Covenant Presbyterian Church Invites All to the Palm Sunday Service April 9 and Easter Service April 16

Buckhead’s Covenant Presbyterian Church (www.covpresatlanta.org) has announced its schedule of activities for Holy Week beginning with Palm Sunday, April 9, and visitors of all ages are welcome. The 11 a.m. Palm Sunday worship service will be a joyful one with inspiring music and the waving of palms. As is traditional at Covenant Presbyterian, the congregation will gather outside the church’s front entrance on Peachtree Road where the story of Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem the week before his crucifixion will be read. Following the reading, the congregation will reenact the event by processing behind the choir into the sanctuary.

The following Thursday evening, April 13, the church will hold a 7 p.m. Maundy Thursday service in the chapel. The service commemorates Jesus’ final Passover celebration with his disciples (the Last Supper), prior to his arrest and crucifixion. It will include a traditional Tenabrae Service which is designed, through the reading of scripture narratives, to recreate the emotional aspects of Jesus’ final days from the gathering in the Upper Room to the crucifixion, to the tomb, and will conclude in darkness as the church lights are dimmed. This solemn service is an important component of Holy Week, according to Rev. Dr. Richard Hill, interim pastor of Covenant Presbyterian, who asks “How can you know the elation of Easter morning without first experiencing the valley of the shadow of death?”

Holy Week concludes with a joyful Easter celebration Sunday, April 16 at 11 a.m., preceded by an Easter Egg hunt for children age 4-elementary school at 10:15 a.m. on the church grounds. The service will feature the full compliment of talent from Covenant Presbyterian’s music ministry. Director of Music and Organist Jeffrey McIntyre will be joined by a brass quintet to accompany the service, and the church’s Handbell Choir will provide a selection for the prelude. The service will feature festival arrangements with organ and brass choir of favorite Easter hymns. The adult choir will sing David Ashley White’s “With a Shining Like the Sun”.

“Holy Week incorporates the full range of emotions associated with Jesus’ final days on earth,” said Dr. Hill. “First, we remember his joyful entry into Jerusalem with rousing music and the waving of palms. From there, we move to the sobering feeling of Maundy Thursday, when the shadow of Jesus’ impending betrayal hung over his final supper with his disciples. Good Friday focuses on the despair and grief of his crucifixion that appeared to be the end, until finally, the break of dawn on Sunday morning produces the joy of the resurrection, celebrated on Easter. The week of services takes us on a spiritual journey, plunging us into the darkness of reality and bringing us back into the light of hope. We invite everyone to share the journey with us.”

About Covenant Presbyterian Church

For nearly a century, Covenant Presbyterian Church has served the city of Atlanta through its mission of “Equipping the people of God to serve Christ in the world”. The church is led by Interim Pastor Rev. Dr. Richard Hill and Rev. Dr. Jill Ulrici, associate pastor. Located at 2461 Peachtree Rd., NE, Atlanta, Ga. 30305, Covenant is home to a welcoming congregation that seeks, serves and celebrates together. The church boasts a lively youth group, hands-on mission work, a women’s spirituality ministry and a strong music program, as well as offering public lectures, social events, educational opportunities and more. Covenant supports numerous organizations including Buckhead Christian Ministry, the Central Night Shelter, ChildSpring International, Habitat for Humanity, The Open Door Community, Earth Covenant Ministry and Faith Alliance of Metro Atlanta. Covenant also takes a leadership role in the LaGonave Haiti Partners, a more than 20-year partnership with the Episcopal Church of Haiti. Ongoing Haiti projects include a community health center, as well as programs for education, agriculture, adult literacy and children’s nutrition. www.covpresatlanta.org