April 12, 2023

Holy Week has come and gone. Over that time we participated in the betrayal and crucifixion of Christ, mourned his death at the grave, and celebrated his resurrection in the early morning of Easter and then again at the later service.

On Monday the ministers and staff of almost every church took the day off to recover; and yesterday we returned to the office to begin looking forward to this coming Sunday and beyond.

As I've said before, this was the first Holy Week in three years that we could fully participate in the services of Holy Week. I hope you took the opportunity to participate in these services and experience Holy Week in its totality.

I do not do this alone – it takes a whole lot of people to make Holy Week what it was. With that in mind, I want to thank the following people:

Our openers and closers who made sure the church was opened for worship and locked afterward.

The lectors and Eucharistic Ministers who performed their liturgical duties admirably.

The acolytes who stepped up to assist with the service, some for the first time.

The altar guild who worked many hours getting ready for each service and cleaning up after.

The choir who sang wonderfully over the days of Holy Week.

John Sabine, our new Minister of Music, who has only been here three weeks but managed to make it look and sound like he's been here for years.

Deacon Sue, whose presence is always appreciated, and who was part of almost every service.

Melonie Orr, our amazing parish administrator, who put all the bulletins together without mixing them up or losing her mind (along with her other regular duties).

Mark Shaffer who ensured everything was ready for the new fire at the Vigil.

Parish Life who provided food for the Maundy Thursday dinner and Easter breakfast and coffee hour.

Betsy Mummert who oversaw the Easter egg hunt.

And finally, thank you to everyone who participated simply by showing up. One of our first duties as Christians is to worship. We worship as a community because it takes a community to worship. This past Holy Week was a reflection of the best of Saint John's – from all of the supporting roles to the worship we experienced.

Thank you for helping to make Holy Week 2023 a memorable experience.

May the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus Christ, the great Shepherd of the sheep, make you perfect in every good work to do his will; and may the joy of this Resurrection season give you hope in a life changed, not ended.