Holy Week or Spring Break?

On Palm Sunday, our pastor acknowledged all those traveling over Holy Week and Easter for vacation and I couldn’t help but sigh. There is definitely a different feeling these days around Easter. Most use the time for spring break. Fewer and fewer people are going to the Holy Week liturgies because they’re away on vacation. I find that sad.

Back when I was a kid we didn’t go on spring break or vacation around Easter. My parents, especially my mother, took us to the Good Friday Passion, had us fast from snacks and media, and helped us prepare for Easter. We colored hard boiled eggs on Holy Saturday, watched the Ten Commandments, and there was a stillness as we got ready for the big day.

These were preparatory days for the Easter feast. There was a sense of silence, somberness, and waiting...as there should be. 

Of course if I am being honest, I did get jealous of the kids that came back from down south with nice tans and braided hair after their vacations once I was back at school and wondered why we had to endure a less fun Easter break.

Now, however, I see the value of how my parents led us through Holy Week into Easter especially if I were to have my own children. I would probably do the same because they left an imprint on me. Perhaps they have helped me keep the Sabbath and Holy Week sacred and understand what's most important at Easter.

To this day I still cannot go on a trip during Holy Week even though I have the means and freedom to do it. Something inside of me tells me it’s not the right time. These are days for the Lord and giving Him proper reverence for the death and resurrection He gave me to save me. As I’ve gotten older, I now typically take these days off, pray extra, and go to all of the Holy Week liturgies. I can give a few days of my PTO to God. It's the least I can do!

There’s a time for rest and vacation, but should it be during the holiest week and feast of the year? In an age where children are leaving the Church and don’t see the value of having a living faith, maybe it’s time to re-think the spring break and get back to engaging our children and families in Holy Week liturgies and prayer. 

Maybe they need to experience what Jesus did for them and where true joy really lies… not on the beach, but in a loving relationship with Jesus their Savior.