Throughout history the faithful have been sustained in times of persecution and lack of priests by family pious devotions and the commemoration of saints and feasts in the home, an ancient way of life now called “liturgical living” in our modern age.
We know the source and summit of our spiritual life is physically receiving the Blessed Sacrament in the context of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. And though liturgical living is only a supplement to the Divine Liturgy each Sunday, there is no doubt that it is a vital conduit for supporting our souls when sacramental grace is unavailable. Moreover it is a spiritual exercise that Catholics families can never have taken away from them.
Since First Friday, like for many of you, it has felt like we are struggling to wake from an apocalyptic nightmare. There is no access to public Mass, adoration has been suspended, the regularity of confession is restricted. Even for those of us that are experienced with isolation due to where we live and lack of community, this deprivation for our souls feel too much.
For some, this present trial may be our white martyrdom, the most significant sacrifice our feeble souls may ever face. This is why I’m doing all in my weak power to help families include these historical traditions and customs that we have long enjoyed in their own home. These disciplines and devotions can NOT replace the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, but in this time of tumult around the world and in the Church, the barque of Peter, they can be a lifeline for our souls, a life vest that buoys us up above the thrashing waves of doubt and uncertainty and keep us afloat when the risk of sinking into despair swells.
Instead of being able to only grieve the loss of the Sacrifice of the Mass during the Greatest Solemnity of the Church Year, I pray that in making these traditions more accessible, even when resources are few, we can rejoice in knowing that regardless of the circumstances that we can not affect, we can still prepare for the Festival of Festivals with the dignity and beauty due and be blessed by both the graces of sacrifice and precious memories with our family.
When we are busy living out these expressions of faith, however, it can be difficult to also find the time to share about them with others. But my hope for this series of Holy Week at Home posts is to give fellow moms more that just a one dimensional list of new activities while we are longing for the Passiontide liturgies to which we are accustomed. My goal is to provide practical how-tos for other moms in the trenches from the years we have spent figuring our how to stay connected to the Holy Week liturgies when transportation and work schedules are an obstacle. It is such a blessing for me to see a greater purpose of those cloistered times, and the traditions they cemented in our family, come to fruition to help others in our surreal circumstances have the most beautiful Passiontide & Holy Triduum we've ever had!
Finally, I am also taking this smidgen of time available to record our personal family Holy Week traditions for my children in the future, should we again find ourselves in a similar predicament. When my grandchildren ask me how our family and other Catholics spent this time, I will be able to tell them - the Lord willing that my mind and memory hold- we returned to the cherished devotions and turned to the example of the monks. That there was a grand revival of the Domestic Church and Domestic Monasticism. We brought to mind the prayers and hymns that will always be with us because they are not just in book or on a webpage, but written on our hearts. And they could not be taken away. We sought out grace by the meager means that were available. And we were blessed to find it because God rewarded our faith.
Most of these suggestions are useful during any Holy Week, but especially this 2020 Holy Week while in quarantine. This overview post got super long so I have linked to the posts for each day of Holy Week below. I will be adding the other days as I am able to complete them while I continue to solo parent 7 kids this week. Just click on each photo to be taken to the holy day's post.
While enjoying these devotions with my own children this week I don't anticipating having the time this Lent to make anymore of our "swanky" printable prayer booklets like our Easter Vigil at Home Missal here. But don't worry about missing anything like Tenebrae and Good Friday this year! I will continue to link to FREE printable forms of all the liturgies and devotions we use during Holy Week in the related posts, just not in the booklet form we've all loved for almost three years now. 🙂
Happy Holy Week, Y'all!
Genie
