Holy Week is the most sacred time of the liturgical year. The Church gives us this time to enter into the Lord’s Passion and death, to allow the reality of what He has done for us to truly penetrate our lives. Yesterday, Palm Sunday, we began this journey with Jesus, and we now have three days to shed any distractions before the celebration of the Last Supper on Holy Thursday.
I like to think of Holy Week as a kind of retreat. Usually, I “unplug” from technology, media, and other worldly distractions. Going “off the grid” as much as my responsibilities allow me, I try to use this time to be silent, to be still, to sit with the Gospel readings each day. Every year I have done this, I’ve noticed that the more I am able to quiet my mind, put any stresses on the shelf, let go of my own agendas, and simply be present to the Lord, the more meaningful the events of the week become.
No matter how you observe Holy Week, the goal should be to walk with Jesus, to remain aware of how personal it was for Him as He suffered for each one of us, and how His actions through this Paschal mystery, that “unique event of history which does not pass away” (CCC 1085), have the power to change your life forever.
For some of us, it just isn’t possible to put our “real” lives on hold to make a retreat during these next few days, and that’s ok. But even if it’s hard to find time, every single one of us has ten minutes a day to be with Jesus. And yet, even if we make the time, it can still be difficult to calm our minds and forget about our worldly concerns during those ten minutes.
So, knowing that, here’s a great way to enter into Holy Week and really absorb what’s going on: use your ten minutes to read the Gospel reading for each day, even if you can’t make it to daily Mass. I have outlined this exercise in an easy to follow format below, as well as the links for the Gospels of each day. I’m including Passion Sunday in case you’d like to go back and start there. May you have a blessed Holy Week!
10 Minute Meditation
1. Find a quiet place to be alone, and begin with a prayer to the Holy Spirit, asking for the grace to shed any distractions and focus on the Lord. (I like to ask for our Lady’s intercession as well.)
2. Read the Gospel of the day all the way through, slowly and prayerfully.
3. Close your eyes and imagine the scene, making it as detailed as you would like. (If you’d like to learn more about this, you can read about the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius, where this would be called the “composition of place” leading to the “application of the senses.”)
4. Read the Gospel again, pausing if necessary to close your eyes and keep the scene vivid in your mind.
5. In a spirit of prayer, ask yourself the following questions, rereading if you need to, and writing down your answers if you wish:
What person, animal, or object do I relate to in this reading at this moment in my life?
Who or what am I in this scene?
Why do I feel like this person or object?
What is going on in my life right now that is making me relate to this person or object?
(You might find that you gravitate towards one of the main characters in the scene, or maybe you feel more like the towel the Lord uses to wipe the feet of the apostles. Other examples: Judas, Peter, the oil used by Mary to anoint Jesus, the thirty pieces of silver, one of the Jews in the crowd, etc.)
6. When you have finished the meditation, close with a prayer, thanking the Lord for His love for you, and asking for the grace to continue to be present to Him throughout His Passion.
Gospel Readings
Passion Sunday (There are three gospel readings for this day — I like to do them all if I can!)
Holy Monday
Holy Tuesday
Holy Wednesday
Holy Thursday
Chrism Mass
Mass of the Lord’s Supper
Good Friday of the Lord’s Passion
Holy Saturday: Easter Vigil
