For Eastern Orthodox Christians today the rules of fasting are strict: just one meal a day, in the evening, and no meat, fish, eggs, or butter is permitted.
Palm Sunday
Palm Sunday, also known as Passion Sunday, is the first day of Holy Week which ends with Easter the following Sunday. It commemorates Jesus' entry into Jerusalem prior to be crucified a few days later. Actual ceremonies typically include a procession of palm fronds which are blessed and will later be burned. The ashes from the burnt palm fronds are used in the next year's Ash Wednesday.
Maundy Thursday
In the Maundy Thursday mass, the clergy wash the feet of 12 men; this ritual is known as Pedilavium. They do this because According to the Fourth Gospel, as Jesus and the Disciples were eating their final meal together before Jesus’ arrest, the Passover meal; he washed the disciples' feet to illustrate humility and the spirit of servant hood. It was a custom in Jesus’ day for the servants to wash the feet of guests. Through this Jesus wanted his disciples to love one another as he has loved them.
The Passover meal celebrated the covenant given by God, which was the “10 commandments”. During the Passover meal, Jesus gave a new covenant, which is celebrated by Mass. The Last Supper took place on Thursday before Jesus was arrested. The altar in The Roman Catholic church is undressed to indicate the unpleasant situations and harshness of all that happened to Jesus that night. Maundy Thursday is known as Great Thursday in the Orthodox Church.
The services in the Orthodox Church are very similar to the ones in the Roman Catholic Church.
Good Friday
Good Friday is the Friday before Easter and the date during The Tridium when Christians do penance and commemorate the suffering and crucifixion of Jesus.
Today, Good Friday services in the Roman Catholic Church are much the same as they have been for centuries. The liturgy begins at 3:00 PM and is divided into three separate parts: prayers and readings (including the passion story from the Gospel of John and known as the Liturgy of the Word), the veneration of the cross (a Latin rite which involves kissing the foot of the crucifix which stands at the entrance of the sanctuary), and finally Holy Communion. There may also be what is known as the Three Hours Service, held from noon to 3:00 PM, which involves a series of hymns, prayers, and sermons focused upon Jesus' seven last words on the cross. Good Friday and the following Holy Saturday are the only dates of the year when mass is not celebrated in Roman Catholic churches that is why it is a service. In Eastern Orthodox churches, Good Friday is more commonly known as Great Friday and it actually begins the prior evening with readings from various passion stories in the New Testament. There is no Eucharist service celebrated, but there is a re-enactment of the burial of Jesus. Both Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches fast on Good Friday.
Easter Sunday
For Christians, Easter can occur on any date between March 23rd and April 26th. The actual date is set as the first Sunday after the first full moon that occurs after March 21, one of the first days of spring. Christians celebrate the end of death and the rebirth of life; but instead of focusing upon nature, Christians believe that Easter marks the day that Jesus Christ was resurrected after spending three days dead in his tomb.
Easter retains great importance for Eastern Orthodox and Protestant churches as well. For Eastern Orthodox Christians, there is an important procession which symbolizes the failed search for the body of Jesus, followed a return to the church where lit candles symbolize Jesus' resurrection.