Sunday, April 13, a single service at 9:30 a.m. beginning at HJ’s Youth and Community Center.

On Palm Sunday, the crowds in Jerusalem welcomed Jesus as God’s anointed king, the one sent to free them from bondage and oppression. Only days after coming to Jerusalem, Jesus would be betrayed, tortured, and hung to die a traitor’s death. Our commemoration of Palm Sunday begins with a triumphal procession but quickly stops short at the foot of the cross.

We’ll gather at 9:30 a.m. in HJ’s parking lot for the Blessing of the Palms. Then, led by members of the Kansas City St. Andrew Pipes & Drums, we’ll walk with Jesus as he rides a donkey to the church entrance. We’ll also experience a scriptural and musical presentation of the Stations of the Cross before sharing Holy Communion.

(In case of inclement weather, the Palm Sunday procession will begin in the Jewell Room.)

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Monday, April 14, at 12 p.m. in the chapel.

Continue your Holy Week journey with Eucharist in the chapel. The service lasts about 40 minutes.

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Tuesday, April 15, 6 p.m., in the nave

Reflect on Jesus’ journey to the cross through contemplative Taizé worship in the nave, which includes prayer, simple music, a time for silence, and inspirational readings.

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Wednesday, April 16, 12 p.m., in the chapel.

Continue your Holy Week journey with Eucharist in the chapel. The service lasts about 40 minutes.

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Thursday, April 17 at 5:30 p.m., Jewell Room

The Agapé is an ancient feast of love. Ours is a reception featuring special finger-foods from the Holy Land in preparation for Maundy Thursday’s worship. Come share this tradition beginning at 6:00 p.m. and continuing until the start of the Maundy Thursday service.

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Thursday, April 17 at 7 p.m.

The Maundy Thursday Eucharist, beginning at 7 p.m., commemorates the Last Supper. We remember Jesus taking the bread and wine, declaring them to be his Body and Blood, and giving himself for his disciples. As he washed the feet of his friends before dinner, so we will wash each other’s hands or feet during worship (the choice is yours). Doing so, we live out Jesus’ commandment to love by serving others. 

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Thursday, April 17, all night

Following the Maundy Thursday Eucharist, you’re invited to pray during an all-night watch with Jesus in the chapel decorated as the Garden of Gethsemane. This powerful time of devotion begins when our worship ends and concludes with the noon Stations of the Cross on Good Friday. Individuals keep watch in the chapel in hour-long shifts. It’s our response to Jesus’ question to the sleeping disciples, “Could you not stay awake one hour? Watch and pray…” (Mark 14:38).

A security guard will be posted at the church door throughout the night. Look for the Maundy Thursday Watch sign-up board in the church’s entryway, or email Mary Sanders to sign up.

Friday, April 18 at 12 p.m.

On Good Friday, we’ll gather in the church to walk the Stations of the Cross. It’s an opportunity to meditate on our Lord’s suffering as we symbolically follow in his footsteps along Jerusalem’s Via Dolorosa, the Way of Sorrow. At stations marked by shadow boxes, we’ll remember the 14 most significant events of Jesus’ journey, beginning in the chapel with the judgment by Pontius Pilate, continuing along the side aisles around the nave, and concluding in the columbarium with Jesus’ death and burial. Within each box hangs a photographic interpretation of the event each station represents.

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Friday, April 18 at 7 p.m.

We’ll offer the Solemn Liturgy of Good Friday. This service is like no other – a time to put ourselves face to face with the cross, the instrument of bloody death and ultimate salvation, and contemplate the deep mystery of God’s own sacrifice for us.

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Saturday, April 19 at 9 a.m.

We’ll mark the time our Lord’s body lay in the tomb and his followers mourned what they thought was the end of hope and promise. This very brief service in the chancel (where the choir sits) includes just a few readings and prayers. (After this service, the church will be prepared for Easter.)

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Saturday, April 19, at 7 p.m.

As the sun sets, come celebrate Christ’s journey from death to resurrection with the Easter Vigil. This is Christianity’s most ancient worship, and its power to tell the story of our faith is still astounding.

We begin outside, under the porte-cochere, kindling a new fire to symbolize how the evil of the cross can’t extinguish God’s light; and from this fire, we light the Paschal candle. The congregation then follows this holy light into the darkened church, after which a series of Old Testament readings tells the story of salvation from creation through the prophets. Then we baptize new Christians and reaffirm our baptismal vows, remembering our own passage from death to life in Christ. The congregation sits in darkened silence for a few minutes until a noise breaks through (symbolizing the earthquake that opened the tomb) and the lights come on, revealing the altar and cross adorned in flowers! Suddenly, it’s Easter, and God’s light and life have once again conquered the power of sin and death. From there, the celebration continues with the first Eucharist of Easter.

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