"Easter should be for us a genuine joy," says Lutheran pastor, professor, and writer Walter Wangerin Jr, "that for a while death was all that existed, but coming with Easter is the remarkable, surprising grace that death is overcome."

Read an excerpt from "In the Company of Christ: A Pilgrimage through Holy Week" by Benedicta Ward. She is a historian of Christian spirituality at the University of Oxford.

Western Christians are celebrating Holy Week and Easter this week, their most sacred time of the year. In the many special services and observances that take place during Holy Week, music plays a crucial role in setting the mood of the worship and in helping to convey the Easter message.

For Western Christians, Sunday (March 16) is Palm Sunday, which begins Holy Week, leading up to Easter (March 23). But Eastern Orthodox Christians have just begun observing their time of Lent. Because of differing church calendars, Western and Eastern Christians usually celebrate the resurrection of Jesus on different dates.

Holy Week and Easter have special significance in Northern Ireland, a land torn by decades of religious conflict. Amid the ongoing tensions, a Benedictine monastery is working for reconciliation and unity.

Kim Lawton sat down with prominent author and Episcopal priest Fleming Rutledge to reflect on the Easter story of crucifixion and resurrection.

Christians say the 2,000-year-old Easter themes of suffering, redemption, and hope have enduring meaning. Author and ordained Presbyterian minister Frederick Buechner says he finds great reassurance in those beliefs, especially during a time of war and uncertainty.

Author and minister Frederick Buechner talks about the meaning of Holy Week and Easter in this extended interview.