Good Friday Service Tonight

This evening, we will remember Christ's crucifixion in a worship service offering reflections on Christ's seven statements from the cross.  (Perhaps some of you read about our service in this morning's top story in the Times West Virginian.)

After an opening hymn, "O Sacred Head, Now Wounded," and the reading of the Man of Sorrows prophecy from Isaiah, seven people from our congregation will each offer meditations on the different statements, such as "I thirst," and "Today you will be with me in paradise."

During tonight's service, we will also join with other congregations in the Fairmont Council of Churches in taking an offering to support The Connecting Link, which provides emergency financial assistance to people in our community.

Maundy Thursday Service Tonight

Tonight begins the Holy Triduum, the series of services from Maundy Thursday through Easter, commemorating the Passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

We begin with the Maundy Thursday service, which remembers two things.  First, it is a celebration of the anniversary of Christ's gift of the Lord's Supper to his disciples.  On this night, Jesus gathered to share the Passover meal and gave new meaning to the ancient symbolism of the bread and wine.

Second, we will have a service of Tenebrae, which recalls the terrible details of Christ's arrest, trial, and crucifixion.  This series of readings and special music, which comes after we strip the sanctuary of all its decorations to prepare for Good Friday, is accompanied by the extinguishing of light, representing the darkness of those events.

The service begins at 7:30.