“Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord"

MABUHAY!

It's here. Holy Week officially starts today! Today we start of Holy Week with Palm Sunday. 

Today the church embarks on the journey of Holy Week. This is probably the most intense and most holiest and solemn week in the whole liturgical calendar. For me, Holy Week is a time of repentance, forgiveness and preparation. This week we repent for all our sins. As Lent officially closes on Wednesday evening during Tenebrae service, we should reflect back on our "giving up" this Lent, we should ask ourselve how successful we were at it, how it impacted us and what we could have done better. Holy Week is a time when we should prepare ourselves, open up our hearts for the Risen Christ. Often times people ask, "how can we prepare ourself?" The solution is, go to confession. Going to confession this week specially before the Triduum begins is one of the best medicine to cure our sins. Talk to your parish priest about it. If you don't feel comfortable with your parish priest, go to a different church and talk to a priest there. I'm sure he wouldn't deny a confession.

Now- how do we open our hearts for the coming of the Risen Christ? Simple- attend all of the liturgies that the church has. One of the most important liturgies in the whole church is the Easter Vigil. Often times, people ask why it is more important than Christmas, the answer is simple. Christmas is the celebration of Christ's birth. On Christmas we celebrate how the Blessed Virgin Mary gave birth to the Son of God. It is significant because Christ takes the form of human flesh to be with us. Easter is a whole different ball game. Even though Christmas is about Christ's birth, Easter is "better" because Christ truly reveals that he is the Son of God, but fulfilling what the scriptures say, "And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures" 1 Corinthians 15:4 or as in the Nicene Creed. Even though Christmas is important, Easter truly shows us that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, who rose from the dead and is now seated at the right hand of the Father. 

Back to what I was saying about attending the liturgies. Even though Easter Vigil lasts about 3 hours, the readings are magnificent. This liturgy is magnificent because it explains the whole history of the church in this liturgy. It's like a history book re-enactment of some type. The incense and holy water, the sounds of the bell at the Gloria is truly magnificent! If you haven't attended the Easter Vigil before, I highly suggest that you go. Check your local bulletin or call your local parish to ask them what time it begins. Some churches start as early as 7pm and some as late as 9pm. Not just the Easter Vigil, but I encourage you to attend all of the services this week from Tenebrae (Wednesday; if your church does), Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter Vigil. It will be a great way to deepen your faith and understanding in this Year of Faith! 

With that said, I leave you all today in this Palm Sunday. I hope to see some of you at church throughout the week. I encourage you to attend the services/ Masses, and most importantly to clean your hearts by attending confession so that you can have more space for Christ in your heart this Easter. Have A Great Day!