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- Holy Week
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Easter
People in Spain participate in a traditional religious ceremony during the Easter season.
What is Holy Week?
Learn about the sacred days between Palm Sunday and Easter.
During Holy Week, Christians recall the events leading up to Jesusâ death by crucifixion and, according to their faith, his Resurrection. The week includes five days of special significance:
- The first is Palm Sunday, which commemorates Jesusâ humble entry (on a donkey) into Jerusalem to observe Passover. According to the Gospel account, he was greeted by crowds of people who spread their cloaks and laid palm leaves in his path and proclaimed him the Son of David (Matthew 21:5). In many Christian churches Palm Sunday is celebrated with a blessing and procession of palms.
- Maundy Thursday marks Jesusâ institution at the Last Supper of the Eucharist, thereafter a central element of Christian worship. In Roman Catholicism, Maundy Thursday is accompanied by the popeâs washing of the feet of 12 humble or poor persons, in imitation of Jesusâ washing of the feet of his 12 disciples at the Last Supper. The evening of Maundy Thursday marks the start of the Easter Triduum, the culmination of the Easter season with Christâs death and resurrection.
- Good Friday commemorates Jesus passion: his suffering and death by crucifixion on the cross. It is traditionally a day of sorrow, penance, and fasting.
- Holy Saturday, also called Easter Vigil, is the traditional end of Lent. The observance commemorates the final day of Christâs death, which many Christians traditionally associate with his triumphant descent into hell or âto the deadâ (see also Apostlesâ Creed).
- Easter Sunday is the celebration of Jesusâ Resurrection, according to the Gospels, on the third day after his crucifixion. The modern observance of Easter, like that of Christmas, has become associated with various folk traditions that have little connection with the religious celebration; they include the Easter lamb, the Easter rabbit, and the painting of Easter eggs.