Easter Sunday celebrated in the south

While Invercargill streets resembled a ghost town yesterday, there were signs of life in parts of the city.

In churches all over town, people gathered to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ – the central event in the Christian calendar.

While numbers were a little lower than normal, First Presbyterian Church minister Nyalle Paris said he was pleased with the turnout for the Sunday morning service at his church.

‘‘It was good, considering lots of working people head away for the long weekend, and Easter is in the [school] term holidays this year as well.’’

Invercargill Central Baptist Church pastor Keith Harrington said his church took a different approach to remembering the story of the resurrection on Sunday.

‘‘We turned it into a big celebration – we set up the chairs in a big rectangle facing the communion table.

‘‘By focusing on the table, it shows that everyone’s part of the family, everyone’s equal – people don’t just celebrate own their own.

‘‘It’s a celebration of the hope we have in Christ, using the imagery of a feast as an analogy for that.’’

Harrington said there was also a global focus to the service, highlighted by the recent terrorist attacks on Coptic Christians in Egypt.

‘‘While we’re free to worship, the hope they have in Christ comes out of a very difficult place, with persecution and bombings such as what happened in Egypt.’’

St John’s Anglican Church vicar Richard Aitken said there was still a strong awareness of the significance of Easter to the wider community.

‘‘Easter is one of those festivals people still link to the church, it hasn’t been commercialised in the same way as Christmas.

‘‘Easter Sunday is the climax of the story – it’s the bit that makes the faith special.’’