Holy Week 2009 at First Christian
In these final two weeks of Lent, First Christian Church Minneapolis will follow some ancient Christian prac-tices with a few modern touches as we mark the events that lead to the great Easter celebration.
The on-going Unbinding the Gospel prayer groups and the Sunday morning prayer circle follow the tradi-tional Lenten practice of 40 days of prayer and reflection, as Christ prayed and reflected in his 40 day wilderness time.
Palm Sunday on April 5 will recreate the moment when Jesus entered Jerusalem as we wave palms and shout “hosanna.” This year we will use “eco-palms” as part of an ecumenical ecology effort. Eco-palms come from communities in Mexico and Guate-mala where workers are paid fairly and engage in sustainable harvesting in order to protect the local ecosys-tem. The joy of greeting Jesus on Palm Sunday is always tempered with the fact that this Sunday marks the beginning of “the Passion,” or the contemplation of the suffering of Jesus.
Maundy Thursday will mark the beginning of a 24-hour prayer chain, beginning at 3 p.m. on April 9. Those participating in the prayer chain will pray in the church from 3 pm until midnight. At that time, the church will be closed, and prayer participants will pray in their own homes. At 8 am Good Friday morning, April 10, the church will again be open for the prayer chain to continue until 3 pm on Friday, the hour traditionally understood as the hour of Christ’s death on the cross.
The Maundy Thursday communion service will begin at 6:30. The word Maundy derives from the Latin manda-tum or ‘command,’ from the words of Jesus at the Last Supper as recorded in the Gospel of John 13:34: “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another.” Before the service, Pastor Bob Brite will host a soup supper at the church beginning at 5:30 on Thursday evening.
The chain of prayer ends on Good Friday in the afternoon, and in the evening we will have a Good Friday service beginning at 7 pm. This service will be a time for prayer, singing of hymns and spirituals, and quiet reflection.
On Easter Sunday, join us for a continental breakfast in the church lounge from 9-10AM. Afterwards, we will join together to celebrate Christ’s ressurection with a festive worship service.
You can download a Holy Week Flyer by clicking here.
