04/17/2025
The crosses and images of Christ our Lord are veiled through Passiontide (the last 2 weeks of Lent) because the redemptive signification of the cross was veiled to those who followed Christ. The followers of Christ greatly feared the public suffering and shame of crucifixion, and rightly so. Death had not yet been defeated. These last three days of Lent, we see how Jesus Christ took the cross, the means devised for his own destruction, and converted it into the means of the redemption of the whole world. Jesus would defeat death, but not before suffering it in His own flesh.
The veils are violet until Maundy Thursday (service at 7PM) when they are white - signifying how the spirits of His followers lightened at the institution of the sacrament and the "maundy" or commandment given to His disciples, to love one another as He had loved them. Altar flowers return, which have not appeared throughout Lent, and the Gloria in Excelsis is sung just before suddenly, the altar is stripped down to the wood and the sanctuary is emptied symbolizing Christ's abandonment and betrayal as the temple mob came to arrest him on that night.
The veils are black on Good Friday (services at noon and 7PM) as the day of his Passion finally arrives and those who had no understanding of the resurrection to come could see only darkness and death.
On Easter Even (service at 8PM), the veils are removed as Christ arises victorious "sometime in the night" and that cross, which was meant for evil, is revealed to have been the instrument of eternal good for all who are in Christ Jesus.
The sun arises Easter morning (services at 8:30 and 11AM) to find the Church in full rejoicing at the resurrection of our Lord, forever triumphant over death, hell, sin, Satan, all condemnation, all fear, all despair and all evil. It is love expressed perfectly in the sacrifice of Himself for the sake of others that cannot be defeated. God is love and Christ is God. His sacrifice is light and life for those who are His.