The Ceremonies of the Holy-Week at RomeBaggs, Charles Michael
Religion
The Ceremonies of the Holy-Week at Rome
Baggs, Charles Michael
Catholic Church. Officium Hebdomadae Sanctae; Holy Week services
Christ, our Lord, who was delivered up for our sins, rose again for
our justification". Rome. IV, 24, 25.[139]
[Footnote 111: Anciently in some churches, as Thomassin has shewn (de
dierum Festorum celebratione lib. 2. c. 14), fire used to be struck
from a flint to light the church-lamps etc. every day and particularly
on Saturday, and the new fire was blessed; on holy Saturday however
this ceremony was performed with great solemnity; and in the 11th
century it was restricted to that day alone. At Rome in holy week
this practice was not originally confined to holy Saturday, but was
observed on the three days before caster: for the first _Ordo Romanus_
directs, that on holy _thursday_ fire should be struck from a flint
outside the church, and blessed. Amalarius also (4e Ordine Antiph.)
testifies that on good _friday_ "new fire was enkindled and reserved
till the nocturnal office". Leo IV however (A.D. 847) appears to have
first ordered that on Easter Eve "the old fire should be put out, and
new fire blessed and distributed among the people" (Homil. de cura
Pastorali). For Pope Zachary, about the year 731. in answer to
the enquiries of Boniface, bishop of Mayence, states that "on holy
thursday, when the sacred chrism is consecrated, three lamps of a
large size filled with oil collected from the different lamps of the
church, and placed in a secret part of the said church, should burn
there constantly, so that the oil may suffice till the third day,
that is saturday. Then let the fire of the lamps which is used for the
sacred font be renewed. But concerning the fire taken _ex cristallis_,
as you have asserted, we have no tradition". Pouget (Inst. Cathol. l.
1) observes that the new fire is blessed with great solemnity on this
day, "because the fire struck from a flint appears to be a type of
Christ arising from the dead". Formerly not only the lights of the
church, but all the fires of the city were enkindled from the blessed
fire (as we learn from a MS. Sancti Victoris (ap. Martene, De ant.
Eccl. Ritibus lib. IV, c. XXIV). "After the _Ite Missa est_" says
the Ordinarium of Luke archbishop of Cosenza "the bishop gives his
blessing, and immediately the deacon commands the people, saying
"Receive the new fire from the holy candle, and having put out the
old, light it in your houses in the name of Christ; then rejoicing
they depart with the light". This custom is mentioned also in Leo
IVth's homily above quoted.]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account