Holy Week begins Sunday, March 28. Here is what is going on at Grace Kernersville.
What is Holy Week?
Holy Week refers to the week which begins with Palm Sunday and concludes on Easter Sunday during which the church remembers the events and words spoken by Jesus twenty centuries ago.
Why participate in Holy Week services?
As I’ve celebrated Easter over the years, it has grown increasingly difficult to capture all that Easter means during a single worship service on Easter Sunday. Emotionally, it feels like too much to take in: the anticipation at the meal on Thursday evening, the shock of the betrayal, denial, and abandonment, the devastation on Golgotha, the finality at the tomb on Friday, the silence of Saturday, and the thunderstruck hope and joy on Sunday. This year we will remember the events of Holy Week by celebrating Palm (or Passion) Sunday, Holy (or Maundy) Thursday, Good Friday (Tenebrae), and Resurrection (or Easter) Sunday. Both Palm Sunday and Resurrection Sunday will be celebrated during our regular worship times. In addition, we will hold special services on Thursday and Friday evening from 7-8pm.
What are the services?
- Holy (Maundy) Thursday (7 pm on April 1). Sundown on Holy Thursday begins the Triduum (tree-do-‘em) or “three days.” Holy Thursday is oftentimes referred to as Maundy which is taken from the Latin “mandatum” or “commandment.” After washing his disciples’ feet and instituting the Lord’s Supper, Jesus told his disciples, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another (John 13:34).” On Holy Thursday, we will gather and recount Jesus’ last words to his disciples. Unlike previous years, we will not celebrate the Lord’s Supper, but we will wait until Easter Morning to receive the sacrament. The service concludes with recalling the betrayal of Jesus by Judas Iscariot.
- Kernersville Cross Walk. The 30th Good Friday Crosswalk will take place on April 2. Walkers gather in the Food Lion parking lot at 617 N. Main St. at 9:00am and depart at 9:30am on a silent walk to Mt. Gur Cemetery. This event is sponsored by the Kernersville Christian Minister’s Fellowship
- Good Friday or Tenebrae (7 pm on April 2). Tenebrae is Latin for “shadows.” During the Good Friday service we will remember Jesus’ last words, his crucifixion, and death.
- Resurrection (Easter) Sunday at the Picnic Shelter (11 am on April 4). Resurrection Sunday celebrates the truth that the tomb was empty because the Lord Jesus had conquered sin and death by rising from dead. Jesus’ resurrection confirms for us that he is the Son of God, that he accomplished the work of saving his own, and that we too share in the hope of the resurrection and the promise of new life by our faith in him.