Lent, Holy Week and Easter at Faith

LENT, HOLY WEEK & EASTER at FAITH

The season of Lent is a chance to pause, reflect and do something different as we prepare for the celebration of Easter. This year we are exploring the themes of Lent through the works of artist Henri Matisse. There are many ways to engage throughout the season, and we would love for you to join us.

• Lenten Devotional: We invite you to explore “Henri Matisse and the Colors of Lent, a Lenten Devotional.” You can pick up a hard copy of the devotional booklet at the church or download your own copy. We’ll also email a weekly excerpt each Monday of Lent. If you are not on our email distribution list and would like to be added, send your address to communications@flcva.org.
• Prayer Cards: During Lent you can put a prayer request in the offering plate when it is passed around. You’ll find prayer cards on the entrance tables by the bulletins. When you come forward for communion, we encourage you to take a prayer card out of the plate and commit to pray for that person during the following week. This ritual offers opportunities both to be vulnerable and share your struggles with our community, and to learn more about each other and offer support. Feel free to share your highs as well as your lows so that we can celebrate, praise, lament, and hope together. We hope this new tradition will allow for meaningful connection and mutual support in our community.
• Lent Spiral Calendar: Pastor CJ has copies of a Lenten calendar for you to color or cross out or fill in as prayer requests as a countdown to Holy Week.
• Service Projects: We will bag apples for Arlington Food Assistance Center, our March Mission of the Month, following worship on Sunday, March 1^st in the fellowship fall. We will assemble hygiene kits for Bridges to Independence following our meal at Maundy Thursday Dinner Church on Thursday, April 2nd.
• Pray with Scissors:  Pastor CJ will host two sessions of ‘pray with scissors’ after worship on March 8^th and March 15^th in the Sunday school class area. We will make Matisse-style art collages. All ages welcome!
• Brunch Fellowship: Join us for Brunch Fellowship following worship on Sunday, March 22^nd.
• Holy Week Stations of the Cross: Join Pastor CJ at the National Gallery of Art. We will visit the various Matisse pieces and explore Barrnett Newman’s Stations of the Cross in the East Building. If you would like to join Pastor CJ for the art walk, please take a minute to fill out this short survey to help determine the day that work best for a majority of Faith members and friends.
• Lent Theatrical Readers:The gospel texts during Lent involve a lot of good storytelling. If you would like to do a theatrical reading for one or more of the readings (see list in the announcements and on the form), please fill out this form.     

Celebrate Holy Week and Easter at Faith! We start the week with Jesus’ triumphal entry at Palm Sunday worship, Sunday, March 29th at 10 AM (with livestream). There will be fun for all at our Family Holy Week Event, following Palm Sunday Worship at 11:15 AM. We will have Holy Week stations of the cross, hunt for eggs and decorate the cross! Sign up using this form.

We will come together for Maundy Thursday Dinner Church and Service Project on Thursday, April 2nd at 6:30 PM. A light dinner will be provided. We will assemble hygiene kits for Bridges to Independence following the meal. Good Friday Worship is Friday, April 3rd at 7:30 PM (with livestream).

We will have two services with special music and Holy Communion on Easter Sunday, April 5th at 9 AM (with livestream) and 11 AM. All are invited for a church-wide brunch between the services! Sign up here to bring something to share.