By Joseph Younes
“The three days of celebration of the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus is one continuous liturgy,” Auxiliary Bishop Donald Sproxton said in his Holy Thursday homily.
“These three days are the occasion we take to celebrate the mighty love and mercy of God, who seeing our frailty, chose to intervene personally, to restore us to the relationship with him as he intended from the beginning.
“We begin with the church gathering this evening around the table of the Lord, and this first part of the liturgy of the Triduum will end as we spend time in prayer at the Altar of Repose for the Blessed Sacrament,” Bishop Donald said.
This year, the Mass was celebrated by Auxiliary Bishop Don Sproxton, who was joined by Perth Archbishop Timothy Costelloe SDB, outgoing Vicar General, the Very Rev Fr Peter Whitely VG, Cathedral Dean, Rev Dr Sean Fernandez, Assistant Priest, Fr Richard Smith and Fr Kenneth Acosta as MC St Charles Seminary Rector, Fr Francis Nguyen and assisted by Deacon Paul Russell.
Holy Thursday is also known as Maundy Thursday as it commemorates the Last Supper.
“This first evening of the Triduum is a wonder and a celebration. It brings us to the room where Jesus gathered his disciples with Mary for a Passover meal,” Bishop Sproxton said.
“The disciples would begin to realise that the Eucharist is the source of our strength every day from that evening, because they came to know the presence of Jesus when they broke the bread,” he continued.
“They also came to realise that they were empowered to renew the Eucharistic presence of Christ, the Bread of Life, from then on and down the ages.”
During the Mass, Bishop Sproxton also washed the feet of 12 parishioners, imitating Christ washing the feet of his 12 disciples, observing that this is what “Jesus has done, and he expects of us: he has given us an example to copy.
“The disciples observed the humility of Christ and realised that humility was needed in the mission Jesus called them to after the resurrection.
“Let us observe and learn from this service,” he said.
Good Friday
The Good Friday service at St Mary’s Cathedral in Perth was a solemn and reflective occasion, drawing parishioners into deep contemplation of the sacrifice made by Jesus Christ for humanity’s redemption.
As Perth Archbishop Timothy Costelloe SDB led the congregation through the Stations of the Cross and the Commemoration of the Passion and Death of our Lord, a profound sense of reverence filled the cathedral, reminding all present of the central tenet of the Christian faith: the selfless love of God manifested in Christ’s crucifixion.
Joining Archbishop Costelloe for the celebration was Auxiliary Bishop Donald Sproxton, outgoing Vicar General, the Very Rev Fr Peter Whitely VG, Cathedral Dean Rev Dr Sean Fernandez, Assistant Priest Fr Richard Smith, St Charles Seminary Rector, Fr Francis Nguyen, Redemptoris Mater Seminary Vice-Rector, Fr Jose Quej Moran and assisted by Deacon Paul Russell.
In his homily, Archbishop Costelloe said, “Once again, as we do every year, we gather on this day which we call Good Friday, to recall the brutal and unjust execution of a man who throughout his life did nothing but good for others.”
Archbishop Costelloe went on to say that “Good Friday is a day when the Church invites us not to run away from this hard reality: not to give in to our fear and seek to remove God from our lives; not to resign ourselves to the selfishness which so often determines our thoughts and actions; not to give up on striving to reach the ideal of human life and love which Jesus, who is God among us, has revealed to us.”
Concluding his homily, Archbishop Costelloe implored those at gather at the Cathedral to keep Christ centre in their lives and to “Let Christ be your strength; let Him be your hope; let Him be your salvation.”