Holy Week Services at Home

This is an incredible opportunity to keep Holy Week even more full of prayer and the reading of the Holy Scriptures. As for the "tone" or manner in which we go through this week, Elder Vitaly of Tbilisi "taught that one should go to church during the whole of Holy Week and to not get involved with vain things. He would only allow food preparation. He would say that the days of Holy Week sanctified all the days of the year. Holy Monday sanctified all the Mondays of the year, Holy Tuesday the Tuesday of the year, and so on."



 This echoes the Book of Exodus, and its guidelines for keeping the Passover: "No servile work shall be done on them; and whatever must be done by each soul, this only shall be done by you" (12:16).

 But don't forget to prepare for the Pascha Feast! I will mention this again at the end of this post, but the Artefact Institute is providing a free download of a wonderful way to celebrate the feast at home with food, music, and prayer: a Paschal Home Feast. I am going to go ahead and download that now so I can prepare a beautiful feast at home with the family.

 The OCA website's Holy Week page has continued to add services that can be easily prayed at home. I am mainly linked there, but will continue updating this page to reflect the best resource I can find for each service, as the days go on. All the readings for the various services are available at the OCA Scripture readings page.

 Lazarus Saturday
Morning: Typika for Lazarus Saturday
Evening: Reader's Vespers for Palm Sunday

 If you have palm branches, pussy willows, or any other joyous leafy branch, you may start holding those during the Vespers service and keep them through the Sunday morning service.

 Palm Sunday
Morning: Typika for Palm Sunday

 Evening: Bridegroom Matins for Holy Monday

 Holy Monday
Morning, afternoon, or evening: Holy Monday Vespers

 Evening: Bridegroom Matins for Holy Tuesday

 Holy Tuesday
Morning, afternoon, or evening: Holy Tuesday Vespers

 Evening: Bridegroom Matins for Holy Wednesday

 Holy Wednesday
Before Vespers: At the end of whatever prayers you do before Vespers (morning prayers, or maybe right before Vespers starts, technically after the Hours and Typika), the rubrics books says, "the priest and people ask each other for forgiveness on bended knees." That is always a good thing to do, especially within the family.

 Morning, afternoon, or evening: Holy Wednesday Vespers

 Evening or Thursday morning: Holy Thursday Matins

 Holy Thursday
Morning or early afternoon: Holy Thursday Vespers

 Evening: Holy Friday Matins with the Twelve Passion Gospels

 Holy Friday
Strict fast day: "The day will come, when the Bridegroom shall be taken from them, and then shall they fast" (Matt. 9:15). Those who have the strength to keep a total fast do so at least till after sunset (after the veneration of the Shroud at Vespers), and if then, only eating bread and water, or maybe some tea. (It is fitting and beneficial to keep the full fast till after Vespers on Saturday.)

 Morning: Royal Hours of Holy Friday

 Afternoon: Vespers with the Shroud
There is nothing in the service about the Shroud, but here at home, we are planning on using an icon of Christ covered with a nice cloth and to bring it out and put it on the icon corner. That would be during the Aposticha. Then, we will do a processing during Lamentations with that icon.
Evening: Matins with Lamentations
After the service, it is common to read the Psalter by the Tomb of Christ through the night.

 Holy Saturday
Late morning or early afternoon: Holy Saturday Reader's Vespers
Between the Epistle and Gospel reading (during "Arise, O God, and judge the earth..."), we change the church's colors from dark to bright, because Vespers liturgically transitions us into the next day...Pascha. At home, this is a great time to add white or bright decoration to the icon corner and to put up an icon of Pascha, if you have such.

For those who have taken on the struggle of the strict fast on Holy Friday till Vespers on Holy Saturday, the faithful partake of a little bread and wine after Vespers, along with some figs or dates (which could translate to dried fruit and nuts today).

Reading the Acts of the Apostles:
Following Vespers (which normally would have been a Vesperal Liturgy), the faithful would remain in church listening to the reading of the book of the Acts of the Apostles till time for the Paschal services. The reading of Acts is one part of Holy Week that we could easily keep at home. In my home, we will be preparing food and clothes and decorations for Pascha, but take shifts reading Acts at the icon corner.

Just before midnight: Paschal Midnight Office
This usually starts at 11:30pm to give us time to finish before midnight, when we would start the procession. At midnight, light a main Paschal candle at your icon corner. Then, while singing "Thy resurrection, O Christ our Savior...", light each person's candle. Continuing the hymn, process around the house three times.

Great and Holy Pascha
Midnight: The Paschal Canon (in process)
Until I see the service posted on the OCA website, I am just planning on inserting the Paschal Canon from the prayer book (it is in most prayer books) after coming in from the procession around the house.

After Paschal Matins: Paschal Hours & Typika
After the Gospel reading in Typika, make sure you read the beautiful and unforgettable Paschal Sermon of St. John Chrysostom. You don't want to skip that.

Paschal Feast:
When finished, it is time for the feast! If you downloaded the Paschal Home Feast, follow the prayers and feast included there. If not, bless your baskets/food, and feast in the glorious joy of Christ's Resurrection. In this time of isolation, calling others for a brief, "Christ is risen!" would be a great idea, especially those you know are alone in this season.

Bright Week
The Paschal Hours:

"Throughout Bright Week [the Paschal Hours] service is used in place of the Morning Prayers and the Prayers before Sleep" (Orthodox Christian Prayers prayer book, p.269). If you have been replacing Vespers at church with Small Compline at home, this would also be used to replace Compline. The struggle of Lent is over and this bright and holy time calls for this short and joyous service.

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