Good Friday

“Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha). There they crucified him, and with him two others - one on each side and Jesus in the middle. Pilate had a notice prepared and fastened to the cross. it read: Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews”
John19: 17-19
Some scenes from our church sanctuary this Good Friday morning. It was a joint service at noon, with several other area churches. The choir was singing, and we had to be there for 11 am. The anthem, Mercy, by Heather Sorenson, was so beautiful, and so moving, based in part on the words from O Sacred Head Sore Wounded, with an alto soloist, one of our Choral scholars, who has an amazing voice. The service comprised four readings from the Good Friday story as told in the gospel of John, with four short homilies given by the pastors of the churches represented. The final piece of music was for cello and piano ( our organist is also an excellent cellist, a piece called Prayer by Ernest Bloch, which is actually the first movement of his composition From Jewish Life, and has a wonderful Jewish feel to it, and was similarly extremely moving.
From church, we drove to the “Y” for a swim - it was raining on and off all day, so not very conducive to outdoor exercise (!) - then a small grocery shop on the way home. This evening we went to see the new Christian film, Breakthrough, based on the inspirational true story of a mother's unfaltering love in the face of seemingly impossible odds. When Joyce Smith's adopted son John falls through an icy Missouri lake, the doctors have no hope of his survival, and predict that even if he was to regain consciousness he would be severely brain damaged. However, Joyce refuses to give up, and her steadfast belief inspires those around her in the school, the church and the community to continue to pray for John's recovery, even in the face of every case history and scientific prediction. A moving story, perfect for Easter weekend.