Holy Saturday and St. Francis of Assisi

Today is Holy Saturday.
It reminds me of Saint Francis of Assisi. I am not sure why. I think it is because
this is the day of death. I think of Francis as someone who associated with those
that were considered dead--the poor. It is hard for our church, in the USA in particular, to understand Francis. So we have domesticated him and placed birds around him. We have taken his joyful side and forgotten the difficult side--the cross. I recommend a book titled, "Between Cross and Resurection: A theology of Holy Saturday," by Alan Lewis. Protestants tend to shy away from today's deeper meanings, and Lewis is willing to tackle hard questions of faith.
Today we must reflect on the cross. Not only that, we must reflect on the death of God. How could this happen? Francis was nothing compared to his master.
He did everything in relationship to his master. His master was Jesus.
But there is more.
Listen to this interview with a catholic priest, and you will be reminded why this day is holy.

Q: Has Holy Week been observed as such since the beginning of Christianity?


Father Flores: The most ancient original core of Holy Week is the Easter Vigil, of which there were traces already in the second century of the Christian era. It was always a night of vigil, in remembrance and expectation of Jesus Christ's resurrection. To it was soon added the reception of the sacraments of Christian initiation: baptism, confirmation and the Eucharist, so that it became in turn the great sacramental night of the Church. Subsequently, the Easter Vigil was extended in time and transformed into the triduum of the Lord's passion, death and resurrection, which St. Augustine already mentioned as a very generalized celebration. This triduum added to the existing vigil other important moments of the celebration, specifically, the memorial of the Lord's death on Good Friday, and Holy Thursday. The latter involved no fewer than three very different Eucharistic celebrations. According to the various sources of different liturgies, a Mass was celebrated to reconcile sinners, a Chrism Mass and a Mass in the evening to commemorate the institution of the Eucharist. In the present-day liturgy, the Easter triduum begins on Holy Thursday evening with the Mass of the Lord's Supper and is united to the first day of the triduum which is, in itself, Good Friday of the Passion of the Lord. The second day is Holy Saturday of the Lord's burial, a day of silence, fasting and expectation. There is no Eucharist that day, as a sign of expectation. The Church pauses before the crucified Lord's sepulcher and awaits his resurrection. With the Easter Vigil on Holy Saturday night, the third day of the Easter triduum begins: Sunday of the Lord's resurrection.

Q: Why is it said that the Easter Vigil is the most important day of the year?

Father Flores: Sunday of the Resurrection is the most important day of the liturgical year. Its center is precisely the Easter Vigil, on Holy Saturday night to Sunday of the Resurrection, but it belongs integrally to Sunday. It is the most important celebration of the year, the center of the whole liturgical cycle. It is the great sacramental night of the Church. It was so for centuries and, thanks to the liturgical reform promoted by the Second Vatican Council, it is so once again. Christians renew their baptismal promises while they see new Christians being incorporated in their ranks. It is the origin of every liturgical celebration and all culminate in it. Because of this, the importance given to Holy Thursday over the last centuries has now been transferred, with the recent renewal of the liturgical books, to the Easter Vigil, also translated in the way of celebrating.
St. Francis would have celebrated Easter vigil with the poor. Jesus did.
He searched hell in order to find anyone that might come into the light.