Introduction
Beginning on the evening of Palm Sunday and continuing through the evening
of Holy Tuesday, the Orthodox Church observes a special service known as
the Service of the Bridgegroom. Each evening service is the Matins or Orthros
service of the following day (e.g. the service held on Sunday evening is
the Orthros service for Holy Monday). The name of the service is from the
figure of the Bridegroom in the parable of the Ten Virgins found in Matthew
25:1-13.
The first part of Holy Week presents us with an array of themes based chiefly
on the last days of Jesus' earthly life. The story of the Passion, as told
and recorded by the Evangelists, is preceded by a series of incidents located
in Jerusalem and a collection of parables, sayings and discourses centered
on Jesus' divine sonship, the kingdom of God, the Parousia, and Jesus' castigation
of the hypocrisy and dark motives of the religious leaders. The observances
of the first three days of Great Week are rooted in these incidents and sayings.
The three days constitute a single liturgical unit. They have the same cycle
and system of daily prayer. The Scripture lessons, hymns, commemorations, and
ceremonials that make up the festal elements in the respective services of
the cycle highlight significant aspects of salvation history, by calling to
mind the events that anticipated the Passion and by proclaiming the inevitability
and significance of the Parousia.
The Orthros of each of these days is called the Service of the Bridegroom (Akolouthia
tou Nimfiou). The name comes from the central figure in the well-known parable
of the ten virgins (Matthew 25:1-13). The title Bridegroom suggests the intimacy
of love. It is not without significance that the kingdom of God is compared
to a bridal feast and a bridal chamber. The Christ of the Passion is the divine
Bridegroom of the Church. The imagery connotes the final union of the Lover
and the beloved. The title Bridegroom also suggests the Parousia. In the patristic
tradition, the aforementioned parable is related to the Second Coming; and
is associated with the need for spiritual vigilance and preparedness, by which
we are enabled to keep the divine commandments and receive the blessings of
the age to come. The troparion "Behold the Bridegroom comes in the middle
of the night…", which is sung at the beginning of the Orthros of
Great Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, relates the worshiping community to that
essential expectation: watching and waiting for the Lord, who will come again
to judge the living and the dead.
PASSION WEEK
Great Monday
On Holy Monday we commemorate Joseph the Patriarch, the beloved son of Jacob.
A major figure of the Old Testament, Joseph's story is told in the final section
of the Book of Genesis (chs. 37-50). Because of his exceptional qualities and
remarkable life, our patristic and liturgical tradition portrays Joseph as
tipos Christou, i.e., as a prototype, prefigurement or image of Christ. The
story of Joseph illustrates the mystery of God's providence, promise and redemption.
Innocent, chaste and righteous, his life bears witness to the power of God's
love and promise. The lesson to be learned from Joseph's life, as it bears
upon the ultimate redemption wrought by the death and resurrection of Christ,
is summed up in the words he addressed to his brothers who had previously betrayed
him, “’Fear not ... As for you, you meant evil against me; but
God meant it for good, to bring about that many people should be kept alive,
as they are today. So do not fear; I will provide for you and your little ones.’Thus
he reassured them and comforted them”(Genesis 50:19-21). The commemoration
of the noble, blessed and saintly Joseph reminds us that in the great events
of the Old Testament, the Church recognizes the realities of the New Testament.
Also, on Great and Holy Monday the Church commemorates the event of the cursing
of the fig tree (Matthew 21:18-20). In the Gospel narrative this event is said
to have occurred on the morrow of Jesus' triumphant entry into Jerusalem (Matthew
21:18 and Mark 11:12). For this reason it found its way into the liturgy of
Great Monday. The episode is also quite relevant to Great Week. Together with
the event of the cleansing of the Temple this episode is another manifestation
of Jesus' divine power and authority and a revelation as well of God's judgment
upon the faithlessness of the Jewish religious classes. The fig tree is symbolic
of Israel become barren by her failure to recognize and receive Christ and
His teachings. The cursing of the fig tree is a parable in action, a symbolic
gesture. Its meaning should not be lost on any one in any generation. Christ's
judgment on the faithless, unbelieving, unrepentant and unloving will be certain
and decisive on the Last Day. This episode makes it clear that nominal Christianity
is not only inadequate, it is also despicable and unworthy of God's kingdom.
