Join us at 7:30 p.m. on Maundy Thursday, April 2, for a service focusing on the Maundy Thursday and Good Friday part of the Holy Week story.
The mood shifts drastically and quickly, from the highs of Palm Sunday to the dangers of Maundy Thursday. The powers that be are so threatened by Jesus' message of love that they start working hard to silence him. The empire of Rome has a special way of silencing threats to their power and control: crucifixion. By Thursday, it’s clear to Jesus that he will be killed by the government, and so he gathers with his disciples for a final meal, his last supper. And he gives them a gift when he takes the bread from the table, blesses it, breaks it, and gives it to them. This act is so central to the community of his followers that it is something we continue to celebrate it, remembering it, reenacting it, and finding spiritual nourishment through it.
On Friday, the government starts its tortuous execution process and before sundown, Jesus is dead.
We know that death cannot K*ll love, and by Sunday, Jesus’ disciples found Jesus was somehow still present to them, with them, among them. This is the mystery we call “the resurrection.”
To go from the Palm Sunday celebration to the Easter celebration without the crucifixion misses a vital part of the story. That’s why we will gather at our church with our friends from United Church of Christ Fremont at 7:30 p.m. on Maundy Thursday, April 2, for a service focusing on the Maundy Thursday and Good Friday part of the story. (This service will also be streamed to Zoom. The registration link is the same as the link for Sunday morning worship: bit.ly/reg4worship.)
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