On this Good Friday, as Christians around the world pause to remember the suffering and death of Jesus Christ, a quiet spiritual curiosity is growing among Chinese believers—especially younger ones—about how the global church remembers this sacred story.
In many Protestant communities in China, traditional Holy Week liturgies have not been a central part of church life. Yet in recent years, some believers have begun exploring the beauty and depth of older Christian practices—not out of nostalgia, but from a longing to enter more fully into the story of Christ’s Passion.
The following article, originally published in Chinese by the devotional platform 祷读365 on WeChat, takes us on a journey through Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant Holy Week traditions. These expressions—from incense and lamentations to prayer walks and sunrise services—show how the body of Christ around the world embodies sacred memory in diverse ways.
We share this piece not to promote any one tradition, but to join a wider conversation already unfolding among Chinese Christians today: What does it mean to remember Christ well? How do we live the story of the cross in our own time and place?
Author’s Note: I had been searching in vain for a good reflection to share for Holy Week this year. After struggling to find something suitable, I turned to DeepSeek, an AI tool. To my surprise, it produced something thoughtful and even moving. Inspired by the idea that “all truth is God’s truth,” I made some edits and added a few references along the way.
It feels almost surreal—on one hand, the oldest traditions of our faith; on the other, the cutting edge of artificial intelligence. May this unlikely fusion help guide us, as Holy Week begins today, toward the One who is Eternal Love.
Setting the Stage
Holy Week begins with Palm Sunday and ends on Holy Saturday, encompassing the seven days leading up to Easter Sunday. During this time, Christians commemorate the final week of Jesus’s earthly ministry—his words and actions before the crucifixion—through special rituals and sacred liturgies. Including Easter, the full span of eight days represents one of the most concentrated and spiritually significant periods in the church calendar.
What’s fascinating is that, in response to this same central narrative—the passion and resurrection of Jesus Christ—Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant communities have developed remarkably different expressions of remembrance. In the sections that follow, we explore how each tradition enacts this sacred story through its own unique practices, and the cultural meanings these rituals carry.
I. Catholicism: Ritualized Collective Narratives
- Palm Sunday
– Believers carry blessed palm branches in procession to commemorate Jesus’s entry into Jerusalem. Some churches later burn these branches to make ashes for the following year’s Ash Wednesday.
– The full Passion narrative from Matthew is read during Mass, divided among the priest, deacon, and congregation—a kind of “theater of voices.” - Holy Thursday
– The altar is adorned for the Mass of the Lord’s Supper, then stripped bare to symbolize Jesus’s arrest.
– The priest washes the feet of twelve parishioners (now often including women and non-Christians), reenacting Christ’s humility.
– The Eucharist is moved to an Altar of Repose for overnight vigil, echoing Jesus’s prayer in Gethsemane. - Good Friday
– The Stations of the Cross guide believers through Jesus’s Passion, often in churches or outdoor settings. In Rome, sculptures by international artists enhance this experience.
– Worshipers venerate the cross one by one. In Latin America, some process with life-sized statues of Jesus. - Holy Saturday (Easter Vigil)
– A Paschal candle is lit from the “new fire” and shared among congregants, filling the darkened church with light.
– Adult catechumens are baptized—the most significant baptismal moment of the Catholic year.
II. Eastern Orthodoxy: An Immersive and Eternal Cycle
- Holy Monday–Wednesday
– Bridegroom Matins begin with “Behold, the Bridegroom comes.” Worshipers hold candles beside icons of Christ, awaiting the divine. - Holy Thursday
– The bishop consecrates Myron (anointing oil with 54 spices). Worshipers are marked with it as a sign of union with Christ.
– Twelve Gospel passages recounting Jesus’s final teachings are read overnight. - Good Friday
– A flower-covered symbolic tomb (Epitaphios) is venerated as believers bow beneath it.
– Byzantine-style lamentations, incense, and candlelight mark the night with solemn beauty. - Holy Saturday
– At midnight, the priest proclaims, “Christ is risen!” and the church is lit from one flame.
– Red eggs are cracked, and a feast follows, celebrating resurrection and new life.
Note: Due to the Julian calendar, Orthodox Easter usually falls 1–4 weeks after Catholic Easter—except in rare years like this one, when both dates align.
III. Protestantism: Diverse and Contemporary Expressions
- Holy Week Approaches
– Liturgical branches (Lutheran, Anglican) retain traditions; Evangelical and Baptist churches often focus on Good Friday and Easter Sunday.
– Some call it “Passion Week,” centering on Jesus’s final days rather than formal liturgies. - Core Practices
– Good Friday services are simple and somber, often ending in silence.
– Seven Last Words reflections use Scripture, music, and poetry for meditation. - Innovations
– Prayer walks offer themed stations for individual reflection.
– Passion plays—sometimes contextualized to current issues—are performed by laypeople.
