Ministries

Lent at St. Mary's

    Lent is an invitation to a deeper relationship with Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. In addition to Sunday worship services, St. Mary's offers the following programs and resources for the season of Lent in 2026. We pray that these prove helpful to you in this season of spiritual renewal.

    Shrove Tuesday, February 17

    *No staffed Childcare available*  
    Pancakes, sausage from pasture-raised Nooherooka Natural pork, and King Cakes from Seraphim Smith at 6:00pm until we run out in Moseley Hall! 
    Donation only - all proceeds go to Youth Programming & Scholarships.
     


    Ash Wednesday, February 18

    *Staffed Childcare available from 6:45pm-8:30pm*
     
    Holy Eucharist with Imposition of Ashes at 7:00am (Chapel), noon (St. Augustine's Episcopal Church - 707 E Lenoir Ave), and 7:00pm (Church).
    There is no Wednesday Night Supper on Ash Wednesday. 
     

    St. Mary's Almsgiving Focus
    Friends of the Homeless

     
    The three pillars of Lent are "Prayer, Fasting, & Giving" (see Matthew 6:1-18).  To give focus to our communal giving in this season, all at St. Mary's are invited to give towards our ministry partners at Friends of the Homeless (next door to Mary's Kitchen).  Funds raised will go towards special needs these days: comforters and bins for personal items of clients. Our goal is $800, which would provide enough of each for every client if the shelter were full.  
     

    Sunday Adult Forum Series
    Sundays | 9:30am in the Parlor

    *Staffed Childcare available from 8:45-11:45am*
     
    Our Adult forum series will take us through a journey called "The Art of Lent." This series focuses on how Lent helps us relate to Scripture, church history, and our own psychological and spiritual needs. Using art works, presenters will explore Lent’s origins, Lenten practices, human temptation, the psychology of Lent, and renewal.  Session leaders include Elizabeth Maxwell, Greg Gridley, Vicki Kennedy, and Fr. Tom.
     


    Wednesday Worship & Lenten Series
    5:30pm | Healing Prayers/Evensong - Chancel
    6:00pm | Parish Supper
    6:30pm | Programs for all ages

    2/25, 3/4, 3/11, 3/18, 3/25
    *Staffed Childcare available from 5:45-7:45pm*
     
    Children of the Junior and Senior Faith Academies will engage with the wonderful Little Way Chapel Lent Guide.  Youth will be engaging with Jesus' Sermon on the Mount during this season.

    Fr. Tom will lead a series for adults called “Ordering Our Lives: A Lenten Journey toward a Rule of Life” that explores how the financial, physical, psychological, spiritual, and vocational parts of our lives can be shaped by living as disciples of Jesus. Each session will draw on Scripture, wisdom from the Christian tradition, and practical tools for everyday living, and ultimately these topics may end up being components of your personal Rule of Life - a sacred framework for living the life of faith with intention.
     

    Friday Stations of the Cross

    *No staffed Childcare available* 
     
    The Parish will observe the Stations of the Cross on Fridays in Lent at 5:45pm in the Nave.
    2/20, 2/27, 3/6, 3/13, 3/20, 3/27, 4/3

     
     

    Holy Week

     
    The Parish observes the heart of the Christian Year with the following Holy Week liturgies:

    March 29 - Palm/Passion Sunday
       -8am Holy Eucharist: Rite 1
       -9am Breakfast in Moseley Hall
       -9:30am Intergenerational Palm Cross Making in Moseley Hall
       -10:30am Holy Eucharist: Rite 2, beginning with Liturgy of the Palms outdoors (weather permitting)
    *Staffed Childcare available from 8:45-Noon*

    March 30 - Monday in Holy Week - 5:30pm - Holy Eucharist Rite 2 in the Chapel - A Teaching Eucharist
    *No Staffed Childcare available*

    March 31 - Tuesday in Holy Week - 5:30pm - Youth-led liturgy in the Chapel
    *No Staffed Childcare available*

    April 1 - Wednesday in Holy Week - 7:30pm - Tenebrae
    Parish Supper is served in Moseley Hall at 6:30pm
    *Staffed Childcare available from 6:30-8:30pm*

    April 2 - Maundy Thursday - 7:30pm - Maundy Thursday Liturgy in the Church
    *Staffed Childcare available from 7:30-8:30pm*
    Hourly opportunities are available for the overnight prayer vigil with the Reserved Sacrament in the Chapel.  Sign up for a time slot by clicking this link.  

    April 3 - Good Friday - Noon - Good Friday Liturgy in the Church
    *Staffed Childcare available from 11:45am-1:30pm*

    April 4 - Holy Saturday - 7:30pm - The Great Vigil of Easter in the Church
    *Staffed Childcare available from 7:15-9:00pm*
    April 5 - Easter Sunday - 8am and 10:30am - There will be an Easter Egg hunt on the parish ground following the 10:30am liturgy.  There is no parish breakfast or classes this morning.
    *Staffed Childcare available from 8:45-Noon*

     
     
    The Kinston/Lenoir County
    Association of Congregations

    The Kinston/Lenoir County Association of Congregations also hosts Holy Week liturgies at Noon with a light lunch following.  The schedule of hosting churches is:

    March 30 - Monday in Holy Week - Gordon Street Christian Church (118 E Gordon St)

    March 31 - Tuesday in Holy Week - St. Mary's Episcopal Church

    April 1 - Wednesday in Holy Week - St. John Free Will Baptist Church (405 E Blount St.)

    April 2 - Maundy Thursday - 902 Church (2009 Carey Rd)

     
     

    Other Lent Resources

    *Click on any blue link below to access that site.* 
     
    Lent Madness - If you're new to this online devotion, here’s how Lent Madness works: on the weekdays of Lent, information is posted at www.lentmadness.org about two different saints. Each pairing remains open for 24 hours as participants read about and then vote to determine which saint moves on to the next round. Sixteen saints make it to the Round of the Saintly Sixteen; eight advance to the Round of the Elate Eight; four make it to the Faithful Four; two to the Championship; and the winner is awarded the Golden Halo. Join with people from around the world in this wonderful, educational, spiritual Lenten practice.

    Episcopal Relief & Development Lenten Meditations - Written by Sister Monica Clare, an Episcopal nun, author and unlikely TikTok star, our 2026 meditations offer an invitation to rediscover—or deepen—holy habits of prayer, worship and engagement with Scripture. These "holy habits" provide a path to a life that is given shape, meaning and direction by being rooted in a deeper relationship with God.

    The Little Way Chapel Lenten Guide - From the Little Way Chapel, "whether you are brand new to Lent, or have been observing it for years, I hope you will find this guide a steady companion. In these pages, you will learn more about the history of our faith, and about the spiritual practices that have sustained God's people for over two millennia. But more importantly, you will be invited to actually do them, drawing you into deeper communion with the risen Lord. But before we can share with Christ in his resurrection, we must join him in his death. This guide is a 40 day journey with Jesus through the wilderness and to the cross. The daily practices are simple enough for all ages to be consistent, yet substantial enough to draw you into the heart of God. May you find Jesus there this Lent."