John Cotton Would Be Ashamed
Last week was Holy Week, the best and worst week of the year!
Worst, because it's always crazy busy, and always at a stressful time. Best, because it's a big fucking deal and church is lovely, and it breaks out the loveliness for Holy Week. Sometimes I think the Puritans had a good thing going with intellectually rigorous sermons adorned by no fancifying, but then I think, but no Easter. I mean Christmas, eh, but the Triduum!
For those not in the know, Holy Week starts with Palm Sunday. It's exciting because there's a procession with palm fronds and people singing Hosannas to King David and shiiit and it kind of sucks to get there late, which I of course did. But it's the day when Jesus finally returns to Jerusalem and it's a BFD and people are like WOOOO but his enemies are like ARRR and the Romans are like "Juno's cunt, these crazy Jews are crazy!" Then you have to listen to the whole Passion story and awkwardly hold your fronds until you turn them into little crosses to be saved until next year, when they turn into Ashes for Ash Wednesday.
(these are all from where I've been going to church, which is actually Episcopal - progressive Anglo-Catholic to be more descriptive, in case you are like "hey but you are Catholic and that priest is a lady")
Anywhoo, the Triduum consists of three nights and days: Holy or Maundy Thursday evening commemorates the Last Supper and Eucharist and Betrayal; Good Friday is Jesus' death; and Saturday evening is the vigil for Easter. The priest at MHC one year characterized them as a comma, a period, and an exclamation point. Simple enough.
Thursday - So anyway! Thursday's the beginning. It's all about the Last Supper and the Eucharist, even though they read from John, who places the Last Supper on the wrong day and OH WAIT DOESN'T ACTUALLY TALK ABOUT THE EUCHARIST but whatever, details details. I call it Holy Thursday, but the Episcopalians call it Maundy Thursday, from Mandatum -- referring to Jesus' command to his apostles to be nice and shit. By "nice" I mean "wash people's feet" which means "serve people, don't be douchey to them". Look! Feet! (ew, feet)
Funny story: that kid always wears a bow tie, at least to church. One time I saw him in with a pin of the Episcopal Church too. I mean, who does that? He looked like a British boarding student with a prefect's badge or something. AND A BOW TIE. Sorry, judging people is bad. Oh well.
Also: this is the first Thursday in four years that I haven't sung this RIDICULOUS song about Jesus, after eating with his friends, washing their feet and saying to them, Do you know what I your Lord have done for youuuuuuuuuu? I have given you exaaaampllllle -- anyway. I loathe it. One of the few MHC Newman traditions that won't be missed.
The end of the Thursday mass was the best part, really. There was a hymn and procession of the Host, taking it from the altar into the side-chapel. The choir sang an Anglican chant setting for Psalm 22 -- not sure if it was Wesley's but it's the same idea:
While they sang, the congregation was quiet, and the acolytes and whatnot went through the church, slowly turning off/down the lights and removing all the removable decorations in the sanctuary. The rector stripped the altar and scrubbed it, loudly, and left the area dark, with the cross covered and the chalice alone on its side. When the Psalm ended, a seminarian stood in the back of the church and read the Gospel passage of Thursday night, from Gethsemene to Jesus' condemnation.
People exited silently, or went to the side chapel, which glowed with the only light. A vigil was kept through the night until noon Friday.
I went to a party and felt guilty about it, so I spent the evening with a more observant Jewish friend, not eating the snacks (though he, unlike me, carried a personal bottle of Kosher wine).
Friday - I've heard of people having three-hour masses on Good Friday (from noon to three, the whole time Jesus is on the cross), but I didn't expect to be at one! Especially as I had made plans for a 2 o'clock meeting. Whoops!
There's less to say about Good Friday. It's basically what you'd expect, very solemn. The lights are left off, except for a few necessary ones, and there's no mass, though they do give out the Eucharist. I didn't make it that far, though, because these people had honest-to-God the SLOWEST veneration of the Cross (people walk up to a cross, kneel, and touch it or kiss it... it's a little strange, I'll admit, but the priest talked about a parish where people each hammer a nail in, which is even stranger). I think having the meeting weighing on me made it even worse, because I was like COME ON LET'S GET THIS SHOW ON THE ROAD but people were all *plod plod kneel kneel kneel solemn solemn venerate venerate venerate plod plod plod* one at a time. Man. And when I waited in my seat I had to text my future roommate about being late, and this girl behind me was 100% judging me. So awkward. My TA and his partner were there too, and they also left early. Oh wellllllllll.
