For a boy from Boston it could only happen at Paragon Park. That was the location of the nearest roller coaster. I felt the same sensations the few times I went - anticipation, apprehension, dread and exhilaration. When it started moving, first there was the long, slow upward movement of the coaster, accompanied by the droning sound of the mechanism. Then, ever so briefly, it crested. Down the coaster plummeted, up again, down, up again. Before you could catch your breath, the ride was over.

   That's the way it is with Lent and Holy Week. The long, slow, almost plodding movement of Lent reaches an ever-so-brief crest on Palm Sunday with the commemoration of the Triumphal Entry. Suddenly we plummet into the recollection of the Passion. Then up again we go to the intimate recollection of the Last Supper. Then come the twists and turns and profound lows of the events of Good Friday. We soar through the Great Vigil into the heights of Easter Sunday, and then it seems to end for another year. We're often left feeling a jumble of mixed thoughts and sensations, as we do at the end of a roller coaster ride.

   More than one minister has said to me that we've got to be crazy to undergo the fast-paced highs and lows of Holy Week every year. I think they're referring to all the work involved in each of the services. Beyond that, the quickly changing events commemorated in the week's ceremonies make little psychological sense. Most of us find it very difficult to absorb the emotional, let alone the spiritual, fullness of all the days of this holy week. Perhaps that's why different Christians more strongly identify with the different events. Few can take it all in, even when we try.

   There's something for every temperament in Holy Week. Some find the triumph of Palm Sunday with the reception of Christ as their king most compelling. Others are drawn by intimacy with the care-giving friend, the servant Lord who washes feet and feeds us with Bread and Wine. Still others are most strongly drawn to dwell on the sufferings Jesus endured for our sins on Good Friday. Some feel compelled to watch by the tomb in grief and longing. Many find themselves transfixed by the unmitigated joy and power of God at Christ's resurrection.

   The spiritual impact of Holy Week need not end on Easter night. The Church is people who share a Holy Week Lord. Our King rides a donkey to fulfill God's instructions in taking His place in triumph. We need not let the appearance of foolishness dissuade us from living for Him. Our Lord was intimate as He served His friends. We can make intimacy with Him and each other our priority, service and care-giving our goal. He allowed Himself to be humiliated for God's truth, to suffer for the love of God, and die to reconcile sinners with God. We can be courageous enough by His Spirit to sacrifice ourselves for God's sake and for the sake of those He came to save. He rose again by the power of God's love and so we can live lives transformed by our Risen Lord, undefeated by fear or the prospect of death. We are His people. St. Paul's is His church - through the highs, the lows, the twists and turns of our roller coaster life.

Affectionately in Christ,
Phil Tierney +