Dear friends in Christ,
The church email server has been down for much of the day for repairs, so if you’ve tried to email me or other church staff at our church emails, we haven’t had access for much of the day. I hope you’re all doing well this week. Today is the Wednesday in Holy Week. Typically it’s referred to simply as Holy Wednesday, but it is also called Spy Wednesday because Wednesday is the day associated with Judas telling the authorities where Jesus is. As we move through Holy Week leading to Easter, we have a number of things going on at the church:
Maundy Thursday Service: 4/14 @7pm
Tomorrow night at 7pm is our Maundy Thursday/Tenebrae service. Maundy Thursday is the day of the Last Supper, so we will have communion. We will also tell the story of Jesus’ betrayal and death. Our choir will be singing, and we do have childcare available for small children. The service will be live streamed.
I’ve attached a picture from yesterday evening of the sanctuary with nearly everything set up for the service.
Final Lent Scripture Discussion: Women of Wisdom, Wednesdays 7pm in Conference Room and on Zoom
This evening we’re looking at Mary of Bethany from John 11 and 12. Mary anointing Jesus is also one of the traditional texts for Holy Week.
Easter Worship: 4/17 @ 10am
This Sunday is Easter, and we will have our first Easter back in the sanctuary since the start of the pandemic. Our Cherub and Adult Choirs will be singing. I’m very excited to be able to celebrate the joy of Easter all together once more! After worship, we will have our Easter egg hunt on the Green.
Church Spring Clean Up: Saturday, April 30th
We’ve set the date of the Spring Clean up for the morning of April 30th. So, mark your calendars and start getting all your yard work tools together!
Theological/Holy Week Reflection on Blood Donation
I know a number of you regularly donate blood, so I wanted to share this article I’d found by Episcopal priest, Heidi Haverkamp, where she reflects on donating blood and faith. https://www.christiancentury.org/article/first-person/my-blood-donated-you
General Thoughts
I’ve been posting a quote or poem for each day of Holy Week on our social media accounts. I’ve attached the ones I’ve already posted in case you’re not on social media.
One poem that’s struck me this year during Holy Week is “The Coming” by R.S. Thomas:
And God held in his hand
A small globe. Look he said.
The son looked. Far off,
As through water, he saw
A scorched land of fierce
Colour. The light burned
There; crusted buildings
Cast their shadows: a bright
Serpent, A river
Uncoiled itself, radiant
With slime.
On a bare
Hill a bare tree saddened
The sky. many People
Held out their thin arms
To it, as though waiting
For a vanished April
To return to its crossed
Boughs. The son watched
Them. Let me go there, he said.
The poem beautifully captures the love of Christ for the world, for this earth, and his willingness to do anything to save it, even die on a cross.
Have a blessed Holy Week.
Peace,
Pastor Katrina