This is the day of the most intense sorrow, the day on which the Church tarries at the Lord's tomb, meditating about His Passion and death.
While the altar remains stripped, the Church abstains from the celebration of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass until after the solemn vigil, or nocturnal wait for the Resurrection. Only after this solemn Easter Vigil, held during the night in anticipation of the Resurrection, does the Easter celebration begin with a spirit of joy that overflows into the following period of fifty days.
The first meal of Easter breaks the "paschal fast" of Good Friday and Holy Saturday. We call the holy cross of Jesus a new tree of life, a tree "planted" among us on Good Friday. Adam and Eve ate from a tree and sinned. By fasting, we show God that we are eager to come home to paradise.
Naturally the first Easter meal includes foods that we made a point not to eat during Lent so that we could develop a holy hunger for them. Traditional Easter foods are rich in Scriptural significance. Eggs are emblems of Jesus' tomb, which has been shattered to bring forth new life. We call Jesus our bread of life -- Easter breads are especially festive and yeast-raised, a sign of the life-giving Spirit. We call Jesus the paschal lamb whose blood protects us from death. Easter meats can also remind us of the fatted calf that Abraham and Sarah served to their angelic guests.
Sweet dairy dishes such as cheesecake and eggnog remind us that in baptism we have "passed over" into the land flowing with milk and honey. So too Easter candy and other sweet treats can be emblems of the goodness of the Lord. In the words of Psalm 34, just taste and see!
The Book of Blessings suggests that the blessing take place after the Easter Vigil is completed and the paschal fast is over. Many parishes invite people to bring food baskets to all Easter Masses, including the Easter Vigil, for the blessing after Mass. Other parishes, especially those that follow central and eastern European customs, hold the blessing sometime during the day on Holy Saturday.
God of Glory,
the eyes of all turn to You
as we celebrate Christ's victory over sin and death.
Bless us and this food of our first Easter meal.
May we who gather at the Lord's table
continue to celebrate the joy of His Resurrection
and be admitted finally to His heavenly banquet.
Grant this through Christ our Lord. Amen.