Rites of Holy Pascha Week

1. Rites of Holy Pascha Week

2. “But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed”(Isa 53:5)

3. Last Friday of Great Fast • Unction of the Sick: • The only time in the church that we pray the Unction of the Sick • Prayed after Raising of Incense. • “Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.” (Jam 5:14-16)

4. Last Friday of Great Fast • Why do we pray the Unction at the end of the Fast? • If fasted properly, people may be weak • It is prayed to strengthen them during Holy Week • There are 7 prayers: The seven spirits of God • Whoever participates must be: • A believer (it is a sacrament) • Fasting • Should have confessed (every sacrament begins with confession and is completed with Communion)

5. Lazarus Saturday • Six days before the Passover (Cruicifixion): • "Then, six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was who had been dead, whom He had raised from the dead" (Jn 12:1).

6. Lazarus Saturday • Holy Week is between 2 resurrections – Lazarus and Christ: • “Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power”(Rev 20:6) • 1st Resurrection: Baptism (Rom 6:4) • Sufferings: Repentance, carrying the cross (Lk 9:23) • 2nd Resurrection: Resurrection of the Dead - “We look for the Resurrection of the dead…” (Orthodox Creed)

7. Two Resurrections • Lazarus: Someone else raised him • Christ: Raised Himself • Lazarus: Raised with same mortal body • Christ: Raised with glorified immortal body • Lazarus: Came out wrapped in grave cloths • Christ: Rose freed of the grave cloths

8. Lazarus Saturday • After Baptism, we rise with same mortal body, we go through temptations and sufferings, and we live a life of repentance, then we die, to be risen up again in the last day. • Lazarus Saturday: A renewal • of vows/commitments • to live repentance • to be glorified.

9. Hosanna Sunday • Hosanna/ "Hoshana“/ ὡσαννα: “please save”. • Jesus entered Jerusalem as a King • There was a misconception between what he intended as King, and what the Jews expected • When he clarified his Kingdom, they rejected Him: • But they cried out, “Away with Him, away with Him! Crucify Him!” Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar!” (Jn 19:15)

10. Hosanna Sunday • Procession of the Cross • Prayed during the Raising of Incense • The Cross is the sign of His Kingdom • We are invited to accept Him as a King in our life • The procession is done while we are holding palms • Palms signify: Peace, Royalty, Strength, Giving, Purity

11. Hosanna Sunday • 12 Stations of the Procession: 12 Gospel Readings • Sanctuary – St. Mary – Annunciation/Angel Gabriel – Angel Michael – 12 Apostles – St. Mark – Martyr (St. George) – Saint (St. Antony) – North Gate – Baptismal Font – South Gate – John the Baptist • Examples of people who accepted Christ as King – Apostles, Martyrs, Saints

12. Hosanna Sunday • We see the Kingdom of God: • The Kingdom: Sanctuary, Gates • Heavenly members: Angels • Earthly members: Saints and Martyrs • Entrance: Baptism • The Lord accepts to be our King: (Ps 132:13-14, 1-5): • For the LORD has chosen Zion;         He has desired it for His dwelling place:“This is My resting place forever;         Here I will dwell, for I have desired it.

13. General Funeral Prayer • Participate in the Lord’s Death • The Church focuses on the Passion of the Lord • The Church sets us in the mood of passion week, by accepting the Death of Christ in our life - • “Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him” (Rom 6:8) • We are also reminded of the Resurrection: • “Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live.”(Jn 5)

14. Pascha Week • Pascha: “Passover”. • The Passing-over of the Angel of Death: • Now the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you… (Exo 12:13) • Christ is our Passover • “For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us.” (1Cor 5:7) • Through Christ’s Blood, we are saved from the devil, the punishment of sin and death

15. Pascha Week • Arrangement of the Hours • The new day starts with the night before or the “eve” • “So the evening and the morning were the first day.” (Gen 1:5) • The Hours: EVE: DAY:

16. Pascha Week • Arrangement of prayers • Prophesy, • Sermon, • Pascha Week praise: • Ywk te ]jwm “Thine is the power” • Psalm, • Gospel, • Exposition (explanation)

17. Pascha Week Praise • Ywk te ]jwm • Chanted twelve times antiphonically to replace the 12 psalms in each hour of the Agpeya • While the world sees You as weak and as defeated, we chant to You saying: “Yours is power, the glory, the blessing, the majesty. Forever. Amen. Immanuel our God and King!” • “For though He was crucified in weakness, yet He lives by the power of God” (2Cor 13:4)

18. Pascha Week Prayers • No Liturgies from Monday to Wednesday: • Passover Lamb kept for four days: (Exo 12:3-7) • “Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying: ‘On the tenth of this month every man shall take for himself a lamb, according to the house of his father, a lamb for a household… Now you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of the same month. Then the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it at twilight.”

