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From the Vicar...
Everything centers around this truth
This edition of the E-News comes out on Maundy Thursday. The series of liturgies that begins this evening draw us into the very heart of the Christian faith: that Christ died and rose again.
Everything centers around this truth, which we call the "Paschal Mystery." Jesus died in order that he might rise again. Jesus suffered so that his death would be the full and complete confrontation between Divine goodness and the sin and evil of this world. Jesus taught and healed in order to draw people to the foot of the cross, and he taught about his death and resurrection so that we would believe what he taught us about God.
Everything about Jesus points towards the cross and the cross lies at the heart of the Christian proclamation, as St. Paul wrote, "We proclaim Christ crucified." The centrality of the Paschal Mystery extends to the sacraments of the church. The font reveals the mystery to us: "Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?" (Romans 6:3). And the central practice of our worship, the Eucharist, was instituted on the first Maundy Thursday and continues to be a sign of the death and resurrection of Christ: "For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes." (1 Cor 11:26).
Indeed, the fact that we gather chiefly on Sundays for our worship is that it is our weekly reminder of the glory of Christ's resurrection. The Paschal Mystery is at the heart of everything we do, believe, celebrate, preach, proclaim, and live as Christians. And the Sacred Triduum that begins this night brings us steeply and sharply into the painful and glorious heart of the Paschal Mystery.
I know it's a lot of liturgies. I know it's a lot of time sitting in a pew and traveling to and from our two churches. I do encourage you, though, to try to encounter as much of the Sacred Triduum as you can. You might find yourself transformed by it.
Fr. Chip
The Good Friday Offering
The Good Friday offering in all Episcopal congregations is designated for ministries of the Anglican Province of Jerusalem and the Middle East. More on this observance, launched 90 years ago, in 1922, is online here.
Holy Week and Easter Service Schedule
The Paschal Triduum: The "Three Great Days"
The Paschal Triduum, also called the Easter Triduum, begins Maundy Thursday, and ends at the conclusion of the Easter Day liturgy. It commemorates the heart of our faith: the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. At its heart is the Great Vigil of Easter, the high point of the Triduum.
The word Triduum comes from the Latin word meaning "three days." It commemorates the Institution of the Eucharist, the passion, crucifixion, and death of our Lord, his descent to the dead, and finally his glorious resurrection on Easter morning, all as essentially one great liturgy divided into parts:
Maundy Thursday March 28th - 7:00 PM AT CHRIST CHURCH
Maundy Thursday begins the Triduum. Although we have separate services on these days, they are tied together by the fact that there is no dismissal until the end of the Easter Vigil. This day is a time for remembering the Last Supper. The name comes from the Latin word maundatum for "commandment" as Jesus said, "I give you a new commandment: that you love one another." At the conclusion of this service, the altar is stripped and the reserved Sacrament removed to mark the solemnity of the occasion.
Good Friday - March 29
Ecumenical Good Friday Service - During the first of the three hours of Our Lord's suffering on the Cross, South Church, 292 State St., Portsmouth, will host an ecumenical service of readings and meditations. Our Vicar is one of the clergy participants; lay participants are invited as well.
2:00 STATIONS AT CHRIST CHURCH; 7:00 LITURGY AT TRINITY CHURCH
We begin the liturgy for Good Friday the same way we end the Maundy Thursday Liturgy: in silence. What begins Maundy Thursday continues this day as we journey with our Savior from the Last Supper, the stripping and humiliation, to the cross and tomb. Good Friday is the second day of the Triduum, and is marked with austerity, silence and reflection. The chancel itself is bare. Everything focuses on our adoration of the crucified Christ, reigning from the throne of the cross.
Easter Eve - March 30
The Great Vigil Of Easter 7:30 PM AT CHRIST CHURCH
The climax of the sacred Triduum that begins on Maundy Thursday is reached in this service which abounds in ancient imagery that evokes responses from deep within the human spirit: darkness and light, death and life, chaos and order, slavery and freedom. This service begins in darkness, when a new fire is lit, from which the Paschal (Easter) Candle is lighted. It signifies the light of Christ coming into the world anew at the resurrection. A series of scripture readings recount the history of our salvation. The renewal of baptismal vows follows. The service closes with the first Eucharist of Easter. Reminder: If you have one, please bring a bell!
Easter Day - March 31
6:15 am Ecumenical Sunrise Service - North Beach, Hampton
8:45 am Trinity Church 10:30 am Christ Church
On Easter Day, the church completes its Three Great Days of celebrating redemption. Since Maundy Thursday, the community of faith has been involved in an extended liturgy which is brought to its conclusion at the Festival Eucharist of Easter Day. This is the celebration of the Passover of Christ from death into life. The Easter Day services in both churches will feature Hymns of the Resurrection and the Vicar's Easter message.
Easter home communion
The Sacrament of Holy Eucharist is available to any church member at home or in the hospital who desires to receive it. Fr. Chip will be setting aside time during Easter week to make visits. If you find yourself temporarily sick or confined at home or in the hospital and would like communion brought to you, please call the parish office, 603-436-8842 (Christ Church) or 603- 926-5688 (Trinity Church), to set up a convenient time.
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