Genuine Christian faith is dynamic and fruitful. It permeates one's whole being
and causes a change. Living, true and unadulterated faith makes the Christian
conscious of the fact that he is already a citizen of heaven. Therefore, his
way of thinking, feeling, acting and being must reflect this reality. Those
who belong to Christ ought to live and walk in the Spirit; and the Spirit will
bear fruit in them: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
gentleness, self-control (Galatians 5:22-25).
Great Tuesday
On Holy Tuesday the Church calls to remembrance two parables, which are related
to the Second Coming. The one is the parable of the Ten Virgins (Matthew 25:1-3);
the other the parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14-30). These parables point
to the inevitability of the Parousia and deal with such subjects as spiritual
vigilance, stewardship, accountability and judgment.
From these parables we learn at least two basic things. First, Judgment Day
will be like the situation in which the bridesmaids (or virgins) of the parable
found themselves: some ready for it, some not ready. The time one decides for
God is now and not at some undefined point in the future. If "time and
tide waits for no man," certainly the Parousia is no exception. The tragedy
of the closed door is that individuals close it, not God. The exclusion from
the marriage feast, the kingdom, is of our own making. Second, we are reminded
that watchfulness and readiness do not mean a wearisome, spiritless performance
of formal and empty obligations. Most certainly it does not mean inactivity
and slothfulness. Watchfulness signifies inner stability, soberness, tranquility
and joy. It means spiritual alertness, attentiveness and vigilance. Watchfulness
is the deep personal resolve to find and do the will of God, embrace every
commandment and every virtue, and guard the intellect and heart from evil thoughts
and actions. Watchfulness is the intense love of God.
Great Wednesday
On Holy Wednesday the Church invites the faithful to focus their attention
on two figures: the sinful woman who anointed the head of Jesus shortly before
the passion (Matthew 26:6-13), and Judas, the disciple who betrayed the Lord.
The former acknowledged Jesus as Lord, while the latter severed himself from
the Master. The one was set free, while the other became a slave. The one inherited
the kingdom, while the other fell into perdition. These two people bring before
us concerns and issues related to freedom, sin, hell and repentance.
The repentance of the sinful harlot is contrasted with the tragic fall of the
chosen disciple. The Triodion make is clear that Judas perished, not simply
because he betrayed his Master, but because, having fallen into the sin of
betrayal, he then refused to believe in the possibility of forgiveness. If
we deplore the actions of Judas, we do so not with vindictive self-righteousness
but conscious always of our own guilt. In general, all the passages in the
Triodion that seem to be directed against the Jews should be understood in
this same way. When the Triodion denounces those who rejected Christ and delivered
Him to death, we recognize that these words apply not only to others, but to
ourselves: for have we not betrayed the Savior many times in our hearts and
crucified Him anew?
I have transgressed more than the harlot, O loving Lord, yet never have I offered
You my flowing tears. But in silence I fall down before You and with love I
kiss Your most pure feet, beseeching You as Master to grant me remission of
sins; and I cry to You, O Savior: Deliver me from the filth of my works.
While the sinful woman brought oil of myrrh, the disciple came to an agreement
with the transgressors. She rejoiced to pour out what was very precious, he
made haste to sell the One who is above all price. She acknowledged Christ
as Lord, he severed himself from the Master. She was set free, but Judas became
the slave of the enemy. Grievous was his lack of love. Great was her repentance.
Grant such repentance also unto me, O Savior who has suffered for our sake,
and save us.
Great
and Holy Thursday
Introduction
On Thursday of Holy Week four events are commemorated: the washing of the disciples'
feet, the institution of the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist at the Last
Supper, the agony in the garden of Gethsemane, and the betrayal of Christ
by Judas.
