Lent, Holy Week and Easter

Join us as we journey through Lent and prepare to celebrate Easter...
Find out what this season is all about on the Church of England website

*Move straight to Holy Week and Easter information here

Lent

Ash Wednesday - 5 March
Our traditional Ash Wednesday services at St Andrew's Church mark the beginning of the season of Lent.
10.30am Holy Communion with imposition of ashes
8.00pm Holy Communion with choir, organ and imposition of ashes

Ash Wednesday: 'Ashes to go'
Rev. Simon Cutmore from All Saints' Church is offering ashing outside Hertford East station from 6.30am and in Salisbury Square from 9.30am. www.allsaintshertford.org

In the Christian tradition, Ash Wednesday marks the start of the holy season of Lent, a time for reflection and repentance in preparation for the celebration of Easter. For centuries, Christians have received a cross of ashes on the face at the beginning of that season as a reminder of our failings and an invitation to receive God's forgiveness. Ashes to Go provides the opportunity to participate in that tradition for people who have lost their connection to a church, or have never participated before.

Mothering Sunday - 30 March
10.30am A service for all ages at St Andrew's Church
Children will be invited to give their mums and carers a posy of flowers. We are joined by the new Hertford Children's Choir who will be performing for everyone and we celebrate the Holy Baptism of Leni Harman.
Reminder: The clocks go forward by an hour in the early hours of Mothering Sunday

LOCAL LENT EVENTS

Piano Recital for Christian Aid
Sunday 2 March, 3.00pm, at Hertford Methodist Church, Ware Road

Bérenger Morel is the youngest member of the team of musicians who accompany services at Hertford Methodist Church. He is currently working towards his GCSEs at Haileybury. His 40-minute recital will include music by Bach, Mozart, Schubert, Chopin, Ponce, Glinka, Balakirev and Brahms, and will be followed by tea and cakes.

Admission free, but donations for Christian Aid will be very welcome as this is Hertford Methodist Church’s 'Lent Event’ for this year - a few days early!

UPDATE: The Methodist Church is very pleased to say that they received £341.80 in donations at the recent piano recital. This will be sent to Christian Aid and they will be able to claim £33 in Gift Aid.

Lent Course

All Saints' Church, Hertford, is running a five-week Lent Course called Lentwise (written by Paula Gooder). Details are here: www.allsaintshertford.org/lent.php

Lent Resources

Watch and Pray: Living Hope

This Lent we are encouraged to put down deep roots of hope by connecting with God who is with us at all times.

The Church of England’s Lent theme for 2025 is Living Hope.
God invites us to bring to him our own journey through everyday life. In the disappointment of daily setbacks and the pain of deeper hurts, we discover that God is present with us. And God promises a future where all things are healed and made new.

Living Hope offers us the opportunity to deepen our hope in God and be part of what God is doing to bring hope in the world.

The readings and reflections explore how we can have hope in times of frustration or uncertainty; the hope found in joining with others; the invitation to notice signs of hope around us; the courage to face reality and pursue a hopeful future; and the ways God transforms death into life at Easter.

The reflections have been written by Cathrine Fungai Ngangira and Belle Tindall – both contributors to Wild Bright Hope: The Big Church Read Lent Book 2025 (SPCK) – together with Victoria Mason, Everyday Faith Editor for the Church of England.

Sign up here for daily reflections during Lent
Sign up to free daily Lent reflection emails (except Sundays) straight to your inbox from Ash Wednesday (5 March) to Easter Day (20 April). Connect with God with the new Everyday Faith app for iOS and Android – including daily audio - is available to download.

Tearfund's weekly devotional

Discover God’s desire for unity during Lent 2025 using the weekly devotional series, Lent: Together as One. Sign up to receive a free email devotional with reflections and prayers to encourage you every week during Lent.

A Quiet Day in Lent - Trees:

Here is Rosemary's Lent Quiet Day material on the theme of trees which you can enjoy at home.

