Dear Hearts,
As I write this, it is the last day of one Church Year, and tomorrow, Sunday, December 1, will be the First Sunday of Advent, and therefore, the first day of a new Church Year. We'll move from the year when most of the Gospel readings came from Luke's witness (Year C) to a year when most will come from the account attributed to Matthew the Tax Collector (Year A). It will be the same Gospel; just a different perspective. To help inaugurate that different perspective, I have prevailed upon my houseguest, the Rev. Scott Lee, to be our preacher on this First Sunday of Advent and a new Church Year. Fr. Scott was last in the pulpit as our Consecration Sunday guest leader in 2018, and so you will remember that he crafts his sermons well. We are good friends, but cut from different bolts of spiritual goods. Scott+ is an introvert who revels in the disciplines of Contemplative Prayer; I'm an extrovert who doesn't recognize a spiritual experience until there are tears on my face. Scott is also a genuine scholar in all things literary, theological and clever. It'll be the same Gospel of the Good News of Jesus Christ -- just from a different perspective. Thanks so much to everyone who helped make this Thanksgiving special! Particular thanks to:
For dessert, there'll be the cookies from the ECW's Cookie Saletables. The ECW depends upon all of us to bake up batches of our favorite holiday cookies for them to sell. Please bring them to the parish hall anytime prior to 5p.m. on the 6th. The ECW and the Evening ECW have both come up with some clever hand-made gift items that will also delight your holiday guests. The funds raised by the Cookie Sale provide for the scholarships the ECW awards to graduating high school seniors. Of course, if chili and cookies are in the Parish Hall, then there'll be Wreaths for sale in the Rectory garage. Pre-orders for the wreaths continue on December 1st during Coffee Hour. Although this project helps fund special youth activities, such as transportation for High School NYC mini-pilgrimages and the Ropes Course at the Middle School overnight, youth-of-all-ages are invited to help decorate the wreaths on Thursday, December 5 from 4-6p.m. in the Parish Hall. Please see Sue Shackford for details. The Tag Sale Team plans to bring out some items for a sale table of inexpensive items. Look for them just outside the garage! Many thanks to all who have provided their Estimate-of-Giving for our 2020 Operating Budget. We've received 70 cards to date! To the households whose cards are still in your hands, please take seriously Consecration Sunday preacher, Mary Anne Osborn's story about the bag of cookies (it never really was ours) and poem about bridge building (God calls us to build bridges for each other and for the future). Please return you Estimate-of-Giving Card as soon as you can. If somehow you have not received a Card, they're available on the Ushers' Table and in the Parish Office. I wouldn't normally remark on "Black Friday Specials," but there are two that I find truly "special:"
In faith, hope, and love, Harrison+ YFNR.
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Christ the King Sunday: Thanksgiving Foods Ingathering; Thanksgiving Worship; Dec. 6 Preparations11/23/2019 November 23 , 2019
Dear Hearts, Let's see how much food we can gather around the Children's Altar and in the window sills this Sunday! It's time for our Ingathering of Thanksgiving foods for the Guilford Food Pantry. Root vegetables, canned and boxed items and grocery gift cards will all be welcomed this Sunday and Monday morning. They'll be delivered on Monday afternoon. Let's help be sure that all our neighbors can enjoy a bountiful Thanksgiving. In the Church's calendar, the Sundays around Thanksgiving are typically the Last Sunday after Pentecost and the First Sunday of Advent, the last and first Sundays respectively of the Church Year. Although we celebrate the Great Thanksgiving, also known as the Eucharist, every Sunday, there isn't a "Thanksgiving Sunday" where we transfer the weekday celebration to the nearest Sunday. However, here in Guilford and Madison, the Interfaith Community gathers at dusk. on the Sunday before Thanksgiving Day for our annual service devoted to gratitude. This year's Interfaith Service of Thanksgiving will be hosted by First Congregational Church of Madison at 4p.m. this Sunday, November 24. Choirs from Houses of Worship in our two town will combine to offer several anthems, and we'll hear perspectives on gratitude from our various traditions. We'll put our gratitude into action by offering foods and/or funds for our two Food Pantries. On Thanksgiving Day itself, November 28, we'll gather at 10a.m. to celebrate our national Day of Thanksgiving with all the great hymns of the day. Because this is one of few federal holidays on the Church's calendar, a past presidential proclamation will take the place of the sermon. That gives me time to prepare a reception to welcome you to the Rectory for refreshments to tide you over until your big meal of the day. Whatever your favorite Thanksgiving foods maybe, we all look forward to chili, cookies (and wreaths) eight days later. Our Tree-Lighting Chili Supper will be Friday, December 6, from 5-7p.m. Please be in touch with Jennifer Huebner about how you might help host; she's the lady with the aluminum pans for cornbread that you bake at home! Also be sure to invite your family and friends to come out of the cold to enjoy a warm -- even spicy hot if they prefer -- meal. Proceeds from the supper support the Meals-on-Wheels ministry of Guilford Interfaith Volunteers, delivering hot meals to our homebound neighbors. For dessert, there'll be the cookies from the ECW's Cookie Saletables. The ECW depends upon all of us to bake up batches of our favorite holiday cookies for them to sell. Please bring them to the parish hall anytime prior to 5p.m. on the 6th. The ECW and the Evening ECW have both come up with some clever hand-made gift items that will also delight your holiday guests. The funds raised by the Cookie Sale provide for the scholarships the ECW awards to graduating high school seniors. Of course, if chili and cookies are in the Parish Hall, then there'll be Wreaths for sale in the Rectory garage. Pre-orders for the wreaths began last Sunday, and will continue on the 24th and December 1st during Coffee Hour. Although this project helps fund special youth activities, such as transportation for NYC mini-pilgrimages and the Ropes Course at the Middle School overnight, youth-of-all-ages are invited to help decorate the wreaths on Thursday, December 5 from 4-6p.m. in the Parish Hall. Please see Sue Shackford for details. Many thanks to all who participated and all who provided the leadership for our Celebration Sunday observance and 275th Anniversary Celebration luncheon. Our Guest Leader, the Rev.Mary Anne Osborn's story about the bag of cookies and poem about bridge-building were truly inspiring. Just as others built a bridge (i.e. parish) for a future they would not see, so God calls us to build bridges for each other and for the future. Last Sunday, we received 59 Estimate-of-Giving cards for our 2020 bridge-building, I mean, operating budget. On Monday, letters with Estimate-of-giving.cards were mailed to those who couldn't be present. Please return those as soon as you are able; if somehow you have not received a Card, they're available on the Ushers' Table and in the Parish Office. After offering our Cards on the altar, we moved directly into the Parish Hall for our Celebration lunch. Diana Stovall's crew had creatively prepared the Parish Hall for us to celebrate Christ Church's 275 years of worship and witness to the love of God in Guilford. Around the room Pat Daunic's splendid history timeline provided us insights about what was going in Guilford and the world in parallel with what was happening at Christ Church. During dessert, we became the "authorities" on the 11 panels, and shared insights and questions from each one. The timeline remains up for all to see and enjoy. There'll be a gathering in the Guild Room during Coffee Hour this Sunday, November 24, to continue the conversation that the timeline inspires. What questions remain? Where might we look for answers? Join Pat Daunic to help complete the timeline. Please join me in thanking Mary Anne, Diana and Pat, and their helpers for all they did to make Consecration Sunday and our 275th Celebration Lunch so inspiring! Thanks also to Page Pelphrey, Richard Formica and Jennifer Huebner for their Sunday talks, to Carol Iovanna and her crews who did all the multiple mailings, and to Senior Warden Rose Robinson who was the chief organizer of it all! Another name for this Sunday, Christ the King, comes from the Collect and readings appointed for the day. This means we'll get to sing about "crown him with many crowns": and Martin Luther's version of the psalm, "A mighty fortress is our God." I look forward to sharing Christ the King Sunday with you. In faith, hope, and love, Harrison+ YFNR. p.s. If you haven't seen Jen McShane's new documentary Ernie & Joe: Crisis Cops yet, I'll share what I've heard some are doing -- beginning a free trial period with HBO, viewing Ernie & Joe via the On Demand feature, and then cancelling their subscription.. You will be glad you watched this buddy story about two San Antonio Texas police officers who successfully de-escalate tense situations with people in acute mental distress, and get them into treatment instead of jail or emergency rooms ill-equipped for mental crises. 23rd Sunday after Pentecost: Consecration Sunday/275th Anniversary Lunch; Reports from Haiti & Gaza11/16/2019 November 16 , 2019
Dear Hearts, All is in readiness for tomorrow's Consecration Sunday observance and out 275th Anniversary Celebration luncheon. Our Guest Leader, the Rev. Mary Anne Osborn, will preach, and has provided us with special Consecration Sunday Prayers of the People. The Estimate-of-Giving cards are ready for Mary Anne's directions, as she leads us in the Consecration ritual -- where we lay them on the altar. All worshipers at the 10a.m. service, and those returning from the 8a.m. service, will move directly into the Parish Hall for our Celebration lunch. Diana Stovall's set-up crew have creatively prepared the Parish Hall; the tables are beautifully set! Part of our celebration this year is Christ Church's 275 years of worship and witness to the love of God in Guilford. You'll find around the room Pat Daunic's splendid history timeline. Additional thanks to Richard Formica, Katherine Frydenborg and Bob Donahue. I trust it will not be lost on anyone, that we have inherited a wonderful heritage, and it's up to us to respond to God's call for our own day. Just as previous generations gave sacrificially of their time, treasure and talent, that call comes to us today. . You may have heard about the disruptive demonstrations and social unrest in Haiti, and about the latest resurgence of violence in Gaza. You can read about the situation in Haiti here. But you should also know that in Martel, the life of St. Luke's School & Church continues. The Rev. Sam Owens, founder of the NY Haiti Project, who was with us in March, reports that although a group of New Yorkers had to cancel their travel to participate in the St. Luke's Day festivities in Martel, the community there went ahead as planned.. "Despite the complete shutdown of the country, the church was full. ... Fr. Phanord [reported] that the worship was especially lively and spirit-filled. "You see the "The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it." (John 1.5) In the midst of the hostilities in Gaza, the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem's Ahli Arab Hospital remains an outpost of mercy and compassion to the injured and traumatized who need its medical services. John Lent, Executive Director of the American Friends of the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem, visited Ahli Hospital last month, and communicated with its own director during the current crisis. You can read his report here. Many thanks to our Sunday School students and Youth Programparticipants for their leadership in last Sunday's 10a.m. service. We all enjoyed seeing our youngsters excel as lectors, intercessors and ushers, as well as leading us in "their" service music and presenting the elements at the Offertory. Of course, we also need to thank their adult mentors, teachers and parents, who coached them so expertly. Thanks also to our Sunday School parents for hosting such a hearty Coffee Hour! Thanks to Keelyn Ervin and to Page Pelphrey for their report on last summer's Vacation Bible School Mission in the Dominican Republic, and for inviting more young folks to consider this opportunity. If you were not present last Sunday to pick up "your" "Carnations for Heroes," they are still looking fresh on the table in the Rectory's Keeping Room. Thanks to the ECW for organizing this recognition of the service and sacrifices of our Veterans and First-Responders. . I look forward to sharing our Consecration Sunday observance and 275th Anniversary Celebration Lunch with you tomorrow.. In faith, hope, and love, Harrison+ YFNR. p.s. If you have access to HBO invite family and friends to watch Jen McShane's new documentary Ernie & Joe: Crisis Cops with you on Tuesday, November 19, at 9p.m. Or get yourself invited somewhere that has HBO access. It's that good in telling the story of two San Antonio Texas police officers who successfully de-escalate tense situations with people in acute mental distress, and get them into treatment instead of jail or emergency rooms ill-equipped for mental crises. A lot of Guilford folks, including YFNR, happily trekked into NYC on Thursday and Friday to see it at the NY Documentary Film Festival and East Village Cinema.respectively. We all highly recommend it! November 9, 2019
Dear Hearts, During Sunday's 10a.m. service, there will be a younger crew than usual at the door, the lectern, the offertory and the intercessions; there will also be a report about last summer's youth mission in the Dominican Republic during Coffee Hour. Our adult team of Lectors, Intercessors and Ushers for the 10a.m. service will yield their places, or assist, middle and high school youth. The Sunday School children will be with us as usual for the Eucharistic celebration and be leading us in "their" settings of the Sanctus and Agnus Dei. At the end of June this year, our own Keelyn Ervin and chaperone Page Pelphrey were again part of the Connecticut Mission to the Dominican Republic. Together they led morning and afternoon Vacation Bible Schools for Episcopal parishes in the Dominican Diocese. I think we'll all be interested in how they led the program in Spanish, about the circumstances of the children in their care, and how this program is organized. You should know that Keelyn and Page's participation in this Mission was funded in part by parish budgeted funds and by youth fundraisers. As a further enticement to linger for this report, our Sunday School families will be hosting the Coffee Hour. On this Sunday closest to Veteran's Day, our ECW's "Carnations for Heroes" program will help us honor and give thanks for the sacrifices of Veterans and First-Responders. Prayers and a Hymn of Praise at 10a.m. will further lead our thanks for those "who in the day of decision ventured much for freedom [and security] we now enjoy." {BCP, p.8390 A further note on Christ Church Youth activities: On Election Day, our new Youth Confirmation Group took advantage of a day off from school, to make a mini-pilgrimage to New York City. We visited the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, Riverside Church, the Cloisters, and Columbia University and its Chapel -- making the connection between the University's Anglican origins and Guilford. A highlight for all of us, including fellow chaperone Jennifer Huebner, was the terrific pizza at V&T's Italian Kitchen near the Cathedral. Our Youth Confirmation Group will have its first Monday evening gathering on Monday, November 11, 7-8p.m. in the Rectory. All high school-age youth, approaching or over 16 years of age, are welcome to join the discussion. Consecration Sunday is coming on November 17! This spiritually-focused stewardship education program asks us to prayerfully consider what portion of our income God is calling us to give for God's mission through Christ Church in 2020. Our guest leader next Sunday will be the Rev. Mary Anne Osborn; she will be our preacher for both the 8 and 10a.m. services, providing us with further insights in God's stewardship call to us, and setting the devotional context for us to confidentially offer our Estimate-of-Giving cards on the altar. Those cards will be made available on the 17th. On Consecration Sunday, all worshipers at the 10a.m. service, and those returning from the 8a.m. service, will then be invited to move into the Parish Hall for our Celebration lunch. Part of our celebration this year will be Christ Church's 275 years of worship and witness to the love of God in Guilford. Pat Daunic is preparing a history timeline, with help from Kathryn Frydenborg and Bob Donahue, to help us honor the parish's own heritage. Thanks so much to the great group who responded so heartily to Junior Warden Alicia Bacon's idea of a post-Coffee Hour Fall Garden Clean-up on All Saints' Sunday. Lots of gardening clothes were evident during the 10a.m. service, and, as promised, the hearty refreshment energized the Garden (Work) Party. With both power and manual tools in hand, short work was made of all sorts of seasonal weeding, pruning, raking, tidying and hauling, Thanks to Alicia, and her predecessor Sue Shackford for hosting the Coffee Hour. Thanks also to our Evening ECW for hosting last Thursday's showing of Traces of the Trade: A Story from the Deep North. We watched the 56-minute version of the documentary, and had time for a wide-ranging conversation that followed. There may have been as many, or more, community members as parishioners participating. For anyone who wants to continue the conversation about racial justice, healing and reconciliation this week, the folks who brought us last summer's Sacred Healing film series, has another evening on offer this Wednesday, November 13, 6-9 p.m., again at St. Paul's Church in Wallingford. After Dwelling in the Word, the agenda is to watch and discuss a powerful video talk by academic and scholar Catherine Meeks, director of the Absalom Jones Center for Racial Reconciliation; she provides her insights on the state of racial relations in American today and her thoughts on a way forward. More information and registration is available here. Another option may be to go see the movie "Harriet," about Underground Railroad leader Harriet Tubman. A former colleague of mine took her young children to see it, and writes about her young daughter's devotion to Harriet Tubman in an article you can find here. You might be interested to know that both the mother and daughter are whlte. . I look forward to worshiping with you and our Youth and Sunday School youngsters, as they take their places in leading our worship.. In faith, hope, and love, Harrison+ YFNR. 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. . 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. |
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