Saturday night - Easter vigil. It is the bomb dig of the liturgical year. Ximena had never been before, and she gave her seal of approval! Yay! Usually this clocks in at around 3 hours. Christ Church did it in 2.5, which I swear is the only time they've ever come in under average time.
Anyway, the church is still dark when you enter, except for the tall Paschal (Easter) candle, and a couple others that are necessary for reading. It was early enough that the natural light was decent, and shone through the stained glass.
It starts out with a blessing of the new fire and candle, and a song (the Exultet), and the procession. Here's the priestly retinue, blessing the Paschal candle:
Everyone got a little candle upon entering, and once in our seats and after the procession, candles were lit from the Paschal candle and the flame was spread to everyone's little candle. Yay, symbolism! They then proceeded to read five passages from the Old Testament, each followed by a Psalm and prayer (the creation, Noah, the Red Sea, Ezekiel's dry bones, and... another, about the reuniting of Israel but I forget). As they go on, the sun completely sets and the place, even with the candles, is too dark to bother trying to read. Which is why (a) I don't remember the last reading and (b) I know that the following photo is from the beginning of this process:
That is my favorite photo, by the way. After the readings, the priests and retinue went to the back to bless the baptismal font, I think (I couldn't see, ok?) and some stuff happens and then they were like CHRIST IS RISEN ALLELUIA and some lady responded very very enthusiastically and the bells started going crazypoo and the lights all came on and WHO LIT ALL THOSE CANDLES I don't know but the altar was lit up and ho shit there are flowers and shit up there whoa! Very exciting. After that point every song included like 80 "Alleluia"s because you know, you haven't said the word since before Ash Wednesday!
The rest continues more along the lines of a normal Easter service -- renewal of baptismal vows, getting your hymnal splashed with baptismal water (ok maybe that was not supposed to happen), the usual readings, homily, mass, etc. And then, after waiting and worrying that they wouldn't sing it?
My favorite Easter hymn. Yusssssssssss.
(sorry for the clapping - it was for someone's Ordination, and the other video of the hymn was some crazy John-Williams-esque arrangement and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, with weird lyrics)
Alleluia! Incidentally, the composer of that song (kind of) also wrote "Hark, the Herald Angels Sing"! What a winner.
Sunday - was way low key, actually. We just hung out outside and worked and then scrambled some eggggs and baked cupcakes and Ximena made delicious icing by mixing it with pink lemonade mix and then she iced them perfectly and we were winnarz. Yay, Easter.
Worst, because it's always crazy busy, and always at a stressful time. Best, because it's a big fucking deal and church is lovely, and it breaks out the loveliness for Holy Week. Sometimes I think the Puritans had a good thing going with intellectually rigorous sermons adorned by no fancifying, but then I think, but no Easter. I mean Christmas, eh, but the Triduum!
For those not in the know, Holy Week starts with Palm Sunday. It's exciting because there's a procession with palm fronds and people singing Hosannas to King David and shiiit and it kind of sucks to get there late, which I of course did. But it's the day when Jesus finally returns to Jerusalem and it's a BFD and people are like WOOOO but his enemies are like ARRR and the Romans are like "Juno's cunt, these crazy Jews are crazy!" Then you have to listen to the whole Passion story and awkwardly hold your fronds until you turn them into little crosses to be saved until next year, when they turn into Ashes for Ash Wednesday.
(these are all from where I've been going to church, which is actually Episcopal - progressive Anglo-Catholic to be more descriptive, in case you are like "hey but you are Catholic and that priest is a lady")
Anywhoo, the Triduum consists of three nights and days: Holy or Maundy Thursday evening commemorates the Last Supper and Eucharist and Betrayal; Good Friday is Jesus' death; and Saturday evening is the vigil for Easter. The priest at MHC one year characterized them as a comma, a period, and an exclamation point. Simple enough.
Thursday - So anyway! Thursday's the beginning. It's all about the Last Supper and the Eucharist, even though they read from John, who places the Last Supper on the wrong day and OH WAIT DOESN'T ACTUALLY TALK ABOUT THE EUCHARIST but whatever, details details. I call it Holy Thursday, but the Episcopalians call it Maundy Thursday, from Mandatum -- referring to Jesus' command to his apostles to be nice and shit. By "nice" I mean "wash people's feet" which means "serve people, don't be douchey to them". Look! Feet! (ew, feet)
Funny story: that kid always wears a bow tie, at least to church. One time I saw him in with a pin of the Episcopal Church too. I mean, who does that? He looked like a British boarding student with a prefect's badge or something. AND A BOW TIE. Sorry, judging people is bad. Oh well.
