The Passion Week Teachers Lounge 4-10-2017

[scrapbookbuzz]

Not THAT kind of passion! LOL  :p

 

Welcome to the Teachers Lounge and interesting themes each day!

 

For many Christians this week is known as Passion Week, the week between when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey to the praises of people waving palm branches and singing, "Hosanna!" It all culminates at the end of the week with His Crucifixion and ultimately with His Resurrection!

 

What are your plans for this week? Here: I always think I'm going to have daily activities planned for this particular week, but as I'm not a very good planner, it doesn't usually happen. I do want to go to a Maundy Thursday and/or a Good Friday service, though.

 

Did any of you grow up attending a different church than you attend now? Here: I grew up attending a United Methodist Church but attend a Grace Gospel Fellowship church now (mostly because that's where dh grew up and wants to go).

I find that while I don't necessarily agree with some of the doctrinal practices of the UMC today, I do miss some of the traditions. GGF doesn't have Good Friday services or "midnight" services on Christmas Eve. I really miss those!

 

Do any of you do Easter Egg hunts with your kids, whether or not you actually attend church? Here: not really something we're into, for a variety of reasons. However, I do remember several years ago when a neighbor girl missed out on an egg hunt because her mom had misread the time on the flyer, or something like that. She was probably 9 or 10 at the time and had never been on an egg hunt. For whatever reason, despite the fact we didn't do egg hunts, I had all the supplies for one. So I put one together rather quickly for her and my dd. They had fun.  :)

 

Talk to me! :bigear:

[ScoutTN]

Good morning, Scrap!

 

We had a glorious beginning to Holy Week yesterday with perfect weather, children's and youth choirs leading music in worship and a fabulous sermon. Our schedule is a bit different than usual this week, with no church on Wednesday night and services Thursday and Friday instead. Some kids's activities are cancelled this week, but we have several extra things to do and plenty of schoolwork. We will spend some time reading Easter picture books and Scripture, listening to music and reflecting. My kids are watching BenHur this week too, which fits in nicely, though I didn't plan the timing. 

 

I grew up in Episcopal churches, but switched to PCA (a conservative, evangelical, Presbyterian denomination) in college because the Episcopal church near my college was dead with no gospel at all. My particular church is large with a liturgical service in a neo-gothic sanctuary. Other churches in my denomination might have worship in a more multi-purpose facility with a band up front. Variety of form, same theology. 

 

My kids have outgrown EEHs, but we did do them for years. We never really loved the huge ones at public venues like the zoo because they were too crowded and crazy. My church used to do a sweet one for preschoolers, hosted by some grandmas. We still dye eggs and have Easter baskets, though. 

 

[MercyA]

:seeya: , scrap!

 

When I was a very little girl, we attended a UCC church (very liberal). I didn't attend any church during my elementary / jr. high years. I became a member of a non-denominational Bible church in high school. After I was married, we attended a different non-denominational church, a Reformed Baptist church, a Baptist church, and now we are back at that same little Bible church I attended in high school.

 

My dream church would have a liturgical service, communion every week, and either Anabaptist doctrine or Roman Catholic doctrine minus about three things. :)  We are pretty happy where we are, though. Our church members really love and care for each other, the doctrine is sound, my daughter has grandma as her Sunday School teacher, and there is no rock band upfront.  :D

 

One of my favorite parts of Easter is saying, "He is risen!" to other church members, to which they reply, "He is risen, indeed!" 

 

We do an inside Easter egg scavenger hunt, with clues leading from one egg to the next. We don't usually dye eggs, though.

Edited April 10, 2017 by MercyA

[luuknam]

What are your plans for this week? 

 

Did any of you grow up attending a different church than you attend now? 

 

Do any of you do Easter Egg hunts with your kids, whether or not you actually attend church? 

 

 

Not sure about plans. It's spring break here, so taking the kids to the playground to play with other kids while they're not stuck in school is definitely on the list. Oh, and we'll probably have a play date on Wednesday.

 

One of my parents was Dutch Reformed, and the other Continental Reformed, and the church we attended when I was a kid did a combination (oecumenical) service, iirc. I think none of us attend church any more. 

