Sunrise service
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The service
takes place outdoors, sometimes in a park, and the attendees are seated on
outdoor chairs or benches.
History
The first
Easter Sunrise Service recorded took place in 1732 in the Moravian congregation at Herrnhut in the Upper Lusatian hills of Saxony.[1] After an all-night prayer vigil, the
Single Brethren, the unmarried men, of the community, went to the town
graveyard, God's Acre, on the Hill
above the town, to sing hymns of praise to the Risen Saviour.[1] The following year, the whole
Congregation joined in the service. Thereafter the "Easter Morning"
or "Sunrise Service" spread around the world with the Moravian
missionaries.[1] The procession to the graveyard is
accompanied by the antiphonal playing of chorales by brass choirs.[2]
In the United States
Many churches
in the American South still hold traditional sunrise services in cemeteries as
a sign of recognition that Jesus no longer lay in the tomb
on Easter morning. The service starts early in the morning and is timed so that
the attendants can see the sun rise when the service is going.[2] Services usually loosely follows the
format of the church's normal service and can include music (hymns
or praise band), dramatic scenes and the Easter message. After the service, the church may serve a breakfast that the attendees of the service can
attend.[3]
The most famous
Moravian Sunrise Service in the United States is probably that of the Salem
Congregation in what is now Winston-Salem, NC, held annually since 1772.[2] More than six thousand worshipers
gather before dawn front of the church to proclaim the Resurrection.[4] The worshipers then process in silent
prayer to the historic graveyard, or "God's Acre".[2] Brass choirs from twelve congregations,
totaling over five hundred members,[2] play hymns antiphonally during the
procession. The service concludes with a proclamation of faith and hymns of
hope.
In 2012, in Washington D.C., thousands of individuals
gathered at the Lincoln Memorial
for the ecumenical 34th “Sunrise Celebration” Easter service, an
Washington tradition for Christians of all denominations.[5] The tradition goes back for more than
three decades.[5]
Another
long-running sunrise service dates back to 1944 atop Stone Mountain near Atlanta. The park opens extremely early at 4am,
and the skylift operates early as well to carry
worshipers to the top and back down again.
The entire wiki link can be found
at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunrise_service
A wiki link on the Moravian Church can
be found at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moravian_Church
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