Holy Week 2026

In a beautiful arc from Palm Sunday through the Great Three Days to Easter Sunday,
the most beautiful gifts of our community are on full display:
we worship and engage in public witness;
artists sing and play and create;
storytellers weave words of wonder;
sacristans transform spaces of worship.

Each service builds on the one before.
The story isn’t complete
without each element,
without each participant.

The cross and resurrection of Christ
are worth orienting our lives around.
Make space for the mystery.
Dwell in the whole story.

We need Holy Week;
Holy Week needs you.
Come near the cross and resurrection.

We encounter the paradox that defines our faith: Jesus Christ is glorified and humiliated. We too are full of paradox: like Peter, we fervently desire to follow Christ, but find ourselves afraid, denying God. We wave pines in celebration today as Christ comes into our midst, and we follow with trepidation as his path leads to death on the cross. Amid it all we are invited into this paradoxical promise of life through Christ’s broken body and outpoured love in a meal of bread and wine. We begin this week that stands at the center of the church year, anticipating the completion of God’s astounding work.

With nightfall our Lenten observance comes to an end, and we gather with Christians around the world to celebrate the Three Days of Jesus’ death and resurrection. At the heart of the Maundy Thursday liturgy is Jesus’ commandment to love one another. As Jesus washed the feet of the disciples, we are called to follow Jesus’s example as we humbly care for one another, especially the poor and the unloved. At the Lord’s table we remember Jesus’ sacrifice of life, even as we are called to offer ourselves in love for the life of the world.

Life and death stand side by side as we enter into Good Friday. In John’s passion account, Jesus reveals the power and glory of God, even as he is put on trial and sentenced to death. Standing with the disciples at the foot of the cross, we pray for the whole world in the ancient bidding prayer, as Christ’s death offers life to all. We gather in solemn devotion, but always with the promise that the tree around which we assemble is indeed a tree of life. We depart silently, and we anticipate the culmination of the Three Days in the Easter Vigil.

This is the night of salvation! At the Vigil of Easter, we gather around fire, word, water, bread, and wine, proclaiming through story and song that ours is a God who continuously brings life out of death. On this night we experience again the heart of God’s baptismal promise and the center of our faith: we are claimed and cleansed, renewed in the death and resurrection of Christ. We gather with all the saints of every time and place to celebrate the good news: Christ is risen indeed! Alleluia! Worship at the Easter Vigil lasts approximately two hours.

This is the day the Lord has made! Christ is risen, and through Christ all creation is made new! Indeed, “God shows no partiality” (Acts 10:34): Christ’s resurrection truly brings life to everyone. We sing hymns of praise, gather around sacred words, and proclaim God’s faithfulness, power, and love in the feast of holy communion. With the women at the tomb, we are astonished, elated, and grateful. We depart with joy to proclaim the good news of God’s endless love. Following worship, there will be a celebratory potluck in the fellowship hall.