Both/And
And so we enter the most sacred week in the Church calendar: Holy Week. We accompany Jesus in his Passion and celebrate his Resurrection. In large part, the entire Gospel hinges on these two days.
Our Good Friday and Easter Sunday services are meant to be complements; a pairing. The idea, as St. Paul puts it, is to encourage us to enter into (“fellowship” with) Jesus’ suffering and to know him in the power of Resurrection. Christian faith reminds us that we cannot have one without the other, and it is often the former that precedes the latter. We invite you to join us and, if possible, to join us in both services to experience their arc.
Good Friday
Good Friday is understandably sombre – we encourage everyone to wear black (or dark colours) and enter the service in silence. The service features a few pieces of music, listening to the Passion narrative (this year, from the Gospel of Mark), and several embodied actions and creative expressions as part of the liturgy (e.g. saluting at one point in the narrative where Jesus is saluted by the soldiers who mock him; light and shadow around a cross that is painted with various colours during the service etc.). Our hope is not only to “hear” the story but to experience it with Jesus. The service will end abruptly, seemingly without conclusion, and everyone leaves in silence just as they entered.
Easter Sunday
Easter Sunday is the opposite in tone and feel. We encourage everyone to wear white (or light colours), we will give ample time to singing together (with a full band!), hear an Easter homily, celebrate communion, and conclude with a catered lunch (and Easter chocolates!).
If you would like to attend, we would love to have you; if you don’t mind letting us know, that would help with food preparation. 🙂
WEST END ABBEY 