Holy Saturday
MEMO
As we wait in the emptiness and silence of Holy Saturday, I
want to share with you some visual glimpses of the poignant liturgies of Maundy
Thursday and Good Friday.
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| "So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet." |
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| "We praise you, we bless you, and give thanks to you, Lord our God." |
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| The Maundy Thursday consecrated elements reserved for Good Friday |
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| Good Friday |
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| "Before the cock crows today, you will deny me three times" |
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| The Passion according to John Jesus and Pilate, exquisitely voiced by Preston and Kaitlyn |
Food for
thought from my Good Friday evening reflection…
This year Good Friday fell on March 25th. March 25th,
you may notice, is nine months before Christmas, and as such is the day long
ago designated by the Church as the Feast of the Annunciation – Mary’s
unexpected visit by the angel Gabriel, announcing that she would conceive and
bear a child, and Mary’s response, “Let it be to me according to your word.”
The coinciding this year of the calendar day of the conception
of Jesus with the death of Jesus struck me deeply. Love at the beginning and
love at the end. And that realization brought to mind a poem written by a dear
friend of mine, Janet Morgan, an elderly deacon who died while I was in
seminary, but whose poetry is etched in my heart. While I have always thought
of this as a Christmas poem, it is equally Good Friday … and even Holy Saturday:
The candles
on the altar burn so low
We cannot read the shadows that they cast;
A cradle? Or a Cross? All that we know
Is love at the beginning –
And love at the last.
A cradle? Or a Cross? All that we know
Is love at the beginning –
And love at the last.
I hope you will join us this evening at 8:00 for the Vigil and
tomorrow morning at 10:00 for Easter Day as we celebrate the resurrection
promise of new life from the empty tomb.
In the great mystery of the resurrection,
Heidi+
Heidi+
