Very Intersting Facts about Catholic Customs for Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday and Easter Vigil

Holy Thursday: Mass of the Lord's Supper
+The Triduum begins with the Mass of the Lord's Supper on the evening of Holy Thursday.
+During the Gloria in Excelsis Deo, all church bells may be rung and the organ played; afterwards, bells and organ are silenced until the Gloria of the Easter Vigil.

+After the homily of the Mass a ritual washing of the feet is envisaged.
+The Mass concludes with a procession of the Blessed Sacrament to the altar of repose.
+Eucharistic adoration is encouraged during this time.
+The liturgical colour for the Mass vestments and other ornaments is white.

Good Friday
+On Good Friday, Catholics recall the Passion and crucifixion of Jesus.
+A cross or crucifix (not necessarily the one which stands on or near the altar on other days of the year) is ceremoniously unveiled.

+The Priest traditionally begin the service prostrate in front of the altar. Mass is not celebrated on Good Friday and the communion distributed at the Celebration of the Lord's Passion is consecrated on Holy Thursday, hence the name Mass of the Pre-sanctified.
+Many times images of saints are either kept or veiled until the Easter Vigil. Votive lights before these images are not lit. Crucifixes that are movable are hidden, while those that are not movable are veiled until the Easter Vigil.
+Only one cross or crucifix per church is unveiled throughout the entire Good Friday service, for the purpose of veneration by the congregation. Regardless of the size of the church or the congregation, it is not permissible to use two crucifixes for the said veneration. The faithful typically venerate the crucifix by kissing the feet of the corpus.
+The priest wears red vestments, symbolic of the Blood of Jesus Christ.

Holy Saturday
+A commemoration of the day that Jesus lay in his tomb.
+In the Catholic Church, daytime Masses are never offered.
+There are no colors seen or used throughout the chapel or on vestments.

Easter Vigil
+Held after nightfall of Holy Saturday in anticipation of the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus.
+The ceremony of darkness and light is held in silence at the beginning of the Mass.
+The paschal candle, representing Jesus's resurrection as the "return of light onto the world," is lit.
+The solemn procession to the altar with the Paschal candle is formed.
+7 readings and 7 psalms, followed by the Epistle. These readings account salvation history, beginning with Creation.
+During the Gloria at the Mass, the organ and church bells are used in the liturgy for the first time in two days.
+If the lights of the Church have been previously left off, they are turned on as the Gloria begins
+The celebrant uses the term "Alleluia" for the first time since the beginning of Lent.
+People desiring to full initiation in the Church who have completed their training are formally initiated as members of the faith the Church through the Sacraments of Initiation (Baptism, confirmation, and the Holy Eucharist).

Fast Facts: What is the Easter Triduum?

Easter Triduum, or Holy Triduum, is the period of three days from Holy Thursday (seen as beginning with the service of the preceding evening) to Easter Day.
Since the 1955 reform by Pope Pius XII, the Easter Triduum has been more clearly distinguished as a separate liturgical period.
After the Gloria in Excelsis Deo at the Mass of the Lord's Supper all church bells are silenced and the organ is not used until Easter Sunday when once again they are put into service.

For a list of the days and customs in the Triduum, see :
http://www.catholicadventure.com/2010/03/very-intersting-facts-about-catholic.html

Fast Facts about Holy Week

Holy Week in the Catholic Church is the last week of Lent (the week before Easter). It includes Palm Sunday, Holy Thursday (Maundy Thursday)and Good Friday. The week lasts from Palm Sunday and ends at the beginning of Easter Sunday. Easter Sunday then begins a new season which lasts fifty days. Holy week commemorates the last week of the earthly life of Jesus Christ including his crucifixion. Each day is lived-out by Catholics as if each day was happening again during Holy Week. Come back again soon, when I will have further explanation of the individual days of the coming week.

Explaining the Stations of the Cross - History and Lent Facts on the Stations of the Cross

The Stations of the Cross (also known as the Way of the Cross) is a devotion that was started by St. Francis of Assisi (1181-1226). He created the Stations for Catholics who were unable to make a pilgrimage to the Holy Land because it was too dangerous. St. Francis placed 14 Stations throughout the church. Each station represented an actual place that a person could stop, pray and contemplate Christ’s Passion in Jerusalem.

The tradition carries on today. Many Catholic Churches will have evening services during the Friday’s of Lent to pray the 14 Stations together. There are a variety of prayers and contemplations that can be used during these services. It has become a tradition for the Pope to write an original work for the Good Friday Stations of the Cross that is conducted at the Coliseum in Rome.

