Holy Week and the Eucharist

 

File:Sunday mass at st Augustine Chapel.jpg - Wikimedia Commons

Today is Palm Sunday, the doorway into Holy Week for Christians in the West. Much lies ahead in the liturgy, culminating in the greatest feast of the year – Easter. We follow a familiar pattern:

• The story of Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem, full of promise and defiance;

• The story of unrestrained violence and death; and

• The story of victory over death and resurrection.

Running through this week of weeks is the story of the Lamb of God, sacrificed for us and given as the Bread of Life.

The language of blood sacrifice, a suffering and vulnerable God, and bodily resurrection does not sit easily with a post‑Enlightenment mindset. Yet it draws us back to the decisive moment in history: the life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Everything hinges on this. Our faith has no meaning unless we walk this journey to its end.

At the heart of Holy Week stands the mystery of the Eucharist. In this great sacrament, all the threads of the story are gathered and held together.