Holy Wednesday: A Brief Reflection

Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. St. John 15:4-5

Brothers and sisters, as we move ever closer to the Triduum Sacrum, may we look to Christ, in whom we must abide in order to produce fruit.

Holy Wednesday is also a perfect time to bear much fruit in the kitchen, too! A fresh fruit salad is the perfect accoutrement to your Holy Week diet, and the stores – even chain supermarkets – are beginning to overflow with fresh produce from all parts of the globe. Just this week, I’ve seen fabulous apples, mangos, strawberries and raspberries.

I would also take this opportunity to beseech you to attend all the liturgies of the Triduum Sacrum, if at all possible (i.e., Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and The Great Vigil). I don’t say this to hammer you with the law; neither do I offer this to browbeat. No, I do this out of genuine love, for I can guarantee that your life will be enhanced and you will be blessed. You will see parts of you die on Good Friday only to be raised on high on Easter morn. Your relationship with Our Lord Jesus Christ will be nurtured, and, make no mistakes about it, our bond with Christ is the single most important relationship we have. When all has been said and done, it’s the only thing that matters.

Let me leave you, then, with two items. First, in The Christian Year, John Keble's meditation for Holy Wednesday is, I think, a perfect prayer for this day:

'O Father! not My will, but Thine be done' - so spake the Son.
Be this our charm, mellowing Earth's ruder noise of griefs and joys:
That we may cling forever to Thy breast
In perfect rest!

And, secondly, here's a great recipe for your Holy Week preparations.

Fruit Salad With Creamy Poppy Seed Dressing

Ingredients

Fresh cut fruit (cut your own, rinse, and place in a bowl. If you use grapes, slice them lengthwise)
1/3 cup Hellmann’s Mayonnaise
1/3 cup Breakstone’s Sour Cream
1/4 cup Honey
4 TBSP poppy seeds
2 TBSP half and half
1 tsp. ground cinnamon

Instructions

In a mixing bowl, place all ingredients except the fruit. Using a hand-held mixer, blend the ingredients till smooth and creamy, usually 30 seconds. In another bowl, mix the fruit. Place the fruit mixture on salad plates on top of a large Romaine lettuce leaf. Drizzle dressing over the top. Serve extra dressing on the side. Dressing keeps one week in the fridge.