The Season of Lent

Lent 2025

In this season of Lent, we are called to reflect on the spiritual disciplines that keep us grounded in a time of chaos and unrest. Lent offers a unique opportunity to deepen our connection with God and our commitment to love and liberation for all. It is a time to intentionally cultivate the fruits of the Spirit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control—in our daily lives. By engaging in practices of reflection, prayer, and self-examination, we are invited to follow Jesus' call to come closer, grow in faith, and be transformed during these 40 days of spiritual renewal.

LENTEN DEVOTIONAL READING

Get your copy at the church or download the PDF here.

Living in a time of such chaos and outrage, we need spiritual discipline to stay grounded and to live out God's call of love and liberation for all. This Lent, Old South has created a devotional booklet to accompany you through these 40 days. Each week offers a reflection and a spiritual practice drawn from the scripture of Galatians 5. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control." 

ALL-CHURCH LENTEN BOOK READ: 'AN ALTAR IN THE WORLD'

Four Sundays, beginning March 16, 2nd Floor Mary Norton Hall

We invite you, as part of your Lenten practice this season, to read Barbara Brown Taylor's book An Altar in the World: a Geography of Faith. This 2009 publication presents a compelling invitation to intentionally bring more holiness to our everyday lives. Grounded in gratitude and wonder, Brown Taylor's writing is accessible and inspiring, as well as honest and funny. To take part in discussions you do not need to have read the book to participate (but we hope you do) - we'll have materials each week.

• March 16: Waking up to God, Paying Attention, and Wearing Skin
• March 23: Walking on the Earth, Getting Lost, and Encountering Others
• March 30th: The Practice of Living with Purpose, Saying No and Carrying Water
• April 6: Feeling Pain, Being Present to God, and Pronouncing Blessings

POEMS FOR THE JOURNEY: A LENTEN/HOLY WEEK GATHERING OF VERSE

Sunday, April 13, 10am, Mary Norton Hall or Zoom tinyurl.com/2025ForumOSC password community

Join Theologian in Residence Don Wells to share poems and short verses celebrating the roads we journey through life and through faith. This new event is similar to our annual Advent Poetry Fest -- only thematically Lenten / Holy Week inspired. Please let Don Wells know if you would like to share a poem, and if you need ideas! We encourage listeners as well.

BLOG: 'OUR LENTEN JOURNEY….TO BETHANY…..BETHANY?

A Blog from Rev. Don Wells, Theologian in Residence; Click here to read.

For us in the Church, while not a ‘day’ of tranquility, Lent can provide a different rhythm from the ordinary. It gives us a time frame in which to reflect, study, pray and perhaps engage in a new practice that will help us on our journey. It gives us a chance to hear again Jesus’ invitation to ‘come, follow me’, and to assess how we are doing.

Holy Week

Our Holy Week services will be both in-person and streamed online.

PALM SUNDAY | APRIL 13
9am and 11am
We mark Jesus’ triumphal entrance into Jerusalem as our shouts of Hosanna fade to the drama of the coming week. 

MAUNDY THURSDAY | APRIL 17
6pm
This service tells the story of Jesus’ last days. Led by the Willie Sordillo Ensemble, we journey from the Communion Table to the Cross as the light around us dims.

GOOD FRIDAY | APRIL 18
7pm
Guided by Franz Liszt's Via Crucis, we journey through the stations of the cross on the most somber day of the Christian year. We gather in prayer and song to reflect on the last hours of Christ, and mourn the death that changed the world. 

EASTER SUNDAY | APRIL 20
7am, 9am, 11am and 1pm
The triumph of the Christian story of resurrection informs a service of worship that is characterized by joyous celebration. Trumpet and organ, voice and timpani combine to bring us to the empty tomb, to peer inside, to see it is empty, to give God wild thanksgiving for the hope of everlasting life. Our celebration continues with hundreds of Boston Marathoners joining us for worship, where we will pause to acknowledge the runners, their families, and volunteers in a special “Blessing of the Athletes.”