What is the Easter Triduum? How Christians celebrate the Holy Week
Greg Giesen
For many Delawareans, Thursday begins one of the holiest periods of the year as the Easter Triduum starts with Maundy Thursday, or Holy Thursday.
What is the Easter Triduum
The Easter Triduum, for Christians, is the end of the 40-day Lenten preparation and the remembrance of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The three religious holidays are:
- Holy Thursday: March 28, 2024
- Good Friday: March 29, 2024
- Easter Sunday: March 31, 2024
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What is Holy Thursday
Holy Thursday, according to Christianity.com, is when Jesus celebrated his final Passover and with his disciples.
Also known as the Last Supper, it’s where Jesus established the practice of Eucharist or Holy Communion by sharing bread and wine with his apostles.
What is Good Friday
According to the Christian faith, Good Friday commemorates the crucifixion of Jesus. But why name a day of death and suffering “Good” Friday? Christianity.com says it may have come from an older name, “God’s Friday,” or because the tragedy of the day led to the goodness of Easter.
Many Christians fast or abstain from eating meat on Good Friday because “Jesus sacrificed his flesh for us on Good Friday,” says the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis. Some even refrain from meat-eating on Ash Wednesday, Good Friday and every Friday in Lent.
Hot cross buns, made of milk, butter, spices and decorated with the symbolic Christian cross, are a popular Good Friday treat.
Because Good Friday is one of the more somber Christian holidays, many Christians attend church services, take off of work or simply have a quiet, reflective day.
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What is Easter Sunday
The holiday celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Easter is celebrated to remember the sacrifices of Jesus Christ.
After his crucifixion, death, and burial, Christ rose from the grave three days later, according to Christianity.com. By this, he conquered death and redeemed us from sin.
As a result, most Christians will go to church services and pray in observance. Other aspects of the holiday, such as Easter eggs, also derive from Christian traditions.