 

We've done Easter egg hunts pretty much every year, either through my kid's PreK or daycare or some eggs I put in my own back yard. I've bought candy to put in the eggs we still have, so, the plan is to do another one this year. Not sure when to phase it out, but my youngest is 6, and sometimes I need to make sure he gets to do little kid stuff. We also eat matzos, though I'm not super picky about doing those on the 'correct' date (actually, I'm not super picky about doing anything on the 'correct' date, especially when it comes to religious stuff, since we're not religious). It's really weird to me that christians in the US don't have matzos on Easter - in the christian schools I attended as a kid we would have an Easter breakfast and they would serve matzos. In church too, Easter is not *only* about Jesus - it's also Passover. 

[scrapbookbuzz]

:seeya: , scrap!

 

:patriot: , hi back!

 

 

 

One of my favorite parts of Easter is saying, "He is risen!" to other church members, to which they reply, "He is risen, indeed!" 

 

 

ME TOO!!!

 

 

[Guest]

I grew up Methodist, but when our particular church's pastor decided that Jesus wasn't really God, we went to another church, the Presbyterian one.  When I moved to another city, I went to a Presbyterian Church there--all told, more than 30 years Presbyterian.  Ten years ago, I entered the Eastern Orthodox Church.  

 

Growing up and through the rest, we always had Maundy Thursday Services, Noon or 3:00 Good Friday, with a procession through town or around the church, inside even, and we always got Good Friday off school and work.  I don't think I have ever worked or gone to school on a Good Friday; it was just ... nope.  Then on Sunday, we had sunrise services, followed by a family lunch at home and an Easter egg hunt for kids and adults.  Then back to school/work on Monday.  My own son loved the egg hunts and we still did them in our house until he was about 17 years old.  :0). We didn't "do" Easter bunny things, other than the chocolate rabbits, and that was just so we could bite off the ears.  

 

Now, as Orthodox, if I attend all the services, I'll be in church for about 30 hours this week.  

Yesterday was Palm Sunday, and last night started Holy Week.  Sunday-Wednesday, we will have preparatory services remembering the things Jesus spoke of in the last days, and contrasting repentance with non-repentance.  Eg. the woman who anointed Christ compared to Judas.  The wise and foolish virgins.  

 

Thursday, we will have a Divine Liturgy (what Roman Catholics call "Mass") as this is the day of the Mystical Supper.  Thursday night, we will have a 3-hour long service reading  from Jesus' prayer in Gethsemane (three chapters of John) through His betrayal, Passion and death and placement in the tomb.  (This service has one of the most haunting of all the Church's hymns...15th Antiphon.)

 

Friday, we will have three services.  The Royal Hours (mostly psalms), the Vespers of Holy Friday, where we remember Christ's taking down from the Cross, and  then the evening service, which is the Burial Service of Christ, which is largely Psalm 119 with readings...it starts out super mournful but then glimmers of joy start to peep through--we are not "re-enacting" so we never ever forget the Resurrection...and this starts to come through in the services.  After this service, people will keep vigil, in turns, reading the Psalms until the following morning.  (This is not dissimilar to the burial service I will have someday.)

 

Saturday, we have another Divine Liturgy, and things start popping...the Resurrection and great joy are *so close*...and at 11:30 at night, we return to the church to start the 3 hour service...Nocturne, Matins and the Divine Liturgy of Pascha!  We shout "Christ is Risen!  Indeed! He is Risen!" about 40 thousand times (a mild exaggeration) and afterward, we break our Lenten 40-day- and Holy Week- fast with a big feast and champagne and all sorts of yummy goodies, kids running around in their pajamas, and it's just wonderful!  We end up at home at about 4 am.  Then on Sunday afternoon, we go back to the church for Agape Vespers, in which the Gospel is read in as many languages as people speak.  (Eg., not Latin, but ... well, one year, we had 15 readers, everything from Romanian to Russian to Hebrew to Aramaic, to Japanese, to Korean.). Then we have a big barbecue out back and all kinds of games for the kids, including an Egg Hunt.  

 

So...it's a busy week.  That's why I'm sitting down right now.  :0)

 

 

 

 

 

 

[scrapbookbuzz]

In church too, Easter is not *only* about Jesus - it's also Passover. 

 

So very true! And I've often wondered myself why the Judeo-Christian community has not also followed the schedule of rememberance feasts the Orthodox Jews do. I think it's kind of important! That being said, I'm not very good at observing them,either, although I would really like to change that!

[scrapbookbuzz]

Patty Joanna, that sounds beautiful and exhausting all at the same time!

