Sunday Morning Worship
Fourth Sunday in Lent
March 15, 2026
11:00 AM
Preacher: Rev. Adriene Thorne
It is easy to speak of love as an idea or a belief. Lent invites us to live it—openly, courageously, and in ways that can be seen and felt in the world. Love made public begins with daily choices to show up, tell the truth, make space, and act for the good of others.
Experience the Lenten journey at Riverside with our comprehensive Lenten Calendar, bringing all activities together in one convenient place. Download now to stay connected and fully immerse yourself in the spiritual richness of this sacred season, in person and online.
Click Here to download the Lenten Calendar
The Lenten season reminds us that we walk with God as partners—listening for where love is calling us beyond comfort, beyond habit, beyond the walls we have built around our lives. The practices of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving offered here are invitations into that shared work. They are meant to stretch us gently outward—toward God and toward our neighbors.
As you engage these practices with intention and care, may you discover that love grows more visible through your public witness. We are grateful to walk this Lenten journey together.
Rev. Thorne and The Riverside Church clergy team
• Every Sunday, we encourage you to join worship online or in the Nave at 11:00 am with special music beginning at 10:30 am.
• Every Monday, we invite you to join Multifaith Mondays: Witness to Democracy from 5:30-6 pm at Columbus Circle where we gather in interfaith community to encourage one another and stand up for democracy as people of faith.
• Every Monday-Friday at 8:00 am, we encourage you to join the Riverside community for Morning Prayer. Visit trcnyc.org/morningprayer to learn more and join. This practice will deepen your connection with God and change your life.
• Every Wednesday from 12:00 – 12:30 pm join our community for reflection, prayer, and discussion on the biblical practice of fasting. Consider joining The Daniel Fast or another Lenten fasting practice this season and then find us on Wednesdays at https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84309337407.
• Every Wednesday at 12:30 we encourage you to join the Riverside online community for our midweek Bible Study. Visit trcnyc.org/mbs to learn more and join. This class will deepen your faith, theology, and spirituality.
• Every Saturday during Lent at 8:30 am, you are invited to join Stephen Durham for a Lenten book study, reading Learning to Walk in the Dark by Barbara Brown Taylor. Visit trcnyc.org/lent-book to learn more and join on Zoom.
• Weekly breath prayer – Breathe in: Love, make us public. Breathe out: Love, make us brave.
RESIST AND UNSUBSCRIBE
Americans are feeling powerless to thwart the Trump administration’s assault on our nation’s values. Americans, however, have a powerful weapon that has been hiding in plain sight. The president responds to one thing: the market. The most potent weapon to resist the administration is a targeted, national economic strike — a coordinated campaign that attacks tech companies and firms enabling ICE. Go to resistandunsubscribe.com to join the strike targeted at the companies driving the markets and enabling the president.
Imposition of Ashes
Get your Ashes from Riverside clergy. Embrace the solemnity and significance of Ash Wednesday at The Riverside Church or at the subway. You are invited to join us on Ash Wednesday where we will mark the beginning of the Lenten season with the imposition of ashes. Receive the ashes as a symbol of repentance, humility, and renewal. Start your Lenten journey with a sense of purpose and spiritual commitment.
8:00 AM – 10:30 AM | Glitter + Ash at Stonewall Monument (38 Christopher Street)
9:00 AM – 10:00 AM | 116th Street/Columbia University 1 Train Subway Stop and 125th Street 1 Train Subway Stop
10:00 AM – Noon| Riverside Food Pantry
Noon – 2:00 PM | Nave
3:00 PM | Ash Wednesday Call to Repentance. Join faith leaders as we Reclaim our Humanity at 26 Federal Plaza to let ICE know our dignity cannot be taken.
7:00 PM | Nave & Online | Ash Wednesday Worship
Sunday, February 22 at 11:00 AM ET • Nave & Online
Sunday Morning Worship with Rev. Adriene Thorne, preaching
Join us after worship for a sermon talkback in Virtual Coffee Hour.
Service will be signed by ASL interpreters.
Watch Sunday February 22 Morning Worship
Short Circles: Lent–Love Made Public
Wednesday, February 26, 2026 at 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM ET | Zoom
Sunday, March 1 at 11:00 AM ET • Nave & Online
Sunday Morning Worship with Rev. Adriene Thorne, preaching
Join us after worship for a sermon talkback in Virtual Coffee Hour.
Service will be signed by ASL interpreters.
Watch Sunday March 1 Morning Worship
Wednesday, March 4 at 7:00 PM ET • 9T& Online
Space for Grace with Rev. Dr. Leah Fowler, preaching
Join us for Space for Grace, a monthly in-person and online gathering featuring Gospel music, prayer, preaching, communion, and more.
Sunday, March 8 at 11:00 AM ET • Nave & Online
Sunday Morning Worship with Rev. Adriene Thorne, preaching
Join us after worship for a sermon talkback in Virtual Coffee Hour.
