A day of rest

(To the Sources)

Holy Saturday – the day after Good Friday and before Easter Sunday (or its vigil which begins on Saturday evening) is, liturgically, something of a dead day. There is no Eucharist Gospel reading for this day. The cross is empty and the tomb where Jesus is laid is sealed up. According to the Apostles Creed the Lord ‘descended to the dead (or to hell in some versions)’.

Sometimes Christians are accused of dwelling in the past where stories and memories point, or, dwelling in the future where paradise awaits following this vale of tears. The reality is otherwise. Christians are called to live in the here and now – fully and alive. We don’t know when dawn will arrive on the Son-Day. Good Friday is behind us as that once-and-for-all saving event which we recall and relive day after day.

This day is a Sabbath day where we have permission to rest and to be.