It's Palm Sunday for us, so we receives palm frond pieces which we'll keep until a week or two before Ash Wednesday next year when they will be burned to make the ashes for next Palm Sunday. Next week is special, we have the blessing of the oils on Tuesday, Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter Vigil/Easter Sunday, so it's a busy week. On Holy Thursday the feet of twelve men are washed by the pastor in each parish and by the bishop in the cathedral. Good Friday is marked by the stations of the Cross in the morning, the Good Friday communion service (it is not a mass) at 15:00 and then in the evening/night a vigil and adoration of the Lord. Easter Vigil starts after sunset on Saturday and is the most important of all masses in the liturgical year, in it there are seven old testament readings a reading from the new testament and from one of the psalms and a reading from the Gospel, we start outside of the church building with the lighting of a small fire from which the pastor lights the Easter Candle and from which we all receive the flame for our own candles which we carry into the church building (which is in darkness and progressively receives light as our candles are brought in) we process into the church behind the Easter candles with the Pastor and the candidates & catechumens following along with acolytes and deacons and finally the congregation. The procession is done in silence. When the Easter candle reaches the middle of the church the deacon proclaims loudly "Christ our light!" and the people respond, when the candle reaches the foot of the sanctuary the proclamation is made again and responded to and finally when the congregation is all present and in their positions for seating the proclamation is made once more from the altar and the people respond the church lights are turned on and the mass proper begins.
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