The Institution of the Eucharist
At the Mystical Supper in the Upper Room Jesus gave a radically new meaning
to the food and drink of the sacred meal. He identified Himself with the bread
and wine: "Take, eat; this is my Body. Drink of it all of you; for this
is my Blood of the New Covenant" (Matthew 26:26-28).
We have learned to equate food with life because it sustains our earthly existence.
In the Eucharist the distinctively unique human food - bread and wine - becomes
our gift of life. Consecrated and sanctified, the bread and wine become the
Body and Blood of Christ. This change is not physical but mystical and sacramental.
While the qualities of the bread and wine remain, we partake of the true Body
and Blood of Christ. In the eucharistic meal God enters into such a communion
of life that He feeds humanity with His own being, while still remaining distinct.
In the words of St. Maximos the Confessor, Christ, "transmits to us divine
life, making Himself eatable." The Author of life shatters the limitations
of our createdness. Christ acts so that "we might become sharers of divine
nature" (2 Peter 1:4).
The Eucharist is at the center of the Church's life. It is her most profound
prayer and principal activity. It is at one and the same time both the source
and the summit of her life. In the Eucharist the Church manifests her true
nature and is continuously changed from a human community into the Body of
Christ, the Temple of the Holy Spirit, and the People of God. The Eucharist
is the pre-eminent sacrament. It completes all the others and recapitulates
the entire economy of salvation. Our new life in Christ is constantly renewed
and increased by the Eucharist. The Eucharist imparts life and the life it
gives is the life of God.
In the Eucharist the Church remembers and enacts sacramentally the redemptive
event of the Cross and participates in its saving grace. This does not suggest
that the Eucharist attempts to reclaim a past event. The Eucharist does not
repeat what cannot be repeated. Christ is not slain anew and repeatedly. Rather
the eucharistic food is changed concretely and really into the Body and Blood
of the Lamb of God, "Who gave Himself up for the life of the world." Christ,
the Theanthropos, continually offers Himself to the faithful through the consecrated
Gifts, i.e., His very own risen and deified Body, which for our sake died once
and now lives (Hebrewa 10:2; Revelation 1:18). Hence, the faithful come to
Church week by week not only to worship God and to hear His word. They come,
first of all, to experience over and over the mystery of salvation and to be
united intimately to the Passion and Resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.
In the Eucharist we receive and partake of the resurrected Christ. We share
in His sacrificed, risen and deified Body, "for the forgiveness of sins
and life eternal" (Divine Liturgy). In the Eucharist Christ pours into
us - as a permanent and constant gift - the Holy Spirit, "Who bears witness
with our spirit that we are children of God - and if children - then heirs
with Christ (Romans 8:16-17).
The Washing of the Feet
The events initiated by Jesus at the Mystical.Supper were profoundly significant.
By teaching and giving the disciples His final instructions and praying for
them as well, He revealed again His divine Sonship and authority. By establishing
the Eucharist, He enshrines to perfection God's most intimate purposes for
our salvation, offering Himself as Communion and life. By washing the feet
of His disciples, He summarized the meaning of His ministry, manifested His
perfect love and revealed His profound humility. The act of the washing of
the feet (John 13:2-17) is closely related to the sacrifice of the Cross. Both
reveal aspects of Christ's kenosis. While the Cross constitues the ultimate
manifestation of Christ's perfect obedience to His Father (Philippians 2:5-8),
the washing of the feet signifies His intense love and the giving of Himself
to each person according to that person's ability to receive Him (John 13:6-9).
Prayer in the Garden
The Synoptic Gospels have preserved for us another significant episode in the
series of events leading to the Passion, namely, the agony and prayer of Jesus
in the Garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36-46; Mark 14:32-42; Luke 22:39-46).
Although Jesus was Son of God, He was destined as man to accept fully the human
condition, to experience suffering and to learn obedience. Divesting Himself
of divine prerogatives, the Son of God assumed the role of a servant. He lived
a truly human existence. Though He was Himself sinless, He allied Himself with
the whole human race, identified with the human predicament, and experienced
the same tests (Philippians 2:6-11; Hebrews 2:9-18).
