Special Events at Emmanuel
Emmanuel Episcopal Church announces Holy Week and Easter services
Wakefield, MA: Emmanuel Episcopal Church announces this year’s Holy Week and Easter schedule. Services will feature musical selections by Bach, Holst, Mozart, and Willan, offered by Emmanuel’s Choir under the direction of Michael Salvatore, the church’s Director of Music.
The Holy Week schedule commences with Maundy Thursday on March 28. The parish will begin its observance with an Agapé Supper at 6:00 p.m. The meal—homemade soup, bread, vegetables, cheese, and fruit—is held in memory of Jesus’ last supper with his disciples. Following the Agapé Supper, the church will hold a celebration of the Holy Communion with the dramatic stripping of the altar at 7:00 p.m. During the service the choir will sing the anthem “Ave Verum Corpus” by W. A. Mozart. The preacher will be Emmanuel’s seminarian from the Episcopal Divinity School, Harry Walton.
A traditional Good Friday liturgy will be held at 12:00 noon on March 29. It will include a reading of St. John’s Passion Gospel, Veneration of the Cross (members of the congregation are invited to pray before a plain wooden cross), and Communion from the Reserved Sacrament. The congregation will sing traditional Good Friday hymns: “When I survey the wondrous cross,” “Were you there when they crucified my Lord?” and “O sacred head sore wounded.” Emmanuel’s Rector, the Rev. Matthew P. Cadwell, will offer a meditation.
On Holy Saturday, March 30, Emmanuel will join with the congregation of the Church of the Good Shepherd in Reading for an Easter Vigil at 7:00 p.m. The vigil service, to be held at Good Shepherd (95 Woburn Street, Reading), is rich in symbolism and recalls the earliest Christian traditions. It begins in darkness and includes the lighting of the first fire, readings, chants, bells, and the celebration of Holy Communion. The sermon will be offered the Rev. Mary Scott Wagner, Rector of Good Shepherd, and the Rev. Matthew Cadwell will be the celebrant for the Eucharist. A dessert reception follows.
Two services are held at Emmanuel Church on Easter Sunday morning, March 31: Holy Communion with Easter hymns at 8:00 a.m., using the historic language of the Book of Common Prayer, and a large Festival Choral Eucharist at 10:00 a.m. The latter service will include the J. S. Bach anthem “Awake thou wintry earth,” sung by the choir. It also features a unique children’s activity: the Flowering of the Cross. An Easter egg hunt follows, as does a festive coffee hour reception, hosted by the parish’s Senior Warden, Eric Dannenberg, and his family. Professionally staffed childcare will be offered at the 10:00 a.m. Easter service.
The Rev. Cadwell, said: “Since the parish’s first service on Easter Day in 1870, Emmanuel Episcopal Church has proclaimed the joy of the Resurrection in all that we do. We would be very pleased to have members of the Wakefield community join us this year as we commemorate Jesus’ passion and celebrate God’s gift of new life for us all. Our congregation is increasingly diverse and inclusive of people of all backgrounds. If you don’t already have a church home, we invite you to visit Emmanuel this Holy Week and Easter. We promise a warm welcome and an inspiring worship experience.”
Emmanuel Episcopal Church is located on the corner of Main and Bryant Streets adjacent to the Wakefield Common. The church and parish hall are both handicap accessible. Contact 781-245-1374 or info@emmanuelwakefield.org for more information.