Holy Week – Chichester and York Minster

Children and families will create the Easter Garden for the first time at Chichester Cathedral this year and York Minster invites people to retrace the last days of Jesus with a series of sermons for Holy Week by award-winning writer and broadcaster Rhidian Brook.

All our cathedrals are prepared for the profound significance of Holy Week and Easter. Alongside special services and events there will be space and time for quiet contemplation and connection at this most important festival in the Christian year.

Do check for information and times of services at your nearest cathedral. 

There has not been an Easter Garden at Chichester Cathedral for several years so this year the families who come to the Children, Families and Caregivers’ Service each Sunday morning have been invited to create a garden that honours Jesus.

 The children have been invited to bring things from their own gardens – plants, flowers, stones – papier-mâché caves are being made and the garden will be constructed in the Mary Magdalene chapel on Easter to be shown on Easter Day.

 The Interim Dean of Chichester, the Reverend Canon Simon Holland, said:

“Here at Chichester Cathedral we’re excited by the revival of our Easter garden, in the sacred space of the Chapel of St Mary Magdalene. 

 “While previously crafted by adults, this year, with the invaluable contributions of children, families and volunteers, we embark on a journey to create a beautiful tribute to mark Jesus’ resurrection. 

 “The garden will be made of plants, flowers, stones, and handmade caves, and aims to instil a deeper understanding of the Easter story while fostering joy in the discovery of the empty tomb.”

Service information here.

 A special sermon series for Holy Week at York Minster led by the award-winning writer and broadcaster, Rhidian Brook, will lead people through the last days of Jesus.

Starting on Palm Sunday Rhidian will give a sermon on each day of Holy Week covering the events from Jesus’s entry to Jerusalem through to The Last Supper, via Jesus’s teaching in The Temple. On Good Friday (29 March), Rhidian will give two meditations and a main sermon on the crucifixion. He will complete the series with a final sermon on Easter Eve (30 March).

He said: “I want us to follow Jesus from his arrival in Jerusalem to his execution, to be contemporary to the moment as reported, by trying to imagine the events unfolding as though for the first time, in real time, without relying on the after-the-event wisdom that we carry.

“I want to help us imagine being a follower, not always knowing what comes next, or how it ends, and without possessing the weight or comfort of the theological or cultural understanding that has gathered the far side of history – and the far side of His Story. I am putting my trust in the gospel accounts – Mark in particular – and any inspiration that the Holy Spirit may give.”

The Very Revd Dominic Barrington, Dean of York said: “I am enormously excited to welcome Rhidian to York Minster. 

“For a quarter of a century, he has inspired many people around the country with his Thoughts for the Day on Radio 4, and we are uniquely privileged that he will be helping to bring the events of Holy Week to life in this sermon series.”

All are welcome to attend Rhidian’s sermons. Find out times here.