on the cross to be a waste or a blessing to us?
May you have the most life-changing Holy Week of your life.
In Christ's Passion,
Fr. Bernard Alayode, OP
RSS Feed