[Guest]

So very true! And I've often wondered myself why the Judeo-Christian community has not also followed the schedule of rememberance feasts the Orthodox Jews do. I think it's kind of important! That being said, I'm not very good at observing them,either, although I would really like to change that!

 

Which feasts?  

 

The Orthodox Church lives in a fast/feast cycle, observing 12 Great Feasts (plus the Feast of Feasts, "Pascha" (which means 'passover')).  I have to say I LOVE this because it orders my life in a rhythm of paying greater and lesser attention; I can't keep everything at high volume 365 days a year.  But when it is in a rhythm of calling me to remember different parts of Christ's life, sometimes at low volume, sometimes at high volume, I come to live into the rhythm of that and it is enormously beneficial.  It does a lot to keep the cares of the world in their right place, for one thing.  :0)

[Guest]

Patty Joanna, that sounds beautiful and exhausting all at the same time!

 

You called it.  :0)

[luuknam]

Last week at swim&gym I was talking with one of the moms about painting eggs. She asked if I was going to paint eggs with my kids, and I said I wasn't sure yet. And then it turned out that what she had in mind was quite different from what I had in mind. She was talking about dipping (hard boiled? not sure) eggs in a food coloring and vinegar (I think it was vinegar) mixture, whereas I was talking about what my mom did with us when I was a kid... which was making tiny holes in the eggs and blowing the egg whites and yolk out, and then using a brush to paint watercolor paints on the now-empty-and-very-fragile egg. 

 

So, if you paint eggs, what do you do?

[HomeAgain]

Afternoon, Scrap!

 

What are your plans for this week?  Getting ready to move.  Lots to keep me busy!

 

Did any of you grow up attending a different church than you attend now?  I don't attend church.  I grew up Catholic, and most Christian sects are so different that I simply don't feel comfortable. 

 

Do any of you do Easter Egg hunts with your kids, whether or not you actually attend church?  Yep!  Our tradition has the children put a basket of dyed/painted eggs outside the front door, and the next morning the empty basket is used to hunt for plastic eggs.  Each child finds 1 dozen, marked to be different from the other child's.  We don't do mass egg hunts for 2 reasons:

1. I'm not comfortable with the idea of throwing a hundred eggs on the ground and calling it a "hunt".

2. My children don't need that much candy. 

We have issues with artificial dye here so candy is kept to a minimum and to a quality standard.  I don't do Trunk Or Treats, either, or other candy grabs for the same reasons.

[mom31257]

Buenas tardes,  since we've been reviewing Spanish.

 

Our church began the week with a community event with an egg hunt, rides, inflatables, and free food. It was a beautiful day and couldn't have been better weather.

 

Our weekly plans are pretty normal: school, swim practices, church, Spanish co-op, and we'll have our last co-op of the year with our main group. Dd gets a long weekend for Easter since she's at a Christian college, so she comes home Thursday night. We'll probably plan something for Saturday since she's home, but I'm not sure what yet.

 

I grew up Southern Baptist and lived in TN. I went to a Pentecostal college and joined the same denomination while there. Dh grew up in  that denomination in Ohio, and we attended one wherever we lived until 2009. We went to an interdenominational church for 5 years, and we're actually at a Southern Baptist church now. 

 

Yes, we did egg hunts with our kids. I still give them Easter baskets with some candy and some kind of gift. I haven't bought the first thing yet this year!

 

 

 

 

[2_girls_mommy]

United Methodist here. I don't agree with everything, but enough that it is the best fit for us for now.  Dh grew up Catholic, and the worship services and traditions are close enough for him to feel comfortable as well. I love love love our congregation, and that is huge. 

 

So this week: 

Typical Monday with school and activities here. My church is handing out flyers to the neighborhood around our building tonight to invite people to our annual egg hunt, but I am not going. Unfortunately I am just way too behind in work around the house, and have to stay home. 

 

Tuesday: regular school/housework day. 

 

Wednesday: A friend's church is doing a full Seder Meal at her church. We will attend that. 

 

Maundy Thursday: Our church is visiting another UMC that is having a living Seder meal. I am not sure exactly what that is, but it sounds interesting. I believe it will be more like a performance than us participating. 

 

Good Friday: Our church is doing a protestant Stations of the Cross all day. We will go to that during the day at some point. 

