Parish Happenings & Updates (Page 29)
5/28 Weekly Update
To the Beloved Parish Family, Many of you, like me, might be interested in your genealogical roots. During this time of stay-at-home orders, I have been more careful about taking my Friday off and have spent some additional time researching my ancestry with some recent successes. (I finally have located the death certificate for one of my maternal great-grandmothers – 102 years after her death). Genealogy satisfies basic human curiosity for some of us –- it’s a curiosity that I…
Weekly Update 5/21
To the Beloved Parish Family, As our fast from in-person worship continues, many Episcopalians are experiencing the longest absence of the Eucharist we’ve experienced in years, even our lifetime. Most of us, I suspect, long for the Eucharist. Interestingly, this desire to receive the Eucharist reflects a significant shift in the Episcopal Church during the latter part of the twentieth century. Before the introduction of the 1979 Book of Common Prayer, it was typical for churches to have a service…
Joyful, joyful, we adore thee [Musician’s Corner]
Henry J. van Dyke 1852-1933 Henry J. van Dyke was a noted author, poet, clergyman, and academician. Following in his father’s footsteps he became a Presbyterian minister. After twenty-seven years of ministry, he accepted a position at Princeton University as professor of English which he held for twenty-three years. In the 1910s, he became the US ambassador to the Netherlands. He continued his writings which included over seventy books. Written in 1907 and based on Psalm 71:1-23. The hymn Joyful,…
Special Message from Bishop Goff about church re-opening
May 13, 2020 Friends in Christ, Yesterday, I shared a letter with the full Diocese regarding a plan for phased regathering in our church buildings. In this video, I share the same details and introduce you to the four Task Group Leaders who will be helping our congregations through this process. I hope the video below will be a support, especially to clergy and vestry members as you begin planning for phased regathering in your congregation. God bless you…
Weekly Update 5/14
To the Beloved Community, As I write to you today, I cannot help but be reminded that sixty-five years ago today my parents were married. Recently recovered photographs of their wedding day show a couple looking forward to the future. This is my parents with my mother’s parents on their wedding day. We, too, look to the future. We look forward to the day that we regather in our church buildings, but for now I remind us all that the church…
5/7 Weekly Update
Dear Beloved of God, Some of you may have already read the letter that came out earlier this week in which our Bishop, as well as the Bishops of Washington and Maryland, has begun to lay out what phased plans may look as we begin to think about a return to in-person worship. Diocesan leadership, clergy and lay, are working hard to determine when and how we can safely move forward. If you have not read this letter, you can read it…
Weekly Update 4/30
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Yesterday, I was on the weekly Bishops’ call with clergy. Bishop Goff was expressing the need for both the Diocese and churches in the Diocese to begin planning for and envisioning what a return to in-person worship might look like for churches. She acknowledged that there will not be a “one-size fits all” as the space constraints of churches vary widely. I, along with our wardens, am starting to assess what an appropriate re-opening plan would…
Hymns as Prayers [Musician’s Corner]
The hymns we sing on Sunday mornings can also be read as prayers written during times of sorrow, distress, thanksgiving, joy, and celebration. This week we will be looking at two hymns by Henry F. Lyte: “Abide with Me” and “Praise My Soul the King of Heaven.” The Reverend Henry Lyte Reverend Henry Lyte, was the vicar of Lower Brixham, Devonshire, England, for twenty-three years. On September 4, 1847, he delivered his last sermon and was preparing to leave for…
Introducing Musician’s Corner
How fortunate we are to have Wilson Troxell as our organist. Wilson has offered to share his knowledge of the music from our liturgy and church history in a series of posts we’re calling Musician’s Corner. We hope it will inform and enrich your worship experience. As we add to this collection of articles, you can find them on the new section of our website, which is listed under “Leadership” in the drop down menu at the top of the…
Weekly Update 4/23
Dear St. Andrew’s and Emmanuel family, The weekly bulletin is available each week on our website so during the Sunday service you can easily follow along. I would love for everyone to download and use it as it does take a good amount of time to put together and post. It is absolutely safe to download as it is coming directly from us. SUNDAY MORNING PRAYER SERVICE 10:15 a.m. on Zoom and Facebook Live followed by a Coffee Hour on…
Weekly Update 4/16
Dear St. Andrew’s and Emmanuel family, FROM BISHOP GOFF There is not any new information to share from Bishop Goff this week. For the moment, we seem to have reached a new “normal” (nothing about this is normal of course) and things are no longer changing as quickly. I hope you enjoyed the Easter service with the National Cathedral. It is a testament to the fact that we, ourselves, are the church. Despite the difficulties around us, we’re able to…
2020 Directory
The new 2020 directory is here! Since the physical office is closed, it is available electronically with print versions to come later. The file is password protected to ensure everyone’s privacy. (The password was sent out to parishioners in the Weekly Update email. If you didn’t get the email and need the password, please email Melissa.) [ddownload id=”8960″]