The front doors of St John the Evangelist Anglican Church in Birchgrove are closed to the public for the first time in years, but Father Peter Yeats will ring the bells on Easter Sunday as a sign of hope.From St Mary's Cathedral to the Tongan Parish Youth Group in Sydney's Ashfield, churches of all sizes and denominations plan to use video technology to worship on the holiest day of the Christian calendar.
Like most Christians, Father Yeats sees Easter as a metaphor of what the world is going through during the pandemic, with many people feeling hopeless about the future. He said the pandemic showed that humans don't learn. "We are not as in control as we think we are. When something like this hits us, it throws us. This should make us feel more mortal. We are frail and not as great as we think we are."
A crucifix stands out during the Via Crucis – or Way of the Cross – ceremony in an empty St Peter’s Square following Italy’s ban on gatherings to contain coronavirus contagion, at the Vatican, on Good Friday.The Wesley Mission will also televise for its 57th year an Easter Sunrise Service on Channel 9, simulcast on Hope 103.
On Good Friday, the Sydney Archbishop of the Catholic Church, Anthony Fisher, told parishioners that the COVID-19 crisis had demonstrated some of the best things about Australians, but had also "unveiled our shadow side".
juliepower Churches should take the opportunity to surrender, apologise for centuries of child abuse, rape and austerity, before offering their vast wealth as compensation to their victims & the families of victims broken by the unspeakable horrors of pedophile priests.
juliepower Pagan origins aside, Easter is the celebration of the State reputedly nailing a bloke to 2 planks of wood until he died in excruciating agony for having the temerity to tell people to be excellent to each other. It’s always dark.