When I was a kid, we went to either Maundy Thursday or Good Friday. It wasn’t really until seminary that I learned that each service of Holy Week has a different focus. Thursday is about the last supper. It feels the most like a ‘normal’ service. The big shift happens after communion when we strip all the banners and shiny things from the sanctuary and leave in silence. Good Friday centers on the cross. We walk with Jesus from the table to the garden where He prays and then to the cross. With special music and repeated phrases and the story from the Gospel, we reflect on this central event of our faith. We gather and leave in silence…this year our kids will also have the chance to learn in an age appropriate way…they will even practice some silence. The service ends with a reflection of three crosses in the front of the sanctuary wall. Easter Vigil is probably the least known…originally meant to run for several hours, we do a modified version that starts in the Old Testament and in the dark, but with a small fire-hope! Partway through the service we imagine the first light, the opening of the tomb…the lights go up, the Gospel of Easter is proclaimed and we break our fast with communion. These services are sure to touch you and inspire you! – Pastor Trudy Stoffel
