Holy Triduum

The Holy Triduumrevised version

Mr. Pablo CuadraReligion Class

What is the meaning of the word triduum?• The word Triduum

means:• Three days.

What are the days of the Holy Triduum?• The days of the Holy

Triduum are:

• A. Holy Thursday• B. Good Friday• C. Holy Saturday

What is the Holy Triddum?

• A. The Triduum is a celebration of the three holiest days in the liturgical cycle.

• B. The Triduum is the climax of Holy Week.

• C. The entire season of Lent is a preparation for these three days.

Why is the Holy Triduum so important?

• The Triduum is a celebration that highlights the Paschal mystery.

• Through the liturgy of these three days the Church remembers that Christ suffered and died, but that he also came to life.

• The Triduum is the celebration of the Church’s salvation through Christ.

What is the connection between Lent and the Easter Triduum?

• The forty days of Lent are a time of spiritual preparation for these three holy days.

• Lent’s renewal through prayer, fasting and almsgiving helps us prepare to understand the meaning of each of these three holy days.

What does the Holy Triduum remember and celebrate?

• A. The Holy Triduum remembers and celebrates Christ’s victory over sin and death.

• B. The Church celebrates Christ’s victory over the power of death from Easter Sunday to Pentecost Sunday.

• C. Fifty days of joy and celebration.

How are the days of the Holy Triduum counted?• The days of the Holy Triduum are

counted the way the Hebrews counted their days.

• From dusk to dusk. For example:

• From the evening of Holy Thursday to the evening of Good Friday one day.

• From the evening of Good Friday to the evening of Holy Saturday a second day.

• From the evening of Holy Saturday to the evening of Easter Sunday another day.

The Holy Triduum• Lent officially ends on Holy

Thursday.

• The Holy Triduum begins on the evening of Holy Thursday.

• On Holy Thursday there is only one mass.

• The mass of the Lord’s supper which is celebrated in the evening, and includes the ceremony of the washing of the feet.

• No morning masses are celebrated on this day.

Holy Thursday• A. The faithful gathers in church to

celebrate the institution of the Eucharist and priesthood.

• B. The washing of the feet is a reminder of Jesus’ command to serve one another.

• C. At the end of the mass the Blessed Sacrament is moved to a chapel during a solemn procession followed by Benediction.

• D. The faithful is invited to stay in the chapel to pray before the Blessed Sacrament until midnight.

• E.. The sanctuary is cleared. All decorations are removed from the church.

Good Friday• A. This is a holy day of fasting

and abstinence.

• B. Is the only day in the liturgical calendar that a mass is not celebrated.

• C. The liturgy of the Lord’s passion is celebrated, followed by a homily, the General intercessions, communion, and the veneration of the cross.

• D. There is no solemn procession on this day.

• E. The stations of the Cross are celebrated during the evening of Good Friday, usually followed or preceded by confessions

What is the veneration of the Cross?• The veneration of the

cross is the last section of the Liturgy of Good Friday.

• The faithful are presented with the cross, then the faithful venerate the cross with a kiss, as a sign of respect and devotion.

Holy Saturday Easter Vigil• A. The Easter Vigil is the

highest point of the Easter Triduum.

• B. The Easter Vigil begins on the evening of Holy Saturday.

• C. This is the longest celebration in Catholic worship.

• D. The Easter Vigil celebration proclaims Jesus’ triumph over the powers of evil and death.

Easter Vigil

• A. The Easter Vigil begins at night with the blessing of the fire, a solemn procession and the singing of the exultet.

• B. The exultet is a song sung by the deacon or cantor proclaiming the salvation of the risen Christ.

Easter Vigil• A. The fire is blessed, from this

fire the Paschal candle is lit.

• The Paschal candle is a symbol of Christ resurrected.

• B. The priest blesses the candle reminding the people of God that Jesus is the alpha and the omega, the beginning and the end. All time belongs to Christ.

Easter Vigil• A. The Paschal candle is

carried by the deacon into the darkened church.

• B. As the procession progresses the lights of the church are gradually turn on.

• C. People light their own candles from the Paschal candle carried by the deacon.

• D. At the end of the procession the deacon sings the Exultet or exultation song. The people hold their candles during the song which proclaim God’s salvific actions.

Easter Vigil• The darkened church, the

procession, the paschal candle ,the fire, and the exultet are all symbols that remind us that Christ’s resurrection defeated the darkness of evil.

• This ceremony reminds us the power of Christ cannot be defeated nor those who have his power.

Easter Vigil• A. After the exultet is sung the

history of salvation is proclaimed through a series of seven readings from the Old Testament.

• • B. The readings from the book of

Exodus are giving special attention on this night.

• C. After each reading a psalm and a prayer is said.

• D. At the end of the last reading the Glory is sung.

• E. The altar and the sanctuary are decorated and the bells, the orchestra, and the choir proclaim the joy of Easter.

Easter Vigil• A. During the Glory, in certain

churches, a group of people are in charge of decorating the bare altar and sanctuary with banners, linens, and flowers.

• B. All the lights of the church are turned on as a symbol of the resurrection.

• C. After the Glory an epistle from Paul is read followed by the Alleluia which is sung for the first time after Lent.

• D. Then, the Gospel of the resurrection is proclaimed, followed by a homily or reflection.

Easter Vigil• A. After the homily the baptismal

water is blessed with the Paschal candle.

• B. The catechumens and candidates are initiated with the sacraments of initiation.

• C. The congregation renews their baptismal vows.

• D. After the baptismal ceremony the second part of the mass, the liturgy of the Eucharist, continues as usual.

• E. This is the first mass of Easter day, and the beginning of the Easter season, fifty days of celebration that end on Pentecost Sunday, the feast of the Holy Spirit.

The Lord is Risen! Alleluia! Alleluia!