The
COURIER
Easter Sunday March 31
March 2024
Solemn Days,
Official Newspaper of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Winona-Rochester, MN | dowr.org
Unusual Ceremonies
By Fr. Patrick Arens
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“ or the days of his saving passion and glorious Resurrection are approaching.” These words are from the preface to the Eucharistic Prayer for Masses during Holy Week. With these words, we acknowledge the greatest days of the liturgical year are upon us. In order to be prepared for these days and our participation in the Sacred Triduum (Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday) leading to Easter Sunday, it’s good for us to review some of the unique ceremonies of these most hallowed days and think about what the liturgy is trying to reveal to us and inspire in us through these rituals. A focal point for these days is the Altar of Sacrifice. The altar is a primary symbol of Christ and is always covered with at least one white cloth except during the Triduum. Mass begins as usual on Holy Thursday, but the Mass ends in quite an unusual way. After Mass, the Holy Eucharist is carried in procession to the Altar of Repose. Here, all are invited to spend time in prayer with our Lord and commemorate His prayer in the garden on the eve of His suffering. Then something happens that is also unique on this liturgical day. After the procession, the altar is stripped, and its cloths, candles and cross are removed. The altar remains bare after the Mass until the Communion Rite of the Good Friday liturgy.
Minnesota Catholic Conference
Inside the Capitol Opposing Assisted Suicide, Defending Women's Rights, Understanding Minnesota's Legislative Session Proposed Legislation in St. Paul Threatens Life, Human Dignity, and Religious Freedom
Through the centuries, liturgical commentators have speculated as to the meaning of this gesture. On Holy Thursday night, Christ was abandoned by his followers. The stripping of the altar symbolizes that Christ is now deserted as He faces His persecutors, and everything is taken away from him. Christ himself will be denied His last earthly possession as he goes to the cross and in doing so will reveal that his true glory is not in the things of this world. Solemn Days, cont'd on pg. 14
On Thursday, January 25, three weeks before the official start of the legislative session is set to begin, the House Health Finance and Policy Committee held a hearing on H.F. 1930, the Endof-Life Options Act. Medical professionals, people with disabilities, military veterans, faith leaders, and many more submitted written testimony and testified in person against the bill. But the committee voted along party lines to advance the bill out of the committee. H.F. 1930 will move to the House Public Safety Committee for further consideration. The bill requires every physician and APRN in the state to make patients with a terminal diagnosis aware of their option to receive a prescription of lethal drugs to end their life, and only one doctor would be required to sign off on the patient’s eligibility and diagnosis. There is no mental health evaluation requirement of those who request assisted suicide, and the legislation contains few safeguards against elder abuse. Inevitably, as seen in other places, this law will expand beyond those who have a terminal diagnosis to people with disabilities, depression, or illnesses such as dementia and anorexia.
Inside the Capitol, cont'd on pg. 15
INSIDE this issue
Reflections for the Lenten Journey page 4
How We Spent Catholic Schools Week 2024 pages 8-9
'Go and Do Likewise' page 13