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The beginning of Holy Week is the Sunday before Easter, known as Passion Sunday or Palm Sunday. On this day we remember two very different events which demonstrate the range of emotions that we will experience throughout the coming week. First, we remember the Triumphal Entry, when Jesus entered Jerusalem the last time, riding on a donkey, and was hailed by the crowds as a king, who shouted “hosanna” and laid palm branches before him. Then, when we reach the Gospel reading, the tone shifts with the long Crucifixion narrative, where the same crowds who hailed Jesus as a king now shout to crucify him.
The service begins with the Liturgy of the Palms. At the 10:30 service we will, weather permitting, gather in the Cloister Garden at the start of the service and process into the church waving our palms and singing “hosanna!” At both services, the long Gospel passage will take the place of the sermon, the testimony of Jesus’ loving sacrifice standing for itself. The Gospel is read in parts, with the entire congregation taking the part of the crowd demanding that Jesus be crucified, a reminder that it was our sins that he died.
During Holy Week, the most important part of the Church calendar, especially around Maundy Thursday when we commemorate the institution of the Eucharist, we like to take time to celebrate and honor all those at Christ Church who give their time to serve our community by serving at the altar and assisting with our worship. Immediately following the noon service of Holy Eucharist and healing, we will have a luncheon to honor those who serve at the altar in the Cloister Room. This includes all Clergy, Lectors, Lay Eucharistic Ministers, Lay Eucharistic Visitors, Healing Ministers, Acolytes, Vergers, Ushers, Musicians, and members of the Choir, Altar Guild, and Flower Guild.
On Maundy Thursday, we remember the Last Supper where Jesus washed his disciples feet, celebrated the Passover meal with them, instituted the Eucharist, went to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray, and was betrayed by Judas and arrested. The word “maundy” comes from the Latin word “mandatum,” meaning “commandment.” It refers to Jesus’ words to his disciples at the Last Supper: “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:34-35)
Maundy Thursday is the beginning of the period called the Easter Triduum, which means “three days” in Latin. It refers to the three day period from Thursday evening to Sunday morning which contains the heart of the Holy Week and Easter observances: Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter. The Maundy Thursday service ends without a dismissal and everyone departing in silence. This emphasizes that the services of the Triduum are all part of one long observance. Maundy Thursday is a beautiful and bittersweet service remembering both the pain of Jesus’ betrayal and arrest, but also the love he had for his disciples and the love he commands us to have for one another.
This year, we are creating a combined service to commemorate all these events. At 6 pm, we will meet in Jones Chapel for an Agape Supper, a family-friendly supper of lentil soup, olives, bread, cheese, and other Mediterranean foods, like the disciples would have shared together. At the end of the meal, we will celebrate the Eucharist using bread and wine from the table just like Jesus did. Then, like Jesus leading his disciples to the garden, we will proceed to the church for a ceremony of foot washing. All who wish may remove their shoes and come forward to participate in this ceremony of love and mutual service. When it is your turn, sit and allow your feet to be washed and dried. Then, stay to wash and dry the feet of the person behind you. Next, we will observe the Stripping of the Altar, a solemn process of removing all ornamentation from the church to remember Jesus’ betrayal and to prepare for Good Friday, while the 22nd Psalm is chanted and the lights are gradually lowered. Then we will depart in darkness and contemplative silence.
Nursery care will be available for infants and small children, however dinner is not being provided in the nursery, so children will need to be fed before or have a meal packed.
Good Friday is most solemn date on the Church calendar. On this day, we remember Jesus’ Crucifixion and give thanks for his loving sacrifice by repenting of our sins. In some places, the color for the day is black. However, at Christ Church we observe the solemnity of the day by having the church stripped of all decoration save for a plain, wooden cross. We have one service, at noon on Friday. It is a simple, quiet, beautiful service of penitence and mourning. Just like on Palm Sunday, the story of the Crucifixion is read, this time from the Gospel of John. There is an opportunity to spend time in quiet prayer before the wooden cross.
In memory of Jesus’ death and burial, the Eucharist is not celebrated on Good Friday and Holy Saturday. Instead, communion is distributed from the reserved Sacrament consecrated the night before, on Maundy Thursday. As with Maundy Thursday, there is no dismissal and everyone departs in silence, in recognition that the services of the Easter Triduum are really all one service.
The Easter Egg Hunt will be held on April 4 at the home of Andy & Keri Jones. Arrival and games begin at 11:30, with the hunt beginning at 12:00. More games, competitions for older children, and fellowship will follow. Bring a picnic blanket for your family; lunch will be provided.
The Easter Vigil is an ancient and beautiful service of Easter Eve. Following the Jewish custom, which considered the day to begin at sundown, the evening of Saturday is considered the beginning of Easter. This service represents the full transition between the solemnity of Holy Week and the joy of Easter.
The service begins with a darkened room into which the Paschal (Easter) Candle is brought with the exclamation “The Light of Christ!” Then, a cantor chants the Exsultet, an ancient prayer proclaiming the Resurrection of Jesus. Then, readers will read several passages from the Bible telling the story of salvation, of humanity’s sin, God’s covenant, his deliverance of Israel from slavery in Egypt, and the prophecies of the Messiah. Then the Resurrection is proclaimed and the people sing the Gloria for the first time since the beginning of Lent. The lights are raised and people are encouraged to bring bells to ring at this moment. Then the service continues with the story of the Resurrection from one of the Gospels, the renewal of Baptismal vows, and the celebration of Holy Eucharist.
This service is celebrated jointly with St. Paul’s Episcopal Church. This year, they will be hosting it at 753 College Street in Macon.
Alleluia! Christ is Risen! The morning of Easter Day celebrates the Resurrection of Jesus and is the most joyful day on the calendar. It brings the Easter Triduum to a close and beings the Easter season, which lasts for the next fifty days until Pentecost. The joyful word “alleluia!” which left the liturgy during Lent returns in full force. The color for the season is white, representing holiness and purity. In recognition of the forgiveness of our sins in Jesus Christ, throughout the Easter season we omit the Confession of Sin and stand, rather than kneel, during our prayers.
On Easter Day we will have services at 8:00 AM and 10:30 AM. There will be no Sunday School, however there will be coffee in the parish house between services for those who wish to fellowship and socialize. You are also encouraged to bring cut flowers to decorate the flower cross which will be on the walk in front of the church.