Today we continued our journey into the Passion story, and encountered four people who were,  some way, there in the gospel narrative of the trial and execution of Jesus...

• Pilate's wife, who may have been in Rome rather than Jerusalem, and whose message went unheeded
• Simon, a visitor from Cyrene in modern day Libya, who was dragged into an event where he had no control
• The mother of the sons of Zebedee - presumably the quarrelsome James and John - who, with other women, stood silently at the place of execution
• Joseph from a place called Arimathea, that no-one quite knows where it was, who had the audacity to ask for body of the dead Jesus, and who ensured it was safely laid to rest before nightfall

Similar numbers to last night, albeit a slightly different mix of people, each engaging with the story, praying, wondering, remembering, imagining...

I popped back late this afternoon to close up the tomb, to lay our Jesus to rest. 

Tomorrow the garden is open for quiet prayer and reflection... then what will Sunday bring?

Maundy Thursday Evening... a Tenebrae service with simple communion. This year adapted from a published liturgy entitled 'I was there' by David E Ridenhour, we heard from seven 'voices' who were there throughout Jesus' life but especially so during his final hours... 

• Doubt
• Sorrow
• Fear
• Shame
• Agony
• Hate
• Death

We were, I think, seventeen or eighteen in total, gathered at the close of day to listen to scripture, to break bread, drink wine and hear the voices speak into the gathering gloom...

As always, a powerful and poignant way to begin the Easter weekend.  Grateful to those who read, who washed up afterwards, and of course to those who participated with their quiet presence.

This afternoon two of us spent a happy hour at church transforming one of the raised beds in the Community Garden into an Easter Garden ready for the weekend... Due to the colour of the bricks, the cross doesn't show up too well in the photo, but we have a hill, a cave-tomb, a meandering pathway and a quiet garden.  Over the course of the weekend we will make small changes to the scene by moving the stone and dressing the cross.  The hope is that people will take the opportunity, especially on Holy Saturday afternoon, to spend some time in quiet contemplation.

Big thanks go to J who gave up a free afternoon to co-create this beautiful space.