Next week we will celebrate Palm Sunday when we remember Christ's journey into the holy city.
This is a comical journey, as Christ comes to liberate us from death, not as mighty warrior on horseback, but on a peaceful creature, an ass. He is met with cheers and palms waved, celebrity which soon turns to rejection. Such is the contrast between the merry parody of the triumphal procession and the tragedy of Holy Week.
As is our custom, we will be processing from the Cathedral after the Sunday morning service, up Fargate, to join with the other city centre churches for a short service, at the cross beside the Town Hall. To add to the confusion this year, the Sheffield half marathon is also finishing at the top of Fargate at a similar time. So there will be considerably more cheering than usual. Perhaps apt that chaos and crowds may overshadow our procession.
During Holy Week the cross stands outside the Town Hall as witness to the events of Easter.
People are invited to write prayers on lolly sticks and place them in the sand around the cross. It is a moving sight to see the various prayers littering the base of the cross.
Between 10:30am and 2:30pm each day there will be teams of people from the city centre churches standing by the cross, there to talk and invite people to write prayers. If you’d like to be involved please could you let us know. You can sign up for an hour long slot online here.
We hope you will join us and join the crowds.
Revd Beth Keith
Pioneer Curate