Lent means the period preceding Easter that in the Christian Church is devoted to fasting, abstinence, and penitence in commemoration of Christ's fasting in the wilderness.

Lent signifies a season of reflection and preparation before the celebrations of Easter.

A scripture of Lent from the Bible is: "When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your unseen Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you." (Matthew 6:16-18)

I would give up burgers for Lent because I really like burgers but I am going to challenge myself.

Why does the Syro-Malabar Church celebrate Ash Monday instead of Ash Wednesday?

This is because the latin-rite christans follow the Roman Liturgy, introduced by the European missionaries. The Syro-Malabar church’s liturgy is based on the East Syriac or Chaldean tradition.

The Syro-Malabar Church used to celebrate Ash Wednesday from the 17th to the 20th century due to the influence of the Latin church, but the second Vatican council said that all the Eastern Rites, to follow their traditional rules. So then the Syro-Malabar Church started observing Ash Monday again.

The duration of our Lent is 50 days, preparations for Lent starts on the petratha feast which is the Sunday before Ash Monday. The number of fasting days in the Syro-Malabar church is more than any other church!! So since we celebrate the feast of petratha, we celebrate Ash Monday.

Palm Sunday is the Christian holiday that happens on the Sunday before Easter. Palm Sunday marks the beginning of Holy Week, the remembrance of Jesus' last days to the cross. This celebration commemorates Jesus' triumphal arrival into Jerusalem, that is introduced in each of the four Gospels. In many churches, Palm Sunday is observed by the blessing and sharing of palm branches symbolizing the palm branches the crowd placed in front of Christ as he entered into Jerusalem. This year, Palm Sunday will be on March 28th, 2021.

The story of Palm Sunday can be found in Matthew 21:1-11.

Meaning of Palm Sunday

Palm Sunday is a celebration for honoring Jesus Christ's victorious entry into Jerusalem. While this was a joyful, special occasion for his followers, this event took place towards the end of his days on Earth before being crucified. The story says that as Jesus entered Jerusalem on a donkey (donkeys signify peace and humility), his followers laid out tree palms among other items in front of his path, which demonstrated unwavering respect. The palms represent peace and victory in this immense act of adoration. Fast forward to today, and it’s evident that people from all around the world celebrate this special occasion in a variety of ways.

Bible Verse About Palm Sunday

"Rejoice, O people of Zion! Shout in triumph, O people of Jerusalem! Look, your king is coming to you. He is righteous and victorious, yet he is humble, riding on a donkey— riding on a donkey’s colt". (Zechariah 9:9)

Conclusion

In conclusion, Palm Sunday is the Christian holiday that commemorates Jesus' triumphal arrival into Jerusalem, and also is observed by the blessing and sharing of palm branches symbolizing the palm branches the crowd placed in front of Christ as he entered into Jerusalem.

Good Friday is the day that the church commemorates the passion and the crucifixion of Jesus. Good Friday is observed during the Holy Week as part of the paschal triduum on the Friday preceding Easter Sunday and may coincide with the Passover celebration. On Good Friday, Jesus gave us salvation by sacrificing himself for our sins.

Let us enjoy the fruits of redemption and stay far away from any sins that we commit. In the Bible, Luke Chapter 22, it says that Jesus left the city and went to Mount of Olives where he met the disciples and told them to pray, so they wouldn't fall to temptation. A crowd led by Judas, one of the twelve disciples, betrayed Jesus and arrested him. He was taken to the courts of the High Priest, and finally to the court of Pontius Pilate, the Roman Governor for Judaea. In Pilate’s court, Jesus was scourged at the pillar followed by crowning with thorns and finally convicted to die on the cross. This is all expressed as the passion of Christ. Even though it is a sad day, it is called Good Friday because of Jesus' victory against death and sin by resurrection which we celebrate on Easter Sunday. We are saved by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

What Good Friday means to me? It is the day I celebrate Jesus’s noble act to save us from the fires of hell by taking all of our sins and banishing them. Good Friday is a day of fasting, prayer and especially remembering the Passion of Jesus Christ.

Easter commemorates the resurrection of Jesus from his passion and death on the cross. This means that Jesus had victory over death, sin, and evil. As followers of Jesus, death and resurrection is the most central part of Christian faith. Jesus died for our sins and rose from the dead.

All four Gospels reference the resurrection. Here’s a passage from the Gospel of St. John.

“Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. Then, she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, ‘They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!’ (John Ch: 20 verses 1-2)

We go to the Easter Vigil Mass on Holy Saturday. It is fun to dress up and get ready in a beautiful dress for church. My Mom makes Appam and Curry for breakfast. We also spend time with our friends and family and gather together. We also have an Easter egg hunt which is a really fun way to spend time with my cousins. And enjoy candy of course!

Every year on the day before Easter my family and I usually go to our town church for the Easter mass. On Easter day we usually have a small party with all of the people from our prayer group at someones house. During the party we usually talk or go outside and usually we do a small Easter egg hunt. That is all we do for Easter every year. Last year however, we couldn’t do anything for Easter due to Covid-19.

For breakfast my Mom would sometimes make us eat appam because we would usually eat something unhealthy for lunch.

Bible verse for Easter: “For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead also came through a man.” 1 Corinthians 15:21