19. Pascha Week Prayers • Location of Prayers - In the second division of Church, “outside the camp”: • We were cast outside of the Paradise and remained outside, until the crucifixion • When Christ tore the “middle wall” (the veil of the temple) • The priest opens the curtain of the Sanctuary on the 12th hour of Good Friday • Christ suffered outside of Jerusalem: “Therefore let us go forth to Him, outside the camp, bearing His reproach.” (Heb 13:13)

20. Pascha Week: 11th hour of Tuesday • Christ announces his plan for Salvation: • “Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished all these sayings, that He said to His disciples, “You know that after two days is the Passover, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified.” (Matt 26:1-2) • Pacwt/r n~a~gayoc (My Good Savior) is added to the praise • Pekyronoc is chanted

21. Pekyronoc • Also chanted on 12th hour of Great Friday • Despite the fact that He died and is being buried, the church confirms that he is the King of kings and Lord of Lords, by chanting: Your throne, God, is forever and ever. • sa e~neh n~te pie~neh: the notes of the hymn continue to loop and repeat, almost un-ending – to signify that God’s throne is indeed “forever and ever”.

22. Pekyronoc • Same hymn chanted on eve and day of Covenant Thursday: • Au[non nje nefcaji ehote ouneh: ouoh nywou hancoynef ne • “His words were softer than oil, Yet they were drawn swords.” • Day of betrayal • It seems that evil is overcoming

23. Covenant Thursday • During Matins: • Hymn of the Cross, Vai e~tafenf • Praxis (Books of Acts) in sad Paschal tune (Acts 1:15-20) • Speaks of Judas’ perdition, his money and his ministry • Procession of Reprimanding of Judas, in the opposite direction

24. Vai e~tafenf • Begins with a very long beginning – to signify that God waited a very long time, when He found someone pure enough to bear His Son. • The hymn hits very high notes at the mention of the word “pic~tauroc” (Cross) – to signify the raising of the Son of God on the Cross on top of Golgotha. • The notes of the last part of the hymn “Afswlem e~rof” are quick – to signify that the process of salvation was accomplished in a very short period of time: three hours.

25. Covenant Thursday • Liturgy of the Waters • Prophecies • Gen 18:1-23: The visit of God and His Angels to Abraham: Abraham’s washing of God’s feet • Prov 9:1-11: Wisdom has built her house • Exo 14&15: Crossing the Red Sea • Jos 1&3: Crossing the Jordan River

26. Covenant Thursday • Homily of St. Shenouda the Archmandrite • Talks about our embarrassment at Christ’s humility to wash His disciples’ feet: “Brethren, we ought to be humbled in front of He who suffered on our behalf. We ought to fear Him who poured water in a bowl and washed the feet of His disciples…” • Invitation to partake of the Sacrament: “He Who gave us His Body to eat and His Blood to drink” • Reprimand for not repenting; washing of feet = confession: • “Let us quickly repent our sins that we committed” • “If we do not repent, we will be condemned in hell as sin-lovers” • “We will be judged, not because we have sinned, but because we did not repent” • “What then can we hope for after we have been cast out of heaven, faced the judgment, and were rejected for our sins”

27. Covenant Thursday • The Liturgy of the Eucharist • The Lamb is examined without the 41 Kerie Layson (silently) to symbolize that Christ was examined while He was silent • The hymn “Alleluia this is the day the Lord has made…” and “Saved Amen…” are not chanted, because Salvation and Resurrection has not been completed yet • The priest censers around the church (during the Pauline) without kissing, because of the kiss of Judas • No Catholic or Praxis is read • No Prayer of Reconciliation: reconciliation with heaven occurred on the Cross • No Commemoration of the Saints: there was an enmity between heaven and earth.

28. Spirituality of Pascha Week • Re-live every step which the Lord Christ took during His last week on earth • Intense repentance and regret • confession • ascetic fasting • constant prayers with tears • Prostrations • readings

29. “But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed”(Isa 53:5)