Wesley Center officials will observe Holy Week with services and events open to any interested students.
In Christian tradition, Holy Week is the week directly preceding Easter, which is April 16 this year.
In honor of Holy Week, there will be a Maundy Thursday worship at 1 p.m. April 13 in Bishop W. Angie Smith Chapel. Maundy Thursday commemorates the Last Supper of Jesus Christ.
Good Friday will be observed with a tree planting at noon April 14. A location on campus is not yet decided.
The tree is a symbol of life, contrasting the time when Jesus was killed and someone had to cut down a tree to make it an instrument of death.
The tree planting is a great opportunity for students of all faiths to gather together, said Jordan Tarter, English sophomore.
“It’ll also be nice to have the tree planting. Students that aren’t necessarily religious might be encouraged to just come out and see that,” she said. “It’ll be an opportunity for people of all different beliefs to come together and share in the experience.”
After reading Scripture, students will throw handfuls of dirt into the hole around the tree, symbolically taking the things in their life they want to bury with Jesus in hopes of resurrection.
The services are great for OCU students, said Tomorrow Denton, cell and molecular biology senior.
“Easter services at OCU are a great spiritual reminder of what the holiday is about,” she said.
Sandy Coursey, music junior, said it’s great that the school encourages students to get involved, but wishes that activities were better advertised.
“I didn’t know about any of these events, but I think it’s really great that the school encourages students to get involved in the different activities leading up to Easter,” she said. “Hopefully they continue to advertise these events so more students can be aware of them and be able to participate.”
The Wesley Center will not host a worship service on the morning of Easter Sunday, said Elizabeth Horton-Ware, director of religious life
“We don’t have worship on Sunday morning, but invite students to find a nearby congregation to join for worship,” she said.
Onnika Hanson, acting sophomore, said it makes sense that there is no Sunday service.
“It’s cool to go out to other churches, and it gives people on campus who would usually stay on campus a chance to go somewhere else off-campus,” she said.
The week following Easter will be marked with celebration worship services in both chapel services and Evensong worship.
Leave a Reply