Sacred Triduum and Easter
What is the Sacred Triduum?
The Sacred Triduum marks the three holiest days of the Church's year. Every year, the Church celebrates the great mysteries of the redemption of mankind in the "most sacred triduum of the crucifixion, burial and resurrection". The Sacred Triduum starts with the Holy Thursday Mass of the Lord's Supper and continues through Good Friday's Solemn Liturgy of the Lord's Passion and Death and Holy Saturday's Great Vigil of Easter which continues until Vespers of the Resurrection.
General Secretary of the Bishops' Conference of England and Wales, Mgr Andrew Summersgill, reflects on the Sacred Triduum in four informative mp3s:
Mgr Andrew Summersgill on Holy Thursday
Mgr Andrew Summersgill on Good Friday
Here you'll find Pope Benedict XVI's homilies for the Sacred Triduum as well as Easter blessings, messages, and images.
Click here for more.
For further information on the Sacred Triduum including the Stations of the Cross, click on the links below:
Holy Thursday
Good Friday
Easter, the Resurrection
The Stations of the Cross
The Liturgy Office of England and Wales has more information on the Triduum.
Bishop Christopher Budd
Bishop of Plymouth
Bishop Christopher writes:
"The importance of Easter is highlighted by its celebration for 50 days. These constitute the Easter season.
The readings of Easter Week, especially the Gospels, have an important purpose - namely, to convince us that the Lord is truly risen and that life cannot be the same again. Sin and death have been disarmed and, if we remain faithful to our new Easter life, they will never again dominate and control us."
Click to read Bishop Budd's reflections on the Lectionary for Easter 2008
Bishop Declan Lang
Bishop of Clifton
Bishop Declan Lang's Easter Message (mp3)
Bishop Declan Lang's Easter Message 2008 (pdf)
This Easter message can also be found on the Clifton Diocese website
Bishop Crispian Hollis
Bishop of Portsmouth
Bishop Crispian Hollis' Easter message (mp3)
Bishop Crispian Hollis' Easter Message 2008 (pdf)
Visit the Diocese of Portsmouth's website
Archbishop Patrick Kelly
Archbishop of Liverpool
Archbishop Patrick Kelly reflects on Good Friday (mp3)
Liverpool Press Officer Peter Heneghan discusses Easter with Archbishop Patrick Kelly (mp3)
Visit the Archdiocese of Liverpool's website
Bishop Patrick O'Donoghue
Bishop of Lancaster
Easter Vigil Homily preached by Bishop Patrick O'Donoghue, Bishop of Lancaster
Visit the Diocese of Lancaster's website
Analysis of BBC1's 'The Passion'
Thinking Faith is the online journal of the British Jesuits. This month, you can find four features on the BBC's 'The Passion'.
In part one, Michael Barnes SJ tackles the drama and tries to answer an almost unanswerable question - Why did Jesus have to die?
Part two Michael Kirwan SJ reflects on a Passion "carefully tailored for our times – a politico-religious thriller with intensely personal drama".
In part three, Gemma Simmonds CJ looks at one of the drama's greatest strengths – the power to make us examine ourselves and our own reactions to Jesus and his message.
Finally in part four, Gerald O’Collins SJ examines how it handles what is perhaps its most difficult task – the portrayal of the Resurrection
'Cast Your Burdens' Online - new 'The Passion' resource
Visitors to a Holy Week and Easter web page are being offered the chance to 'virtually' hand over their fears and emotional burdens to Jesus Christ.
'The Passion' web page has been developed by the Catholic Enquiry Office and offers visitors a safe space where they can anonymously type in their fears, worries and concerns and say a prayer.
Credits:
Image of Christ in the banner at the top of this page is "Jesus, Son of God and Son of Mary, died to save us": copyright Elizabeth Wang - www.radiantlight.org.uk
Image of Pope Benedict XVI: copyright Marcin Mazur
Images of The Passion: BBC