The moving events in the Garden of Gethsemane dramatically and poignantly disclosed
the human nature of Christ. The sacrifice He was to endure for the salvation
of the world was imminent. Death, with all its brutal force and fury, stared
directly at Him. Its terrible burden and fear - the calamitous results of the
ancestral sin - caused Him intense sorrow and pain (Hebrews 5:7). Instinctively,
as man He sought to escape it. He found Himself in a moment of decision. In
His agony He prayed to His Father, "Abba, Father, all things are possible
to thee; remove this cup from me; yet not what I will, but what thou wilt" (Mark
14:36).
His prayer revealed the depths of His agony and sorrow. It revealed as well
His "incomparable spiritual strength (and) immovable desire and decision
. . . to bring about the will of the Father." Jesus offered His unconditional
love and trust to the Father. He reached the extreme limits of self-denial "not
what I will" - in order to accomplish His Father's will. His acceptance
of death was not some kind of stoic passivity and resignation but an act of
absolute love and obedience. In that moment of decision, when He declared His
acceptance of death to be in agreement with the Father's will, He broke the
power of the fear of death with all its attending uncertainties, anxieties
and limitations. He learned obedience and fulfilled the divine plan (Hebrews
5:8-9).
The Betrayal
Judas betrayed Christ with a kiss, the sign of friendship and love. The betrayal
and crucifixion of Christ carried the ancestral sin to its extreme limits.
In these two acts the rebellion against God reached its maximum capacity. The
seduction of man in paradise culminated in the death of God in the flesh. To
be victorious evil must quench the light and discredit the good. In the end,
however, it shows itself to be a lie, an absurdity and sheer madness. The death
and resurrection of Christ rendered evil powerless.
On Great Thursday light and darkness, joy and sorrow are so strangely mixed.
At the Upper Room and in Gethsemane the light of the kingdom and the darkness
of hell come through simultaneously. The way of life and the way of death converge.
We meet them both in our journey through life.
In the midst of the snares and temptations that abound in the world around
and in us we must be eager to live in communion with everything that is good,
noble, natural, and sinless, forming ourselves by God's grace in the likeness
of Christ
Great
and Holy Friday
Introduction
On Great and Holy Friday the Orthodox Church commemorates the death of Christ
on the Cross. This is the culmination of the observance of His Passion
by which our Lord suffered and died for our sins. This commemoration begins
on Thursday evening with the Matins of Holy Friday and concludes with a
Vespers on Friday afternoon that observes the unnailing of Christ from
the Cross and the placement of His body in the tomb.
this day we commemorate the sufferings of Christ: the mockery, the crown
of thorns, the scourging, the nails, the thirst, the vinegar and gall, the cry
of desolation, and all the Savior endured on the Cross.
The day of Christ's death is the day of sin. The sin which polluted God's creation
from the breaking dawn of time reached its frightful climax on the hill of
Golgotha. There, sin and evil, destruction and death came into their own. Ungodly
men had Him nailed to the Cross, in order to destroy Him. However, His death
condemned irrevocably the fallen world by revealing its true and abnormal nature.
In Christ, who is the New Adam, there is no sin. And, therefore, there is no
death. He accepted death because He assumed the whole tragedy of our life.
He chose to pour His life into death, in order to destroy it; and in order
to break the hold of evil. His death is the final and ultimate revelation of
His perfect obedience and love. He suffered for us the excruciating pain of
absolute solitude and alienation - "My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken
Me!" (Mark 15:34). Then, He accepted the ultimate horror of death with
the agonizing cry, "It is finished" (John 19:30). His cry was at
one and the same time an indication that He was in control of His death and
that His work of redemption was accomplished, finished, fulfilled. How strange!
While our death is radical unfulfillment, His is total fulfillment.
The day of Christ's death has become our true birthday. "Within the mystery
of Christ dead and resurrected, death acquires positive value. Even if physical,
biological death still appears to reign, it is no longer the final stage in
a long destructive process. It has become the indispensable doorway, as well
as the sure sign of our ultimate Pascha, our passage from death to life, rather
than from life to death.
