We are about to start the countdown to Easter with a series of special services and events throughout Lent. You are invited to join us as we journey together following the theme of Living Hope.
The 40 days of Lent is a time for reflection as we prepare for Easter and it is a time we hope will bring us all together with opportunities to enjoy daily reflections and special services throughout Lent. Here's what we have planned.
- Pancake Day Party - Tuesday 4 March
Join us in the church hall between 5pm and 6pm for a mixture of savoury and sweet pancakes - the traditional way we all prepare for the start of Lent. - Ash Wednesday Communion and the Imposition of Ashes - Wednesday 5 March
We will be celebrating Holy Communion at 11am and 7pm in church when we will also be performing the traditional Imposition of Ashes with members of the congregation invited to have the sign of the cross signed on their foreheads with ash made from the burning of palm crosses. - Youth With A Mission service - Sunday 9 March
We will be marking the First Sunday of Lent by welcoming a team from Youth With A Mission (YWAM) who will be preaching and leading worship in church at our 10:30am service, helping us to think about welcome more younger people into church. - Living Hope Lent Course - starts Wednesday 12 March
Join us in the vicarage every Wednesday through Lent as we follow the Living Hope course which invited us to explore the hope God offers us - not something which is wishful thinking but something which is real, robust and alive. We will meet at 2pm and 7.30pm to study various to explore together various themes around hope which will lead us to Easter Day. - Holy Week Services
During Holy Week we will have a series of special services beginning on Palm Sunday.- Palm Sunday - 13 April - We will begin Holy Week by worshipping together with our friends at the Community Church at 10:30am.
- Tuesday 15 April - Evening worship at The Church in Rodley at 7pm.
- Maundy Thursday - Evening worship at St John's at 7pm.
- Good Friday - Reflections at the cross at 11am, followed by Tenebrae (Service of shadows) at 7pm.
- Easter Sunday - Sonrise at Sunrise - 6am. Venue to be confirmed. Followed by Holy Communion at 8:30am and 10:30am.
Living Hope
At St John's we are joining with churches all across the country in following the theme of Living Hope through Lent this year. The Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, has been sharing his hopes for what the course will bring to us all: