Easter (Part 2)

As any sleep-forsaking group of church-lovers would do… we stuck around for the first of their two normal Easter Sunday services. Well, 5 of us stuck around. Our other visitors from the night watch (a total of about 7 additional people) decided not to embrace insanity and went home to sleep.

Because it was Easter, the church was quite crowded. And Richard and I were a little slow in making it back to the room. (A small group of us had followed Mother Anne back to her office where she invited us to share a baked treat that someone had brought her.) When we sat down, we realized that our little space on the pew was rather crowded. So Richard decided we should just go for it… we sat in the very first row (which, big shock, was still WIDE open).

I actually really enjoyed the experience from the first row. Primary reason? The tulips. The front row allowed for much easier viewing and appreciation of what I think just may be God’s most beautiful flower. Just a few feet in front of us is where the tulips and easter lilies were generously spread in celebration of Jesus’ resurrection.

EASTER!!! (Part 1)

Wow. Wow, wow, wow.

I have to say that the Easter Sunday services were the most incredible church experience I have ever had. By the time we left, my face actually hurt from smiling so much.

The first service we attended was the 6:30 sunrise service… the Easter Vigil. The service began in darkness with the lighting of the Paschal candle. They brought the candle in with the proclamation of “The light of Christ” and we all lit our own little candles from this same fire.

Good Friday

I don’t really have time to write much about Good Friday, but it seemed like I should at least get something in before Easter (although it is technically Sunday already).

The service on Friday was amazing.

I knew they would be wearing all black. I didn’t expect it to impact me at all. It’s just a different color. I was wrong.

They looked so plain and bare and mournful. Just like the stripped altar at the front of the room. Plain… bare… empty… lacking. I guess I never consciously thought about it, but they usually come out in white or beautiful, bright colors. I had never seen these people stand at the front of the room with no ornamentation… in simple, dull black. There was such an evident absence… such a clear lack.

I knew that they would prostrate themselves once they reached the front of the room. I honestly expected it to feel a little cheesy. I expected to be somewhat amused, whilst yelling at myself internally for being so irreverent. I was wrong.

The moment was so somber. There was no processional music, as in a normal service. They simply entered in silence as we knelt between the pews. When they fell on their faces at the front of the room, my heart turned over within me. As they lingered there in that posture, the sobriety deepened.

Aren’t You Forgetting Something?

As we left tonight, the officer who was watching the church said these words to Richard: “I was about to say… Aren’t you forgetting something?”

And this is why:

Church-Filled Day

I was at church (St. Andrew’s Episcopal church) from about 5:15 PM to 3:15 AM tonight. Ten hours. Ten of them.

Overall feeling about the evening: I love holy week!!!

Today was Maundy Thursday. A day that sounds like three different days of the week, if you’re really a nerd about it. (Maundy sounds like Monday. There was a Seder… and Seder Day clearly sounds like Saturday. And, of course… we have Thursday. Which sounds remarkably like… Thursday.)

The evening of much churchness kicked off with a Seder. I had never been to a Seder before. Talk about some interesting tastes. Mmm… bitter herbs. The dinner they served was really good, though. You should ask Aaron Swanger about the french toast carrots and the trident lamb. Speaking of lamb… I really love lamb.

After the Seder, we headed upstairs for the Maundy Thursday liturgy. Unlike the Palm Sunday service, tonight’s liturgy was back to the three-books-and-a-piece-of-paper juggling game. When they don’t kill 50 trees to put everything in the program for each service, it’s a little tricky to keep up. (Of course, I usually just skip the Bible for the scripture readings. They are, in fact, READING said scriptures out loud, so there isn’t much point to my staring at the words as they go along. Especially since I only have two hands … and three other very important materials to navigate.)

I Take it He was Listening

On Saturday night, during our team’s set, I was not running screens and simply sat in the room, participating in the intercession set. When it came time for small group prayer, I did something that I haven’t done in months. I actually got up and prayed in a small group.

To be completely honest, the experience made me want to continue avoiding small group prayer for another 8 months or so. One of the people in my small group just kept praying… and praying… and praying… and praying. And Richard wasn’t playing a particularly small-group-friendly song. I can’t tell you how many times I started to turn to walk away (from the other two girls in our group of 3) before I would stop myself and continue to wait it out. (Yep… I’m pretty weak.)

A couple hours later, however, I decided that I might want to keep doing that small group prayer thing.