The Sacred Journey from Cross to Tomb to Resurrection

Each year we trace the steps from the Upper Room where Jesus shared a sacred meal with his disciples to a sham trial at the hands of men who feared his growing power. From the palace courtyard as the cock crows through the streets and on to Calvary, to the hill where the Roman crosses were erected and where Jesus was hung. From the foot of the cross to the silence of the tomb. And finally, as the new day breaks, the miraculous journey from death to life as Jesus is found not among the dead, not in the cold stone grave, but with the women who have come at sunrise. Each of these unique services tells a part of the story and together they carry us forward to Easter joy and the promise of eternal life.

Palm Sunday

Sunday, March 29 at 8:30am (spoken) and 10:30am (with choir)

What to expect: Weather permitting, the service begins outside with the blessing of palm branches which are then distributed to the congregation. From there we process into church, reenacting the triumphant entry of Jesus into Jerusalem where the people along the roads laid down palm branches in his path. The service proceeds like a normal Sunday morning but instead of hearing a short passage from the Gospel we read the passion, the portion of the Gospel that narrates all that happened from the Passover meal shared by Jesus and his disciples through his death on the cross. After silent reflection and a brief sermon we continue with the Sunday service until we depart in silence.

Reasons to attend this service:

• FREE palm branches for everyone who attends! Check out this YouTube video to learn how to fold your palms into a cross.

• The dramatic reading of the Passion narrative invites us to place ourselves in the story. What was it like in the Upper Room? Would I have denied Jesus? How was Mary able to stay at the foot of the cross on which her son was dying?

• Wild transitions from triumphant entry to cruel death to the grace of sharing Holy Communion together to a silent exit might stir up feelings of confusion and awe - perfect preparation for the continuing journey.

maundy thursday

Thursday, April 2 at 7:00pm

What to expect: The liturgy of Maundy Thursday takes us back to the night of the Last Supper where Jesus is gathered with his friends and family. The rituals of this night are connected with what happened that night. Jesus washed the feet of his disciples and so we engage in the same practice. Jesus sat at table with his people and instituted the sacrament of Holy Communion when he shared bread and wine with them and so we, too, share the sacred meal together. Jesus prepared his disciples for the coming difficult hours and days, and so we prepare for them as well, clearing away distractions and stripping bare the sanctuary. In many ways, the service is like a typical Sunday morning at Emmanuel, and yet there is something different about this night, something about the way Jesus speaks that lets his disciples, and us, know that world changing events are about to unfold.

Reasons to attend this service:

• Maundy Thursday invites active participation. To the extent that we want to, we get our feet and hands wet, we taste the bread and the wine, we carry the decorative objects out of the church.

• Maundy Thursday gets its name from the latin word mandatum, the root of the English word mandate or commandment. It is in this service that we hear Jesus give the new commandment, that we love one another.

• This is the first part of The Sacrum Triduum (Three Sacred Days), a multi-part liturgy that plays out over Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and The Great Vigil of Easter. This is where we start, together.

good friday

Friday, April 3 at 7:00pm

What to expect: Act 2 of The Sacrum Triduum, the great three days, begins in silence as the choir and clergy enter the stripped-bare sanctuary. The choir sings an unaccompanied introit and our hearts break open as the service begins. We sit for a time in silence.

And then we pray. Oh how we pray. We pray through hearing the Passion chanted by choir and soloists, we pray through venerating the Cross, we pray through the Solemn Collects. We pray through a silent Communion from the reserved sacrament. We pray.

Reasons to attend this service:

• The only way to Easter joy is through the cross. No side-stepping, no hiding. Nope, for Resurrection to have meaning, power, to have impact on us, then the cross has to be real. And if we must confront the cross, let’s do it together, supporting one another, loving one another.

• For a tradition that typically enjoys a fair amount of pew aerobics, The Episcopal Church takes time on Good Friday to be still and quiet. Nothing is rushed. We put ourselves in God’s hands and trust in the Divine Love.

• Church crying is always OK, and on Good Friday the Spirit is hard at work. Less an exercise of intellect than an event of the heart, Good Friday offers an emotional outlet that might not always seem available at other services.

the great vigil of easter

Saturday, April 4 at 8:00pm

Welcome to the greatest liturgy in the Christian year. On this night we travel from pre-creation darkness all the way to the blazing light of Christ’s resurrection. What a glorious, wondrous trip!

What to expect: Act 3, the wild finale of the Sacrum Triduum begins in utter darkness. Standing outside the church (weather permitting) a new fire is lit, and the light is carried into the darkened church. Little by little the light spreads as the pew candles are lit from the great Paschal candle. This holy light, the light of Christ, is praised in the singing of The Exsultet. Then we settle in for a series of lessons from the Hebrew scriptures, hearing again the story of our creation, our story, the story of the generations who prepared the way for the Light to come into the world. As the light grows we return to the waters of baptism. And then, finally the light blazes as we announce the great good news of Easter: Jesus Christ is Risen Today! Alleluia!

Isn’t that a lot to do in one night? Well, that depends on how you experience time. Time is measured in two different ways in the life of the Spirit. Chronos is the forward propelling time that we measure with clocks, on watches, and by the evolutionary phases of the moon. Kairos is what many philosophers and mystics would refer to as “deep time”. This is the time we’re talking about where the world seems to stop entirely. It can be measured in deep exhales, a shared laugh, or by a colorful sunset. Kairos is qualitative time where you have the opportunity to move forward in the present, untethered by any moving clock or calendar. The Easter Vigil is all about Kairos.

Reasons to attend this service:

• The Great Vigil of Easter is all that and then some. It is the heart of the liturgical life of our church.

• Do you enjoy candlelight? Well then come see the mother of all candles lit and carried in procession.

• Do you enjoy sweeping epics with triumphantly happy endings? This is the night for you.

easter Sunday morning

Sunday, April 5 at 8:30am A simple spoken service without music

Sunday, April 5 at 10:30am A festive celebration with Choir and Trumpets

The biggest party of the year! Trumpets blare and we sing, say, and shout all the Alleluias! we can get our hands on. The strife is indeed over. Christ is Risen and death is destroyed. The liturgies of Easter morning follow the same form as most Sunday services, but they are dressed up in all the Easter finery we can muster. Everything is bigger, grander, fancier than a typical Sunday, but the message is the same: God so LOVED (and still loves!) the world that God gave his only begotten son to the end that all who believe in him should not perish but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)