Palm Sunday Weekend Through Easter at St. Matthew
From Palms to Resurrection
We will be making PALM CROSSES on Saturday morning, March 23, in the Upper Room, beginning at 9:30 a.m. and ending when we have made 600 palm crosses!
It will be great fun! If you do not know how to make a Palm cross, it is the perfect opportunity to learn and you will get lots of practice. If you can only stay a short time, that’s fine — everyone can come and go until all crosses have been made. Bring your friends and family!
PALM SUNDAY WEEKEND We celebrate Jesus and follow him into Jerusalem. In our gospel reading and sermon we note people asking the question of Jesus, “Who is this?” Following this question will lead us into new directions.
Our 10:30 a.m. service will begin with a children’s parade. All children and youth should meet at the rear of the Nave at 10:20 to pick up palms and to practice waving! Children will sit with their parents following the parade.
After the 10:30 service we will move to the Fellowship Hall for a lunch of grilled hot dogs and hamburgers and various sides. Then we move to the great Egg Hunt! For children ages 1 to 5th grade. Egg hunt will be held rain or shine! Sign up in the Gathering Place or contact the church office for lunch reservations, info@stmattlutheran.org or 717-637-7101.
MAUNDY THURSDAY SERVICE is held on March 28 at 7:00 p.m. This the beginning of the Great Three Days that lead us to Easter morning. As we gather for worship, we will wonder together about the Lord’s Last Supper with his disciples and what that means for us today.
Following our meal around the tables in the Fellowship Hall, we will return to the Nave to solemnly witness the stripping of the altar and a reading of Psalm 22.
MAUNDY THURSDAY is also a special service for our children who will be celebrating the Communion Milestone in their lives of faith. Your prayer for their preparation and presence for this worship service are some very important ways our St. Matthew community can support them in their lives of faith as we live out our baptismal promises together.
GOOD FRIDAY SERVICE 7:00 p.m. The Service of Tenebrae (Shadows) features the passion reading according to the Gospel of John. Dramatic firsthand accounts is a new addition to this service. It will be like you were there on that dark Friday. As we hear the readings and sing the hymns, darkness will fall upon us.
EASTER VIGIL Saturday at 5:00 p.m. Easter Vigil is the third and final segment of the Great Three Days that spans the very end of Lent and carries us into the celebration of Easter and the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Our abbreviated version of this traditional worship service will last an hour, and will be held in the Nave. We will recall great stories of salvation throughout scripture, pray for one another & a world in need, proclaim Christ crucified and risen, and celebrate communion together.
EASTER SUNDAY at 8:30 and 10:30 Both services are a festive celebration of the resurrection. From the Gospel of Mark we hear the Easter story with an abrupt ending. But this is only part of the story. The rest is ours to proclaim. With our alleluias and songs of praise, we bear witness to the presence of the risen Lord and the power of the gospel.
AN EASTER BREAKFAST of Egg Bakes and assorted rolls and breads will be available after the 8:30 service, from approximately 9:30 to 10:20 in Fellowship Hall. There will be no Faith Connections.