Holy Week & Triduum 2020

To see God, we must find the desire to see Him, focus our attention to see Him, and, with the Blessed Mother, follow our suffering Lord Jesus​ to the Cross to see Him. 

In this most unique Holy Week, while confined to our homes, what can we do to better SEE God, see His love for us, and see His what He is doing for our good and the good of the world? How can we SEE Him and the reality of the spiritual life more clearly in our present darkness?

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FIND

We beg God for the grace to find the desire, which is already in our hearts, to see Him. We want to know more deeply what our Lord Jesus suffered in His Passion and Death so we can experience more fully the joy of His Resurrection. 

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FOCUS

To see what our Lord is showing us, we need to focus our interior vision, the eyes of our souls. We want to remove the distractions that cause to look at ourselves and the physical world around us instead of God. 

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FOLLOW

To experience more fully what Jesus suffered for us, we must stay close to Him. We follow Jesus by heeding His command he gave to the Apostles, Peter, James, and John in the Garden of Gethsemane to WATCH and PRAY.

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FIND THE DESIRE

Pray to increase our desire to SEE God clearly especially in our suffering

​Our Lord Jesus tell us, "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you and you will find" (Matt 7:7)

We ask for Him to inflame in us a deeper desire or willingness to offer ourselves, specifically our suffering, our frustrations, our worries, and our time in union with Jesus' offering to the Father through Mary for the salvation of others.

• Scriptures – Holy Reading​ especially of the Psalms expressing distress, lamentation (Psalm 13, 22, 25, 31, 86, 143)

Plenary Indulgence offered for ALL suffering from and praying for the end of the Corona-virus pandemic.

• Click here for more information on this gift from our Holy Father, Pope Francis, during this time of great trial. 
  • ​​​The Plenary Indulgence is granted to the faithful suffering from coronavirus, who are subject to quarantine by order of the health authority in hospitals or in their own homes if, with a spirit detached from any sin, they unite spiritually through the media to the celebration of Holy Mass, the recitation of the Holy Rosary, to the pious practice of the Way of the Cross or other forms of devotion, or if at least they will recite the Creed, the Lord's Prayer and a pious invocation to the Blessed Virgin Mary, offering this trial in a spirit of faith in God and charity towards their brothers and sisters, with the will to fulfill the usual conditions (sacramental confession, Eucharistic communion and prayer according to the Holy Father's intentions), as soon as possible.
  • From the Degree "This Apostolic Penitentiary also willingly grants a Plenary Indulgence under the same conditions on the occasion of the current world epidemic, also to those faithful who offer a visit to the Blessed Sacrament, or Eucharistic adoration, or reading the Holy Scriptures for at least half an hour, or the recitation of the Holy Rosary, or the pious exercise of the Way of the Cross, or the recitation of the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, to implore from Almighty God the end of the epidemic, relief for those who are afflicted and eternal salvation for those whom the Lord has called to Himself."

(More to be added later - What is an indulgence? & What is necessary - "the conditions" for the grace to be applying to us or others)

 

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FOCUS OUR ATTENTION

​Focus the "eyes of our soul" on God by eliminating worldly distraction 

• Avoid watching the news - Although we are anxious to find out what is happening with the spread of the virus, we do not need to keep up with it constantly, especially during these Holy days. We already know, sadly, many people will be infected, and many will die. Knowing the specific details, the total numbers of cases and deaths, is not necessary for us. We need to continuing praying for the sick, the dead, those who lost loved ones, and all health care professionals. In act of charity and self-sacrifice, we also do our part to slow the spread of the virus by following the Government and Diocesan directives to social distance and only leave our homes for essential business.
• Avoid secular entertainment or all media produced for entertainment.
• Focus on the spiritual media
  • FORMED (available at no charge for St. Joseph's parishioners)
    • ​Authentic Catholic programs and movies. 
  • Relevant Radio  
  • Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN)​ 
• In remaining in our homes, we try to practice simplicity of life and set aside a specific space or area in our homes for prayer. We can make a "chapel" in our home, the "Domestic Church."

 

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FOLLOW JESUS SUFFERING

Do what Jesus ask of us: WATCH and PRAY.
 

• Prayerfully watch the movie the Passion of the Christ (2004)
  • ​Link to free version on Youtube (low-quality)
  • Link to rent or buy on Amazon / Google Play / Apple Itunes
• Holy reading of Scriptures – Attentively and reverently read the account of our Lord’s Passion and Death.
  • ​Also, see the Gospel of John Chapter 12 to 19 - Includes our Lord's "Last Supper discourse" before His arrest and passion. 
• Pray the Devotions of the Church - Walking with the Blessed Mother, having her hold and lead us, we walk with Jesus in His way of the Cross.
  • Rosary - The greatest devotion in the Church’s rich treasury of prayer. Praying the Rosary uses both mental and vocal forms of prayer. With the Blessed Mother's help, we meditate on, intentionally thinking about, the mysteries of our Lord Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection.
    • ​Resources on the Rosary - 
      • ​The Secrets of the Rosary by St. Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort
  • Stations of the Cross
  • Tenebrae Service – Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday
    • Join us online for the amazing liturgy of Tenebrae, which commemorates Christ’s Passion and Death This is one of the most ancient services in the history of Catholic Church. It is a special form of the Church's Divine Office Matins (Office of Readings) and Lauds (Morning Prayer) that occurs only during the Holy Triduum. 
• Participate in the parish’s live-stream of the Triduum Mass of the Lord’s Supper, Good Friday, Easter Vigil

(be added later - Worship aide online / What can be done at home?)