From the beginning the Church observed an annual commemoration of the decisive
and crucial three days of sacred history, i.e., Great Friday, Great Saturday
and Pascha. Great Friday and Saturday have been observed as days of deep sorrow
and strict fast from Christian antiquity.
Great Friday and Saturday direct our attention to the trial, crucifixion, death
and burial of Christ. We are placed within the awesome mystery of the extreme
humility of our suffering God. Therefore, these days are at once days of deep
gloom as well as watchful expectation. The Author of life is at work transforming
death into life: "Come, let us see our Life lying in the tomb, that he
may give life to those that in their tombs lie dead" (Sticheron of Great
Saturday Orthros).
Liturgically, the profound and awesome event of the death and burial of God
in the flesh is marked by a particular kind of silence, i.e. by the absence
of a eucharistic celebration. Great Friday and Great Saturday are the only
two days of the year when no eucharistic assembly is held. However, before
the twelfth century it was the custom to celebrate the Liturgy of the Pre-Sanctified
Gifts on Great Friday.
The divine services of Great Friday with the richness of their ample Scripture
lessons, superb hymnography and vivid liturgical actions bring the passion
of Christ and its cosmic significance into sharp focus. The hymns of the services
on this day help us to see how the Church understands and celebrates the awesome
mystery of Christ's passion and death.
Great
Saturday
Introduction
On Great and Holy Saturday the Orthodox Church commemorates the burial of Christ
and His descent into Hades. It is the day between the Crucifixion of our
Lord and His glorious Resurrection. The Matins of Holy Saturday is conducted
on Friday evening, and while many elements of the service represent mourning
at the death and burial of Christ, the service itself is one of watchful
expectation.
On Great and Holy Saturday the Church contemplates the mystery of the Lord's
descent into Hades, the place of the dead. Death, our ultimate enemy, is defeated
from within. "He (Christ) gave Himself as a ransom to death in which we
were held captive, sold under sin. Descending into Hades through the Cross
... He loosed the bonds of death" (Liturgy of St. Basil).
On Great Saturday our focus is on the Tomb of Christ. This is no ordinary grave.
It is not a place of corruption, decay and defeat. It is life-giving, a source
of power, victory and liberation.
Great Saturday is the day between Jesus' death and His resurrection. It is
the day of watchful expectation, in which mourning is being transformed into
joy. The day embodies in the fullest possible sense the meaning of xarmolipi
- joyful-sadness, which has dominated the celebrations of Great Week. The hymnographer
of the Church has penetrated the profound mystery, and helps us to understand
it through the following poetic dialogue that he has devised between Jesus
and His Mother:
"Weep not for me, O Mother, beholding in the sepulcher the Son whom thou
hast conceived without seed in thy womb. For I shall rise and shall be glorified,
and as God I shall exalt in everlasting glory those who magnify thee with faith
and love."
"O Son without beginning, in ways surpassing nature was I blessed at Thy
strange birth, for I was spared all travail. But now beholding Thee, my God,
a lifeless corpse, I am pierced by the sword of bitter sorrow. But arise, that
I may be magnified."
"By mine own will the earth covers me, O Mother, but the gatekeepers of
hell tremble as they see me, clothed in the bloodstained garment of vengeance:
for on the Cross as God have I struck down mine enemies, and I shall rise again
and magnify thee."
"Let the creation rejoice exceedingly, let all those born on earth be glad:
for hell, the enemy, has been despoiled. Ye women, come to meet me with sweet
spices: for I am delivering Adam and Eve with all their offspring, and on the
third day I shall rise again." (9th Ode of the Canon)
Great Saturday is the day of the pre-eminent rest. Christ observes a Sabbath
rest in the tomb. His rest, however, is not inactivity but the fulfillment
of the divine will and plan for the salvation of humankind and the cosmos.
He who brought all things into being, makes all things new. The re-creation
of the world has been accomplished once and for all. Through His incarnation,
life and death Christ has filled all things with Himself He has opened a path
for all flesh to the resurrection from the dead, since it was not possible
that the author of life would be dominated by corruption.
