Holy Faith Church, Lutheran and Episcopal, Ann Arbor, Michigan

In addition to major Christian holidays (Ash Wednesday, Holy Week, Easter, Christmas, Pentecost, etc.), Holy Faith holds a number of special, creative services that highlight a theme or play with a new way of being the church at worship together. These are mostly planned by the Liturgy Team, which is open to the participation of anyone interested. Here are a few of the successful services which we are planning to do again in the coming year (see our calendar):

Animal Blessing: Bring your animals (dogs, cats, rabbits, sheep, cows...all animals are welcome) on an October day to receive a special blessing in honor of St. Francis of Assisi (patron saint of animals).
Jazz Mass: Swingable, Singable and Joyous. Typically held in late winter or spring, Pastor Ian leads a band of guest jazz musicians to provide the great sounds.
All Saints' Day: Members of the congregation make "memory boxes" which display pictures, writings, and objects in honor of dead loved ones.  On the first Sunday of November, we display these around the room, light candles, and read the names of the saints in our lives who have gone on before us.
Mass on the Grass: An outdoor service on a beautiful late spring morning with special guest musicians - members of the Fiddlers Restrung!
Advent Pageant: Starring the Holy Faith children, and written and produced by Pastor Ian, these are not your typical pageants.  They take us on bus tours to Bethlehem, and invite us to reminisce over home videos from Jesus' birth with an aging Mary and Joseph!
Worship Center Sunday: A great chance for the whole congregation to experience the wonderful storytelling (and priceless kid comments!) of our Worship Center (Sunday School) program, followed by an all-congregational picnic and kickball game.