Dear Friends,

With the coming of Palm Sunday we are at the onset of the most sacred of all Christian seasons. The Christian faith is grounded in the events of Holy Week. The birth of Jesus, his life, teachings and ministry would likely not have given rise to the Christian Church, if it were not for what happened to Jesus, his disciples and the world during the period we now designate as spanning from Palm Sunday (Passion Sunday) to Easter. Everything about Jesus' life and our faith is focused through the lens of Holy Week, through Good Friday and Easter most poignantly.

Holy Week/Easter is an opportunity for us to enter into the drama of redemption which we believe is able to redeem each of us and our world still. I ask you, therefore, to pray, attend services and generally allow your life to be seen through the lens which, we believe, has been provided by God for the sake of a weary world and perplexed souls. Many of the themes of Holy Week are somber ones including treachery, denial, betrayal, anguish, and more. These themes however, are essential one's in Jesus' life and we must experience them in order for us to appreciate Easter fully. There is no true celebration of the Resurrection without spiritual participation in the anguish, especially those of Maundy Thursday and Good Friday.

The church founded in Jesus' name is essentially a servant community through which we are to become servants to one another. Spiritual depth is the key to servanthood as we aid one another on life's pilgrimage. I hope the following thought, again from Celtic Daily Prayer, will help us all go along with Jesus the Servant during Holy Week.

Sister let me be your servant,
let me be as Christ to you.
Pray that I may have grace to
let you be my servant, too.
We are pilgrims on a journey,
and companions on the road.
We are here to help each other
walk the mile and bear the load.
I will hold the Christ-light for you
in the night time of your fear.
I will hold my hand out to you,
speak the peace you long to hear.

I will weep when you are weeping;
when you laugh, I'll laugh with you.
I'll share your joy and sorrow,
til we've seen this journey through.
When we sing to God in heaven
we shall find such harmony,
born of all we've known together
of Christ's love and agony.
Brother, let me be your servant,
let me be as Christ to you.
Pray that I may have the grace to
let you be my servant, too.

I hope to see you along the Holy Week pilgrimage and meet with you at both Calvary and at the empty tomb.

Love,

© The Church of the Pilgrimage in Plymouth, MA Inc., all rights reserved.

Morning Worship-10:00 A.M. Rev. Gary Marks preaching.

Greeters: Tom and Pat Mudgett

Ushers: Diane and Jeff Linquist, Michael Harrington and Pam McNicholas

Deacon of the Month: John McNicholas

Children will attend Church School following the service.The Children will attend Church School following the Time for Teaching.

All are invited to join us for Coffee Hour downstairs in Allerton Hall following the worship service.

Confirmands meet at Church House at 5:30 P.M. for dinner.

CHURCH RECORD

Hospitalized: Marion Walker, Katherine Delano-Jordan Hospital and Marion Whiting-Cape Cod Rehabilitation Center in Sandwich.

Weddings:
On April 5, 2003, Rev. Marks conducted a wedding service for Jarrod Scott Cavicchi and Nicole Fleurette Snyder in the church sanctuary.

On April 5, 2003, Rev. Marks conducted a wedding service for William J. Whyte and Michelle Anne Sweetman in the church sanctuary.

THIS WEEK

Sunday, Apr. 13-Rev. Gary Marks will be preaching. Palm Sunday Breakfast, 8:00 A.M. in Allerton Hall.

Monday, Apr. 14- Aerobics 9:00 A.M. - 10:00 A.M; Girl Scouts-6:00-7:30 P.M. Church House; Budget Meeting-7:30 P.M. in the Mayflower Room.

Tuesday, Apr. 15- Rev. Marks' office hours 9:30 A.M.-11:30 A.M.; Rev. Dan's office hours 10:00 A.M.- Noon; Lunch Bunch Bible Study-Noon in the Mayflower Room; Aerobics-6:45-7:45 P.M.; The Board of Trustees Meeting-7:00 P.M. in the Mayflower Room; Maundy Thursday Rehearsal-Sanctuary at 7:30 P.M.

Wednesday, Apr. 16-Rev. Dan's office hours 1:00 P.M.-3:00 P.M.; Aerobics - 9:00 A.M. - 10:00 A.M. Allerton Hall; Staff Meeting-10:00 A.M; Troop 47 - 7:00-9:00 P.M. in the Church House; Cub Scout Pack 47 - 7:00-8:00 P.M. in the Church House; Evening Prayer Service - 7:00 P.M. in the Sanctuary; Music Committee Meeting-6:00 P.M. in the Mayflower Room; Choir Rehearsal - 7:30 P.M.

Thursday, Apr. 17- Rev. Dan's office hours Noon-2:00P.M.; Girl Scout Troop 1227-6:00-7:15 Church House; Aerobics-6:45 P.M.-7:45 P.M.; Maundy Thursday Service-Communion and Office of Tenebrae-7:30 P.M. in the Sanctuary.

Friday, Apr. 18-Rev. Marks' Office Hours, 9:30 A.M.-11:30 A.M.; Aerobics-9:00 A.M.-10:00 A.M.; Good Friday Service-7:00 P.M. in the Sanctuary.

Saturday, Apr. 19- Overeaters Anonymous- 9:45-11:30 A.M.-Church House.

PLEASE NOTE

Please call the church office or let the ministers know if you or someone you know is presently or soon to be hospitalized or in need of pastoral care. It is especially important to inform the ministers of those hospitalized in out-of-town hospitals. Please call, too, if you are aware of any situations for which pastoral attention would be helpful.

