St. Andrew’s Anglican
Semana Santa/Holy Week begins at 10 a.m. in the Garden Columbarium of St. Andrew’s Anglican Church with the Blessing of Palms and the traditional procession into the Church, where the Holy Eucharist will include the dramatic reading of St. Luke’s Passion, and Fr. Winston Welty’s sermon, “At a Distance.” The 5 p.m. Maundy Thursday service includes a sermon — “Jesus Needs Me!” — and ends with the Stripping of the Altar and the account of Jesus’ arrest at Gethsemane. At 3 p.m. the next day, the solemn Good Friday Liturgy will include the Veneration of the Cross, Communion from the Reserved Sacrament, and the sermon: “Why No Protest?” The full Church choir leads the music at all Holy Week services. The children’s bi-lingual Sunday School starts as usual at 9:45 a.m., and “Coffee Hour” in the Garden follows the worship service.
Every Sunday, the feeding program supported by St. Andrew’s welcomes weekly donations of non-perishable items, left in the baskets by the Church doors.
Wednesday, March 23, 11 a.m. the final session of this year’s Lenten Bible Study about Old Testament Women will focus on “Bathsheba: From Rape Victim to Queen Mother.”
St. Andrew’s is at Calle San Lucas 19, a block south of the Carretera in Riberas del Pilar.
New Hope Christian
The non-denominational congregation of New Hope Christian Fellowship will observe Palm Sunday with an 11 a.m. service emphasizing the events of that day. Included in the service will be the celebration of Communion as Jesus and the disciples observed just before His arrest and trial. As a part of that service, Pastor Gene Raymer will deliver a message titled, “What Happened?”
Says the pastor, “On Palm Sunday the people were praising Jesus as their King. But only a few days later they were crying ‘Crucify Him.’ What happened to change their attitude?”
New Hope Christian Fellowship meets in the upper room of the Presbyterian Church, two blocks south of Mom’s Restaurant. For additional information or directions, call the pastor at (376) 766-3435 or 333-724-6179.
Unitarians
Sunday, March 20, at the Lake Chapala Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, Lorna Dean shares how a belief in reincarnation helps direct her life and the choices she makes. The title of her address is “What a Belief in Reincarnation Means to Me.” The service leader is Karyn Carpenter.
The Unitarians have moved and now meet 10:30 a.m. at their new facility at Hidalgo 261 in Riberas del Pilar, opposite the bell tower, on the north side of the Carretera.
Lake Chapala Baptist
“What is the greatest problem today — Ignorance or apathy?”
“I don’t know and don’t care.”
So goes the old joke, says Brother Bob Hendrick. “For a joke to be funny, it has to have a hint of real life in it. This one does. The writer of Hebrews rebukes his readers for their lack of concern and growth in practical Christianity. Oh, they knew how to go to church. They were always there Christmas and Easter. They could stay awake through most sermons. They learned the songs. They recited the creeds. They had the tracts and the bumper stickers. Some had been Christians for twenty years. But instead of having twenty years of maturity and growth, they had one year’s experience twenty times and were still babies.”
The Lake Chapala Baptist Church is at Santa Margarita 179 in Riberas del Pilar.
Christ Church Episcopal
Christ Church Episcopal will observe Palm Sunday March 20, with the Liturgy of the Palms, the Liturgy of the Word, including a congregational reading of the Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ according to Luke, and the Liturgy of the Sacrament, Holy Communion beginning 9:30 a.m. at the Little Chapel by the Lake, Carretera 10, Chula Vista. Fr. Danny Borkowski will preside and give a message with the theme “The Fox and the Hen,” based on Luke 13:31-35.
The congregations of Christ Church and the Little Chapel share a common fellowship time between their two services, from about 10:35 until 11:10 a.m.
Christ Church sponsors a Bible Study on Tuesdays, 2 p.m. Join them and spend an hour tackling the Book of Genesis.
Maundy Thursday, March 24, Christ Church will remember the Institution of the Holy Eucharist, the Lord’s Supper, by celebrating the Holy Eucharist accompanied by Washing of the Feet at 4:30 p.m. in the Little Chapel by the Lake. On March 25, they will recall and honor the Crucifixion and Death of Jesus with the traditional Good Friday Liturgy at noon, featuring a congregational reading of the Passion of Our Lord according to John.
Little Chapel by the Lake
On Sunday, March 20, John Whitener III will be speaking from the Word, about what is near and dear to his heart.
The Little Chapel is in Chula Vista, on the Carretera, east of the golf course entrance.
San Andres English
Passion (Palm) Sunday, March 20, Fr. Basil G. Royston, D. Min. will talk about the The Good News of the Covenant. On this day the Church celebrates Christ’s entrance into Jerusalem to accomplish his paschal mystery.
The San Andres English Mass Community will celebrate the solemn liturgy of the Lord’s passion according to the Church’s ancient tradition, Good Friday, March 25, 3 p.m. in the Chapel of Our Lady of the Rosary located on the northeast side of Ajijic Plaza.
San Andres is located at the corner of Ramon Corona and Parroquia, one block from the Ajijic main plaza.