Breaking into holidays to reflect on the holy days marking the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ was recharging to both body and spirit. The holy days are set aside from the rest of the year to afford mankind enough time to retreat and reflect the supreme sacrifice that Jesus Christ made for the salvation of all. The days are determined by the Catholic Church based on its liturgical calendar that other religious sects do not have. Government declares such days as identified by the Catholic Church as non-working holidays to allow workers from both public and private sectors to join in the commemoration. Business establishments also follow the days set for the observance of the holy days. There is therefore commonality among all sectors that the holidays are holidays that carries spiritual and religious significance more than anything thing else.
It runs a muck on the senses for people to abuse and misuse the holidays for unholy activities that mocks the spirituality of the holy days. Drastic changes attending the commemoration of the holy week are very much conspicuous these days. In recent years, people would be busy preparing for religious activities set for the week by the Catholic Church. The commemoration is full of holy activities that are all focused on the saga of man’s salvation. Broadcast media plays a vital role in bringing to the people radio and television programs depicting the way that Jesus Christ obediently took in fulfillment of the will of the Father for the salvation of mankind.
People would truly take a break from usual activities and be glued to homes listening to drama presentations over the radio and movies on television, all about the passion of Jesus Christ. Those who live in the rural areas and hinterlands where mass broadcast media are not available for lack of electric power and electronic gadgets of information would spend the holy days reading and singing the passion of Jesus Christ from the holy bible as well as religious pamphlets on the passion. Contemplating on the sorrowful mysteries is the center of the observance and nothing of the joyful kind is done for the duration. The faithful would troop in pilgrim fashion to churches and other religious sites that are apt for a good retreat and reflection.
Disheartening indeed and embarrassing as well that people who proudly claim to be Christians are now getting diverted from the Jesus Christ who suffered for their sins and their salvation. We all have been shown the way but we tend to follow our own way that is apart from the one Jesus Christ gave us. We take a joy ride on the holidays that were basically declared in observance of the Catholic Church’s sacred tradition by setting on a journey where there is joy and self-satisfaction even if without Jesus Christ. We lurk in happiness of the flesh and find contentment in material possessions even to the extent of despising the will of our Father in heaven. We break our condition in prayer to follow the will of the Father as we always opt to follow our own in any given opportunity.
We ought it to be true witnesses to our faith by refraining and altogether rejecting anything that diverts us from the real significance of the holy days. Using the holidays to party and picnic outings that despise the true intention of the break which is for holy and spiritual journeys of the soul desecrates the supreme sacrifice Jesus Christ made on the cross. We need to reorient our practices not purely out of tradition but of our free will to be true to our prayer to follow the will of our Father in heaven. There is always an Easter Sunday when we can all claim to be triumphant in going festive, joyous and happy but such must not be held ahead during the passion and death of Jesus Christ where all are expected to be pensive and never caught in worldly adventures of the flesh.
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