Daily Mass - Holy Thursday

Of course, there was no Mass today, on Good Friday. By an ancient custom, the Church celebrates no Masses on Good Friday and Holy Saturday. The next Mass will be the Easter vigil and, in some churches and chapels, the midnight Mass of Easter.

I have to say again: it is surreal to have the great Masses and services of Holy Week without the people. Mass was offered yesterday evening for the repose of the soul of Padraig Quinn (+), may he be blest, and also for his family and friends, those who mourn him. This was the Mass commemorating the Last Supper and the institution of the Mass itself. It is usually a spectacular event, and has the Gloria sung with the servers happily ringing bells until their arms hurt. The last bell-sounds until the Easter Masses. But again, it was quiet as ever at S. Joseph's. All I can say is: we're going to have to ring the bells louder and longer next year. 

After Mass, I took the cloth off the altar; I think we shall have a fresh one from Easter eve. Since we could not have a procession of the blessed Sacrament to the altar and tabernacle of repose, I thought I'd keep candles burning on the high-altar and keep the Sacrament exposed in a monstrance until midnight, for I find the episode in the Garden haunting, where Christ scolds Peter for not keeping vigil before His arrest:

"When He rose from His prayer, He went back to His disciples, and found that they were sleeping, overwrought with sorrow. 'How can you sleep?' He asked, 'Rise up and pray, so that you may not enter into temptation.'" - Gospel of S. Luke 22: 45-46

After the breviary psalms this morning, and before the commemoration of the Passion this afternoon, I made it a point to watch the famous Passion of the Christ film again, as I do every year on this day. The detail is horrific, but it shows in a way no artist has shown throughout our history the great price that was paid for our redemption. Was it Saint Augustine who said that God's setting such a price upon Himself was a way for Him to show us how much we are worth to Him? Here is Simon helping: