All Saints' Sunday: Fall BACK! Come Dressed to Garden; Thursday: Traces of the Trade

November 2, 2019
Dear Hearts,

Sadly the Halloween HOWLER will not be offered this afternoon.  The way the dates fell seemed to preclude a "quorum" of singers, musicians, comics, dancers and storytellers being available to perform today. 

Daylight Savings Time ends in the wee hours tonight; so please, remember to Fall Back to Standard Time before going to bed tonight.

This Sunday, November 3, is All Saints' Sunday:  In addition to remembering that great fellowship of saints who rejoice with us "upon another shore and in a greater light," we will also expect to add one saint to the household of God.  As if that's not enough, there are the great hymns of the day to sing, and the promise of a hearty Coffee Hour to follow.

Junior Warden Alicia Bacon and her predecessor Sue Shackford are providing a nourishing Coffee Hour to sustain folks to help with a Fall Garden Clean-up. Please feel free to come to the 10a.m. service in your gardening clothes!  At this Garden (Work) Party, we will adjourn to the parish grounds to make short work of the necessary seasonal pruning, raking, tidying and hauling, .  In addition to your gardening togs, please bring your gloves, favorite gardening tools, and, if you've got one, your pick-up truck!

Our Thursday Evening Presentations continue this week with the showing of Traces of the Trade: A Story from the Deep North.  This documentary, previously shown on PBS, tells about filmmaker Katrina Browne's discovery that the family business, which her grandmother didn't ".. have stomach to discuss," was the trade in African slaves.   Instead of being a story confined to the southern United States, this was a "Story from the Deep North:"  Her ancestors had conducted the largest American slave-trading operation from Bristol, Rhode Island! 
  
After gathering in the Parish Hall at 6:30p.m. this Thursday, November 7, our hosts, the Evening ECW will offer a brief introduction and set our viewing in the context of prayer, and oh yes, refreshments.  Following the film and another prayer, we will be sent home with a question to consider.  We'll regather on Thursday, November 21, to share our responses to that question, and to the film, and to view some background video which will provide additional context for the film.

These Thursday Evening Presentations are part of our celebration of Christ Church's 275 years of worship and witness to the reconciling and redeeming love of God revealed in Jesus Christ.  In this instance, we won't be celebrating the guilt of fellow Episcopalians, but be moved to name a sinful failure to "respect the dignity of every human being" close to home. If we can have the grace to name and lament the evil that was done, then perhaps we will be all the more ready to celebrate Christ Church's witness to God's steadfast mission of redemption and restoration.  

Please note that the Parish Office will be closed on Tuesday, November 5.  I'll be traveling with Jennifer Huebner and our new Youth Confirmation Prep group to The Cloisters and the Cathedral of St. John the Divine.  I'll check for voice messages, but emails will be returned in the evening or on Wednesday.

Many thanks to David Jones for leading Morning Prayer last Sunday, and to Chris Robinson for facilitating the viewing of the Annual Convention Eucharist live-streamed from the Hartford Convention Center.  Those of us who were in the Convention Hall where the service took place, were moved and inspired by the preaching, music and fellowship ... and exhausted by Saturday's all-day deliberations.  There's a fine report on the Convention by Alli Gannett, diocesan digital storyteller, available here.  Bishop Diocesan Ian Ted Douglas's annual Talk was both eye-opening and hopeful. (Since Bishop Ian's middle name really is Ted, and because he is talking, he maintains that calling this address a "Ted Talk" infringes on no copyrights)  You can read his address hereand view it here.  Convention preacher Bishop Barbara Harris posed some truly "Come to Jesus moments" for us all to consider; you can hear and watch her preach here.
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In the meantime, I look forward to an extra hour of sleep tonight, after setting clocks back one hour tonight, and rising in a brighter morning light, worshiping with you and the whole company of saints on All Saints' Sunday, and then getting out to do some gardening on another lovely fall day.  Sunday School and the Youth Program will be in session and be preparing for November 10 when our children and youth will take visible roles in our worship.  
In faith, hope, and love,
Harrison+
YFNR.