HOULTON, Maine — Bishop Robert P. Deeley will celebrate Palm Sunday Mass on March 25 at 10 a.m. at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Portland.
Palm Sunday is the start of Holy Week, the final week of Lent, which culminates with the Easter Triduum, during which Catholics commemorate the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday, the passion and death of Christ on Good Friday, and the resurrection on Easter Sunday in order to forgive the sins of all humanity and to give life everlasting to all who believe in Him. Holy Week is the most solemn week of the entire year.
Parishioners will be given palm branches as they enter the cathedral on Sunday. Palm branches were used by the people to welcome Jesus as King during his triumphal entry into the holy city of Jerusalem. The branches often decorate the homes of Catholics and other Christians; then, the following year, those same palms are burned, thus providing the ashes to be distributed on Ash Wednesday.
The vestments for Palm Sunday are deep scarlet red, the color of blood, reflecting the ultimate redemptive sacrifice that Christ was entering the city to fulfill: his passion, death, and resurrection in Jerusalem.
As part of Bishop Deeley’s week-long events, a visit to Houlton has been planned. The Bishop will be at St. Mary of the Visitation Church, located at 110 Military St., on Wednesday, March 28 for the Mass of the Holy Oils starting at 6:30 p.m.
To view Bishop Deeley’s full schedule during Holy Week, visit: www.portlanddiocese.org/bishop-holy-week-schedule-2018. A special Holy Week section is also available on the Diocese of Portland website that includes listings of Masses, services, and other events at Maine parishes; daily prayers and reflections; and many other resources. To view the section, visit www.portlanddiocese.org/holy-week-2018.
