Home for Holy Week

“Happy Palm Sunday,” I said to Maggie after the service this morning on the way out the door. She smiled and raised her brow.

“Happy Palm Sunday,” I repeated to Patricia, taking her hand,madding quickly, “I guess it’s not appropriate to say Happy Palm Sunday.”

“I guess it depends on how you mean it,” she smiled. “Are you home this week?”

“Yes,” I said enthusiastically. I’ve been traveling so much for work this year I’ve missed a lot of holy days. Ash Wednesday I was in Toronto in back-to-back meetings, all held in tall glass office building with massive banks of elevators. I saw plenty of secretaries and a few execs even walking around with the dark smudged cross on their forehead. I asked where they got them, thinking I’d find a beautiful old Episcopal Church and go to the evening service. Instead, I collapsed in my hotel room.

But when Patricia asked, “Are you home this week,” that’s exactly what she meant—the services for this week. Today is the first: the day Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey and all the poor people were with him shouting Hosannah, which means, according to the sermon this morning, “Save us!” It’s the first day of Holy Week, the one where we read the passion and play out the whole week. (This year, I was Bystander Number 1 and Lynn Hood was Bystander Number 2. The hecklers.)

I read one of Patricia’s recent “this and that” emails:” I’ve always thought that coming to church on Easter without attending any of the services leading up to that joyous moment is like watching the last act of a play without knowing anything about the earlier acts. The services of Holy Week area carefully crafted drama leading up to the grand climax of the Resurrection.”

Thursday is the foot-washing service. It’s always a sparsely attended. But it’s about the night that Jesus washed the feet of His disciples. I can only say, try it. You don’t have to wash or be washed—just take my word for it—everyone should go at least once.

And then Good Friday, when He’s crucified, followed by Easter Vigil Saturday evening. (Patricia’s description, also borrowed from “this and that”: “The Easter Vigil is the most ancient of the church’s liturgies. We begin in the Beech Grove with the lighting of the new fire, from which we light the Paschal (Easter) candle. We process by candlelight into a darkened church and hear the stories of God’s work of salvation. Halfway through the service the mood changes as we declare that Lent is over and Christ has risen. We also will be baptizing Mary Grace Brown. The service is followed by a cake and champagne reception in the parish hall. Child care will be available for this service.”

Done right, Lent is a whole season of study and preparation for the time that Christ is risen. It’s the week to be reminded to stand up against injustice, atone and cleanse. Gain deep insight, understanding, compassion, humility. Seek God’s grace. And it culminates in Holy week, during which, if we are lucky, we are home, back at St. Dunstan’s.