Friday Five - Holy Week

So the RevGalBlogPals are talking about Holy Week:

I invite you to share five favorite Holy Week things, five things that are truly worshipful for you

1. I think its' possible that my very favorite worship service of the whole year is The Sunday of the Passion.  What I do every year is take whatever Gospel we are in for the lectionary - this year it is Mark and I just take the whole passion story beginning with the entry with Palms, divide it up among readers for the various characters and I read the narrator, and intersperse Lent and Holy week hymns.  I always end with "Ah Holy Jesus".  I find it very moving.  It may be the one worship service I lead where I can actually worship.

2.  Art:I love to find Holy Week art.  So many different representations of the events of Holy Week. I've recently discovered Pinterest.  Oh have I discovered Pinterest.  Here's my Holy Week Board 

3. Handel's Messiah  I'm going to put Bach's St. Matthew Passion for the bonus, which I love, but really what I do during Holy Week is play all of the second part of the Messiah during Holy Week.  I just couldn't put all of that on here.

4. Holy Thursday:  the beginning absolution, when people come up and I place my hands on them and say "In obedience to the command of our Lord Jesus Christ, I forgive you all your sins"  I have done it for the first time at most of the congregations I've served.  That first time I always worry that no one is going to come up.  But they do come up.  They are hungering to hear those words.  I am humbled to say those words.

5. Holy Saturday - I like to hold my first communion workshop on Holy Saturday.  Here's a post from last year.  I always think about finding a church that holds an Easter Vigil but when it comes down to it, I just want a quiet Saturday evening and try to go bed early for the sunrise Easter worship.

Bonus:  a piece of music that "is" Holy Week for you: 
Bach - St. Mattew Passion