Sermon preached by the Rev’d. Cynthia Jackson, St. Mark’s Wimbledon, Lent 5, 9^th March, 2007.

Today’s gospel reading moves from death to resurrection, from darkness to light. I am sure that it is not by chance that this gospel passage was chosen for today, Passion Sunday, as we move with Jesus closer to his final journey to his crucifixion on Good Friday and glorious Resurrection on Easter Day.

Just as Martha and Mary could not understand how God appeared to desert them in their time of their need, during the illness and death of their brother Lazarus, so the disciples would not understand the need for Jesus to undergo crucifixion.  But we read in John Chapter 11, verse four, as Jesus spoke about Lazarus’ death: “this illness does not lead to death; rather it’s used for God’s glory, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it”…  It is hard too for us to comprehend both the suffering of  Jesus’  crucifixion  and death and the wonder and glory of his resurrection.

For all of us here today before we reach Easter day and Jesus’ glorious resurrection we have to follow with him  on his  Way of the Cross during Holy week.  To put it bluntly in modern jargon: “no pain no gain”.  Jesus had to endure the pain of the crucifixion to come through to the glory of the Resurrection  and so do we.

This morningI am going to take you on a journey through Holy Week. i,e. Palm Sunday to Good Friday looking forward to our celebration of Jesus’ Resurrection on Easter Day. As we journey I will explore the significance and meaning of  the ceremonies and events that take place.

The most popular part of Holy Week is our Palm Sunday procession as we meet outside Tescos for our united service and process back to St. Mark`s with the Donkey.  But Palm Sunday is not just the day when there is an opportunity for donkey rides for the children.  We also take part in the account of Jesus’ Passion, the death of our Lord Jesus Christ. Yes Palm Sunday starts our remembrance of the culmination of Jesus` life and earthly ministry. 

Jesus rides triumphantly into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey, with the crowd shouting:

"Hosannah to the Son of David!  Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!  Hosannah in the highest heaven!" 

 (Matthew 21: 9). 

Not the entry of an earthly King or Ruler on a beautiful white horse, but the Son of Man riding on a humble beast the donkey. The crowds on Palm Sunday herald Jesus in triumph. Later on in the week they will be shouting crucify him. Yes Palm Sunday remind us vividly of the frailty and fickleness of human nature and certainly of our own. The scene is set for our Holy week services.

On Monday to Wednesday in Holy Week we will be following with Jesus on the way of the Cross. Each evening at 8.p.m. there will be a shortened Holy Communion service preceded by a meditation on Monday and Tuesday. On Wednesday members of the congregation are invited to share in the meditative readings as we meditate on the Stations of the Cross.

Those of you who have had the opportunity to go on Pilgrimage to the Holy Land may have walked the Way of Cross that winds through the Arab Souks finishing in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. But here at St. Mark`s  we have to make do with posters which we put up around the walls of the church. These posters are like snapshot of Jesus` last hours, from his trial before Pilate, his crucifixion, death until his body is taken down from the Cross.

 As we make our own pilgrimage we stop at each ‘Station’ to pause and meditate. This short service can be deeply moving and help us enter into Our Lord`s last hours.  We know the death of Jesus was not the end and we finish with a prayer reminding us of his Resurrection and our new life in Christ, before we move into the Holy Communion Service.  If you have not joined in this particular act of worship before why not try and join us on Wednesday in Holy Week?

We reach Maundy Thursday that marks an end and a beginning.  From this point on, our Christian worship is a continuum through to Easter morning.  These three Holy Days, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter Day are a whole. To celebrate Easter fully we have to enter into Maundy Thursday and Good Friday. If we just turn up on Easter Day for the smoked salmon and champagne breakfast or for the Easter egg hunt we have lost out on the true meaning of Easter.  There is no Resurrection without Crucifixion.  Remember the slogan:  ‘no pain, no gain’.

On Maundy Thursday there are two aspects to the service; the emphasis on love and cleansing is demonstrated by the example of our Lord washing the disciples feet. It is this action which gives us the derivation of the word Maunday, from the first words of the traditional anthem of "Mandatum novum do vobis" (A new commandment I give you"),( John 13: 34. )

Secondly the emphasis of the service is on the Institution of the Lords s Supper .  This is the beginning aspect of the service. The liturgical colour is white in contrast to the Red of Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Good Friday.

We too follow our Lord`s example of washing the disciples feet.  Members of the congregation are invited to have their feet washed and the Priests wash one another’s feet. It is a powerful and humbling action whether you are the person doing the washing or the person having their feet washed.  If you feel uncomfortable about having your feet washed please do not stay away from this important service.  It is not compulsory.

But the main part of the service on Maundy Thursday is the commemoration of the Institution of the Lord`s Supper, Holy Communion, the Eucharist. We use real bread, a pottery chalice and paten, to remind us that this Supper was a real meal that Jesus was having with his friends.  The last meal he would eat. 

What a privilege to be present at this re-enactment – to be truly present with Jesus - we like the disciples are Jesus’ friends. At the end of the service the consecrated bread left over is ‘Reserved’  for use on Good Friday. It is taken in a solemn procession moving from the main church to the Chapel representing the Garden of Gethsemane.  The chapel is lit with candles and decorated with flowers and the Blessed Sacrament is placed in the centre of the Altar.  We watch in prayer with our Lord reminding us of Jesus wrestling in prayer in the garden of Gethsemane with his disciples. We hope that we unlike the disciples will be able to remain awake and pray with Jesus.

At the end of the service we have a Watch of silent prayer from the end of the Eucharist until midnight.  This is not just a watch of prayer for the clergy or for the very pious. This is an opportunity for all of us who are able to watch in prayer with Jesus.  What a marvellous invitation that we can be alongside Jesus in his hour of need .  There is something very special about watching in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament. To know that you are especially with Jesus in the mystery of the Sacrament of Holy Communion. I hope that many people, both men and women, will be able to take part this year. 

