Easter is the celebration of the resurrection, which gives meaning to human life. The Easter holiday cycle continues later with Pentecost, with the coming of the Holy Spirit, who helps us to walk our pilgrimage in our earthly life until we reach the Lord.
Easter is our most significant holiday, in which God’s love for us is expressed: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life!” (Gospel of John 3.16) The death and resurrection of Jesus at Easter is a joy for us, because as the apostle St. Paul writes: as soon as we share in Jesus’ suffering, we also share in his resurrection. Salvation, suffering, death and resurrection together give the meaning of human life.
Canon Sándor Sebők, parish priest of Fót
Easter is a very colorful and expressive Catholic liturgy that takes place during Holy Week. It begins with Palm Sunday, with the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. In this period, Jesus founded two sacraments. On Maundy Thursday, at the last supper, the Blessed Sacrament remained among us in the form of bread. There Jesus says that “Greater love has no one than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends, (…) do this in remembrance of me.” This close union with Jesus is brought to us by Holy Communion, the fruit of the Holy Mass. Maundy Thursday is therefore a holiday of love.
On the front page: Leonardo da Vinci: The Last Supper
After a few hours, Jesus is captured, and his ordeal, his suffering, begins. The Catholic Church has a very beautiful ceremony for this, the Way of the Cross, in which we follow Jesus and meditate on his story of suffering. The example and prayer of Jesus strengthens us in carrying our own cross and gives meaning to suffering.
Holy Saturday night is the vigil of Easter. Jesus is buried. Once upon a time, the entire Holy Saturday night was spent in vigil in the ancient church. We start the Holy Saturday ceremony with a consecration of fire, where the fire symbolizes Jesus. After that, we also bless the Easter candle, which reminds us of the resurrection of Jesus. In a wonderfully beautiful song of Easter joy, we express what a great thing Jesus did by dying and rising again. We also experience the suffering and resurrection of Jesus in the resurrection procession. The ceremony continues on Easter Sunday, this is the joy of the resurrection.
Jesus gives meaning to our lives by saying that there is a resurrection, there is an afterlife! Jesus came back from the dead and showed that He is truly Lord of life and death. In our lives, we don’t just toss and turn like a paper boat on top of the water. A tcreator God created us, according to his eternal plan, he helps us through our lives with the grace of redemption, and then waits for us home. So the resurrection is a celebration of homecoming. As we shared in the suffering of Christ, we also share in the joy of the resurrection. For all Christians, the resurrection is a sure guarantee of eternal life. We have work to do in this world and meanwhile we are on our way home to our father’s house to be with almighty God for an eternal life!
In our church dedicated to the Immaculate Conception in Fót, every four years we present the events of Holy Week in period clothes according to tradition with a very meaningful mystery play. Rehearsals for the spectacular performance are already taking place, and we will perform it for our fans at 9 o’clock on Maundy Thursday evening.
Károly Windhager