Holy Week

Sunday 13 April - Palm Sunday
8.00am Holy Communion (BCP) at St Andrew's Church
10.30am Holy Communion at St Andrew's Church
The congregation is invited to begin the service outside the church, weather permitting. For those who are able to join this, please collect a palm cross, service book and hymn book and head outside, where we will process into church through the West Doors, led by the clergy and the choir, as the service begins.
10.30am A Special Online Service for Palm Sunday ON ZOOM
Led by a Lay Leader of Worship, we will use readings, music and images as we follow the Passion story from Palm Sunday to Easter Saturday.
7.00pm Compline ON ZOOM
Rev. Alan Stewart

Monday 14 April
8.00pm Compline for Holy Week ON ZOOM
A short, spoken service marks a quiet end to the day in Holy Week, as we give to our loving God the day that has passed and the night that is to come.

Tuesday 15 April
8.00pm Taizé Service for Holy Week at St Andrew's Church
A candlelit service for Holy Week in the style of Taizé.

Wednesday 16 April
10.30am Holy Communion at St Andrew's Church
8.00pm A Meditation for Holy Week at St Andrew's Church and ON ZOOM
A guided meditation on the anointing of Jesus.

Maundy Thursday
8.00pm Eucharist at St Andrew's Church
Holy Communion, with washing of feet, followed by Tenebrae & watch ’til 10pm. Tenebrae is a candlelit medieval service of the shadows.

Good Friday
10.00am Churches Together Walk of Witness
Beginning at Hertford Methodist Church, Ware Road, the walk will travel through Hertford, including a visit to the Quaker Garden. At each place, there will be a hymn and a Bible reading, with hot cross buns given out along the way. The walk ends at Hertford United Reformed Church with a welcome seat and refreshments.
12noon - 3.00pm at St Andrew's: The Three Hours
Songs, hymns, reflection and passages from the Bible to mark the final hours of Jesus on the cross.
2.00-3.00pm at St Mary's: The Last Hour
We spend the final hour at the foot of the cross

Easter Day

5.30am
Dawn Service at St Mary's Hertingfordbury
On Easter morning, as the dawn rises, we gather at St Mary’s where we light the first fire of Easter and share in the Dawn Eucharist. Do remember to wrap up warm and bring a torch. Breakfast is offered in The Brace Room at St Mary's following the service.

8.00am
Holy Communion (BCP) at St Andrew's Church
Easter Morning Holy Communion Service at St Andrew’s using a traditional liturgy.

Easter Cross with flowers
10.30am
All-Age Easter Day Service at St Andrew's Church
All-Age worship, with Choir and Organ, and an Easter Egg Hunt for the young ones. Please remember to bring a fresh flower to decorate the cross.

10.30am Easter Day Eucharist ON ZOOM
Rev. Bill Church leads us our worship online with the Easter Day liturgy.

[No Compline on Easter Sunday]

Easter Monday

Easter Monday Pilgrimage
21 April, from 2.30pm
St Albans Cathedral, Sumpter Yard, St Albans, Hertfordshire AL1 1BY

Join a thousand other pilgrims from across St Albans Diocese to celebrate the risen Christ at St Albans Cathedral. This year's theme is JOY.

You’re Invited!
On Easter Monday, 21 April, join hundreds of other pilgrims at St Albans Cathedral for a joyful pilgrimage and service that brings people together from across the Diocese. It’s a day for everyone— grandparents, parents, young people, kids, and even dogs (muddy boots welcome).

The Service
Arrive at the Cathedral to gather on the beautiful Abbey Orchard before heading inside from 2.30pm for an informal service at 3.00pm, filled with worship, a couple of thought provoking reflections and a short communion led by Bishop Richard, Bishop of Bedford.

Getting there
Come however you want, on foot, by car, by bus, by train or even helicopter, however you want to come! Set out from your local church or one of our designated hub churches together as a community. Whether you’re bringing a colourful banner, sharing prayers along the way, or just enjoying the journey, this is your chance to join an epic journey of celebration.

