April Service of Reflection

Join Rev. Dr. David Hodgson and Kelsey McKee in Swain Hall on Tuesday, April 25, at 5:00 pm for the last spring Service of Reflection. Featuring "psalms and psongs," the service will recap the Lenten and Easter sermons. Dinner will follow. If you haven't yet made a reservation and would like to attend, please call the church office at 623.974.3605 by noon on the 25th.

Dinner in the Upper Room

Holy Week – the span of days between Palm Sunday and Easter – will mark the triumphal end to our Lenten journey together. I want to thank you for sharing the adventure with me and to invite you to a very special opportunity in the spiritual life of our church family. I am inviting you to sign up to be part of what I am calling A Meal in the Upper Room. It will take place on Maundy Thursday, April 13th, at 5:00 in the evening.

We will begin in the Sanctuary with a brief service of celebration and of preparation and then move by way of the inside corridor to the Upper Room (also known as Swain Hall). Before entering the hall the elders, acting as disciples, will offer the washing of hands to prepare all guests for the sacramental experience.

The meal will be shared in complete silence, and will be served family style at each table. The only words spoken will be the words of Jesus to his disciples and will be spoken by me, seated at the head table with twelve disciples. The meal will culminate in the celebration of communion at each table by the twelve disciples.

This experience is not envisioned to be the Jewish Passover, or the traditional Seder meal. It is a Christian celebration to remember and to be inspired by the Lord’s Spirit at work in the life of our church. Our Meal in the Upper Room is open to all – but reservations will be required because seating will need to be arranged beforehand.

Throughout our Lenten journey we have examined ways in which the Storyteller put himself into his stories in order to reveal the mysteries of God with us. On Maundy Thursday he will invite us to become a part of the never-ending story of his life. I look forward to sharing this sacred moment with you.

∼David