 

Sat: Our church is having their egg hunt in the park, complete with Easter bunny pictures.  Then my sisters and niece and I and my kids will dye eggs at my mom's and spend the night with her. 

 

Easter Sunday: We will attend church with my mom and have a big meal at her house. We will do a family egg hunt in her yard for fun. 

 

[FaithManor]

Just got back from a wonderful week with the rocket team. Exhausted since we did not get in until 3:40am. So nothing but laundry planned for today.

 

Have to go to the hospital tomorrow and sit with my mom while father figure undergoes surgery which is going to be touch and go. So all Easter week plans are a no go at this time.

 

I am considering, if he survives and is still hospitalized sucking up the cost of a restaurant room half way between here and the hospital for my brother and his family, my mom, and nieces and nephews if they want to come. Mom could leave the hospital for a couple of hours to have dinner with whomever can make it.

 

If he dies, then who knows because mom will hold the funeral until my sister can get home from France and everything will be up in the air.

 

My MIL used to do Easter Egg hunts for the kids when they were little and they were epic...tons of fun! Of course my kids are adults now except the almost 17 year old. If my grandson lived close, I would have one for him. I think dd and hubs are taking him to one at their church. They do a breakfast that is really nice followed by the hunt for kids 1-11 (once in 6th grade they help the adult organizers put on the event and then get a bag of goodies), and then worship service.

 

Mostly Holy Week will be a mess here.

[scrapbookbuzz]

A Seder meal! Totally forgot about that. Sad, isn't it? Sometimes, I think we eschew traditions to the detriment

of our truly understanding the history we're supposed to be remembering!

[Guest]

Just got back from a wonderful week with the rocket team. Exhausted since we did not get in until 3:40am. So nothing but laundry planned for today.

 

Have to go to the hospital tomorrow and sit with my mom while father figure undergoes surgery which is going to be touch and go. So all Easter week plans are a no go at this time.

 

I am considering, if he survives and is still hospitalized sucking up the cost of a restaurant room half way between here and the hospital for my brother and his family, my mom, and nieces and nephews if they want to come. Mom could leave the hospital for a couple of hours to have dinner with whomever can make it.

 

If he dies, then who knows because mom will hold the funeral until my sister can get home from France and everything will be up in the air.

 

My MIL used to do Easter Egg hunts for the kids when they were little and they were epic...tons of fun! Of course my kids are adults now except the almost 17 year old. If my grandson lived close, I would have one for him. I think dd and hubs are taking him to one at their church. They do a breakfast that is really nice followed by the hunt for kids 1-11 (once in 6th grade they help the adult organizers put on the event and then get a bag of goodies), and then worship service.

 

Mostly Holy Week will be a mess here.

(((FM)))

 

The year I was 16 or 17, my grandma died the evening of Holy Saturday.  She had been sick for a long time, and that Holy Week was a mess...but a Holy Mess because we were caring for someone at the end of her life.  That's a holy activity.  

 

One thing I will never forget is that my mom was sewing a beautiful Easter dress for me...and obviously, THAT wasn't going to happen.  A friend of mine heard the news and came over and got that unfinished dress, and stayed up all night to finish it, and hung it on the front door--there it was, in time for sunrise service.  That, too, was an act of love, and frankly, I remember that Holy Week more than I remember any other individual one because of her kindness.  

 

God be with you.

[FaithManor]

Thank you Patty Joanna.

[scrapbookbuzz]

Hope you all are doing well this afternoon. Popping in to say Hello!

Now to take a nap!

[Guest]

I hope you had a nice nap!

[MercyA]

I  :001_wub: naps. In fact, I like them so much that DH bought me this t-shirt.  :)

[Guest]

double post.  oops

 

[Zinnia]

I love Holy Week, too, though the church we are in currently doesn't do much.

 

I grew up nondenominational, dh grew up southern Baptist (but the fancy kind that wore suits and sang in Latin.  :) ).  We've attended a whole lot of stuff, with about 5 years in a Vineyard turned Anglican church.  As the church made the transition, they introduced so many parts of the liturgy and church calendar.  We loved that.  For the last year, we've been attending a charismatic church.  Theologically, it's a better fit for us, but I miss the liturgy and rhythms of the church calendar.  We try to keep that up at home.  

 

My kids are going to an Easter Egg Hunt at the YMCA Friday night IN the pool.  They are very excited.