We have had to shift many things in the last three weeks. Work commutes, school classrooms, trips to the store, and social gatherings that were normal parts of our lives have had to be recreated in new forms.

It is exhausting.

This week, yet more modifications are coming for many of us, this time in our religious lives. In the Jewish calendar, Passover begins Wednesday. In the Christian calendar, it is Holy Week, culminating with Easter on Sunday. With social distancing in place, so many traditions will not be available to us. It will be difficult. How should we do it?

First, we need to grieve.

Many of us will not be able to engage in rituals and community in ways that have become important for us. That loss is real. It is okay, and usually necessary, to pause and reflect on our real feelings about how difficult this all is.

Second, we can remember that we are not the first to be here.

For the Jewish people, the Babylonian exile forced them to navigate the question of how to have religious ceremonies without a temple. It is out of that harsh reality that the synagogue system was born. Though inklings of it existed before, it is the destruction of the second temple in 70 AD that solidified the seder ritual as a way to observe Passover.

In the Christian tradition, history has been varied from the beginning. In the first 300 years of existence, the church experienced waves of persecution and had to be creative and intimate in all its gatherings. In following years, the split of the western church from the eastern church, the split of the protestant church from the catholic church, and the split of the protestant church into a plethora of denominations, has led to large variations in tone, liturgy, and even dates of celebration of Easter..

There can be comfort in remembering we are not the first to have to reinvent ourselves.

Third, we can be helped with the gentle guidance of a question.

It is the question Moses prepares the people to answer in the very first Passover,

When your children ask you, “What does this ritual mean to you?” you will answer them, “It is the Passover sacrifice to the Eternal, for He passed over the houses of the Israelites when we were slaves in Egypt. And although He struck the Egyptians, He spared our lives and our houses.” - Exodus 12:26-27

What kind of story do we want to tell the next generation by the practices we choose for our religious celebrations this week?

It may be different than we want or expected, but we still have the opportunity to retell the story. To ourselves, to our families, and to our friends. How do we want to tell it?

Here are some ways 40 Orchards would like to invite you to engage with the story:

On Wednesday, April 8 from 9 am to 11 am, we want to invite you to a Virtual Scripture Circle on Luke 23:50-56- The Sabbath before Resurrection. It feels appropriate these days to look at the space between and what kind of memory it offers us. We might talk about things such as sabbath, day 2 of creation, grief, and hope.

On Thursday, April 9 from 7:00-9:00 pm, we want to invite you to a Virtual Scripture Circle on Deuteronomy 16:1-8- The Passover. How does a tradition move as time goes forward? For those in the Christian tradition, understanding Passover might tell a different story about Easter than we are used to hearing.

We hope these Scripture Circles are a small way we can join you in the pivot, remembering, and retelling of this year’s Easter story.

In hope and remembrance,
Lisa and Steph

Shifting How We Gather This Week