The watch is divided into half-hour slots so that we have at least two people present all the time until midnight.  As the church remains open all that time it would be especially helpful if the men of the congregation were able to commit themselves to watch for each of the half-hour slots. It is sad to think that we have to be concerned for the safety of members of the congregation praying in the chapel but we do.

After the beauty of Maundy Thursday we reach  the starkness of Good Friday the day of Jesus‘ crucifixion. Gone are the white vestments of Maundy Thursday and the beautiful flowers in the chapel. On Good Friday we are back to a red stole, and confronted by the large crosses on the back wall of the church.  The  service on Good Friday is a quiet meditative one. Richard will be using pictures on the life and death of Christ to aid his meditations, interspersed with silence.  Please come and stay as long as you are able during the duration of the service that starts at 12.noon and ends at three o’clock ( the traditional time of Jesus’ death.)

There will be Good Friday activities and worship for children in the church Hall from 11. 45 a.m. to 1 p.m. This will enable parents to leave children in the hall well supervised and be able to attend the first part of the thre-hour  meditation from 12 to 1.p.m.   It also means that the adults leading the children’s activities can also attend the remaining part of the Three Hour meditation when they have finished in the Hall.

The three- hour meditation ends with Holy Communion from the Reserved Sacrament  from Maundy Thursday.  The altar is left bare and we leave the Church in silence. 

But as I said Maundy Thursday to Easter Day are part of a continum. So we move from Good Friday to Saturday, Easter Eve a day with no services but a day to remember our Lord resting in the tomb.  A day for preparing ourselves and the Church to celebrate Easter.

On Easter Day we begin our Easter celebrations with the Vigil Mass of the Dawn assembling in the garden at 5.30am. We are joined by Clergy and members of the Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church and Trinity United Reformed Church  that reminds us of our membership of the Worldwide Christian Church. But to describe what happens in the Service I can do no better than to quote from Dennis Michno`s book “ A Priest`s  Handbook“ to describe the Easter Vigil:

“ The Great Vigil of Easter is the culmination of the sacred celebrations of Holy Week and the beginning of the celebration of the Lord`s Resurrection.  It is the climax of the Christian year and unfolds in ‘Scripture, psalm, Sacrament and liturgy the story of redemption. It begins in darkness  and proceeds to a joyous burst of light.  It begins in silence and proceeds to the glorious proclamation of the Paschal Alleuia.

It is the Christian Passover, for it celebrates the passing from death to life, from sin to grace.  The story of the Exodus is central to the Liturgy of the Word; Baptism is the means of the full realization of redemption; Holy Communion is the promise of the glory that shall be ours with our Risen Lord.”…

We wait expectantly in the garden in darkness, holding are unlit candles, as we listen to the readings from the Old Testament, readings of God’s promises, his promise of new life and then onto the reminder from the New Testament of new life in Christ through the Resurrection of Jesus.

We congregate around the bonfire that is lit so that the new Pascal Candle symbolising the Light of the Risen Christ can be lit from new fire.  A special prayer is said as the candle is marked with a cross.The Priest places five grains of incense into the four points and centre of the traced cross on the candle reminding us of Jesus’ five wounds.

The Paschal Candle is lit from the New Fire

The Deacon holding the Pascal candle aloft, leads the procession into the dark church, in silence, the onl light being the Pascal candle. This reminds us of the light of Christ shining in the darkness of the world.

The Deacon  sings : “The Light of Christ”

and everyone responds “Thanks be to God”.

 This is sung three times and by the final time all the hand-held candles are alight and the Deacon holding the Pascal candle reaches the Sanctuary step.

For the first time since the beginning of Lent we hear the words:

Alleluia! Christ is risen:

And we respond  triumphantly and very loudly:

 He is risen indeed. ALLELUIA!

A Prayer is said with responses and the special words of the Exultet or Easter proclamation are said or sung ending with  the words….

…… “ grant that this Easter Candle may make our darkness light:

for Christ the Morning Star has risen, never to set again, and is alive and reigns for ever. Amen”

At this point our hand-held candles are extinguished, there is a burst of loud music, bells are rung, party poppers let off and the lights in the church go on and the altar candles are lit.

 This loud noise represents Christ bursting forth from the tomb and the joy of the Resurrection. But this loud music and noise is a prelude to the greater rejoicing of the Gloria which we have not sung since the beginning of Lent.

We move onto the reading of the Holy Gospel proclaiming the joyful Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, again the movement from darkness to light.

Another highlight of the Mass of the Dawn is the renewal of Baptismal vows. It would of course be at this point that Baptisms would be carried out if there were any candidates.

 Fr. Gerry Mitchell, from the Sacred Heart Church leads us in this renewal, reminding us that Christians, whatever their denomination are  united by Baptism. We are  sprinkled with the Baptismal water reminding us of our own Baptisms.

Our first Mass of Easter continues in the usual way from the Peace.         

So we have journeyed a long way from our Pancakes on Shrove Tuesday, from Palm Sunday, Good Friday, to the Resurrection of Our Lord on Easter Day. What I have tried to show you that all that we do here at St. Mark`s has not only a purpose but a meaning but also how important it is, if we are able, to join in the services of Holy Week, especially Maundy Thursday, and Good Friday. Let us truly be with Jesus on his journey to the Cross so that we can celebrate with him his glorious resurrection on Easter Day.

Amen.

(Acknowledgements to Dennis G. lMichno, for quotes from “A Priest`s handbook – the Ceremonies of the Church”; and “Lent, Holy Week and Easter – Services and Prayers and from “Stations of the Cross” – Walsingham Pilgrims Manual).