Also: this is the first Thursday in four years that I haven't sung this RIDICULOUS song about Jesus, after eating with his friends, washing their feet and saying to them, Do you know what I your Lord have done for youuuuuuuuuu? I have given you exaaaampllllle -- anyway. I loathe it. One of the few MHC Newman traditions that won't be missed.
The end of the Thursday mass was the best part, really. There was a hymn and procession of the Host, taking it from the altar into the side-chapel. The choir sang an Anglican chant setting for Psalm 22 -- not sure if it was Wesley's but it's the same idea:
Click to viewWhile they sang, the congregation was quiet, and the acolytes and whatnot went through the church, slowly turning off/down the lights and removing all the removable decorations in the sanctuary. The rector stripped the altar and scrubbed it, loudly, and left the area dark, with the cross covered and the chalice alone on its side. When the Psalm ended, a seminarian stood in the back of the church and read the Gospel passage of Thursday night, from Gethsemene to Jesus' condemnation.
People exited silently, or went to the side chapel, which glowed with the only light. A vigil was kept through the night until noon Friday.
I went to a party and felt guilty about it, so I spent the evening with a more observant Jewish friend, not eating the snacks (though he, unlike me, carried a personal bottle of Kosher wine).
Friday - I've heard of people having three-hour masses on Good Friday (from noon to three, the whole time Jesus is on the cross), but I didn't expect to be at one! Especially as I had made plans for a 2 o'clock meeting. Whoops!
There's less to say about Good Friday. It's basically what you'd expect, very solemn. The lights are left off, except for a few necessary ones, and there's no mass, though they do give out the Eucharist. I didn't make it that far, though, because these people had honest-to-God the SLOWEST veneration of the Cross (people walk up to a cross, kneel, and touch it or kiss it... it's a little strange, I'll admit, but the priest talked about a parish where people each hammer a nail in, which is even stranger). I think having the meeting weighing on me made it even worse, because I was like COME ON LET'S GET THIS SHOW ON THE ROAD but people were all *plod plod kneel kneel kneel solemn solemn venerate venerate venerate plod plod plod* one at a time. Man. And when I waited in my seat I had to text my future roommate about being late, and this girl behind me was 100% judging me. So awkward. My TA and his partner were there too, and they also left early. Oh wellllllllll.
Saturday night - Easter vigil. It is the bomb dig of the liturgical year. Ximena had never been before, and she gave her seal of approval! Yay! Usually this clocks in at around 3 hours. Christ Church did it in 2.5, which I swear is the only time they've ever come in under average time.
Anyway, the church is still dark when you enter, except for the tall Paschal (Easter) candle, and a couple others that are necessary for reading. It was early enough that the natural light was decent, and shone through the stained glass.
It starts out with a blessing of the new fire and candle, and a song (the Exultet), and the procession. Here's the priestly retinue, blessing the Paschal candle:
Everyone got a little candle upon entering, and once in our seats and after the procession, candles were lit from the Paschal candle and the flame was spread to everyone's little candle. Yay, symbolism! They then proceeded to read five passages from the Old Testament, each followed by a Psalm and prayer (the creation, Noah, the Red Sea, Ezekiel's dry bones, and... another, about the reuniting of Israel but I forget). As they go on, the sun completely sets and the place, even with the candles, is too dark to bother trying to read. Which is why (a) I don't remember the last reading and (b) I know that the following photo is from the beginning of this process:
That is my favorite photo, by the way. After the readings, the priests and retinue went to the back to bless the baptismal font, I think (I couldn't see, ok?) and some stuff happens and then they were like CHRIST IS RISEN ALLELUIA and some lady responded very very enthusiastically and the bells started going crazypoo and the lights all came on and WHO LIT ALL THOSE CANDLES I don't know but the altar was lit up and ho shit there are flowers and shit up there whoa! Very exciting. After that point every song included like 80 "Alleluia"s because you know, you haven't said the word since before Ash Wednesday!
The rest continues more along the lines of a normal Easter service -- renewal of baptismal vows, getting your hymnal splashed with baptismal water (ok maybe that was not supposed to happen), the usual readings, homily, mass, etc. And then, after waiting and worrying that they wouldn't sing it?
My favorite Easter hymn. Yusssssssssss.
(sorry for the clapping - it was for someone's Ordination, and the other video of the hymn was some crazy John-Williams-esque arrangement and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, with weird lyrics)
Alleluia! Incidentally, the composer of that song (kind of) also wrote "Hark, the Herald Angels Sing"! What a winner.
Sunday - was way low key, actually. We just hung out outside and worked and then scrambled some eggggs and baked cupcakes and Ximena made delicious icing by mixing it with pink lemonade mix and then she iced them perfectly and we were winnarz. Yay, Easter.