Author Archives: Saint John's Episcopal Church

A Statement from Presiding Bishop Michael Curry Regarding Refugees

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“I ask President Trump to continue the powerful work of our refugee resettlement program without interruption.”   The Most Reverend Michael Curry, Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church

Presiding Bishop Michael Curry has released a statement in support of refugees and the work of Episcopal Migration Ministries.

Here is an excerpt of Bishop Curry’s statement:

As Christians, we are asked to pray: for our leaders, for our loved ones, for our enemies, and for those who are suffering. Our work does not end with prayer: we also offer assistance to those who are fleeing persecution. We find homes for those who have been forced out of their homes. We feed those who are hungry. The refugees who enter the United States do so after experiencing violence and persecution undeserved of any human being, and they come to the U.S. with hopes to build new lives.

Refugee resettlement is a form of ministry, and one that we, and many other churches and faith-based organizations, cherish. The work of Episcopal Migration Ministries is God’s work, and we show the face of God through the care and compassion in that work.

The full statement of the bishop can be found here.

More information on the work of Episcopal Migration Ministries can be found here.

Epiphany Potluck and Service, Friday January 6 at 6 pm

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The Feast of the Epiphany is Friday, January 6. As the culmination of our Christmas celebrations, we remember the coming of the Wise Men to Bethlehem to worship Jesus. The word Epiphany comes from a Greek word meaning “manifestation,” or “appearance.” The wise ones who travelled to Bethlehem are often seen as the first Gentiles to whom the light of Christ was revealed.

We will celebrate with a a simple potluck supper and service at in the Parish House, starting at 6 pm. It will be a child-friendly service, and Tom will present chalk for “chalking the doors” of the church and our homes – it is a tradition we have observed at St. John’s for the last few years, in which we bless our homes for the coming year with chalk inscriptions over the thresholds.

Do you have figures of the three kings or wise men at home? Consider bringing them on Friday and we will place all of them – whatever size – before the manger.

Seeing God’s Beauty

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Church StepsDear Friends,

On Saturday evening, St. John’s offers a wonderful gift to the larger community, our Service of Nine Lessons and Carols. It is a St. John’s tradition, and also part of the larger tradition of the Anglican Communion. Each Christmas Eve, persons all over the world listen to the service that originates from Kings’s College Chapel in Cambridge, England.

The beauty of such liturgical offerings is one of the gifts that the Anglican tradition offers to the larger church. We see God’s beauty in all the elements of this service, as the scriptures, anthems, and carols reveal once again the mystery of God’s love made known to us in Jesus Christ.

There are times when one may wonder if our efforts to create such moments of beauty should be directed elsewhere. I remember that four years ago, our service took place just days after the shootings at the Sandy Hook School in Newtown, Connecticut. Today, the reality of the suffering in Aleppo and so many other places around the world is before us. At such times, it may feel that  stepping into the beauty of a candlelit church can be more an act of denial than of worship.

The poet Mary Oliver reminds me of how our efforts to see beauty are essential in such times.  The writer Parker Palmer recalled being at a reading by the poet several years ago. After the reading, someone in the audience asked her, “What is the purpose of beauty?”

Mary Oliver replied, “We need beauty because it makes us ache to be worthy of it.”

Our coming together in candlelight, our listening and singing, are  all ways of evoking that poignant ache – to be worthy of the beauty and love that God has already given us. We gather, knowing in the words of the carol that “the hopes and fears of all the years” are met in this person of Jesus Christ.

I hope you can join us to hear again the wondrous story of the One who himself is the embodiment of God’s beauty, and who awakens in us the ache to be worthy of love and life.

Faithfully,

Tom

 

 

Rivers of Grace

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There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God. Psalm 46:4

Dear Friends,

Down below, at the bottom of this newsletter, you will read of the efforts being made to ensure that the dirt basements “down below” us stay dry and free from any accumulation of water. For years, after heavy rains and wet seasons, there have been occasions when streams of water have been running beneath us. Not good, as everyone knows, for the general health of the buildings – or for those who work and worship in them!

I’m grateful for these efforts, but it made me think about the fact that upstairs, in our classrooms and in our church, we are seeking to do quite the opposite – seeking to increase the flow. It’s not water that we are seeking (unless you consider the waters of baptism). Rather, we want to create channels for grace – the means by which we can experience more fully the abundant and outpouring love of God.

Channels for a river of grace: we create them every time we introduce a parable or biblical figure to our children in Living the Good News or Godly Play classes. In the Word spoken, we hear afresh the Spirit speaking to us, and we are changed.

We create riverbeds for God’s grace every time we lift our voices in song, or listen to one of our choirs offer an anthem. “The one who sings, prays twice,” St. Augustine once wrote. How many times has a moving piece of music enabled us to hear and glimpse God’s beauty in a new or deeper way?

Every time we celebrate Holy Communion, we receive the grace of God – the church traditionally refers to the sacraments as “means of grace.” I love the way my Eucharistic theology professor spoke of what happens at communion: “The miracle at the altar is not so much that bread and wine are transformed into the body and blood of Christ, but that ordinary human beings like you and me are being transformed into the living body of Christ,” – and, I might add, being nourished to go from the altar to go out into the world and to act in love.

This Sunday, we will be introducing one more means of grace: the sacrament of healing. If you wish to have prayers of healing for yourself, or for another, after receiving communion you may proceed to the back of the church (on the organ side). One of our priests will ask for your prayer intention, and then pray with you, anointing you with the healing oil that was consecrated by Bishop Gates at our anniversary service.

We are introducing this sacramental act on this Second Sunday of Advent. During Epiphany, it will be offered twice a month, and then during the seasons of Lent and Easter, it will be offered each Sunday.

I am praying for no more rivers in our basement. And I am praying for more and more rivers upstairs where we want to see them – in our classrooms, in our church, and in our lives.

Faithfully in Christ,
Tom

Lessons and Carols on December 17th

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It is a much beloved tradition at St. John’s and one of the ways in which we offer God’s beauty to the larger community. Our Lessons and Carols service this year will be held on Saturday, December 17th at 5 pm. Both our choirs will lead us with anthems, and carols for us to join in, as we list to the story of God’s redeeming work told in scripture. As always, a delightful reception follows, and childcare will be available.

The Adoration of the Shepherds by Gerard van Honthorst, (1590–1656)

The Adoration of the Shepherds by Gerard van Honthorst, (1590–1656)