Mystagogia: The Great Sabbath

The Great Sabbath stretches from Easter Day until the Day of Pentecost. These Great Fifty Days signify (in the words of Thomas Merton) the eternal day of heaven. As we await the coming gift of the Holy Spirit on Whitsunday, the church spends its time reflecting on the events of the Triduum, the Great Paschal Days of Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday (the first announcement of the Resurrection after dark). This Great Octave of the Christian Year provides the faithful time to assimilate the mystery of their redemption and to take into themselves the risen Lord. As the Jews were brought forth out of their bondage in Egypt, across the Red Sea, into the wilderness and into the Promised Land; so we are brought forth from our bondage to sin and death and drawn into the very life of Christ through faith.

The Third Day of Easter

O God, who by the glorious resurrection of your Son Jesus Christ, destroyed death and brought life and immortality to light: Grant that we, who have been raised with him, may abide in his presence, and rejoice in the hope of eternal glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom, with you and the Holy Spirit, be dominion and praise for ever and ever. Amen.

The Rule of Saint Benedict, Chapter 57

On the Artisans of the Monastery

If there are artisans in the monastery,
let them practice their crafts with all humility,
provided the Abbot has given permission.
But if any one of them becomes conceited
over his skill in his craft,
because he seems to be conferring a benefit on the monastery,
let him be taken from his craft
and no longer exercise it unless,
after he has humbled himself,
the Abbot again gives him permission.

If any of the work of the craftsmen is to be sold,
those responsible for the sale
must not dare to practice any fraud.
Let them always remember Ananias and Saphira,
who incurred bodily death (Acts 5:1-11),
lest they and all who perpetrate fraud
in monastery affairs
suffer spiritual death.
And in the prices let not the sin of avarice creep in,
but let the goods always be sold a little cheaper
than they can be sold by people in the world,
"that in all things God may be glorified" (1 Peter 4:11).