Please feel welcome to attend the Wednesday Evening Prayer Service at 7:00 P.M. in the sanctuary. The services are less than a half hour in length. They us a liturgy from Celtic Daily Prayer.

One Great Hour of Sharing Fish Boxes may still be returned to church on this coming Sunday or up until Easter. We thank all who have returned the boxes which do so much good.

Membership Classes-Rev. Marks hopes to hold a series of three membership classes following Easter. If you are interested in church membership, please speak to Rev. Marks or call the church office. If you have previously spoke n to Rev. Marks, please remind him so that an accurate list can be made and a time set which is mutually convenient.

The Pilgrim Festival Chorus held a wonderful concert in our sanctuary on April 5th. Our Music Director, Bill Richter is the director of the chorus and a number of people from our choir are members of the chorus. Thank you!

THE DATE FOR THE ANNUAL TIME AND TALENT AUCTION AND DINNER HAS BEEN CHANGED TO FRIDAY EVENING, MAY 30th. Please sign-up during coffee hour. If you have any questions, particularly if you are new to the congregation please feel free to call me at (508) 746-4514. Diana Budge.

Olan Mills -The final photo session will be April 24th from 3:00 to 9:20 P.M. There are still many time slots available. If you have not signed up yet or need to reschedule please call the office. Please submit any photographs you have of college students who cannot make it home for pictures and photos of any church event you have, etc. to The Membership and Evangelism Committee as soon as possible. Thank you.

Budget Committee Meeting, Monday, April 14th, 7:30 P.M. in the Mayflower Room. All Board and Committees are to have their proposed budgets turned in by Monday, April 14th.

A NEW HYMNAL! The Advisory Board has accepted the recommendation of the Music Committee that Hymns of Truth and Light be our new hymnal. Hymns of Truth and Light was put together by a church that knows and respects our Pilgrim Hymnal, and it contains many of our favorites. The editors also provide us the choice of binding in as many as 32 additional pages of hymns of our own choosing, or such material as the Covenant or Greeting. Accompanying this Herald will be a questionnaire to start you thinking. In Allerton Hall we will post the Index of First Lines; the hymnal itself will be available for viewing in the Music Committee mailbox in Allerton Hall. Please contribute. Bill Harting

Memorial Lilies-The joyous Easter season is fast approaching. By your loving donation of Easter lilies, we can enhance the beauty of our church on Easter morning. Sign up in the lower vestibule following the service on the next three Sundays, or call the church office. There will be an insert listing the donors and those memorialized in the Easter week Herald. The suggested price for a multi-flowered, replantable lily is $15.00. The flowers may be donated to shut-ins or picked up after the 11:00 A.M. Easter Sunday Service on Sunday, April 20. Volunteers will be welcomed to take flowers to shut-ins following that service.

Annual Meeting-the date for the Annual Meeting has been set for May 18, 2003 following service. All Boards and Committees must have their Annual Report to the church office by Friday, May 2, 2003. If you have e-mail please forward your report to the office in a word document, so that I may format it for the report. If you cannot e-mail your report to me please get it to me as soon as possible, so that it can be typed into the same format. I would like the Annual Report done in the same format this year. Thank you! Pam

Summer Sale Reminder - Please keep the Summer Sale in mind when doing your spring cleaning! Watch for more information concerning the Summer Sale in up-coming Heralds.

Coming Events

PLANT SALE JUNE 7 2003 (RAIN OR SHINE). This is a church wide fund raising project, but it is also a pleasant social event (if it doesn't rain). If you have not already done so please look around your yard for plants (ground covers, seedlings from perennials, and other plants you do not need or want). Please pot them up for sale. Mark your calendars to come to Courtyard Place, 124 Long Pond Road on the morning of June 7, from 9:00 A.M.-1:00 P.M. even if you only want to see what goes on. You might just find the plant you really want. Call Pat Mudgett if you have any questions or want to help. (508) 224-7206.

Plymouth Special Olympics is sponsoring our very own Rev. Dan Spacek in the 2003 Boston Marathon on Monday, April 21. Plan to eat at Pizzeria Uno in the Independence Mall on Thursday, April 17 from 11:00 A.M. to 11:00 P.M. GO DAN!

Greeters for Sunday Morning Services are needed! Please call Pam in the church office to learn of an upcoming Sunday which needs greeters. Currently, greeters are needed for May 4th, 11th and 25th.

Coffee Hour -we still need volunteers to prepare for Sunday morning Coffee Hours. There is a sign-up sheet in Allerton Hall.

Apr. 20: Easter Sunday. Sunrise Service on Cole's Hill, 6:00 A.M. (Cole's Hill is across from Plymouth Rock, near The Salvation Army Church).
Two services at The Church of the Pilgrimage, 9:00 and 11:00 A.M.

Apr. 25: Rehearsal in the Sanctuary.

Apr. 26: Wedding in the Sanctuary, 4:00 P.M.

May 5: Mother-Daughter Dinner.

Clerk - Lois Post; Moderator - Steven Triffletti; Treasurer - David Kegel; Collector - Thomas Mudgett; Asst. Collector - Debbie Chaskes; Music Director - William B Richter; Secretary - Pam McNicholas; Sexton - Tony Nightingale; World Mission Emphasis - Heifer Project International; Church Building Telephone - (508) 747-1341.