The Stations are:
1. Jesus is condemned to death
2. Jesus is given his cross
3. Jesus falls the first time
4. Jesus meets His Mother
5. Simon of Cyrene carries the cross
6. Veronica wipes the face of Jesus
7. Jesus falls the second time
8. Jesus meets the daughters of Jerusalem
9. Jesus falls the third time
10. Jesus is stripped of His garments
11. Crucifixion: Jesus is nailed to the cross
12. Jesus dies on the cross
13. Jesus' body is removed from the cross (Deposition or Lamentation)
14. Jesus is laid in the tomb and covered in incense.

Do I Have To Go To Confession During Lent?

In the Catechism of the Catholic Church, precepts are listed as a guide for the minimum “requirements” that a Catholic should follow. The second and third precepts are as stated:

“The second precept ("You shall confess your sins at least once a year") ensures preparation for the Eucharist by the reception of the sacrament of reconciliation, which continues Baptism's work of conversion and forgiveness.

The third precept ("You shall receive the sacrament of the Eucharist at least during the Easter season") guarantees as a minimum the reception of the Lord's Body and Blood in connection with the Paschal feasts, the origin and center of the Christian liturgy.”

What does this mean?


There is no solid rule that Catholics have to confess their sins during Lent. Although Catholics do have to go to confession once a year, it could be at any time. While not mandatory, it may be a good idea to receive the sacrament of reconciliation sometime during Lent in keeping with the spirit of the season. It also goes well with having to receive the Eucharist at least once during the Easter Season. This is especially true for those who don’t attend Mass regularly. Remember if a Catholic does not attend Mass every week, it is a mortal sin and needs to be confessed before receiving the Eucharist.

Top 5 Facts About Not Eating Meat (Abstinence) on Fridays During Lent

If you are gearing up for the questions from non-Catholics friends, here are some points that you should know about abstaining from meat on Fridays during Lent.

1. Every Friday of Lent you are to refrain from eating meat. You may also hear it referred to as “abstain from meat” or just “abstinence”. They all mean the same thing: Do not eat meat.

2. The meat that Catholics should not be eating is any flesh from a warm blooded animal. This includes Chicken. Fish, not being a warm blooded animal, is fine. Any other non-meat food is fine (no, fish is not mandatory).

3. For Catholics this is not voluntary. It is required of all Catholics that are 14 years of age or older, useless there is a medical reason.

4. Since the first century AD, Catholics abstained from eating meat on Fridays. Abstinence and fasting actually go back to traditions found in the Old Testament. Other urban legends that put the reason later than that are wrong.

5. Friday is the day of the week that Catholics observe the crucifixion of our Lord. Jesus sacrificed his flesh for us and in remembrance we do not eat flesh from warm blooded animals.

Beautiful Lent Reflection - Meaning of the Cross

The following is a beautiful writing on the meaning of the cross. The prose were so full of imagery that I thought it was a contemporary reflection, but later found out that it was from a ninth century monk. Saint Theodore the Studite, who was one of the last Fathers of the Early Church, penned this work entitled, “The Precious and Life-Giving Cross of Christ”. Read it slowly and enjoy.

"How precious the gift of the cross, how splendid to contemplate! In the cross there is no mingling of good and evil, as in the tree of paradise: it is wholly beautiful to behold and good to taste. The fruit of this tree is not death but life, not darkness but light. This tree does not cast us out of paradise, but opens the way for our return.

This was the tree on which Christ, like a king on a chariot, destroyed the devil, the Lord of death, and freed the human race from his tyranny. This was the tree upon which the Lord, like a brave warrior wounded in his hands, feet and side, healed the wounds of sin that the evil serpent had inflicted on our nature. A tree once caused our death, but now a tree brings life. Once deceived by a tree, we have now repelled the cunning serpent by a tree. What an astonishing transformation! That death should become life, that decay should become immortality, that shame should become glory! Well might the holy Apostle exclaim: Far be it from me to glory except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world! The supreme wisdom that flowered on the cross has shown the folly of worldly wisdom’s pride. The knowledge of all good, which is the fruit of the cross, has cut away the shoots of wickedness.

The wonders accomplished through this tree were foreshadowed clearly even by the mere types and figures that existed in the past. Meditate on these, if you are eager to learn.
Was it not the wood of a tree that enabled Noah, at God’s command, to escape the destruction of the flood together with his sons, his wife, his sons’ wives and every kind of animal? And surely the rod of Moses prefigured the cross when it changed water into blood, swallowed up the false serpents of Pharaoh’s magicians, divided the sea at one stroke and then restored the waters to their normal course, drowning the enemy and saving God’s own people?

Aaron’s rod, which blossomed in one day in proof of his true priesthood, was another figure of the cross, and did not Abraham foreshadow the cross when he bound his son
Isaac and placed him on the pile of wood?

