Holy Wednesday

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We’re now deep into Holy Week, and the Church, in her deep wisdom and love, offers us something truly special on Holy Wednesday. It is a day filled with profound beauty and meaning. If your heart has felt heavy or distracted this Lent, today is a good day to return, to come back to Christ and let Him meet you in His mercy.

On this day, we celebrate three powerful services that help prepare us for the mystery of the Cross and Resurrection: the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts, the Sacrament of Holy Unction, and the Service of the Mystical Supper. Each one touches a different part of our soul and each one is a gift.

The Presanctified Liturgy is a quiet meeting with Christ. In the morning, we celebrate the Presanctified Liturgy, which is a reverent service where we receive Holy Communion from the Gifts prepared ahead of time on Sunday. It’s not the full Liturgy like we experience on Sundays or feast days. There’s no joyful “Christ is Risen” here. there is only a quiet awe, deep prayer, and humble thanksgiving.

This is the Church’s way of gently feeding us as we walk through these somber days of Christ’s Passion. If you’ve been feeling the weight of the world lately, come and rest in this stillness. It’s a place to meet Christ not in thunder or flame, but in the still, small voice of His love.

Holy Unction is the healing for the soul and body. Later in the day, many of us will gather for the Sacrament of Holy Unction. It's a beautiful, ancient service of healing. We come forward to be anointed with blessed oil, not as a ritual or routine, but as children who need our Father’s healing touch.

This sacrament is a balm for everything. All wounds we carry in our hearts, burdens we’ve been dragging for years, sins we’re ready to let go of, even physical illness. The Gospel readings remind us that Christ is not indifferent to our pain. He sees it. He touches it. He heals it.

This is the day we remember the woman who anointed Jesus with fragrant oil. A women who had a deeply broken soul who poured out her love. We’re not so different from her. We each bring our own brokenness, and Christ receives us with open arms.

The Mystical Supper, shows us Christ love that goes to the end. On Holy Wednesday night, many of us will pray the Service of the Mystical Supper, looking ahead to what Christ did on Holy Thursday. We remember that night in the upper room, when He knelt to wash His disciples’ feet and gave them His Body and Blood for the first time.

It’s overwhelming when you think about it. The Lord knows He’s about to be betrayed, mocked, beaten, and crucified and what does He do? He serves. He loves. He offers Himself completely. He looks at His friends, at us and He says, “Do this in remembrance of Me.” Not just the Eucharist. but everything He taught us, His way of love. A love that kneels. A love that forgives. A love that endures.

Holy Wednesday invites us to slow down. To listen. To return to the One who never turns His face away from us. Whether you’ve been faithful all Lent or feel like you’re just now waking up spiritually. Whatever it may be, it’s not too late. This is the day to be anointed with healing, to receive Christ in humility, and to open your heart to the love that never fails.

Let us come to Christ with the faith of the woman who wept at His feet. Let us receive His healing touch. And let us prepare our hearts for the Mystical Supper, where love Himself offers us everything.