In the Catholic Church, Holy Saturday, or the Saturday of Holy Week, is the final day of the Lent and the day between Good Friday and Easter Sunday.
Holy Saturday is the final day of the Triduum, the three days during which we commemorate Christ’s Passion.
It is the day when Jesus lay in his tomb after his death, according to Christian belief.
Holy Saturday (from Sabbatum Sanctum, its official liturgical name) is sacred as the day of the Lord’s rest; it has been called the “Second Sabbath” after creation. The day is and should be the most calm and quiet day of the entire Church year, a day broken by no liturgical function.
On Holy Saturday the Church waits at the Lord’s tomb, meditating on his suffering and death. The altar is left bare, and the sacrifice of the Mass is not celebrated. Only after the solemn vigil during the night, held in anticipation of the resurrection, does the Easter celebration begin, with a spirit of joy that overflows into the following period of fifty days.
Candles that are lit during Holy Saturday church liturgies symbolize Jesus Christ’s victory over death, as well as the Christian belief in his resurrection. It can also mean spiritual hope and victory.
Activities on Holy Saturday:
- Today we remember Christ in the tomb. It is not Easter yet, so it’s not time for celebration. The day is usually spent working on the final preparations for the biggest feast of the Church year. The list of suggested activities is long, but highlights are decorating Easter eggs and attending a special Easter food blessing.
- For families with smaller children, you could create a miniature Easter garden, with a tomb. The figure of the risen Christ will be placed in the garden on Easter morning.
- Another activity for families is creation of a paschal candle to use at home. [youtube SuW5l0Nn4Ic 650]
Pope Francis has referred to “so many Muslim brothers and sisters” during a Good Friday procession dedicated to the suffering of Christians from terrorism, war and religious fanaticism in the Middle East.
The newly-elected Pope, who has rankled traditionalists by rejecting many trappings of his office, mostly stuck to the traditional script during the nighttime Via Crucis (Way of the Cross) procession at Rome’s Colosseum, one of the most dramatic rituals of Holy Week.
Pope Francis has referred to “so many Muslim brothers and sisters” during a Good Friday procession dedicated to the suffering of Christians from terrorism, war and religious fanaticism in the Middle East
With torches lighting the way, the faithful carried a cross to different stations, where meditations and prayers were read out recalling the final hours of Jesus’ life and his crucifixion.
This year, the prayers were composed by young Lebanese, and many recalled the plight of minority Christians in the region, where wars have forced thousands to flee their homelands. The meditations called for an end to “violent fundamentalism,” terrorism and the “wars and violence which in our days devastate various countries in the Middle East.”
Pope Francis chose, however, to stress Christians’ positive relations with Muslims in the region in his brief comments at the end of the ceremony.
Standing on a platform overlooking the procession route, Pope Francis recalled Pope Benedict XVI’s 2012 visit to Lebanon when “we saw the beauty and the strong bond of communion joining Christians together in that land and the friendship of our Muslim brothers and sisters and so many others.”
“That occasion was a sign to the Middle East and to the whole world, a sign of hope,” the new Pope said.
Friday’s outreach followed Pope Francis’ eyebrow-raising gesture a day earlier, when he washed and kissed the feet of two women, one a Muslim, in the Maundy Thursday ritual that commemorates Jesus’ washing of his apostles’ feet during the Last Supper before his crucifixion.
Breaking with tradition, Pope Francis performed the ritual on 12 inmates at a juvenile detention center, rather than in Rome’s grand St. John Lateran basilica, where in the past, 12 priests have been chosen to represent Jesus’ disciples.
Before he became pope, Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio long cultivated warm relations with Muslim leaders in his native Argentina. In one of his first speeches as pope, he called for the church and the West in general to “intensify” relations with the Muslim world.
The Vatican’s relations with Islam hit several bumps during Benedict XVI’s papacy, when he outraged Muslims with a 2006 speech quoting a Byzantine emperor as saying some of Prophet Muhammad’s teachings were “evil and inhuman”. And in 2011, the pre-eminent institute of Islamic learning in the Sunni Muslim world, Cairo’s Al-Azhar institute, froze dialogue with the Vatican to protest Pope Benedict’s call for greater protection of Christians in Egypt.
However, Pope Francis’ past outreach to the Muslim community in Argentina seems to have changed that. Al-Azhar’s chief imam, Sheik Ahmed el-Tayyib, sent a message of congratulations to Pope Francis on his election and said he hoped for cooperation.
The Vatican’s efforts to reconcile with the Islamic world have not been welcomed by all. Italy’s most famous Muslim convert to Catholicism, Magdi Allam, announced last week he was leaving the church because of its “soft” stance on Islam. Magdi Allam was baptized by Pope Benedict XVI in 2008 during the high-profile Easter Vigil service when the pope traditionally baptizes a handful of adults.
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Pope Francis has announced in his Palm Sunday homily he will visit Brazil in July for the World Youth Day in Rio de Janeiro.
The Pope will attend the Catholic youth gathering in Rio de Janeiro, saying Mass on Copacabana beach and praying at the Christ the Redeemer statue.
Pope Francis spoke in St Peter’s Square as Holy Week, the most important period in the Christian calendar, began.
Thousands of people waved olive branches and palm fronds in the crowd.
The gesture commemorates palm branches which, according to the Bible, were laid in the path of Jesus Christ when he made his entry on a donkey into Jerusalem before his crucifixion.
Pope Francis has announced in his Palm Sunday homily he will visit Brazil in July for the World Youth Day in Rio de Janeiro
Pope Francis departed frequently from the prepared text of his homily.
His style is informal, direct and, in contrast to his predecessors, he tells stories off the cuff to illustrate the points he wants to make, our correspondent says.
The Catholic youth festival is expected to attract hundreds of thousands of young pilgrims from around the world.
Towards the end of his homily, Pope Francis said: “I look forward joyfully to next July in Rio de Janeiro.
“I will see you in that great city in Brazil.”
The gathering in Rio would, Pope Francis said, be a “sign of faith for the whole world”.
Pope Benedict XVI attended the last such festival, in Madrid, in August 2011.
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Pope Francis has begun the Catholic Church’s most important liturgical season with a Palm Sunday Mass at the Vatican.
250,000 pilgrims crowded St Peter’s Square for the outdoor Mass marking the start of Holy Week.that marks the start of Holy Week.
Sprigs of olive trees have been distributed to the faithful in remembrance of Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem before his crucifixion.
The run-up to Easter is considered the most important week in the calendar of the Roman Catholic Church.
Pope Francis has begun the Catholic Church’s most important liturgical season with a Palm Sunday Mass at the Vatican
After Sunday’s Mass, Pope Francis will lead six more liturgies during the week, culminating with the Easter Sunday Mass and Urbi et Orbi blessing.
What the newly-elected Pope says during these services will take on added significance coming at the start of his pontificate.
On Saturday, Pope Francis held a first meeting with his predecessor, Pope Emeritus Benedict, who is now living in retirement near Rome.
Pope Francis was flown by helicopter to Castel Gandolfo for a private lunch with Pope Emeritus Benedict.
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