By the cross death was slain and Adam was restored to life. The cross is the glory of all the apostles, the crown of the martyrs, the sanctification of the saints. By the cross we put on Christ and cast aside our former self. By the cross we, the sheep of Christ, have been gathered into one flock, destined for the sheepfolds of heaven."

Fast Facts: What is Fat Tuesday?

Fat Tuesday occurs the day before Ash Wednesday, which is the beginning of Lent. Fat Tuesday is called “Fat Tuesday” because a good deal of food is consumed on this day. This is due to the fact that the next day starts Lent which is filled with fasting and penance. So Tuesday is the last day to pig-out. Historically, the feasting and partying that happens on Fat Tuesday was a way to get rid of many of the perishable foods that would not be consumed during the forty days of Lent. In particular, meat and dairy products. This is where the word “carnival” from, which means “getting rid of” or “saying good-bye to meat”.
Fat Tuesday, translated in French as Mardi Gras, is widely celebrated throughout the world. Most people associate these colorful parties with cities such as New Orleans, Brazil, Rio de Janeiro and Venice.

Interesting Facts About Ash Wednesday

Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent. It is a day when we reflect on our own mortality and the need for repentance because the end can come at any time. The ash cross that we receive on our forehead is a physical reminder that we will someday return back to ash. During this day, Catholics are placed into a proper mindset for the Lenten Season. While preparing for Easter, Catholics purify the body and soul through fasting, abstinence, prayer, confession, and works of mercy. In other words, mortification and penance. The focus on our own mortality during Ash Wednesday sets us up for a good Lent that is then counter balanced by the celebration of Christ’s triumph over death at Easter.

Also see quick overview about Fasting and Abstinence for Lent:
http://www.catholicadventure.com/2010/02/fast-facts-about-lent.html

Facts about Fasting and Abstinence during Lent and Meatless Fridays Throughout the Year

Before Vatican II, every Friday (Lent or not) was a day of abstinence from meat. But today, in most countries, meatless Fridays are only during Lent. This includes the United States. The Catholic Church does still recommend that some sort of penance or work of mercy be performed for the Fridays outside of Lent. This is to show reverence for the day of the week that Jesus died for our sins.
As far as Abstinence and Fasting during Lent see: http://www.catholicadventure.com/2010/02/fast-facts-about-lent.html

Interesting Facts About Lent

1-Lent is a preparation for the celebration of Easter.

2-Lent is the Old English word for spring.

3-There is actually more than 40 days of Lent. Lent runs from Ash Wednesday until the Mass of the Lord's Supper on Holy Thursday.

4-Sundays are part of Lent. Some will say that they are not part of Lent because we celebrate the Mass, therefore Sundays are exempt. It would then follow that we would be allowed to have those things that we give up for Lent on Sundays. In fact, the Sundays of the Lenten Season are called “First Sunday of Lent”, “Second Sunday of Lent”, “Third Sunday of Lent”, and so on. It is clear by these titles that Sundays are part of Lent. But we can still indulge on Sundays, if we want to, because what we give up for Lent is voluntary.

5-Lent is 40 days long because of tradition. Moses stayed on the mountain for 40 days. Nineveh was given 40 days to repent, and most of all Jesus fasted and prayed in the wilderness for 40 days before starting his ministry.

6-During Lent it is customary to give up something that we enjoy or rely upon to help us discipline our will so that we are not slaves to pleasure. In this way, we can better train to detach ourselves from the wants of this world and allow ourselves to become more perfectly in-line with the will of God.

Fast Facts About Lent

Here is a quick reference for when we should fast and abstain during Lent of 2010.

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-All Fridays of Lent: Abstinence

-Feb. 17 (Ash Wednesday): Fast and Abstinence

-April 2 (Good Friday): Fast and Abstinence

Fast=Catholics are allowed to take only one full meal for the day. All adults are bound by the law up till the age of sixty.
Abstinence=No meat (flesh and organs of mammals and fowl) is eaten for those who are age 14 and above.

Quick Answers to Those Perplexing Catholic Questions

What are the rules for not eating meat on Fridays? Is it only during lent or all year round? Also, when are Catholics suppose to fast?

Currently, Catholics are required to abstain from meat only during the Friday’s of Lent. Years ago, Catholics were forbidden to eat meat every Friday of the year. In 1966, the US Conference of Catholic Bishops determined that we did not have to abstain from eating meat. Due to shifts in American’s eating habits, the importance of meat in our diet had diminished. To reflect this, we were given the option of choosing another penance on Friday. There has been some talk about reinstating the rule and making all Fridays meatless. But nothing has been changed, yet. Catholic American’s (who are 14 years or older) still only have to abstain from meat during the Lenten Season.
In respect to fasting, American Catholics are required to do so on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. The fasting age is from 18 to 59. Those who have medical concerns are not obligated to abstain from meat or fast at any time.