HOLY WEEK can sit strangely in the church year. It is the most solemn and significant of times in the church calendar, and yet, to all intents and purposes, ordinary life carries on undisturbed by it. Unlike Christmas, which bursts upon the scene in a riot of tinsel and fairy lights, demanding attention and pulling people in from the streets to enjoy carolling and mince pies, for most of the population, Holy Week passes unnoticed. Only the promise of hot cross buns and free childcare when schools are closed or a few eccentrics walking mournfully round the community on Good Friday may have any impact at all.
How, then, to engage with the non-churchgoing public? How to share the message of sacrificial love — an unpopular theme in today’s “Because I’m worth it”, “Go on, treat yourself” society? Perhaps by using the week to experiment and challenge, to offer services and events that are different from the norm, and to think carefully about all sectors of the community and explore ways in which they might become engaged, even briefly, with the drama of Holy Week and the life-changing effect of its events.
Thinking outside the box
YOUR community might well be happily settled into a regular rhythm of services. It is to be hoped that the schedule is one that all can manage — ministry team, musicians, volunteers working within their capacity and capability, able to maintain the level of effort and energy required without collapsing with burnout. Nevertheless, we all know the dangers of complacency, of falling into a routine that becomes almost mindless in its familiarity. Holy Week offers an opportunity to try out new things in a way that is manageable (because it is only one week), understandable (it’s a special week), and unrepeatable, if necessary. If something completely new is too challenging or demanding, try and ring the changes with the established patterns, enabling your community to look with fresh eyes on familiar events.
Take it outside
THE traditional Good Friday Walk of Witness has always seemed to me a mixed blessing. It can act as a useful reminder to the secular world that the Church exists. It can give an opportunity to pray in and for streets and areas that are usually ignored. But it can also seem to be an act of ecclesiastical imperialism, as we impose our faith rituals on others, disturbing their normal activities. In one parish, this disturbance was greeted with annoyance, egg-throwing, and even hosepipes, which is probably where I get my reluctance to participate.
If you are determined, however, make sure you have straight your reasons for the event. Is it a prayer walk — in which case, are the prayers relevant? Do you pray for your surroundings, or are they a reaction to a story that only those who have the service sheets can actually hear? Do you offer invitations to services, explanations of the activity itself?
Does your walk look engaging and interesting — something that people might actually want to join? Could it be offered as a pilgrimage instead — a word that is more easily understood and has secular connections, asking less of participants than wholehearted belief? If you give out hot cross buns as you go, do you make it clear why you are doing so? Are the hot cross buns as fresh as they can be (this is really important)? Instead of walking, which poses challenges for people with mobility issues, consider holding another outdoor church event.
Using your building
A SERVICE to remember and reflect on the last days and hours of the life of Jesus can range from simply walking the Stations of the Cross, with readings and prayers, to an elaborate event around the entire church building involving drama, art, music, and congregational interaction. Rather than confine yourselves to the written and spoken word, experiment with different ways of engaging with each event of the journey. Read one of Malcolm Guite’s sonnets, or Stephen Cottrell’s prayers and reflections. Bluetooth speakers and mobile phones mean that music is now transportable. Apps such as Spotify offer hundreds of pieces of music, whatever your taste.
Use different images and discuss individual reactions to each one. Encourage the congregation to draw, paint, sculpt, or write. Instead of a fixed time, set up installations where people can reflect and pray at their leisure. The installations don’t have to be many in number; the aim is not to exhaust your praying visitor, but to involve them in the journey. If you include ways in which you can gauge how many people engaged with the installation — stickers on hearts, letters on boards, stones in bowls — that can be helpful when evaluating the event.
Experiment
INSTEAD of a three-hour vigil, how about a “Come and Sing” event? Instead of compline, why not a Taizé meditation, or a discussion group on depictions of the crucifixion? A candlelit Tenebrae service, an agape meal, all offer opportunities for reflection in a way that might differ from your usual offerings. The Methodist Church has a wonderful set of seven services based on the Seven Last Words: all you need to do is print and go.
Extend your pool
HOLY WEEK, with its one-off events, offers the opportunity to involve members of your congregation and community who might not otherwise be part of the leadership team. The promise of limited commitment and the spark of something new might enable you to increase the activity and engagement of individuals who have too many other commitments to form part of the regular team.
Similarly, adventurous outreach activities can be held without too great an investment of time, resources and emotion which might otherwise be too draining. Just make sure you have your risk assessments and, above all, safeguarding measures in place when involving new leaders or supervisors.
Hold the mystery
REMEMBER that no one really “understands” Holy Week and Easter. Part of our role is to allow those mysterious, dark, and emotional days to be examined, explored, and investigated from every angle. We know that we will never be able to plumb the depths of the meaning of these events; we simply hold them in faith and hope, knowing that we in turn are held by God.
In the words of Jaroslav Pelikan: “If Christ is risen, nothing else matters. And if Christ is not risen — nothing else matters.”
The Revd Dr Sally Welch is the Vicar of the Kington Group in the diocese of Hereford.
Resources
Seven Days of services on the Methodist Church Resource Hub
A whole-service outline of a service of Tenebrae is available and accessible without subscription on Roots on the Web:
Suggestions for prayer stations on the All Age Worship Resources
