April is the Month of the Most Holy Eucharist

In the traditional Liturgical Year, we begin April in Lent, move through Passiontide and the Easter Triduum, and end in Paschal Time (also known as Eastertide).  This is all a snippet of the “Cycle of Easter:  The Mystery of the Redemption,” which extends until Advent.  We will see our collective meditation upon the Redemption pass from penance and Our Lord’s Passion, to the glory of the Resurrection, foretelling our own Resurrection of soul and body after death.  After the sorrowful Holy Week, we enter into what the New Marian Missal calls “a time of uninterrupted joy and feasts.”  Eastertide includes the Octave of Easter (originally consecrated to the newly baptized), the Ascension of Our Lord and Pentecost.  The Paschal Candle, lit on the evening of Holy Saturday, shines until Ascension Thursday, representing the Resurrected Lord upon earth.

The 25th is the feast of Saint Mark and also what we traditionally call the Major Rogation Day.  Rogation Days are very similar to the seasonal Ember Days, but of different origin.  It is strange to have a day of penance during the Octave of Easter, so keeping the Rogation Day in a spirit of joy would be appropriate (pray the Litany of the Saints, see below).  To tie it in with April’s Eucharistic devotion, we might attend Mass or read Saint Mark’s account of the Last Supper, Mark 14:12-26.  Here is the definition of “Rogation Days” from Father John Hardon’s book, Modern Catholic Dictionary:

“Prescribed days of prayer and penance in spring. Two sets of rogation days were kept since early Christian times: the Major Rogation on April 25, the Feast of St. Mark; and the Minor Rogations on the last three days before Ascension Thursday. They were instituted to appease divine justice, ask for protection, and invoke God's blessing on the harvest. The Litany of the Saints was [prayed] in procession and the Rogation Mass followed. The feast of St. Mark, as the more ancient, was also called the Greater Litanies; it Christianized a pagan spring festival in honor of the god Robigus. The three other rogation days were adapted in Rome under Pope Leo III (reigned 795-816). (Etym. Latin rogatio, inquiry, request.)”

Divine Mercy Sunday is always one week after Easter and Our Lord Himself asked Saint Faustina to institute a novena, beginning on Good Friday.  You can find the Chaplet and Novena prayers on our Home page or you can print this PDF which includes the lesser-known Litany to the Divine Mercy.  Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska of the Blessed Sacrament, devoted herself profoundly to the Holy Eucharist and her Chaplet features these words:

“Eternal Father, I offer Thee the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Thy dearly beloved Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, in atonement for our sins and those of the whole world.”

During this Information Age, it is ironic that so few know and believe the teachings of Holy Church on the Body of Christ.  Holiness starts at home, so instructing those who need help with this is our primary responsibility.  Making reparation for the outrages against the Eucharist is also a wonderful thing.  There are various litanies and prayers-here is one: 

Litany of Reparation to the Blessed Sacrament

Some places have special Eucharistic devotions during Lent.  For instance, the Diocese of Rockville Centre, NY, is honoring the 40 days of Lent with Adoration at 40 different parishes.  The USCCB’s 3-year National Eucharistic Revival continues until June 22nd.  There may be other activities associated with the Jubilee Year of 2025 (more on this holy year in the coming month on the blog).

Wishing you and your families many blessings as we celebrate Easter, the “Solemnity of Solemnities,” and honor the Most Holy Eucharist, that body both broken and resurrected.

Notable feasts of April:

5th-First Saturday

6th to 19th-Passion Sunday and Passiontide (trad)

13th-Palm Sunday

17th-Holy/Maundy Thursday

18th to 20th-EASTER TRIDUUM (traditionally, no meat is eaten on Holy Saturday)

25th-Saint Mark/Greater or Major Rogation Day

27th-Divine Mercy Sunday/Low Sunday (trad)

28th-Saint Louis de Montfort

29th-Saint Catherine of Siena

30th-Saint Catherine of Siena (trad)

HOMESCHOOLING ACTIVITIES FOR APRIL

1)       Create artwork or make a craft celebrating the joy of Easter.