Saint Paul tells us that:
"God was in Jesus Christ reconciling the world to Himself" (2 Corinthians
5:19). Hence, eternal life - real and self-generating - penetrated the depths
of Hades. Christ who is the life of all destroyed death by His death. That is
why the Church sings joyously "Things now are filled with light, the heaven
and the earth and all that is beneath the earth" (Canon of Pascha).
The Church knows herself to be "the place, the eternal reality, where
the presence of Christ vanquishes Satan, hell and death itself.
The solemn observance of Great Saturday help us to recall and celebrate the
great truth that "despite the daily vicissitudes and contradictions of
history and the abiding presence of hell within the human heart and human society," life
has been liberated! Christ has broken the power of death.
It is not without significance that the icon of the Resurrection in our Church
is the Descent of Christ into Hades, the place of the dead. This icon depicts
a victorious Christ, reigned in glory, trampling upon death, and seizing Adam
and Eve in His hands, plucking them from the abyss of hell. This icon expresses
vividly the truths resulting from Christ's defeat of death by His death and
Resurrection.
The
Great and Holy Feast of Pascha
Introduction
On the Great and Holy Feast of Pascha, Orthodox Christians celebrate the life-giving
Resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. This feast of feasts
is the most significant day in the life of the Church. It is a celebration
of the defeat of death, as neither death itself nor the power of the grave
could hold our Savior captive. In this victory that came through the Cross,
Christ broke the bondage of sin, and through faith offers us restoration,
transformation, and eternal life.
Holy Week comes to an end at sunset of Great and Holy Saturday, as the Church
prepares to celebrate her most ancient and preeminent festival, Pascha, the
feast of feasts. The time of preparation will give way to a time of fulfillment.
The glorious and respendent light emanating from the empty Tomb will dispel
the darkness. Christ, risen from the dead, cracks the fortress of death and
takes "captivity captive" (Psalm 67:19). All the limitations of our
createdness are torn asunder. Death is swallowed up in victory and life is
liberated. "For as by a man came death, by a man came also the resurrection
of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive" (I
Corinthians 15:21-22). Pascha is the dawn of the new and unending day. The
Resurrection constitutes the most radical and decisive deliverance of humankind.
The Resurrection of Jesus Christ is the fundamental truth and absolute fact
of the Christian faith. It is the central experience and essential kerygma
of the Church. It confirms the authenticity of Christ's remarkable earthly
life and vindicates the truth of His teaching. It seals all His redemptive
work: His life, the model of a holy life; His compelling and unique teaching;
His extraordinary works; and His awesome, life-creating death. Christ's Resurrection
is the guarantee of our salvation. Together with His Ascension it brings to
perfection God's union with us for all eternity.
The Resurrection made possible the miracle of the Church, which in every age
and generation proclaims and affirms "God's plan for the universe, the
ultimate divinization of man and the created order." The profound experience
of and the unshakable belief in the risen Lord enabled the Apostles to evangelize
the world and empowered the Church to overcome paganism. The Resurrection discloses
the indestructible power and inscrutable wisdom of God. It disposes of the
illusory myths and belief systems by which people, bereft of divine knowledge,
strain to affirm the meaning and purpose of their existence. Christ, risen
and glorified, releases humanity from the delusions of idolatry. In Him grave-bound
humanity discovers and is filled with incomparable hope. The Resurrection bestows
illumination, energizes souls, brings forgiveness, transfigures lifes, creates
saints, and gives joy.
The Resurrection has not yet abolished the reality of death. But it has revealed
its powerlessness (Hebrews 2:14-15). We continue to die as a result of the
Fall. Our bodies decay and fall away. "God allows death to exist but turns
it against corruption and its cause, sin, and sets a boundary both to corruption
and sin." Thus, physical death does not destroy our life of communion
with God. Rather, we move from death to life from this fallen world to God's
reign.
Christ is risen from the dead, by death He has trampled down death, and on
those in the tombs He has bestowed life.
