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Holy Week: March 24 - 31, 2024 (part 2):
Triduum, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter Vigil, Easter Sunday
Triduum is ONE service that takes place in 3 parts: Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter Vigil. Therefore, Thursday and Friday do NOT end with a benediction and closing hymn, but rather simply silence as we anticipate the next part of the story on the following night. The Triduum straddles the two liturgical seasons of Lent and Easter in the church calendar. Lent officially ends with the setting of the sun on the Saturday before Easter. The Easter Vigil begins at sunset, 3/30/24 at 7:39pm.
Maundy Thursday (3/28 @7:00pm) The word “Maundy” comes from the Latin word mandatum, meaning “command.” On this night we sing “Where Charity and Love Prevail (Latin: Ubi Caritas et amor) This ancient Latin hymn is from the 8th century and begins “Where charity and love prevail, there God is ever found.” While we celebrate the “Passover Meal” remembering the night in Egypt that the angel of death “passed over” each Jewish household that was marked with the blood of a lamb, we also embrace the new command Jesus gave to his disciples to “love one another.” To demonstrate humble kindness, he washed his disciples' feet. In this action, and ALL acts of humble kindness, God is present. At the end of this service, cantors will chant Psalm 88 while the chancel area is stripped bare of all decorations in preparation for Good Friday. Psalm 88 is a lament in which we pray for rescue from the alienation of approaching death. The first verse, however, establishes God as the only one who can save us from this bitter and grim death. Each of the three stanzas (verse 2, 10, and 14) begins with a call to God and complains of the death that separates one from God.
Good Friday (3/29 @ 7:00pm) Good Friday commemorates the crucifixion and death of Jesus Christ. Jesus carried his cross to the site of execution (assisted by Simon of Cyrene), called the "place of the Skull", or "Golgotha" in Hebrew. There he was crucified along with two criminals. You will notice the chancel is empty of decorations and draped in black. While this day is all about death (normally a bad thing), the "good" in the death of Jesus Christ is that his death represents the redemption of humanity. The celebrations of Easter wouldn't be possible without the event on Good Friday. On this night the choir will sing the Passion story as set to music by Erik Meyer. The congregation will participate in the singing of this passion story, with the hymn, AH, HOLY JESUS - ELW 349. The tune was written in the early 17th century and is based on a text by Augustine from the 4th century. This hymn uses first person pronouns a lot; “Alas, my treason, ‘Twas I, Lord Jesus, I it was denied thee, I crucified thee.” But Jesus' life and death were for the sake of the world, for our sake. “Since I cannot pay thee, I do adore thee”.
Easter Vigil: (3/30 @7:39pm) In the drama of the Triduum, Easter Vigil is the opening act in the Resurrection scene. It begins at sunset on Saturday and continues into the darkness of evening. The Easter Vigil is notably the most important worship service of the liturgical year. Historically, it is during this liturgy that people are baptized and new members are received into full communion with the Church. We enter in the story of salvation once again as we stand outside and light a fire, bless the lighting of the Christ candle, restore the exclamatory “Alleluia” once silenced on Shrove Sunday, and process into the sanctuary. Once in the sanctuary, the cantor will sing the “Exultet” which is a chant that proclaims over and over the magic of this night! We put this new resurrection story into a historical context when we read several stories about God’s saving grace: the creation story, Noah and the flood, Shadrack, Meshack, and Abednego in the fiery furnace, and Daniel in the lions’ den. Gathering around the baptismal font, we baptize and/or reaffirm our own baptism. We sing “We Know that Christ is Raised” ELW 449 as we process back to the pews. This is both an Easter and baptismal hymn from the 1960s.
Easter Sunday: (3/31 @ 9am) This is the first Sunday of the Seven Sundays of the season of Easter! Christ is Risen indeed! Alleluia! We celebrate the miracle of resurrection that happened during the night. Given the symbolism in this day of new life and rebirth, it was only natural to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus in the northern hemisphere’s springtime of the year. The naming of the celebration as “Easter” seems to go back to the name of a pre-Christian goddess in England, Eostre, who was celebrated at the beginning of spring. The Hymn of the Day will be Martin Luther’s text: “Christ Lay in Death’s Strong Bands”; ELW 370. Christ is not only triumphant over death, “Christ has CRUSHED the power of hell;” Therefore, we sing, Hallelujah!
Peace!
Deacon Gary Butler
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