Stories & News

When Mary Magdalene encounters the risen Jesus in the garden that first Easter morning, she recognizes him because he calls her by name. May we open our hearts to experience God in our own lives this Easter — and remember we are loved, called, and forgiven.

What kind of king do we expect to see in Jesus? It’s a good question for Holy Week, suggests Trinity’s Faith Formation team, a time when our expectations are upended and salvation looks different than we’d imagined.

What does it mean to follow Jesus’s example and lay down our lives? Trinity’s Faith Formation team suggests “it’s in letting go of power, the endless work of protecting ourselves at the expense of others, that we find true freedom — our deepest wants and needs met in community.”

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son . . .” might be the most well-known verse in the Bible — but what about Jesus’s mysterious words just before? Digging into the Book of Numbers for context, Trinity’s Faith Formation team helps us see God asking us to trust that even in the most uncertain circumstances, resurrection is on the way.

During Holy Week, we ground ourselves in the scriptural accounts of Jesus’s life in the liturgy — the order and shape of our church services — because we believe this ancient story echoes through the ages: Jesus’s resurrection is a promise that death is not the final word.

This Sunday’s Gospel story — when Jesus drives money changers out of the temple court — is familiar but puzzling. Is Jesus overturning worship norms, or is there more to the story? Trinity’s Faith Formation team suggests there’s a deeper meaning behind Jesus’s demonstration: It’s a proclamation of God’s presence alive and at work within each of us.

“Death isn’t a secret or surprise for any of us, even Jesus. In fact, it’s an essential part of being alive. But when we spend our time and energy fighting the inevitable, we lose sight of the life happening right in front of us.” Trinity’s Faith Formation team digs into Sunday’s scripture reading from Mark’s Gospel and considers a paradox of the Christian faith: The path to wholeness, purpose, and connection is through surrender.

Looking ahead to Sunday’s scripture readings, Trinity’s Faith Formation team considers what it means to fully embrace God’s love, even when it leads us down unexpected and sometimes uncomfortable paths: “Who knows where God will send us — beloved and driven by the Spirit — to help heal our broken world?”