Holy Week is a time for us to ponder the incredible love that Jesus the Christ, the Man/God showed to humanity by allowing us to kill him, and the tremendous sadness that we each have within our own nature the ability to do that to another human being. Jesus did not respond to human violence with violence but with non-violent resistance and showed by his resurrection that violence is powerless over life. God’s unconditional love is shown in that even though humanity did its worst, Jesus the Christ came back and stays in relationship to us.
Holy Week starts with Palm Sunday, March29 when we remember Jesus’ triumphant ride into Jerusalem, incongruously on a donkey. At the 10:30 service we will process with palms and then go suddenly into the Passion Gospel, relating Jesus’ betrayal, trial and death: it’s a sudden change which brings us up short and connects us to the pathos of human love and human loss. Sunday April 5th, service at 10:30 (also live-streamed on Facebook) will all reflect this joy and grief.
Stations of the Cross
Follow Jesus as he travels along the Via Dolorosa ( Road of Sorrows) from Gethsemane to his death, burial and finally resurrection. Along the way, we pray for those in need around the world. This service lasts 30 -45 minutes. It is available for private prayer here, and we will pray it together on Friday April 3rd at 12:00pm.
Maundy Thursday April 2nd, 7pm in-person with livestream on Facebook
On Maundy Thursday we remember Jesus’ last supper with his friends and the subsequent betrayal in the Garden of Gethsemane. Following the gospel of John we include a ceremony of foot-washing as well as communion with wine. Afterwards, the church is stripped of all its color and artwork, ending with the stripping of the altar, reminding us of how Jesus was stripped naked. We depart in silence, just as his disciples left him, silently melting into the night.
Good Friday, April 3rd, 7:30pm
Good Friday is the day when Jesus was crucified. The Scriptures tell us that he hung on the cross for three hours, which we remember from noon until three. Some people choose to fast until 3 pm as a way of personally connecting with Jesus’ sacrifice. We will mark the day with a traditional Good Friday liturgy at 7:30pm.
Easter Vigil Saturday, April 4th, 7:45 pm
Finally, we get to Easter, but we can’t quite wait until Easter morning, so we celebrate the night of Jesus’ resurrection with the Great Vigil of Easter. During this ancient service, we usually light the new fire and bring light into the church for the recounting of our salvation history. Then, after we have renewed our Baptismal Vows, we celebrate the resurrection in a joyful singing of the Gloria before celebrating the first Eucharist of Easter.
Easter Day – Sunday, Aprilo 5th: 10:30am in-person, live streamed on Facebook
Our celebration continues on Easter Morning with an in-person Eucharist at 10:30am.
