These days, Christians of the East are living the Passion Week, which begins after the celebration of Palm Sunday, following a seven-week- journey of fasting.
Passion Week is the holiest, most important, and most spiritual worshipping days of the year, centered about contemplation of the suffering of Lord Christ. The church gets its columns and some of its walls covered in black, changes the usual annual melodies for most days of the year into melodies filled with grief, sadness and solemnity, to suit the majesty of the events of this great week. Asceticism of fasting increases during Holy Week, along with prayers, readings, and doing alms.
In the past, the Holy Week used to be devoted for worship only; people used to leave their work for this week, gather in churches for prayers and readings in the Holy Scriptures. It was mentioned that the Christian emperors and kings used to give their parishes a holiday during Holy Week in order to be devoted to worship. Emperor Theodosius the Great used to release prisoners and captives to join the believers in prayers, hoping that that week would be an opportunity to strengthen their repentance, reform and discipline.
The Holy Week has several names: the Great Week, the Passover Week, the Paschal Week, the Greek Church calls it the Great Holy Week, while the Latin Church calls it the Great Week or the Holy Week.
The Holy Week was first celebrated in Jerusalem which witnessed its incidents, then celebrations were held everywhere in the world. Jerusalem used to begin celebrations on the eve of Palm Sunday in Bethany church, where Lord Christ had raised Lazarus, four days after the latter’s death. On Palm Sunday, Christians would go to the Mount of Olives, then move from there holding palm and olive branches. On Tuesday, they would go again to the Mount of Olives, where the prophecy of Lord Christ regarding the destruction of Jerusalem was read. On Wednesday, the story of Judas Iscariot’s betrayal was read. Jerusalem’s Christians used to spend Maundy Thursday until Friday’s morning on the Mount of Olives, and in the garden of Gethsemane where Lord Christ was praying with His disciples on the eve of His suffering. On Great Friday, they would gather to read the prophecies of the Old Testament and the incidents of suffering and crucifixion. While on Saturday, Christians would fast and spend the night praying until the dawn of Sunday.
The Holy Week fast was known in Egypt in the third century AD in 329 AD, and it quickly settled in the Church of Alexandria. However, the beginning of Holy Week was different. In the first centuries, its fast began on Monday, separate from the sacred forty-day lent, then the two fasts were merged together into one fast. Centuries later, we find references indicating the start of Passion Week with Saturday preceding Palm Sunday. Then the Coptic tradition returned to start the Passion Week from Monday.
During Passion Week, we follow the footsteps of Christ:
On Saturday, Lord Christ raised Lazarus from death after he decayed. That miracle enraged the leaders of the Jews, and they plotted to kill Jesus.
On Palm Sunday, Lord Jesus Christ entered Jerusalem in a great procession, and the multitudes received Him with palm branches, olive branches, and great cheers. Also, Jesus wept over Jerusalem, which did not understand the message of salvation.
On Monday, Christ cursed the fig tree, which had leaves but no fruits, and was a symbol of hypocrisy. Then He cleansed the Temple of the sellers after they turned the house of worship and prayer into a place of trade.
Christ spent Tuesday teaching in the temple, and a number of clashes occurred between Him and the scribes and Pharisees who wanted to entangle Him in His talk.
On Wednesday, Judas Iscariot betrayed his teacher when he arranged for Him to be handed over to the heads of the Jews for thirty pieces of silver.
On Maundy Thursday, the Passover celebration was prepared, then the Last Supper, Lord Christ founded the Sacrament of Eucharist. Lord Christ then set out with His disciples to the Garden of Gethsemane, where He was arrested and the trials of Him began, continuing to Great Friday.
Lord Christ stood before three religious trials set up by the chief priests, then He was handed over to the Roman governor, being tried in three civil trials, the result of which was that there was no fault in Him that would deserve death. At that time, Judas Iscariot’s conscience moved and he regretted what he had done, so he returned the money, but he fell into the abyss of despair, which drove him to hang himself. At nine o’clock in the morning, Lord Christ was sentenced to be crucified to please the Jews, who cried out: “Let Him be crucified! His blood be on us and on our children.” Then He was taken to Golgotha, where He was crucified. At three o’clock in the afternoon, Lord Christ yielded up His spirit, and at the end of Friday, Christ’s body was taken down to be shrouded quickly, and was placed in a new tomb in which no one had been placed before, a large stone was rolled over it and its door was closed, it was sealed and guards were placed there because the chief priests remembered that Lord Christ declared that on the third day He would rise, and… stories about beautiful Egypt never end!
The General Bishop
Head of the Coptic Orthodox Cultural Center