FIND OUT MORE

Perfume - performed by Julia Thomas

PERFUME.mp3

performed by Julia Thomas,

"I wanted to tell him I loved him before it was too late. The seasons of his life passed quickly, so quickly. Spring, summer autumn and, now, winter...
..."I'd always wanted to read the Torah, to sing and shout God's praises, but I was suffocated by my gender. With him, I could breathe. He let me sit at his feet and listen to his teaching. He allowed me to be myself."

Hello and welcome to St Andrew's. If you are new, we have a page for you to get to know us and learn more about planning a visit.
Click here to see more.

'I'm New' Click here

Planning your Visit

A Warm Hello

No one belongs here more than you.

We look forward to meeting you! Here's some information so that if you're planning a visit you know beforehand what to expect on a Sunday morning. We have other pages telling you more About Us, our approach to Faith and our Online services.

Where and When

We meet at the Church Building (details below) for our main Sunday Service starting at 10.30am. For your first visit, we recommend arriving 10-15 minutes early to ensure you find a parking space and can settle in before the service begins. When you arrive, you should be greeted by someone on our Welcome Team.

Plan your journey:
While, unfortunately, St Andrew's does not have its own carpark, there is a council-run pay and display carpark a short distance along St Andrew Street, to the east of the church; there is a £1.50 flat-rate charge for parking in this carpark on Sundays (though half an hour or less is free).

This is a useful East Herts Council website page for full details of parking in Hertford.

There are single yellow lines outside the church with parking restrictions, but some 30-minute parking bays are situated on the opposite side of the road for short stays (longer on Sundays).

Open Google Maps

Accessibility: There is wheelchair access, and a sound loop for anyone who needs it. Please let one of the Welcome Team know on your arrival and they will help you to get set up. There is a disabled toilet towards the back of the church, behind the kitchen.

Our Service

The service will usually begin promptly at 10.30am and will last between 60 and 75 minutes. We enjoy the presence of an excellent choir who help us sing hymns (modern and traditional) as well as provide anthems and special songs through the period of communion. We have a traditional organ but also benefit from music played on the piano and by our band (eg on the Second Sunday of each month when we have an All-Age Service in which our children and young people are fully involved).

Each 10.30am service includes a sermon, prayers and eucharist.

After the service, everyone is invited for coffee and conversation - some like to stay for a quick chat while others remain in the church for a longer time.

Communion

Children and Young People

Children are never too young to come to church. You and your children are very welcome at St Andrew’s.

We really value worshipping God together as a family, so children stay with their parent or grown-up at the start of the service before being invited to leave for the young people's activities after the first hymn. Junior Church meets in the St Andrew's Centre (our adjoining hall), accessed through the church on Sunday mornings. You will need to go with your children to their groups and register them as part of our child safety policy.

The children and young people then return to the main service in time to join the eucharist and, if confirmed, take Holy Communion or, if not, receive a blessing. We offer a little box of raisins to children being blessed at the altar.

There is a Children's Corner in church where you can go at any time. You will find books, toys and drawing materials there.

Toilet and baby-change facilities are located at the back of church, behind the kitchen.

There's more information here: Children and Young People at St Andrew's

Junior Church celebration

Getting Connected

Home Groups

While Sundays are a great way to meet new people, it is often in smaller gatherings that you can really get to know someone. Being part of one of our small groups allows you to make new friends, share together and support each other. We have a variety of groups that meet throughout the week. Check out Home Groups on our website and see if there’s one that you could join. Alternatively, speak to a member of the Welcome Team who will give you the information that you need.

Serving and Volunteering

If you want to get involved in the life of the church and help us make Sundays run smoothly, you can sign up to serve on a team. Please contact Phil in the Church Office.

Get in touch with us

If you have any questions, please do get in touch. You'll find our contact details here.

We hope that you will feel at home at our church.

Group photo at the top of the page taken by Tim Pike