The joy and mystery of Easter cannot be truly appreciated without journeying with Jesus through his last days, his arrest, his trial, his crucifixion. In Matthew, Mark and Luke’s accounts of Jesus’ life, this final week is given careful attention, with much emphasis on the exact sequence of events leading up to Jesus’ execution on the Friday and the stunning revelations that began to emerge on the Sunday. This year, our preaching through Holy Week will help us to enter into the story of one person whose life was thoroughly tied to the life of Jesus. Join us throughout Holy Week as we look at these events through the eyes of a mother:
Mary of Nazareth, the Mother of Jesus.
Palm Sunday – March 20th – 8:00 and 10:00am – Jesus enters the city of Jerusalem with great fanfare and celebration. The masses recognize Jesus as the long-awaited Saviour, they wave palm branches and call him King. We re-enact this story with our own palm branches, processions, and songs. Mary has long been aware that God has anointed Jesus with a special plan and purpose. Now she watches his fame escalate, even as the powers of darkness conspire against him.
Daily Worship, Monday March 21st – Wednesday March 23rd, 12:10pm +
Advent Café on March 23rd at 7pm: We follow Jesus through the drama of his final days, the controversial teachings he gives in the public sphere, the behind-the-scenes decisions that those closest to him are making, a chain reaction of events set in motion as the power of God is challenged by the power of the status quo.
Maundy Thursday – March 24th – 12:10pm & 7:00pm This is Jesus’ last night with his disciples before his arrest and death. In the face of the violence and hatred closing in on him, Jesus chooses to share a meal with his disciples, to wash their feet in an act of friendship, care, and service for them, and to speak to his followers about God’s great calling to us that we learn how to love one another.
Our service ends with the arrest of Jesus. We strip our church of all adornment, we extinguish the lights, we are invited to remain in the dark for time of prayer and meditation. We are asked to leave in silence.
Good Friday –March 25th –Good Friday Walk @ 9:45am (gathering at Royal House, 95 Church Street) & Worship @ St. George’s, noon. Through music and word, story-telling, prayer and silence, we gather at the cross, we tell the story of Jesus’ death, of his execution at the hands of the religious and political leaders, and the faithfulness of those in his inner circle, including Mary, accompanying Jesus even as he hangs on the cross. We connect his story of suffering and darkness to the places in our lives where we are most broken, most in need of God’s compassion and healing.
Easter Vigil –March 26th –7:00pm –With special guest Bishop Michael we gather on this evening and do what people of faith have been doing for thousands of years: we light lights in the darkness. We begin with the lighting the new fire. We worship by candlelight, entering the dark church where we last left one another following the story of Jesus’ death. We tell some of our stories –the stories of God’s ongoing faithfulness to, and love for, us. We sing the hymn of new light, and tell the best story of all, the story of the empty tomb, of the risen Christ. We celebrate the news with song, with a three confirmations, and a sharing of God’s meal of bread and wine. In Mary’s story, we bring our most profound experiences of heartbreak to bear on the promise of God’s love and life.
This service is offers that most life-giving transition between the darkness of Good Friday and the hope of Easter morning. *We celebrate afterward with a Resurrection Party!
Easter Morning –March 27th –8:00am and 10:00am –
All the bells and whistles, decorations, fanfare, special and joyous music you would expect on Easter morning… Plus some fun surprises!