Holy Saturday 2015

Today is a really fascinating day liturgically! Jesus is not in any tabernacle anywhere today. We are supposed to feel empty without him. It is one of my absolutely favorite days to have a holy hour, because Jesus is gone. I like to meditate about how the apostles felt: They just watched their beloved Jesus, die so very brutally on the Cross and they are not really sure what comes next. They are alone and unsure.

After dark however, we celebrate Holy Saturday! The HOLIEST night of the year! I am including the Gospel for the night for you to read and reflect on, but one of the greatest parts of mass for the Easter Vigil is that there are seven readings and an epistle, a heap of psalms and a Gospel that take us all the way through salvation history. Sometimes you get to hear all seven, some parishes choose to just do four. I would encourage you to read all of them here: http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/040712.cfm
It is probably the second most epic thing of the day...all of the readings (followed in epicness only by the Resurrection itself!)

Below is the Gospel!

Read It:
When the sabbath was over,
Mary Magdalene, Mary, the mother of James, and Salome
bought spices so that they might go and anoint him.
Very early when the sun had risen,
on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb.
They were saying to one another,
"Who will roll back the stone for us
from the entrance to the tomb?"
When they looked up,
they saw that the stone had been rolled back;
it was very large.
On entering the tomb they saw a young man
sitting on the right side, clothed in a white robe,
and they were utterly amazed.
He said to them, "Do not be amazed!
You seek Jesus of Nazareth, the crucified.
He has been raised; he is not here.
Behold the place where they laid him.
But go and tell his disciples and Peter,
'He is going before you to Galilee;
there you will see him, as he told you.'"
 

Reflect on It: Christ is RISEN from the Dead! Everything that Christ promised is being fulfilled! Alleulia! There's a great part in the Gospel here that says, "they were fearful yet overjoyed". Tonight, we are overjoyed for our Savior has risen from the dead.


Pray about It: Lord, I believe, help my unbelief!


Live it! Challenge: Attend the Easter Vigil!