This year’s Holy Week is going to be a really quiet one.
With the Mass suspended for the time being, Palm Sunday comes without palms, and no procession, no singing and no congregation.
And for the coming week, all churches will be closed, as well as all places of worship, and closed for a month at least.
So there will be no “washing of the feet”, no church visitation on Holy Thursday evening, no kissing of the cross on Good Friday, no baptisms on Easter Vigil and no joyful singing of “Alleluia” on Easter Sunday.
And we are also told not to go out as far as possible, and only to go out for something essential.
The country’s essential services will still be operating but all other non-essential services will be closed.
So it is not just a quiet weekend ahead. We feel like we are grounded and have to stay at home. We feel like being hemmed in.
But in such a chaotic and turbulent time, we are reminded of something that was of great significance in the Bible.
We are reminded of the night of the first Passover, when the Israelites who were under slavery in Egypt were told to stay indoors, to celebrate the Passover meal with the family, to have the doorpost of their homes marked with the blood of the Passover lamb.
As all these were happening behind closed doors, the angel of the Lord went through the land of Egypt and claimed the lives of the firstborn of the Egyptians, man and beast alike.
So while this “Stay-at-home” message is drummed into all of us, let us also know that this is a time of grace and a blessing from God.
This is the time for us to be with family and to be family.
This is the time for us to eat together and pray together.
We don’t have to feel hemmed in. We can log-in to the many online worship and prayer services.
Our parish has also taken this opportunity to have nightly online prayer sessions at 10 pm.
Indeed this is the time of grace and blessing as we stay in and stay together as a community, and as family, and as the People of God in prayer and keeping the flame of hope burning in the darkness of these times.
With every tribulation comes a revelation. God is revealing to us many things already.
But most of all, God wants to reveal how much He loves us during this period.
So let us log-in and stay together as we pray together to welcome Jesus into our hearts.