Some Words of the Season

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Some Words of the Season

Holiday

From a combination of two Old English words, halig + daeg—holy day; day set apart for special religious observance.

Lent

From an Old English word related to lengthen. It meant springtime, when the days are lengthening. Now we use it to refer to the days between Ash Wednesday and Easter.

Ash Wednesday

In the Bible, ashes are a sign of mourning, an appropriate symbol as we think of our part in the death of our Lord.

Maundy Thursday

The night when we look back to the Lord’s Last Supper gets its name from the Latin word mandatum—commandment, remembering Jesus’ words to the Apostles during the Last Supper, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another” (John 13:34).

Good Friday

This worst day in history is also good because of the reconciliation that comes through the cross.