Hi Zhern thanks for the article, thanks for the coverage
It is apt and proper, without question, that Holy Thursday is considered the most profound of all religious fidelities and heedfulness: "It celebrates both the institution by Christ Himself of the Eucharist and of the institution of the Sacerdotal priesthood..." The Last Supper was also Christ's valediction to His disciples gathered together, some of whom would betray, desert or deny Him "before the sunrises." On Holy Thursday, we have also the people's adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, particularly at night, much like the disciples who stayed with Jesus during His agony on the Mount of Olives immediately before Judas' malevolent betrayal. Surely, the Holy Week is one of our people's most cherished traditions as described by the Office of the President in a proclamation it issued the other day declaring "Black Saturday" as special non-working holiday throughout the country. Our people must be given the full and uninterrupted opportunity to ponder on the significance of the Holy Week and to properly observe its traditions and religious fervor, without prejudice to public interest, it said. The report said, "Black Saturday" has been declared a special day throughout the country as in the past. Doubtless, the purpose of the presidential proclamation is praiseworthy - to give the public uninterrupted observance of a tradition rooted in their collective unconscious. The question is, why call it "Black Saturday"? Why Black Saturday between Good Friday and Easter Sunday? In recent events, Black Saturday is best remembered as the day when some 173 people died and about 2029 homes were destroyed during a bushfire across Australia early last year. In history, it was also a Black Saturday when a dark, stormy day sometime in 1621 in Scotland was mistaken as sign of Armageddon; and in 1962, when tensions reached their heights during the Cuban Missile Crisis. But in France, Black Saturday refers to the busiest day of the year when the French people would go on a holiday. Traditionally, we call it Black Saturday because it was a day of deep mourning after Jesus Christ died on the Cross on Good Friday. (zhern_218@yahoo.com)
