Our congregation's observance of Holy Week this year was more deeply moving and carried a greater sense of community than any Holy Week-related gathering I've ever experienced -- here or elsewhere.  The reason, at least in part, may have been due to how many people responded to the unique opportunity our Holy Week schedule offered to our congregation: the chance to gather with one's own family of faith on a daily/nightly basis.  Seeing, greeting, praying with, singing with, kneeling with, and sometimes weeping with basically the same people each night really drew us together. 

Many of us regularly think about how first century believers frequently met together:  "Day by day, as they spent much time together in the temple... Acts 2:46a (NRSV)," yet living in an individualism-soaked culture repeatedly prevents most communities of faith from experiencing the power and beauty of this dynamic.

Here's a list of Holy Week gatherings we observed together:

Palm Sunday - a Celebration service with some "liturgy of the palms" content woven in.
Holy Monday - a Vespers service with multisensory "stations", with theme: The Anointing of Jesus.
Holy Tuesday - a Vespers service with multisensory "stations", with theme: Jesus, the Light.
Holy Wednesday - a Vespers service with multisensory "stations", with theme: Judas' Betrayal.
Maundy Thursday - a Eucharistic service with blended liturgy (Episcopal, Celtic, Free Methodist).
Good Friday - a noontime multimedia, multisensory prayer service; and an evening multimedia, multisensory "Tenebrae" service.
Easter Sunday - a sunrise service with blended liturgy (Celtic, Episcopal, Free Methodist); two Resurrection Celebrations; and two baptism services.

Here are some of the unexpected things we saw happening during our Holy Week services:

• Although all of the multisensory "stations" were popular, three times a many people visited the prayer station (where they could kneel, light a candle, and offer prayers) than visited any of the other stations.
• An increased number of participants were voluntarily crossing themselves (with the sign of the cross) at various times as compared to what we've seen in past years.
• Many people arrived up to 30 minutes early each night, often using the extra time to visit the stations or more often -- to kneel, light a candle, and pray.
• The singing of hymns was unusually energetic and passionate (a majority of our people favor choruses over hymns).
• When those attending were encouraged to pray spontaneously and out-loud, nearly everyone did!  Normally, we witness 30% (at best) of our people praying out loud when invited to do so.
• When any given service would end, everyone seemed to hang around and fellowship a lot longer than usual.  They may have been "weeknights", but you wouldn't have known it.
• On a couple of occasions, we needed to ask for on-the-spot volunteers to serve as scripture readers.  Wow!  We discovered some amazing, hidden talents.

If I had to pick that part of Holy Week which impacted me the most, I would --  without hesitation -- say it was the Holy Wednesday Vespers service, and it's theme of "betrayal" (and the way it revealed to me my own unfaithfulness and betrayal) as well as the Easter sunrise service with its emphasis on the renewal of our baptismal vows (something I had never experienced prior to then) before the receiving of Holy Communion. It was indeed a blessed Holy Week, and I can hardly wait for next year!

If, by chance, anyone is interested in getting their hands on the actual service liturgies I put together for any of the services mentioned above -- especially Holy Monday through Easter Sunrise -- I'd be happy to share them with you.  Just send me an email request.

Oh! There is one last thing:  If you have any Holy Week experiences yourself that you'd like to share,