Here we are, Palm Sunday and then the Holiest Days of the year, the celebration of the Sacred Triduum. The Church invites us into the most important days of our Christian faith. These are not simply ceremonies we remember from the past. They are living moments of grace when we walk with Jesus through suffering, death, and ultimately into hope and resurrection.

Today, Palm Sunday begins the journey. We gather with palms in our hands, to recall the crowd that welcomed Jesus into Jerusalem. That same crowd, within days, would witness His suffering and death. Palm Sunday reminds us not only how quickly life can change, but how faithfully Christ continues to walk with us through it all.

The Triduum - Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and the Easter Vigil - forms one sacred movement.

On Holy Thursday, we remember the gift of the Eucharist and Jesus’ commandment to love and serve one another.

On Good Friday, we stand quietly at the foot of the cross, recognizing the depth of God’s love poured out for the world.

Then in the darkness of the Easter Vigil, light breaks forth again as we proclaim the Resurrection.

Why are these days so important? Because they tell the deepest truth about our faith: suffering and death do not have the final word. God brings light out of darkness, hope out of despair, and love out of sacrifice. The story we celebrate during these days is also the story God continues to write in our lives.

In a world that feels uncertain and divided, the message of these days speak clearly: God has not abandoned us. Christ enters every human struggle and transforms it with the promise of the Resurrection.

These liturgies are meant to be experienced together as a community of faith. They help us remember who we are and what we believe.

I invite you and your families to join in our parish celebrations across the Catholic Communities of Oak Park and in your own experience rediscover the hope at the heart of our faith.

Please CLICK HERE to check all service times. And remember that this year, the 18 folks coming into the Church have asked us to celebrate one vigil together, so the Easter Vigil Mass will be at Saint Catherine of Siena-Saint Lucy and Saint Giles Parish on Saturday, April 4, at 7:30 PM in Saint Giles Church.

Though we are many parts, we are one body in the Risen Christ.

With you a Christian, for you, a priest.

Fr. Carl Morello
Pastor
Ascension and St. Edmund Parish
St. Catherine of Siena-St. Lucy and St. Giles Parish