Holy Week Traditions
Posted by Arwen Mosher in Faith on Friday, March 26, 2010 11:04 PM
I don’t have a great attention span, and it’s a struggle for me to stay focused during the long haul of Lent. So I love Holy Week, because it gives me a chance to make that last push before we celebrate the Resurrection really count.
For a while I’ve had a tradition to make an extra sacrifice during the week leading up to the Triduum.
One crazy Holy Week during my college years I gave up eating everything except eggs, tuna, carrots, and saltine crackers. Guess how long it took before I wanted to see any of those foods again?
For me personally, though, I’ve found that the week is most fruitful if I make a minor instead of a major sacrifice and combine it with some extra devotional act. In the past few years, my husband and I have found one that works very well for us: reading the Gospel accounts of the Passion.
Sunday through Wednesday of Holy Week, we read one Gospel per night. Taking our cue from the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary, we begin with the agony in the garden and end after Christ is crucified. Since the account is read at the liturgies of Palm Sunday and Good Friday, we generally read the gospels out of order, beginning with John (which is always read at the liturgy on Friday) and ending with whatever gospel was read at Mass on Palm Sunday that year.
We did this on a whim about five years ago, and liked it so much we’ve made it a tradition. I find that reading the account of the Passion every day keeps me focused and helps prepare me for the Triduum. When Holy Thursday comes around, I’ve already gotten the chance to meditate quite a bit on what’s coming, and am better able to
So far we don’t include the children in our reading - family prayers are enough of a trial for such little ones to sit through - but I think we’ll probably start having Camilla sit with us and listen when she’s four. In the meantime, my husband and I have grown to love our quiet gospel readings during the evenings of Holy Week.
Do you have any family or personal traditions during Holy Week? Any ideas for good ones? Please share!
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