HOLY WEEK - April 2-8, 2023 - National Today

History of Holy Week

Holy Week has names for the five special days in the week, beginning with Palm Sunday or Passion Sunday, which commemorates Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. The following day is called Holy Monday when Jesus cursed the fig tree, sent out the merchants from the temple, and responded to those who questioned His authority. On Holy Tuesday, some observe Christ foretelling his own death. 

The next day is called Holy Wednesday or Spy Wednesday, which remembers how Judas arranged the betrayal of Jesus with the chief priests, since he was a spy among the disciples of Jesus. Some churches celebrate Tenebrae (the Latin for ‘shadows’ or ‘darkness’) services especially on Spy Wednesday, where they gradually extinguish lit candles while reciting and chanting a series of readings and selected psalms. Holy Wednesday is then followed by the ‘Triduum’ of Holy Week — Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday.

Deriving its name from a shortened form of the Latin word ‘mandatum’ meaning ‘command,’ Maundy Thursday (also called Holy Thursday) commemorates Christ’s “new commandment” that his disciples love one another as He has loved them (John 13:34). Maundy Thursday also marks the Last Supper that Jesus shared with His disciples, His prediction of His death, His betrayal by Judas Iscariot, and His arrest at the Garden of Gethsemane. Maundy Thursday services also include an act of foot washing, commemorating how Jesus washed His disciples’ feet as an act of service preceding His arrest.

Known as the most somber day for Christians, Good Friday remembers Jesus’ trial before Pontius Pilate, His death sentence, torture, crucifixion, death, and burial. Some Christians fast on Good Friday, while some avoid eating meat, and many attend a church service where they meditate on and venerate the cross of Christ. The Triduum of Holy Week concludes with Holy Saturday, the seventh day of the week, when Jesus rested in the tomb. On this day, Christians observe a late-night two-part Easter Vigil service. Jesus’ resurrection on the eighth day, is celebrated as Easter, marking the beginning of the Easter week, and the season of Eastertide.