2)      Write a short essay on the Paschal Candle, explaining its symbols and symbolism.

3)      Compose your own prayer to thank Jesus for the gift of Holy Communion. 

Reflections on this Easter Triduum

Let us rejoice on this Easter Thursday, as we contemplate the following Psalm, which gives praise to our Heavenly Father and shows us how our present sufferings will end….Trial & Triumph!

Psalm 91

It is good to give praise to the Lord: and to sing to thy name, O most High. To shew forth thy mercy in the morning, and thy truth in the night: Upon an instrument of ten strings, upon the psaltery: with a canticle upon the harp. For thou hast given me, O Lord, a delight in thy doings: and in the works of thy hands I shall rejoice.

O Lord, how great are thy works! thy thoughts are exceeding deep. The senseless man shall not know: nor will the fool understand these things. When the wicked shall spring up as grass: and all the workers of iniquity shall appear: That they may perish for ever and ever: But thou, O Lord, art most high for evermore. For behold thy enemies, O Lord, for behold thy enemies shall perish: and all the workers of iniquity shall be scattered.

But my horn shall be exalted like that of the unicorn: and my old age in plentiful mercy. My eye also hath looked down upon my enemies: and my ear shall hear of the downfall of the malignant that rise up against me. The just shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow up like the cedar of Libanus. They that are planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of the house of our God. They shall still increase in a fruitful old age: and shall be well treated, that they may shew, that the Lord our God is righteous, and there is no iniquity in him.

+ + +

GOOD FRIDAY-Last week, someone we love was planning to get the Covid mRNA “vaccine.” My husband and I were concerned, not only due to the medical considerations, but also the ethical issues regarding abortion and vaccines. Not even thinking of Holy Week, we decided to pray the Divine Mercy Novena. It was wonderful to pray this on Good Friday, uniting it to the Passion of Christ. This novena is often begun on Good Friday, to be completed just prior to the Divine Mercy feast. There is also an indulgence attached.

A number of our friends and family members have already gotten the vaccine, which is a sorrow. However, I have great consolation that through our prayers, the effects will be mitigated, as far as God wills. I am with Bishop Athanasius Schneider in saying that I will never get it, under penalty of death…for God, for the babies, for freedom…we must make ourselves worthy to inherit the earth when all is said and done.

HOLY SATURDAY-I found myself thinking about the mysterious apparition at Knock, Ireland, in 1879, on the morning of Holy Saturday and wondered why God put that in my mind. The strange thing about this vision, seen by many people, was that the figures were both silent and motionless. “Our Lady of Knock” is well-known, but many do not know that Saint Joseph, Saint John the Evangelist and even Our Lord as a Lamb with angels, also appeared. Saint John was holding a book in one hand and appeared as a bishop. Hundreds of miracles were reported in the days following the apparition. Some feel that Knock was related to the End Times, perhaps the times we are now living in. When the author of Apocalypse appears with an open book, maybe it’s time to consider we should be paying attention to the Signs of the Times!

So what does this have to do with Holy Saturday? This day is only one of 2 days in all the year, including Good Friday, when the Mass is not celebrated (except for the Easter Vigil in the evening). The altar is bare. We call to mind the dark moments when Our Blessed Lord was enclosed within the tomb. Stillness, silence, mourning. We can see a connection to the stillness and silence at Knock. There is a lot to meditate on here.

EASTER SUNDAY-Our celebrant gave a wonderful homily at the Easter Mass. He related a little-known story about the Hungarian uprising against the Soviet Union in 1956. As the tanks approached a small village on Easter, the local parish priest stood in front of them, forcing them to stop. He shouted, “Jesus is risen!” The soldiers peeked their heads up and responded, “Indeed He is risen!" They had heard this countless times as children and it was their spontaneous reaction. The smart priest had bottles of vodka waiting for them and the village was spared. (Great prepper lesson!) The question for you and me is, “Do I have that kind of courage and trust during these times, when I am called upon to defend the Truth?” It is now our turn. Something else to meditate on.