I described the use of flowers in our church in another thread and it made me think of different liturgies in lutheran churches and how they differ. One example of this is advent, in Sweden this is a very light service with a lot of music. Lots of people go to church that day and it's a joyful sunday. I celebrated advent in the lutheran Gedächtniskirche in Berlin. It was a very dark and somber service with a very long sermon and different types of speeches. German lutherans probably didn't find this somber as their traditions look a little different than mine. So I became curious of how easter traditions differ within our lutheran church family.
Our church follow the liturgy of the Church of Sweden and I suppose we would be considered rather high church lutheran.
As all other we start the easter on palm sunday. This is a rather regular sunday service, however it is joyful and usually the children choirs sing so there is a lot of people coming. We decorate the altar with twigs of salix that traditionally represent palm tree leaves in Scandinavia.
On the thursday we have a service that starts like any other service. The church is lit up and decorated as normal, with yellow flowers on the altar. The service remember Jesus cleaning his disciples feet and then we move on to the communion. As this is THE holy communion in remembrance of the first this is traditionally the day when everybody took the communion. In earlier years, especially in northern Sweden, you were not supposed to take the communion more than necessary so a lot of people took it only on the easter thursday. I think this is still very common in low church areas of the country.
After the holy communion, we move on into getsemane and the treason upon Jesus and as the priest read the text the altar is undressed, candles put out and all light shut off. All three altar cloths are removed and all that is left is the crucifix. The parish leaves in darkness.
On the good friday the service starts with the church being dark, the altar naked exept for five red roses representing the five wounds and the crucifix, no candles and no bells. We have a short and dark service centered on the death of Jesus. The priest wears a black stole.
On easter saturday there is no service until midnight. This service starts once again in darkness and an empt altar. The only difference is that the baptism candle is placed unlit in the middle of the aisle. When the service starts the priest enters in procession with a lit candle and white stole. He walks up to the baptism candle and read the Bible texts about the women entering the grave and finding it empty. Then he lights the candle. The service continues with the altar being redressed, candles lit, yellow daffodils placed on the altar and all lights being relit. Suddenly after days of darns the church seem to bathe in light in the middle of the night. The service ends with everyone taking a candle and exiting the church singing and reciting that Jesus is resurrected.
This midnight service is not very traditional swedish however. Traditionally the resurrection would be celebrated on the easter sunday morning and we do this as well, in our parish at that service the altar is already dressed from the beginning, but candles and lights are not lit until that moment in the service when the grave is found empty.
Are these traditions the same in your churches or do they differ, and if so how?
Our church follow the liturgy of the Church of Sweden and I suppose we would be considered rather high church lutheran.
As all other we start the easter on palm sunday. This is a rather regular sunday service, however it is joyful and usually the children choirs sing so there is a lot of people coming. We decorate the altar with twigs of salix that traditionally represent palm tree leaves in Scandinavia.
On the thursday we have a service that starts like any other service. The church is lit up and decorated as normal, with yellow flowers on the altar. The service remember Jesus cleaning his disciples feet and then we move on to the communion. As this is THE holy communion in remembrance of the first this is traditionally the day when everybody took the communion. In earlier years, especially in northern Sweden, you were not supposed to take the communion more than necessary so a lot of people took it only on the easter thursday. I think this is still very common in low church areas of the country.
After the holy communion, we move on into getsemane and the treason upon Jesus and as the priest read the text the altar is undressed, candles put out and all light shut off. All three altar cloths are removed and all that is left is the crucifix. The parish leaves in darkness.
On the good friday the service starts with the church being dark, the altar naked exept for five red roses representing the five wounds and the crucifix, no candles and no bells. We have a short and dark service centered on the death of Jesus. The priest wears a black stole.
On easter saturday there is no service until midnight. This service starts once again in darkness and an empt altar. The only difference is that the baptism candle is placed unlit in the middle of the aisle. When the service starts the priest enters in procession with a lit candle and white stole. He walks up to the baptism candle and read the Bible texts about the women entering the grave and finding it empty. Then he lights the candle. The service continues with the altar being redressed, candles lit, yellow daffodils placed on the altar and all lights being relit. Suddenly after days of darns the church seem to bathe in light in the middle of the night. The service ends with everyone taking a candle and exiting the church singing and reciting that Jesus is resurrected.
This midnight service is not very traditional swedish however. Traditionally the resurrection would be celebrated on the easter sunday morning and we do this as well, in our parish at that service the altar is already dressed from the beginning, but candles and lights are not lit until that moment in the service when the grave is found empty.
Are these traditions the same in your churches or do they differ, and if so how?