Service will be signed by ASL interpreters.
Watch Sunday March 8 Morning Worship
Short Circles: Lent–Love Made Public
Wednesday, March 11, 2026 at 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM ET | Zoom
Sunday, March 15 at 11:00 AM ET • Nave & Online
Sunday Morning Worship with Rev. Adriene Thorne, preaching
Join us after worship for a sermon talkback in Virtual Coffee Hour.
Service will be signed by ASL interpreters.
Sunday, March 22 at 11:00 AM ET • Nave & Online
Sunday Morning Worship with Rev. Charlene A. Wingate, preaching
Join us after worship for a sermon talkback in Virtual Coffee Hour.
Service will be signed by ASL interpreters.
Watch Sunday March 22 Morning Worship
Short Circles: Lent–Love Made Public
Wednesday, March 25, 2026 at 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM ET | Zoom
Join our Riverside community every morning, Monday through Friday, at 8:00 AM ET for a 30 minute morning prayer liturgy. Share your prayer requests and hold our community, neighborhood, nation, and world in prayer.
Sunday, March 29 at 11:00 AM ET • Nave & Online
Palm Sunday Worship with Rev. Adriene Thorne, preaching
Join us after worship for a sermon talkback in Virtual Coffee Hour.
Service will be signed by ASL interpreters. Note: Parking during Holy Week services (Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday and Easter Sunday) in the church garage is discounted to $5 for each day.
Thursday, April 2 at 5:30 PM ET • Assembly Hall Nave & Online
Maundy Thursday will be in two stages this year. Come for one service or stay for both services.
Service of Communion, Dinner, and Foot-washing (Assembly Hall)
A family friendly service that unfolds at the dinner table, to tell of the Last Supper.
We will begin at 5:30 in Assembly Hall with a family friendly service over table, as we share a simple supper, remember the words Jesus left with the last Supper as we experience Communion, and receive foot-washing.
Thursday, April 2 at 7:00 PM ET • Nave & Online
7:00 p.m. Service of Tenebrae (Nave and Online)
A service of light and shadows, music, readings, and silence
We then shift to a more somber mood as we go upstairs to enter the Nave for the Tenebrae service. This 7:00 p.m. segment will be live streamed and is a traditional service of casting shadows. We will dramatically tell through music and scripture the account of Jesus’ betrayal, arrest, trial, and crucifixion.
We invite you to bring “30 pieces of silver” to drop in the metal pot as you enter the Nave. This can be pocket change, bills, or something else into which you have put your faith, rather than trusting Jesus.
Note: Parking during Holy Week services (Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday and Easter Sunday) in the church garage is discounted to $5 for each day.
Friday, April 3 at 12:00 PM – 3:00 PM ET • Nave & Online
We will gather for The Seven Last Words of Jesus and contemplate the final hours of his life. With scripture, preaching, and embodied practices, we bear witness to a love that does not retreat into silence, even in pain.
You are welcome to stay for the entire service or to come and go as you need.
Note: Parking during Holy Week services (Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday and Easter Sunday) in the church garage is discounted to $5 for each day.
Saturday, April 4 at 12:00 PM – 3:00 PM ET • Assembly Hall
Join us in Assembly Hall from 12:00 PM – 3:00 PM ET for an experience walking the prayer labyrinth. This tradition offers a unique opportunity to be present with the reality of this holy and silent Saturday, as we find ourselves balanced between Good Friday and Easter Sunday.
Note: Parking during Holy Week services (Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday and Easter Sunday) in the church garage is discounted to $5 for each day.
Sunday, April 5 at 11:00 AM ET • Nave & Online
Resurrection Sunday Worship with Rev. Adriene Thorne, preaching
Join us on Easter Sunday at The Riverside Church as we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord.
Christ is risen. Christ is risen, indeed. Alleluia!
Service will be signed by ASL interpreters.
After Easter Sunday service on April 5, 2026 children are welcome to participate in the Easter egg hunt, beginning in the Cloister Lounge.
Join us on Sunday, April 5 from 12:00 PM to 3:00 PM, immediately after our Resurrection Sunday worship service, for a festive and memorable Easter Brunch in Assembly Hall. Enjoy a traditional Easter meal with a variety of options, including vegan dishes and a delicious dessert station.
Menu TBD
$25 | Adults $15 | Seniors $12 | Children (under 12)
Donate to help feed someone in need.
***Tickets on sale soon. ***
Lent is not a race to Easter, it’s not a countdown to chocolate bunnies. Lent is a journey, and as cliche as it might be, it’s about the journey and not the destination. It’s about being where you are, not where you’re going. Because Easter is coming, whether we’re ready or not. But Lent comes first, inviting us to slow down and place our feet right behind Jesus as we live the only way we can ever live, step by step, day by day, moment by moment, breath by breath.
Join Rev. Jim Keat for this episode of The Word Made Fresh as we explore the season of Lent — What is it? Where did it come from? And why do we practice it today?
