 Catholic Diocese of Spokane, Washington
"Celebrations of grace"by Bishop William S. Skylstad (From the April 8, 2004 edition of the Inland Register)
These celebrations are always special for all of us in the church, and especially so for the catechumens and candidates as they are declared the “elect” and begin their final phase of preparation for the Easter sacraments. Their joy, enthusiasm, and gratitude are sources of inspiration to those of us who observe how wonderfully God works through the power of the Holy Spirit in their lives. On Holy Thursday morning, we celebrate the Mass of Chrism at the Cathedral. At that time we bless the oils of the sick and catechumens and consecrate the sacred chrism. These oils will be used for the celebrations of the anointing of the sick, baptism, confirmation, and ordinations to priesthood. Of special significance at the Mass of chrism is the presence of the priests of the diocese and the renewal of their priestly vows. Everyone is invited to this liturgy. This is an opportune moment for me personally to express my profound gratitude for the ministry of the priests. These have not been easy days for those in priesthood. Very often priests in general find themselves carrying a cross that is not of their making. Nevertheless, they continue to serve. They continue to work hard. Their hope, their love for their ministry and for the people they serve, continue to give witness to their deep commitment to the Church and to the priesthood. Despite the difficult days in which we find ourselves, research consistently indicates that priests have a high level of satisfaction with their priesthood. My hope is that we all can appreciate the Church’s humanity in general, but also appreciate the humanity of all who serve in the Church. We are all on our conversion journey. Besides being a good disciple of Jesus, the real skill of a Christian is to love others into fuller life. The evening of Holy Thursday begins the special liturgical celebration of the Triduum, from Holy Thursday through the celebration of the Easter Vigil. Holy Thursday evening reminds us of the institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper. Eucharist has and continues to touch our lives profoundly as we celebrate together, receive the Bread of Life, and be touched by the Word. I’m reminded of the parable about forgiveness that Jesus told: the story of the Prodigal Son. The older son would not celebrate with the return of his younger brother. We need to celebrate in community God’s goodness to us as we gather around the altar.The Church asks us to be a community of celebration and Eucharist is exactly that. Our liturgies and rituals are powerful expressions of how we connect our lives to God’s goodness and grace. Holy Thursday evening zeroes in on Eucharist as the summit and source of our spiritual lives. The washing of feet on Holy Thursday reminds us of how our service to one another is strongly connected to our being people of the Eucharist. The Good Friday celebration has its unique character of helping us to appreciate the passion and death of Jesus. Liturgically we celebrate the events focused upon by the movie The Passion of the Christ. Again and again, we see accounts of people who discovered or recovered their appreciation of the love of Jesus for us and all of humanity in the Passion account. Mass is not celebrated on Good Friday, as we remember Jesus was in the tomb that day. We listen to the Passion account according to John, pray for the world and ourselves, venerate the cross, and receive Communion. The Easter Vigil on Holy Saturday evening is the highlight of all of our year’s liturgies. The lighting of the Easter fire and the proclamation of the Easter mystery as we hold that fire in our hands; the readings from Scripture, sharing our salvation history; the blessing of the baptismal water, the baptism, confirmation, and First Eucharist of those entering the Church provide a rich liturgical experience of our faith. Although the Easter Vigil service is somewhat longer, I hope that you will take advantage of this joyful and formational experience of ritual that expresses appreciation and gratitude to God for so much in our lives. My hope is that these celebrations touch all of us as we participate in them with renewed fervor and gratitude. In a world filled with so many images and so much activity, Holy Week helps us to connect with the full reality of life in union with our God. My prayer and wish for all of you is a blessed Holy Week, Sacred Triduum, and Easter season.
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Lent always provides a rich opportunity of grace as we journey through this special season of penance, renewal, and celebration. On the First Sunday of Lent, we celebrated the rite of election at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Lourdes with an almost full church. A week later we held the same rite at St. Patrick Parish in Pasco. Each year, we alternate between Pasco and Walla Walla for the southern region of the diocese.