As Easter approaches and Christians worldwide prepare to walk through the events of Holy Week to the resurrection on Easter Day, one church in Herefordshire is bringing the story to life by creating a full-scale Easter garden.
Easter is at the heart of the Christian faith. The story of Jesus' death and resurrection is central to belief, and yet, year after year, Easter becomes a focus on the celebration of chocolate eggs and springtime, where many forget or do not fully understand the significance of the actual historical events, which took place.
A group of volunteers from the Kington Parishes Group, which includes St Mary’s Church in Kington came up with the idea of creating a life-size Easter Garden for people to experience Easter and uncover the story by walking through the churchyard and visiting sets including the empty tomb.
Ann Edwards churchwarden at St Mary’s Church said, "We know that many people come to Church at Easter and will hear the story of the events of Holy Week leading to the resurrection on Easter Sunday. We hope that this will allow people a space to reflect quietly on the real meaning of Easter and the message of hope that it offers us. The lockdown and impact of the global pandemic has left many people feeling that there is less hope and we want to remind them that the church is still here and we offer comfort and hope.”
Rev Ben Griffith, Vicar of the Kington Parishes said: “Easter is such an important time of the year for Christians. My hope and prayer is that by walking through the Easter Garden people will have an opportunity to experience the events of the first Easter for themselves and by so doing find hope and inspiration.”