This year, all the Churches are celebrating Easter, and therefore Holy Week, on the same day.On Sunday 28th March, from 7 in th4e morning, the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre was filled with pilgrims whilst almost all the services took place at the same time. In these cases, prayer is a question of faith, as although the areas belonging to the different rites are clearly marked out, the voices and above all the singing intertwine and, at times, create a symphony which can be defined… remarkable, if not otherwise.
Thanks to the liturgical booklet offered to the pilgrims, anybody who wants to really follow and concentrate on the Franciscan liturgy in the Holy Sepulchre can enter into prayer and experience the commemoration of the day: the entrance of Jesus as the Messiah into Jerusalem. Before listening to the reading of the Passion, the most beautiful and at the same time the solemnest moment is that of the blessing of the Palms, by the bishop - this year the celebration was presided by Mons. Kamal Hanna Batish, representing the Patriarch Mons. Fouad Twal - and then the procession around the Empty Tomb.
The semi-darkness in which the Basilica is still cloaked at this time in the morning, the red of the priest’s vestments, the green of the large palm fronds brought by the seminarians of the Patriarchate and the many Franciscans present, the rustle of the palms they wave, the cries of joy of Egyptian Coptic pilgrims when their area is crossed: all this helps to make the procession around the shrone beautiful, solemn, impressive and moving, whether you have the chance to follow it or only to watch it pass. The afternoon procession is also a liturgical celebration which begins in the sanctuary of Bethphage with a reading, a proclamation of the Gospel and a blessing by the Patriarch and which ends at St. Anne, with the White Fathers and a small speech by the Patriarch and a solemn blessing. Compared to the one in the morning, this one is definitely more festive, almost popular, unquestionably joyful and definitely ecumenical. Many Orthodox Copts from Egypt joined the procession as well as a good number of Protestants from the various Churches present in Jerusalem and the small Mennonite community which can be met from time to time in the streets in the Christian part of the Old City.
Even the Franciscans adapt their style: the solemnity fo Gregorian chanting gives way to the effervescent joy of more spontaneous hymns.
The styles that can be observed are as many as the groups present, and there are many of these: the faithful from the parishes of Ramallah, Taybeh, Nazareth, Jaffa, the various religious communities of the Holy Land and many groups of pilgrims passing through. After entering the gardens of St. Anne, everybody is welcomed by songs and the performance of the group of Christian music, Al Raja.
When the Patriarch arrives, there is silence. His Beatitude came down the Mount of lives accompanied by the Apostolic Nuncio Mons. Antonio Franco, several bishops, the Custos of the Holy Land, Fr. Pierbattista Pizzaballa, preceded by the older and younger seminarians and followed by some guests including the Consul-General of France, Mr. Frédéric Desagneaux. His first words recall that Jesus did not have to pass through any checkpoints, nor suffer any humiliation to go to Jerusalem. These words are perhaps an allusion to what happened to two parishioners from the Territories who were not allowed to go through the checkpoints although they had obtained the laissez-passer for the celebrations. The Patriarch then continued with an invitation to “follow Jesus and enter, as he did, the city, society, to listen to his words, look at his gestures, to understand the love that will explode in this holy and martyred city, to create a new world of men, women, young people, saints and servants of God. Let his example teach us, so that we too can support those who are struck by injustice, the absence of freedom and hypocrisy. The Passion of Christ is an ordeal through which the Lord takes on our sufferings and leads us to the Resurrection.”
“All these days of the Passion of Christ cannot be explained except through love.” The rest of the week will allow us to rediscover the extent to which the Lord loved his people.
Mab
Thanks to the liturgical booklet offered to the pilgrims, anybody who wants to really follow and concentrate on the Franciscan liturgy in the Holy Sepulchre can enter into prayer and experience the commemoration of the day: the entrance of Jesus as the Messiah into Jerusalem. Before listening to the reading of the Passion, the most beautiful and at the same time the solemnest moment is that of the blessing of the Palms, by the bishop - this year the celebration was presided by Mons. Kamal Hanna Batish, representing the Patriarch Mons. Fouad Twal - and then the procession around the Empty Tomb.
The semi-darkness in which the Basilica is still cloaked at this time in the morning, the red of the priest’s vestments, the green of the large palm fronds brought by the seminarians of the Patriarchate and the many Franciscans present, the rustle of the palms they wave, the cries of joy of Egyptian Coptic pilgrims when their area is crossed: all this helps to make the procession around the shrone beautiful, solemn, impressive and moving, whether you have the chance to follow it or only to watch it pass. The afternoon procession is also a liturgical celebration which begins in the sanctuary of Bethphage with a reading, a proclamation of the Gospel and a blessing by the Patriarch and which ends at St. Anne, with the White Fathers and a small speech by the Patriarch and a solemn blessing. Compared to the one in the morning, this one is definitely more festive, almost popular, unquestionably joyful and definitely ecumenical. Many Orthodox Copts from Egypt joined the procession as well as a good number of Protestants from the various Churches present in Jerusalem and the small Mennonite community which can be met from time to time in the streets in the Christian part of the Old City.
Even the Franciscans adapt their style: the solemnity fo Gregorian chanting gives way to the effervescent joy of more spontaneous hymns.
The styles that can be observed are as many as the groups present, and there are many of these: the faithful from the parishes of Ramallah, Taybeh, Nazareth, Jaffa, the various religious communities of the Holy Land and many groups of pilgrims passing through. After entering the gardens of St. Anne, everybody is welcomed by songs and the performance of the group of Christian music, Al Raja.
When the Patriarch arrives, there is silence. His Beatitude came down the Mount of lives accompanied by the Apostolic Nuncio Mons. Antonio Franco, several bishops, the Custos of the Holy Land, Fr. Pierbattista Pizzaballa, preceded by the older and younger seminarians and followed by some guests including the Consul-General of France, Mr. Frédéric Desagneaux. His first words recall that Jesus did not have to pass through any checkpoints, nor suffer any humiliation to go to Jerusalem. These words are perhaps an allusion to what happened to two parishioners from the Territories who were not allowed to go through the checkpoints although they had obtained the laissez-passer for the celebrations. The Patriarch then continued with an invitation to “follow Jesus and enter, as he did, the city, society, to listen to his words, look at his gestures, to understand the love that will explode in this holy and martyred city, to create a new world of men, women, young people, saints and servants of God. Let his example teach us, so that we too can support those who are struck by injustice, the absence of freedom and hypocrisy. The Passion of Christ is an ordeal through which the Lord takes on our sufferings and leads us to the Resurrection.”
“All these days of the Passion of Christ cannot be explained except through love.” The rest of the week will allow us to rediscover the extent to which the Lord loved his people.
Mab