– Apps and hashtags like #HolyWeekJourney foster virtual devotion. - Easter Sunday
– Sunrise services in nature symbolize new life.
– Churches distribute seeds or create communal art as resurrection symbols.
Of course, in today’s globalized world, these traditions continue to evolve. For instance, the Catholic Church has in recent years allowed greater participation by laypeople in the foot-washing rite, while some Protestant churches have begun to revive the tradition of the Stations of the Cross—signs of the liturgical vitality and adaptability across traditions.
These concrete rituals are not merely expressions of religious piety; they also reflect differing cultural understandings of what constitutes a “sacred experience” and how distinct civilizations mark sacred time. More profoundly, they embody the diverse paths by which humanity grapples with the universal questions of death, remembrance, and hope: Catholicism emphasizes the preservation of collective memory through ecclesial authority; Eastern Orthodoxy seeks a transcendent, timeless presence; and Protestantism highlights personal engagement and contextual relevance.
A Cultural Reading of Holy Week Traditions
Catholicism: A Dramatized Collective Memory
Roman Catholic Holy Week unfolds as a sacred drama, refined over centuries. On Holy Thursday, the priest reenacts Jesus’s washing of the disciples’ feet—often choosing twelve parishioners to embody the moment. This is more than symbolic; it’s an embodied act of remembrance, where the gospel is transmitted not just in words but through physical action. In 2019, Pope Francis illustrated this vividly by washing the feet of Muslim female inmates in a Roman prison—an act of humility and service.
The Stations of the Cross on Good Friday transform Jerusalem’s geography into a global spiritual journey. As believers move from one station to the next, they engage in mobile prayer that collapses time and space—walking both their own streets and those of first-century Jerusalem. Catholic Holy Week reaches its sensory height through incense, hymns, candlelight, kneeling, and kissing the cross. These rituals deepen personal devotion while binding individuals into the larger story of the Church.
Eastern Orthodoxy: The Eternal Present in Cyclical Time
In contrast to other traditions, Eastern Orthodox Holy Week embodies a distinct view of time. In the Byzantine imagination, sacred time is cyclical, not linear—more like its timeless icons, where eternity breaks into the present. Services are often long; in some traditions, the Good Friday vigil lasts all night. This unhurried pace challenges the fragmentation of modern life.
Orthodox liturgy is rich in symbolism and structure. At the Bridegroom Matins on Holy Tuesday, Christ is portrayed as the bridegroom and the Church as his bride—an image woven throughout the week. One vivid moment comes when worshippers pass candlelight through a darkened church, forming a living parable of hope. Participation is central: the congregation is the choir; the faithful are co-celebrants, not spectators.
Orthodoxy’s treatment of mourning and resurrection is especially striking. At midnight on Holy Saturday, the priest proclaims three times, “Christ is risen!” and the people respond, “Indeed he is risen!” All at once, candles are lit and light floods the church. This is no mere performance, but a sensory enactment of the core truth: “The light shines in the darkness.” Resurrection, in Orthodox theology, is not just a future hope—it is a mystical reality encountered in the now.
Protestantism: A Personal Inner Journey
Following the Reformation, Protestant traditions developed diverse approaches to Holy Week. Reformers like Martin Luther rejected the theatricality of medieval rituals and advocated a return to Scripture’s simplicity. As a result, many denominations—especially outside Lutheranism and Anglicanism—adopted practices that were more introspective and sermon-centered, reflecting Protestantism’s emphasis on personal faith and biblical engagement.
Among Evangelicals, Good Friday services are often solemn and stripped-down. The cross remains central, but liturgical elements are minimal. A widely practiced tradition is the Meditation on the Seven Last Words, which invites direct reflection on Jesus’s sayings from the cross through Scripture, music, and poetry—encouraging personal engagement over ritual form.
Contemporary Protestant churches have also reimagined Holy Week with creativity and adaptability. Daily devotionals, Passion plays, multimedia displays, and interactive prayer installations are now common. These innovations reflect a key trait of Protestant culture: holding fast to theological essentials while exploring new ways to express and live out faith in today’s world.
A Note from China
In mainland China, Holy Week is marked in ways both discreet and profound. In urban Three-Self churches, Good Friday services may feature Scripture readings, silent prayer, and black drapes over the cross. Meanwhile, in house churches—often meeting in living rooms or rented spaces—believers reflect quietly on Christ’s passion through Scripture meditation, shared songs, or even hand-copying the Bible’s Passion narratives. Though formal liturgies may be absent, the heart of the remembrance remains: a longing to walk with Christ through suffering toward the hope of resurrection. These practices, shaped by China’s unique context, reveal the enduring power of Holy Week to form faith even in places where public expression is limited.
Editor’s note: The article was originally published by 祷读365 on April 12, 2025. English translation and adaptation by ChinaSource with permission.
