HOLY THURSDAY

Holy Thursday is a Catholic holiday included in the liturgical calendar within Holy Week, also known as Major Week, but without a fixed date in the Gregorian calendar. Annually it is usually celebrated not before the third week of March and not after the third week of April, being subject to the spring equinox in the northern hemisphere. Its special commemoration is the end of Lent, which begins on Ash Wednesday, and the beginning of the Easter Triduum, which ends with the resurrection of Christ. In many countries it is declared a holiday, not a working day.

Holy Thursday celebrations

This holy day is considered perhaps the most important of Holy Week. The reason, the multiple liturgical commemorations that are celebrated during the day, all of great importance for the Catholic world.

Chrism Mass: With this Eucharist the period of Lent is ended. The consecration of Holy Chrism is made, which are the oils that will be applied during the year in the anointing of the sacraments. It is usually a concelebrated mass and serves for the renewal of the vows of the Clergy. It is the first celebration that takes place, usually in the morning, in order to give rise to the other ceremonies of the day. In some countries like Colombia it is replaced by the Mass of Healing or Mass of the Sick.
Mass of the Supper: Also known as the Easter Supper. With this liturgical act the Easter Triduum begins, which commemorates the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus. The last supper of Jesus with his disciples is remembered where he established the Eucharist, one of the most important sacraments of the Catholic Church. Also, the washing of his feet is performed, which symbolizes the humility and love of Christ for his own. It culminates with the exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, which is sealed until the end of the Easter Triduum.
Prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane: It is usually a nocturnal celebration, where the betrayal of Judas and the arrest of Jesus are remembered . According to the New Testament Gospels, Jesus led his disciples to pray in the Garden of Gethsemane. He asked them to let him pray alone and as he did so, fearing the coming torment, he sweat drops of blood. When he returned to where his disciples were waiting for him, they were asleep. It is at that moment that Judas Iscariot appears with the Roman soldiers and gives them Jesus, giving them a kiss on the cheek. In various parts of the Catholic world it is a tradition to make live representations of these events. It ends with a procession towards the temple.
The Holy Hour: It is the last event of Holy Thursday. It is a sermon given by the clerical community that evokes the Passion of Christ the night of his arrest and the anguished hours in jail. In several places, the temple remains open all night so that the parishioners accompany Jesus in his agony.

HOLY THURSDAY

Holy Thursday celebrations

Días Festivos en el Mundo