| During the first eight days of the Easter season no feast days of saints are observed. Rather, the first eight days of the Easter Season (i.e. from Easter Sunday to the Second Sunday of Easter), called the “Octave” of Easter (from the Latin “octo” meaning “eight”), are treated as solemnities of the Lord, and as such, the liturgy makes provisions to bring a heightened sense of importance to them. At each of the Masses of the Octave the “Gloria” is sung and the double “alleluia” is added to the dismissal (i.e. “The Mass is ended go in peace, alleluia, alleluia”). The Easter “sequence” (Victimae Paschali Laudes, i.e. “Let Christians offer a sacrifice of praise to the Paschal Victim...”), obligatory on Easter Sunday, may also be included in each of the Masses of the Octave. Furthermore, the Easter candle is to remain in the sanctuary near the altar or ambo throughout the entire 50 days as a symbol of the Risen Lord.
Forty days after Easter the Church celebrates Ascension Thursday. According to the Acts of the Apostles, “In the time after His sufferings He showed them in many convincing ways that He was alive, appearing to them over the course of forty days and speaking to them about the reign of God.” The Christian tradition considers this period of time in which the appearances and instructions of the risen Christ occurred to be especially sacred. The sacred number “forty” is also measures the Israelites’ forty years in the desert, Noah’s forty days in the ark, and Jesus’ forty days of temptation in the desert. The Easter Season ends with the celebration of Pentecost Sunday, ten days (or nine, depending on how it is counted) after Ascension Thursday. During these days the Apostles and Mary gathered in an upper room in Jerusalem to pray, and they chose Matthias as a replacement for Judas Iscariot, who had betrayed the Lord. It is from this nine or ten-day period that the custom of the “novena” prayer is derived (from the Latin “novem” meaning “nine”). At Pentecost the Holy Spirit descended upon the Apostles and Mary to the accompaniment of many wonders (see Acts chapter 2). In this outpouring of the Holy Spirit the Third Person of the Trinity was communicated to the Church, and the Holy Trinity fully revealed to us. Since that day of Pentecost, the Kingdom of Heaven is open to all those who believe in Jesus Christ. As the Church celebrates the Easter Mysteries in Her liturgy, the Holy Spirit works in a particular way. “The mission of the Holy Spirit in the liturgy of the Church is to prepare the assembly to encounter Christ, to make the saving work of Christ present and active by His transforming power, and to make the gift of communion bear fruit in the Church.” (Sources: Catechism of the Catholic Church #659-667, 731-2, 1112). |
Durante los primero ocho días de la temporada de Pascua, no se observa ninguna festividad de los santos. A este tiempo se le denomina Octava de Pascua (del latín “octo” que significa ocho). Durante estos días se celebra la Solemnidad del Señor, y como tal, la liturgia se encarga de realzar la importancia de estas celebraciones. Durante la Octava de Pascua se entona el Gloria, y el “alleluia” se repite dos veces a la hora de la despedida. La secuencia de Pascua (Victimae Paschali Laudes, i.e. “Dejemos que los cristianos ofrezcan un sacrificio de alabanza a la Victima Pascual...”), es obligatoria el Domingo de Pascua y también puede incluirse en cada una de las Misas durante la Octava de Pascua. Además, el Cirio Pascual deberá permanecer en el Santuario cerca del altar o del ambo durante los 50 días como símbolo de la Resurrección del Señor.
40 días después de la Pascua, la Iglesia celebra el Jueves de la Ascensión. De acuerdo a los Hechos de los Apóstoles, “tiempo después de su sufrimiento, Jesús les mostró a sus seguidores, de varias formas, y de manera convincente, que estaba vivo, apareciéndose a ellos en varias ocasiones durante los 40 días después de Su Resurrección”. La tradición cristiana considera sagrado este tiempo en el que las apariciones e instrucciones del Cristo Resucitado se llevaron a cabo. El numero “cuarenta” considerado sagrado, también marca los 40 años que los israelitas pasaron en el desierto, los 40 días de Noé en el Arca, y los 40 días de tentaciones que pasó Jesús en el desierto. La temporada de Pascua termina con la celebración del Domingo de Pentecostés, diez días (o nueve dependiendo de como se cuenten), después del Jueves de la Ascensión. Al celebrar estos Sagrados Misterios de la Pascua en Su liturgia, el Espíritu Santo se manifiesta de manera especial. “La misión del Espíritu Santo en la Liturgia de la Iglesia es preparar a la asamblea para su encuentro con Cristo presente y activo por medio de su poder transformador, y para que el regalo de la Comunión brinde frutos en la Iglesia. (Fuente: Catecismo de la Iglesia Catholic #659-667, 731-2, 1112). |
