- Holy Saturday
Holy Saturday (Latin: "Sabbatum Sanctum") is the day after
Good Friday . It is the day beforeEaster and the last day ofHoly Week , in which Christians prepare for Easter.On this day the church commemorates the time that
Jesus Christ lay in the tomb and that he decsended intoheaven .Western practice
In
Roman Catholic Church es, thesanctuary remains stripped completely bare (following the Mass onMaundy Thursday ) while the administration of thesacraments is severely limited.Holy Communion is given only asViaticum to the dying. All Masses are strictly prohibited. No Mass at all appears in theliturgy for this day. Many of the churches of theAnglican Communion as well asLutheran ,Methodist , and some other Churches observe most of the same; however, their altars may be covered in black instead of being stripped.In some Anglican churches, including the
Episcopal Church in the United States , provision is made for a simpleLiturgy of the Word on this day, with readings commemorating the burial of Christ, but noEucharist .Liturgically speaking, Holy Saturday lasts until
dusk , after which theEaster Vigil is celebrated, marking the official start of the Easter season. In Roman Catholic observance, during the "Gloria" of the Mass (which is the first Mass since that ofHoly Thursday ), the church statues and icons, in places where they are covered with purple veils duringPassiontide , are dramatically unveiled.Eastern practice
In
Eastern Orthodoxy this day, known as Holy and Great Saturday, is also called The Great Sabbath since it is on this day that Christ "rested" physically in the tomb. But it is also believed that it was on this day he performed in spirit theHarrowing of Hades and raised up toParadise those who had been held captive there.Matins of Holy and Great Saturday (usually held on Friday evening so more people can attend) takes the form of afuneral service for Christ. The entire service takes place around the "Epitaphios " (Slavonic: "Plashchanitza"), anicon in the form of a cloth embroidered with the image of Christ being prepared for burial. The first part of the service consists of chanting Psalm 118 (the longest psalm in the Bible) with hymns ("enkomia") interspersed between the psalm verses. The predominant theme of the service is not so much one of mourning, but of watchful expectation: [
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