This weekend sees Easter celebrations. Considered the cornerstone of the Christian faith, the festival celebrates Jesus rising from the dead, three days after he was executed on the cross.
SECAmb chaplain Peter Hills and Sadie Ghinn-Morris, co-Chair of the enABLE Staff Network, talk about what the religious celebration means to them.
Methodist minister Peter, currently covering stations in the Guildford OU, is a familiar face across much of the Trust, having worked out of many stations in Kent and Surrey. He will be taking church services for Easter this year at Byfleet.
There, and in churches all across the country, ambulance crews working the bank holidays to keep others safe are remembered in prayers.
“The Christian faith declares that God is not some distant entity, but deeply involved in human life. God, we believe, is present wherever people are suffering, and there is always hope,” said Peter.
“What better celebration of Easter could there be, than being beside another person in their distress, pain or fear, to offer comfort and support, as I have seen so often when privileged to join a crew on the road.”
The week before Easter is known as Holy Week, beginning on Palm Sunday.
“We commemorate the paschal mystery, as it is called, by walking through the last days of Jesus, as described in the gospel accounts,” said Peter. “His entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, the last supper with his disciples on Maundy Thursday, the night of his betrayal by a friend, the trial and crucifixion on Good Friday, and the resurrection on Easter Day.”
For Sadie, also Business Support Manager for SECAmb’s Strategy & Transformation Directorate, Easter is a time for reflection, and revival of her faith.
The Easter festival follows Lent, a period of self-denial – cutting out meat, chocolates or alcohol, for example – to remember Jesus’ fasting in the desert.
“Many people choose to break Lent either on Good Friday or Easter Sunday, depending on their tradition,” Sadie said. “I personally end Lent at sundown on Maundy Thursday, marking the time of the Last Supper and Jesus being handed over to the romans.
“In my family, we celebrate by sharing a breaking of Lent feast and communion on Maundy Thursday. Then attending the Good Friday service in Crawley – which involves a community procession from Broadfield to the town centre, followed by a joint church service in Queen's Square – making our own Easter eggs on Saturday, holding an Easter egg hunt, and spending Easter Sunday celebrating the resurrection with family.
“It’s an incredibly special time to us.”