Holy Saturday is significant because it marks the time when Jesus Christ was buried in the tomb, fulfilling the prophecy of his death and resurrection. It is a time of preparation and reflection, as Christians anticipate the celebration of the resurrection on Easter Sunday.
On Holy Saturday, Catholics commemorate the time when Jesus was entombed and his body lay in the tomb until His Resurrection on Easter Sunday. The day is marked by a period of reflection and waiting, as Catholics anticipate the Resurrection of Christ.
Holy Saturday is the day between Good Friday and Easter Day. It is a continuation of the sorrow of Good Friday, when Christians of all traditions remember the disciples' hopelessness in the wake of Jesus's death on the cross; when they are unsure whether to believe that he will rise from the dead, as he said he would.
Holy Saturday occurs between Good Friday, the day Jesus Christ was crucified, and Easter, when he was resurrected after dying for the sins of mankind, according to the Christian religion. Holy Saturday is recognized by many Christian denominations as the final day of the Lenten season, just before Easter Sunday.
While Jesus himself did not make a final break with the Sabbath, he so weakened it in the minds of his followers that they found it natural to move from worshipping on the Sabbath—a day of restrictions —to Sunday, a day associated with the joyous freedom brought about by the resurrection of Jesus.
Christians celebrate on Sunday because it is the day on which Jesus had risen from the dead and on which the Holy Spirit had come to the apostles.
On this day the Church abstains strictly from the celebration of the sacrifice of the Mass. Holy Communion may only be given in the form of Viaticum. The celebration of marriages is forbidden, as also the celebration of other sacraments, except those of Penance and the Anointing of the Sick.
Many Christians acknowledge Holy Saturday, the seventh and final day of Holy Week, as the day on which Jesus “rested” from His work of bestowing redemption to mankind. As Jesus died, He called out, “It is finished!” No further atonement was required; sin had been redeemed with Christ's sacrifice on the cross.
The fourth commandment of God's unchangeable law requires the observance of this seventh-day Sabbath as the day of rest, worship, and ministry in harmony with the teaching and practice of Jesus, the Lord of the Sabbath. The Sabbath is a day of delightful communion with God and one another.
Whether to participate in an athletic event or go to work on these days is a personal choice and is not against any rules of the Church.
On the evening of Holy Saturday (Easter vigil), or certainly come Easter Sunday, white or gold are used to celebrate the resurrection. The Easter color is used until Pentecost. On Pentecost, the seventh Sunday after Easter, red is used.
Canon law in force
According to Paenitemini, the 1983 Code of Canon Law and the Constitution Sacrosanctum Concilium, on Ash Wednesday, Good Friday and where possible, throughout Holy Saturday, both abstinence and fasting are required of Catholics who are not exempted for various reasons.
The observance of Holy Saturday has been part of the Christian tradition since the early days of the church. The day has its roots in the Jewish tradition of the Sabbath, which is observed from sunset on Friday to sunset on Saturday. It is also associated with the ancient Jewish practice of waiting for the Messiah.
Work, eating, drinking, washing, anointing one's body, sexual intercourse, and wearing leather shoes are all forbidden.
Sabbath is not a commandment we are bound to; it's a promise we're invited to enjoy. Sabbath rest is an invitation to practice for eternity in God's presence. It is an act of regular and intentional trust of God's rule on Earth.
Jesus is dead, buried in a tomb. On Holy Saturday, this reality sinks in. And so on this day we gather in that silence. Everything we say or do in liturgy springs from that silence and returns to it.
The day commemorates the Harrowing of Hell while Jesus Christ's body lay in the tomb.
If possible, the fast on Good Friday is continued until the Easter Vigil (on Holy Saturday night) as the "paschal fast" to honor the suffering and death of the Lord Jesus and to prepare ourselves to share more fully and to celebrate more readily his Resurrection.
Roman Catholics have something to forfeit during this season. Here are some food during Holy Week that you need to keep away from. Red meat (e.g.: pork, beef, ham, ham, etc.) Desserts (e.g.: candies, cakes, sweets, etc.)
The Lord's Day in Christianity is generally Sunday, the principal day of communal worship. It is observed by most Christians as the weekly memorial of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who is said in the canonical Gospels to have been witnessed alive from the dead early on the first day of the week.
The Jewish Sabbath (from Hebrew shavat, “to rest”) is observed throughout the year on the seventh day of the week—Saturday. According to biblical tradition, it commemorates the original seventh day on which God rested after completing the creation.
It doesn't matter whether you go to corporate worship on Saturday or on Sunday, because that's not what really matters. What really matters is that you find your rest in Christ! And you can (and should) do that every day of the week!
In Church history, the Easter Vigil did not always begin on Holy Saturday night. Near the fourth century, a Saturday nighttime vigil including the Service of Light, the Liturgy of the Word, Liturgy of Baptism and Liturgy of the Eucharist, lasting until midnight was indeed widely observed.
Can you eat meat on Holy Saturday? In the early days of the Church, Holy Saturday was the only Saturday when fasting was permitted. Today, however, there is no requirement for fasting but Christians might still choose to limit their meals or not eat meat.
Unlike most other Christian denominations, Seventh-day Adventists attend church on Saturdays, which they believe to be the Sabbath instead of Sunday, according to their interpretation of the Bible.