Holy means “set apart.”
For many centuries, followers of Jesus have looked forward to this meaningful week of gatherings and set this time apart. It is still uncertain when Christians first began to make an annual (as opposed to a weekly) memorial of the death and resurrection of Christ. This Pascha (a word derived indirectly from pesach, Hebrew ‘Passover’) was at first a night-long vigil, followed by the celebration of the Eucharist at cock-crow, and all the great themes of redemption were included within it: incarnation, suffering, death, resurrection, glorification. Over time, the Pascha developed into the articulated structure of Holy Week and Easter.
Through participation in the whole sequence of services, the Christian shares in Christ’s own journey, from the triumphal entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday to the empty tomb on Easter morning. You will be blessed alongside the millions of believers around the world who will be coming together in deepening anticipation! Will you set it apart?
Palm Sunday
April 13 - 9 & 11am (no 5pm service)
The procession with palms, which was already observed in Jerusalem in the fourth century to commemorate Christ’s “triumphal entry” into Jerusalem, is accompanied by the reading or singing of the Passion Narrative, in which the whole story of the week is anticipated.
The Triduum
MAUNDY THURSDAY - April 17 - 6:30p
Childcare for 0-5
Maundy Thursday (from mandatum, ‘commandment’, John 13.34) contains a rich complex of themes: humble Christian service expressed through Christ’s washing of his disciples’ feet, the institution of the Eucharist, the perfection of Christ’s loving obedience through the agony of Gethsemane. The option for footwashing will be available at the end of the service.
GOOD FRIDAY - April 18 - Noon & 6:30p
Childcare for 0-5
After keeping vigil (‘Could you not watch with me one hour?’), Thursday passes into Good Friday with the veneration of the cross. There is no celebration of the Eucharist on Good Friday. The church remains stripped of all decoration. It continues bare and empty through the following day until nightfall, a day without a liturgy: there can be no adequate way of recalling the “being dead” of the Son of God, other than silence and desolation.
EASTER
This year, to ensure we’re making room for both Villagers and visitors, we’re asking you to register for the Easter service you’re planning to attend below or on our Holy Week page. We know that’s not ideal, but it’s part of serving one another, supporting our staff, welcoming those whom the Lord will send and honoring fire code. Though no one will be turned away, there will be a limited number of registrations per service.
THE GREAT VIGIL / EASTER SERVICE - April 19 - 6:30p
Childcare for 0-5
This year, our vigil will extend to an Easter celebration of Holy Communion. Within the silence there grows a sense of peace and completion, and then rising excitement as the Easter Vigil draws near, the drama of darkness and death defeated. At the climax of the service, the bells ring, the cross is unshrouded and the ‘alleluias’ return as we begin the celebration of the Resurrection!
SUNDAY SERVICES - 8a - 9:45a - 11:30a
Don’t forget to bring your bells, tambourines and other instruments for the “Alleluias!”