When I was a younger pastor I served in a town with a Wesleyan Church. One year on Good Friday they hosted the ecumenical service for the town. As we gathered they showed a video clip of a preacher speaking over the image of the cross, the tomb, and finally a light glowing behind the rock. The words the preacher was saying (to an epic rock background) were “It’s Friday, but Sunday is coming!”

It was powerful imagery, but it kind of threw me off a little bit. What about Saturday? What about Holy Saturday? As a child I thought about it as a day of waiting and silence. As i learned more about my Polish heritage I learned there were places (especially in Poland) where special baskets of food for the celebration were brought to the church for a blessing. I’ve learned there are a lot of traditions that surround this most holy day.

For me, the fact of the matter remains that it is a day of rest in my heart. Partially this is a part of my celebration from my reading of the texts. The story places this day as the Sabbath during that most holy of stories and I don’t mind entering into the silence.

The other side of my experiencing this day as a day of silence comes out of an understanding of music. There are so many notes throughout the week and there are many events. This day is a good day for a bit of silence before the music resumes. Music rhythmically that does not have rests ends up being rote and repetitive (in my mind). This is a beautiful day for that moment of rest before the crescendo.

However you celebrate Holy Saturday, I hope that you’re blessed today. Remember, the sun rises on Easter!