were intent upon returning after the Sabbath to complete the burial process. . . but, when they did, they found the tomb empty.

       This year, we plan to prepare the TOMB OF JESUS in our church in the Chapel dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary (the left side of the Sanctuary).  Many flowers are needed to decorate this Tomb as well as the entire church for the Holy Triduum and for Easter.  If you are able to help with these preparations, please use the special envelopes for Easter Flowers and place them in the collection basket. THANK YOU FOR YOUR GENEROSITY.

 

GOOD FRIDAY

Good Friday, the most somber day of the year, is a day of solemn church services centering on the Death of Christ.  In homes where Easter preparations are well underway, music is not played and an atmosphere of reverence is maintained.

 Many hours are spent in devotion at church.  The altar is bare, the services—for the only time of the Church year—do not include the Consecration of the Host, symbolizing the desolation of the world without God.  Services include the distinctive Veneration of the Cross, where the crucifix is either carried into the church or unveiled and then venerated, or kissed, by the faithful.  In many parishes, the crucifix is borne by men of the parish and carried throughout the streets which were the path of Palm Sunday’s joyous procession.  This funeral procession in the streets is accompanied by altar boys wielding special wooden clappers rhythmically ringing out the nailing of Jesus to the Cross.  The sorrowful mood is enhanced by such plaintive hymns as “O Sacred Head Surrounded”, etc.

GRAVE OF THE LORD

On Good Friday, the violet draping is removed from the Crucifix, which is displayed for public veneration, and a tableau of Christ’s Tomb is unveiled.  Many of the faithful spend long hours into the night grieving at the Tomb, where it is customary to kiss the wounds on the Lord’s body. A  figure of Christ, lying in his tomb,  is widely visited by the faithful, especially on Holy Saturday.  The tableaux may include flowers, candles, figures of angels standing watch, the three crosses atop Mt. Calvary, and much more.  Each parish strives to come up with the most artistically and religiously evocative arrangement in which the Blessed Sacrament, draped in a filmy veil, is prominently displayed.

Holy Saturday it is the day of the Easter Vigil. Popular traditions on Holy Saturday are associated, in some way, with preparations for the festivities of Easter. On this day the Blessing of special foods for Easter is still a popular tradition. Meat (ham, sausages), cheese, eggs, butter, Pascha Bread (sweet bread), a salt, are blessed by a priest when people are visiting the Tomb of Jesus. After sunset, the  Liturgy of the Easter Vigil is celebrated.

 

EASTER  TRADITIONS - THE BLESSED EASTER BASKET. The immigrants from Eastern Europe brought many beautiful customs to the USA. One of them is the blessing of the food for the  first meal of Easter. Every Holy Saturday, some people carry baskets laden with food. Others carry smaller baskets with an assortment of symbolic items of food. The food is of a very special nature. Each has a particular place in the post-Lenten, Easter Day celebration.

What is in the EASTER BASKET? – Each particular item has a special symbolism for its part in the Easter celebration.

THE EGG.  Long a symbol of life and re-birth in Catholic tradition. The egg is the standard symbol of the Resurrection of our Lord. It also represents everlasting life and renewal for all who believe in HIM. Eggs

hold the seeds of revival and fertility upon the earth. The colored egg is symbolic of the tomb in which our Lord was placed. The egg was originally RED in color , representing the blood of Christ which purifies the believers.

PASCHAL LAMB. May be made of butter, sugar or  baked dough. It is the center of the symbolic foods-ladened table. It is the central symbol to the Catholic faith. For the fullest Easter celebration, the Lamb is featured carrying a victorious  red banner, upon which is a cross. The Lamb, the symbol of ancient times as the sacrificial animal, now portrays Christ as victorious through this presentation.

MEAT (ham, sausage). The pig, from which this meat is derived, is also an ancient symbol of prosperity. Forbidden in the Old Testament, they are part of the bounteous meal of Easter.

HORSERADISH & PEPPER. Symbol of bitter hers of the Passover, signifying bitterness of spiritual exile and bitterness of the suffering of Jesus.

VINEGAR.  Reminds us of the gall (sour wine) which was given to our Lord as He hung upon the cross, when He declared: “I thirst”.

SALT. It is the most fundamental of all spices and preservatives. Salt reminds us, as the result of our Holy Baptism into Christ, that we are, by His words, the “salt of the earth”.  

PASCHAL BREAD. This is a round loaf of sweet bread, topped with the cross. It symbolizes the bread of the Eucharistic Meal. It also declares to us as it vividly declared to the Emmaus Disciples – Christ is known to us in the breaking of bread.

MYRTLE OR OTHER GREENS. The Easter Basket is decorated with little branches of myrtle or other greens. Myrtle is a ritual green, a symbol of purity and is used to decorate all items in the basket.

OTHER CAKES AND SWEETS. In addition to Paschal Sweet Bread, an assortment of various cakes and cookies may be used as part of the festivities. Adorned with Myrtle, or other decoration, they add color and flavor to the Easter Basket.

Maybe your ancestors brought different customs and traditions to the USA. Try to follow them. Don’t cut off your roots. The tree with cut roots will die.

 

DIVINE MERCY SUNDAY – THE FEAST OF MERCY  (The First Sunday after Easter)

   Among all of the elements of devotion to The Divine Mercy requested by our Lord through Saint- Sr. Faustina, the Feast of Mercy holds first place.  The Lord’s will, with regard to its establishment, was expressed  on Good Friday, 1937,  when Jesus requested that Saint Faustina make a special novena before the Feast of Mercy, from Good Friday through the following Saturday.  He, Himself, dictated the intentions for each day.  By means of a specific prayer, she was to bring to His Heart a different group of souls each day and thus immerse them in the ocean of His Mercy, begging the Father—on the strength of Jesus’ Passion—for graces for them.

       We started this Novena on Good Friday this year. Every day from Good Friday until the Sunday after Easter, April 19th at 3.00PM we recite the Chaplet of Divine Mercy. On Sunday, April 19th  from 2.00PM the Blessed Sacrament will be exposed for private Adoration. The Sacrament of Confession will be administered during that time. Exactly at 3.00PM we start to sing the Chaplet of Divine Mercy. After Benediction, the Holy Mass will be celebrated.

       After the Mass  we will share a potluck dinner in the hall, then watch Jerzy Lukaszewicz film “Faustina” – the Mystical Life of the Visionary of Divine Mercy.  If you need more information, please contact Fr. Stanislaw Zak at: 510-482-0596. Please invite your relatives and friends to celebrate this Feast of Divine Mercy.