By Emma Rausch
emma@thepaperofwabash.com
WABASH, Ind. – The Wabash Presbyterian Church will host a community-open Good Friday service on April 14.
Presented by the Wabash Area Ministerial Association (WAMA), local pastors will help the community reflect and remember the crucifixion of Jesus Christ during the 40-minute worship service, “Stations of the Cross: Walking with Christ.”
“(The service) is to reflect upon the sacrifice that Christ made on the cross,” WAMA President Tom Curry said. “That’s key to take time to reflect upon that and to do so in a setting where we’re with Christians from other churches is a huge plus. I think it cultivates the kind of spirit that we should be about.”
“It’s powerful to share that moment with members of the community, some you know and others you don’t,” Presbyterian Pastor Jonathan Cornell added.
The service welcomes all Christians and those curious of the Christian faith, and was intentionally prepared to bring the community together, according to Curry.
No matter the affiliation, “we all agree upon the importance of what happened,” Cornell said.
He added that, “I think if you think of the body of Christ as a family, then we’re all family through Him and … we all gather around the unifying principles that he teaches.”
Curry agreed with Cornell and said that Christians joining together during this time is a reminder that “we’re on the same team.”
“What we have in common is probably 99 percent of who we are,” Curry said. “I mean we’re followers of Christ. Period. That should be the DNA of every Christian.”
He later added, “I can be as dogmatic as any pastor can be about what I believe is right, but yet, when push comes to share, if I share Christ with someone, we have a world in common.
“So it’s that’s kind of vision and spirit that we need to keep flowing.”
While several pastors lead the service with scripture, Pastor Rob McIntire will perform live music and Pastor Roxanne Mann will compose a painting during the event.
The offering that will be collected during the service will be put toward the WAMA Community Assistance Program.
The worship service will begin at 12:10 p.m. and conclude at 12:50 p.m.
The Wabash Presbyterian Church is located at 123 W. Hill St. in Wabash.
The Good Friday service is just one of several Holy Week services planned around Wabash County this week.
St. Robert Bellarmine Catholic Church in North Manchester will have a Holy Thursday mass at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, April 13. In addition, a cross walk through North Manchester is planned at 1 p.m. Friday, April 14, with Good Friday services at 3 p.m.
The North Manchester United Methodist Church will have a Maundy Thursday service at 7 p.m. Thursday, and a Community Good Friday Service at noon Friday.
The North Manchester Congregational Christian Church will have a Tenebrae Service at 7 p.m. Friday.
The Christian Fellowship Church in North Manchester plans a Passover Seder re-enactment at 7 p.m. Wednesday, April 12.
First United Methodist Church plans a Good Friday service at 7 p.m. Friday featuring the choirs from Christ United Methodist Church and the First United Methodist Church.
Christ United Methodist Church will have a Maundy Thursday service at 7 p.m. Thursday.
Wabash Presbyterian Church will have a Maundy Thursday service at 7 p.m. Thursday.
The local churches also plan a variety of Easter Sunday services.