Northfield Methodist Church

Dear Friends
The Witness, billed as "The greatest true story ever told" is a musical presented by our Community. There are three performances and the call is for Northfielders to come to the Friday (26th) performance or for those who prefer the afternoon, Saturday afternoon (27th). The Witness is a powerful dramatisation of the Passion story and so Monday (29th) the first night of our Holy Week Services, is the ideal opportunity to invite a family member, a friend, a colleague or a stranger to the performance as we begin on our Holy Week journey. Tickets for the Friday and Saturday performances are available through the Church office or in the Foyer before and after all the services today. Complimentary tickets are available as "invitations" for the Monday evening service.
This excerpt from an Easter letter by Saint Athanasius, Bishop of Alexandria in the 4th century, emphasizes the proper spiritual preparation for the worthy celebration of the feast of Easter.
The Word who became all things for us is close to us, our Lord Jesus Christ who promises to remain with us always. He cries out, saying: "See, I am with you all the days of this age". He is himself the shepherd, the high priest, the way and the door, and has become all things at once for us. In the same way, he has come among us as our feast and holy day as well. The blessed Apostle says of him who was awaited: "Christ has been sacrificed as our Passover". It was Christ who shed his light on the psalmist as he prayed: "You are my joy, deliver me from those surrounding me." True joy, genuine festival, means the casting out of wickedness. To achieve this one must live a life of perfect goodness and, in the serenity of the fear of God, practice contemplation in one's heart.
When we celebrate the feast in our own way, what path are we to take? As we draw near to this feast, who is to be our guide? Beloved, it must be none other than the one whom you will address with me as our Lord Jesus Christ. He says:"I am the way". As blessed John tells us: it is Christ "who takes away the sin of the world". It is he who purifies our souls, as the prophet Jeremiah says: "Stand upon the ways; look and see which is the good path, and you will find in it the way of amendment for your souls."
May God bless us as we prepare to remember and celebrate the greatest moment in all of history, in all of creation.
The Ministry Team