triduum
Triduum
TRID-oo-um
The three holiest days of the year — from the evening Mass of Holy Thursday, through Good Friday and Holy Saturday, to the Easter Vigil and Easter Sunday.
a space of three days
The Easter Triduum is counted like the days of Genesis, from evening to evening: it begins with the Mass of the Lord's Supper on Holy Thursday, continues with the Passion on Good Friday and the silence of Holy Saturday, reaches its summit in the Easter Vigil on Saturday night, and closes with Evening Prayer on Easter Sunday. The Catechism calls it the source of light that fills the whole liturgical year, since it celebrates the Paschal Mystery itself. It is liturgically one continuous celebration.
Councils
Where the Church settled or debated this. Follow a council to read our article on it, or the decrees themselves.
- 1962–1965Second Vatican Councilthe decrees
Sources
Church teaching
- Universal Norms on the Liturgical Year and the General Roman CalendarUniversal Norms on the Liturgical Year and the General Roman Calendar (1969), nn. 18–21, on the Easter Triduum.
Sources checked 29 September 2026