Here we are already at Easter week, 2008. By the time you read this, it will be Maundy Thursday, a day when Christians everywhere remember "The Last Supper". Most churches offer communion, a tiny meal of bread and wine or juice, commemorating the body and blood of Jesus Christ.
Many churches celebrate "open communion", or "open table" wherein every person present may partake of these elements. Some churches restrict this sacrament to members of their own denomination. If you want to join in taking communion, you can always call the church office or the pastor and find out to whom the "elements" are offered.
United Methodist Church and United Church of Christ are two denominations that serve communion to all participants. But most churches have some sort of service during the evening of Maundy Thursday, and anyone is welcome to attend.
This Friday Christians will observe the earthly death of Jesus, sometimes with a Noon to 3 p.m. worship service. In Port Clinton, a "Good Friday" service takes place from Noon until one o'clock with various churches and pastors participating. This is at Trinity United Methodist Church, corner of Second and Adams Streets, and the public is welcome to attend. And at Danbury the Ecumenical Service is at the same time at First UCC, 802 Prairie Street, Marblehead.
Holy Saturday, sometimes called Silent Saturday, is the day before Easter. Many churches have worship service and some observe a vigil, often spent in silent prayer; some last through the night until sunrise.
Then next Sunday, Easter, marks the holiest day in the Christian year. Many congregations begin with an Easter Sunrise Service. One local congregation, LaPointe United Methodist Church (LaCarne), meets on the shore of Lake Erie, on the beach across from City Park in Port Clinton. This is a tradition of many years for that church, says Rev. Chuck Kaylor, pastor.
The public is invited to attend, and everyone is encouraged to wear warm comfortable clothing and comfortable shoes. Beginning at 7 a.m. there will be some singing accompanied by recorded music, reading of scripture, a short message and a benediction. All this takes 20-30 minutes and is certain to get your day off to a good start.
Most Christians try to attend some sort of church service on Easter. Whether at home or far away, the followers of Jesus spend time in worship on the day commemorating Jesus' Resurrection from death on the cross after three days in the grave. This took place about AD 27-33, now nearly 2000 years ago.
The date for Easter varies from late March through April on a date established during the Middle Ages. Eastern Orthodox Churches use a slightly different church calendar. Last year both Eastern and Western churches observed Easter on the same day. This year Eastern Churches will celebrate on April 23.
I think we are all aware that the Western Easter is very early this year. Why is that? I looked it up on the internet and found that Easter is always the first Sunday after the first full moon after the Spring Equinox (which is March 20). This date of Easter is based on the lunar calendar that Hebrew people used to identify Passover, which is why it is on various dates on our current calendars.
Based on the above, Easter can actually be one day earlier than it is this year but that is very rare. This year is the earliest Easter most of us will ever see during our lives! And none of us has ever, or will ever, see it a day earlier!
The next time Easter will be this early (March 23) will be the year 2228 (220 years from now). The last time it was this early was 1913. So if you're 95 or older, you were around for that.
The next time it will be a day earlier, March 22, will be in the year 2285 (277 years from now). The last time it was on March 22 was 1818. So, no one alive today has or will ever see it any earlier than this year.
(I hope that information is accurate! Sometimes data on the internet is incorrect.)
No matter what denomination you claim as your own, no matter whether you do or do not attend church regularly (or not at all), you are welcome at any Christian church on Easter. Do not hesitate to attend. Go in, sit down, ponder the day and the sermon, listen to the Easter hymns, hear the scripture, join in the prayers. You will hear a message that will restore your faith and the belief that your life has meaning. I am sure of it.
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Spring begins on March 20. And let us all hope it brings us some warmer, balmy weather. I saw flower seeds in a discount store and couldn't resist buying some. It isn't time to plant them yet, I know. But it isn't too early to dream about some colorful blooms and some gloriously green grass in the days ahead. A few trees are showing some buds. So this week, if possible, I'm going to cut some branches of forsythia to see if I can force some blooms open. The yellow blossoms will look spring - like in a house that is really ready for a bit of a change.
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Last week was a busy one. Two meetings I attended were not in my usual routine. On Thursday night there was the annual Ottawa County Board of Health meeting. This is attended not only by the board members but township, city and village officials who hear reports on health department activities for the past year.
Election of officers was held. Named were Dave Hirt of Danbury Township, chairman; Lee Yackee of Allen Township, vice-chairman and Debbie Hymore-Tester of Port Clinton, secretary.
Other appointments made were Bill Van Der Giessen to a five-year term on the District Licensing Board, Bill Gyde to fill a term as RV Park and campground representative and Jill Stinebaugh to a five-year term as board member.
Then on Saturday I went to Owens Community College for a three-hour seminar on Public Records laws. This is a new Ohio law requirement: all elected officials must take this training once per each term of office. It was good to review the materials about accessibility to public records and other related topics. Gerry Perry, Bay Township Trustee, and I attended and saw other folks from Port Clinton, Portage Township, Clay Center and Rocky Ridge at the session.
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Check the many programs for children scheduled at the Ida Rupp Library at Port Clinton. Get a list of what's going on at the circulation desk. "Tales for Toddlers", "Ready, Set, Read" and "Babies and Books" are some of what's available for families with young children.
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St. John Lutheran Church at Rocky Ridge will host a chicken and biscuit dinner 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. on Sunday, March 30. A free will donation will be accepted. Funds are being raised to help the church's confirmation class attend camp this summer.
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My niece, Cora Kirk, a second-grader, told me the most interesting thing I heard last week. She said, "If you tell a goldfish something, he will only remember it for three seconds!" It seems that somebody was reading a list of trivia facts to her from the internet. Someone has learned that a goldfish has a memory span of three seconds. Now, how, do you suppose, that anyone figured that out? I think the moral of that story is don't expect to train a goldfish to do many tricks.
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And the most meaningful experience I had this past week? Well, I practiced singing a short Easter cantata with the choir from Trinity United Church of Christ at Elliston. They invited me to join (since they needed another soprano). I felt I could spare the time because not too many practices were scheduled. So, on Easter, I will have the special treat of singing "The Dawn of Resurrection" with a group of folks who love to make music but do not often have the opportunity. I'm looking forward to it.
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Say congratulations to Janis Kerul when you see her. She's just retired after 22 years of work in the Ottawa County Recorder's office. We wish her lots of luck and fun in the years ahead.
Happy Easter!
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