The second major cycle of the liturgical year is the Easter cycle.
The season of Lent begins with Ash Wednesday and concludes on Holy Thursday. This season commemorates the forty days and nights Jesus spent fasting in the wilderness, during which he triumphed over the tempter. For catechumens, it is a time to prepare intensely for Baptism, Confirmation, and Holy Communion. For the faithful, it is a time to repent of the ways we have sinned after Baptism and to prepare to renew the promises of our Baptism at the Easter Vigil.
The Sacred Paschal Triduum commemorates the death and resurrection of Jesus. It is his pasch (passover) through death and into new life. The Church as the Body of Christ shares spiritually in this great action of Christ. It begins the evening of Maundy Thursday and concludes on Easter Sunday.
The Easter season, however, is fifty days long. Late in the season the Church celebrates the Ascension of the Lord. At the end is the celebration of Pentecost, the day the Holy Spirit descended upon the Church.
See below for recent posts about Lent and Easter (the most recent being on top).
Comments are closed.