Holy Week 2022

April 8, 2022

Dear Members of the Villanova Community,

The Lenten season is a time for reflection, sacrifice and prayer. A time to renew our commitment to our faith and to being the best version of ourselves, living each day a little better than the day before, as we await the Resurrection.

It’s also a time of gratitude, humility and community. As an Augustinian community, we find God in our relationships with one another. Whether it’s a conversation with a friend who makes us feel better; a colleague who gives credit to others when receiving praise; or the university president who is grateful for the individual and collective deeds of students, faculty, staff and alumni that allow Villanova to be Villanova—these are the types of moments that define the Lenten season.

It is in this Lenten spirit of gratitude, humility and community that I have decided to extend our Easter break for faculty and staff by closing the University on Holy Thursday (April 14). Managers of essential staff who still need to report on Thursday should work with those employees to take this time at another point during this calendar year.

Whether you are celebrating Easter, Passover or Ramadan, I hope that during this holiest of times you have found your own moments of reflection, sacrifice, prayer, gratitude, humility and community. May we all commit ourselves to living the lives our faiths call us to live, and I pray that the upcoming break provides the opportunity for reflection and relaxation.

I extend my warmest wishes to you and your families for your Easter, Passover and Ramadan celebrations, and may God bless you and your families this Holy Week.

Sincerely,

Rev. Peter M. Donohue, OSA
President