Finding ways of retelling the resurrection

Young Chang

A “Service of Gathering Darkness” at Costa Mesa’s Presbyterian Church

of the Covenant on Thursday was one of the church’s more dramatic

sanctuary events during Holy Week.

The congregation read through the final hours of Jesus’ life while

professional actors from Hollywood Presbyterian Church acted out the Last

Supper. Orchestral music played in the background and the area gradually

darkened as, one by one, each of seven lit candles went out.

The coronation sat in silence and darkness for a few minutes, thinking

about the following: That Jesus said he was the light of the world and

that when he died, the light didn’t extinguish but, rather, left.

“We share with people at the service that this is the first part of

the story and the rest will be told Sunday morning,” said Pastor Tim

McCalmont.

In celebration of Easter, local churches in Costa Mesa and Newport

Beach will be doing the same this weekend. Most churches will offer at

least two Easter services on Sunday with messages focusing on why Jesus

died and his resurrection.

Bruce Merrifield, pastor at Harbor Trinity Baptist Church in Costa

Mesa, will connect his message with the metaphor of adoption. He will

tell the true story of an adoption that took place after the Korean War.

“I’ll tie that into the fact that God is wanting to adopt us,” he

said. “That he’s worked out all the adoption papers, the costs and all we

have to do is agree to the adoption.”

Sunday’s service will also include a physical demonstration of one

part of biblical history. A tomb, which will be built today on a platform

complete with a rock that rolls away, will symbolize the scene when Jesus

died and people gathered at his tomb. In the story, the rock had been

removed and this was a sign that Jesus had resurrected from the dead.

“Death had been conquered, our Savior is still alive,” Merrifield

said.

On Friday, the pastor and his congregants fasted and prayed in

commemoration of Easter.

It was “for our own spiritual walks and our own spiritual lives in

terms of our lives and the price Jesus had to pay for the wrongs we’ve

done,” he said.

At Newport Harbor Lutheran Church in Newport Beach, Pastor David Monge

will lead two Sunday services that will have a heavy emphasis on special

music. The church’s choir and orchestra will perform music from the

Coronation Mass of Mozart.

“Mozart’s music is celebratory,” said William Wells, minister of music

at the church. “And it reflects the miracle of the resurrection.”

FYI

WHAT: Easter Sunday services at Newport Harbor Lutheran Church

WHEN: 9:15 and 11 a.m.

WHERE: 798 Dover Drive, Newport Beach

CALL: (949) 548-3631

WHAT: Easter Sunday services at Presbyterian Church of the Covenant

WHEN: 8:30 and 10:30 a.m.

WHERE: 2850 Fairview Road, Costa Mesa.

CALL: (714) 557-3340.

WHAT: Easter Sunday services at Harbor Trinity Baptist Church

WHEN: 8:30 and 10 a.m.

WHERE: 1230 W. Baker St., Costa Mesa

CALL: (714) 556-7787