Thursday MEMO
for Holy Week and Easter
April 21, 2011
With tonight's service we begin the Paschal Triduum -- the Sacred Three Days. While we may be tempted to think of our worship this evening, tomorrow evening, and Saturday as three separate services, it is actually one liturgy in three parts beginning on Maundy Thursday, continuing through Good Friday and culminating with the Great Vigil of Easter.
Maunday Thursday, April 21st, 7 PM: Liturgy of the Day with the giving of a new commandment that we love one another as He has loved us, the washing of each other's feet in response to that commandment, the institution of the Lord's Supper, the stripping of the altar for Good Friday, and the opportunity to keep vigil in front of the reserved sacrament.Good Friday, April 21st, noon to 2 PM: We offer a simple, very open, service of reflection on the Cross that includes the reading of Psalms and brief scripture, interspersed with periods of time for silent meditation. You are
welcome to come and go according to your needs during this two-hour period.At 2:00 we will walk and pray the liturgy of the Stations of the Cross.
At 7 PM: The Liturgy of the Crucifixion of our Lord Jesus Christ. This liturgy, unique to Good Friday, includes readings, hymns, prayers, and anthems, and concludes with communion, using bread and wine consecrated at the Maundy Thursday Rite. We are in the desolate valley of our three-day journey, the valley of the shadow of death.
Holy Saturday: This day is a poignant day for us as Christians and I commend it to you as a time for profound reflection. Christ has died. The resurrection has not yet taken place. We will have consumed even the reserved sacrament at the Good Friday liturgy, so the aumbry is empty. The eucharist is never celebrated during the day on Holy Saturday. In one Orthodox icon, Jesus
is pictured standing in the depths reaching down to Adam and Eve -- a symbolic gesture of Jesus touching everything in each of us that has turned away from God -- and lifting them (and us) up through God's liberating power. We will not hold a service during the daytime on Saturday, although the Altar Guild and others will be busy with preparations. However, if you do nothing else on Saturday morning or afternoon, take some quiet time to consider where God has been reaching out to you in your life, lifting you up through that liberating power that is God's alone. I commend to you the very brief liturgy provided on page 283 in the Prayer Book, which includes Job 14:1-14, Psalm 130, 1 Peter 4:1-8, and Matthew 27:57-66, or John 19:38-42.April 23, 8:00 pm: The Great Vigil of Easter begins outside the church in darkness, as we kindle the new fire of Easter, light the Paschal candle, and carry it in the procession to the church. There we hear the chanted words of the ancient Exsultet (Latin: Rejoice!), with its announcement that God is at work in this mysterious night. The service continues by candlelight
with the dramatic stories of salvation history, with at least one "enacted" reading. the highpoint of the Vigil is the proclamation "Alleluia! Christ is risen!" At that moment we move from darkness to light and from solemnity to exuberant joy, accompanying our acclamation with vigorous ringing of bells of any kind!!! So...if you have a portable bell or gong (small or large) please bring it with you to the Vigil. We begin of the Easter feast with the celebration of the first Eucharist of Easter. The fast is over and the feast begins.April 24, Easter Sunday, 8 and 10 AM: The Feast of the Resurrection
of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Easter, the celebration of Jesus’ resurrection, is the great feast of the Christian year. The 8 o'clock liturgy will be quiet and joyfully reflective. At 10 o'clock we will "pull out all the stops" with organ music, hymns, preaching, celebrating the eucharist, and greeting one another in joy and hope and the words, "The Lord is risen, indeed. Alleluia!”We hope you can be with us on Easter Day!
Envelopes for the traditional special offering for the church in the Holy Lands, commonly known as "the Good Friday Offering," will be available at all services during Holy Week.
On a personal note...You may recall that last Sunday we prayed for (our daughter-in-law) "Molly as she prepared to give birth." Our son Ben called at seven Sunday evening to announce the birth of Alice Marie Frantzdale! Duane and I spent several wonderful hours on Monday in their Boston hospital room holding this precious new human being who is our granddaughter. So the new life of Easter -- and the giving of thanks that goes with it -- is very real for us this season. Thank you for all your prayers and the good wishes. (And, yes, there are pictures posted on the bulletin board!)
A rainy Palm Sunday led to a jubilant indoor gathering for the Blessing of the Palms. special thanks to Connor, Albert, Melissa, Ronan, and Aislinn for serving as greeters and for distributing the palms! And to all who participated in the Passion Narrative.Food for thought from JΓΌrgen Moltmann:
Easter is a feast, and it is as the feast of freedom that is is celebrated. For with Easter begins the laughter of the redeemed, the dance of the liberated and the creative play of fantasy. From time immemorial Easter hymns have celebrated the victory of life by laughing at death, mocking at hell, and ridiculing the mighty ones who spread fear and terror around them... Easter is at one and the same time God's protest against death, and the feast of freedom from death. Anyone who fails to hold these two things together has failed to understand the resurrection of the Christ who was crucified.
A blessed Holy Week and Joyous Eastertide to All!
See you in church!
With love and gratitude,
Heidi+
