Archives: frontpages

January 12, 2020

Sunday, Jan. 12 – Baptism of Jesus, Matthew 3:13-17

“And when Jesus had been baptized, just as he came up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.”

The Week Ahead…

Jan. 13, 4:00pm – Vestry

Jan. 15, 10:00-12:00pm – Ecumenical Bible Study

Jan. 15, 3:00-5:00pm – Village Harvest

Help needed: 9:30ish, help needed to unload the truck. Many hands make light work. 1PM, help needed to set up. 3-5PM help needed for the distribution itself. Help the shoppers gather what they need. You can still bring cleaning supplies on the day since these are not available at the Food Bank. Thank you for your contributions of both food and time. Everyone can share in making this important St Peter’s ministry happen.

Jan. 17, Spanish Bible Study, 6pm-8pm in the Parish House. This month- “Blessing”

Jan. 18, Confession of St. Peter, Week Prayer for Christian Unity begins

Jan. 19, 10am, Christian Ed – Genesis

Jan. 19, 11am, Holy Eucharist, Rite II and Parish Meeting

Jan. 19 – The Second Sunday after the Epiphany Readings and Servers

Epiphany –  Jan 6 until Lent  begins Feb. 26, 2020

Adoration of the Magi – Bartholomäus Zeitblom (c. 1450 – c. 1519)

The English word “Epiphany” comes from the Greek word epiphaneia, which means “appearing” or “revealing.” Epiphany focuses on God’s self-revelation in Christ.  

Epiphany celebrates the twelfth day of Christmas, the coming of the Magi to give homage to God’s Beloved Child. 

The Epiphany celebration remembers the three miracles that manifest the divinity of Christ. The celebration originated in the Eastern Church in AD 361, beginning as a commemoration of the birth of Christ. Later, additional meanings were added – the visit of the three Magi, Christ’s baptism in the Jordan River with the voice from heaven that identifies Jesus as God’s son, and his first miracle at the wedding in Cana. These three events are central to the definition of Epiphany, and its meaning is drawn from these occurrences.

More about Epiphany

Congregational Meeting, Sun., Jan 19

Jan. 19, 11am.  What were the key things that happened in 2019 ? What’s in store for St. Peter’s in 2020 ?

These are other questions will be part of the 2019 congregational meeting held after the 11am service.    

Come hear the stories of all that we have accomplished as a parish during this past year and to receive updates on our life together as a parish.

We will be electing two members of the Vestry and be hearing reports of the happenings of the ministries in  2018.   

Epiphany Christian Ed. on Genesis continues on Jan 19, 10am

“Let’s start at the very beginning..” So starts “Do Re Mi” in the “Sound of Music” film. But it also applies to Christian Ed in 2020 during Epiphany.

Genesis is foundational to the whole Bible, and to every human life. Genesis tells us who God is, who we are, how things went wrong, and the plan that God has put in place to return the earth to the way it was meant to be.

In Genesis, God’s purposes for the heavens and earth are distorted by sin spreading through all the earth. Even after Adam and Eve sin and are punished, the promise is given that the offspring of the woman will defeat the serpent and restore the earth. The focus is on one man: Abraham. Through him and his family God would bring blessing to all nations.

This promise is traced throughout the book in its genealogies, which provide the backbone of the entire book. Key divisions are traced by “These are the generations of,” tracing out the stories of key figures, starting with “the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 2:4–4:26), and going on to Adam (Gen. 5:1–6:8), Noah (Gen. 6:9–9:29), the sons of Noah (Gen. 10:1–11:19), Shem (Gen. 11:10–26), Terah (Gen. 11:27–25:11), Ishmael (Gen. 25:12–18), Isaac (Gen. 25:19–35:29), Esau (Gen. 36:1–37:1), and Jacob (Gen. 37:2–50:26). An amazing story, it is the longest book in the Bible.

Join us at 10am in the Parish House during Sundays in Epiphany as we explore the very beginnings.

Lectionary Epiphany 2, Jan 19, Year A

I.Theme –   Call and response to service

"Jesus and John" – Hagia Sophia, Istanbul 532

The lectionary readings are here  or individually:

1.  Isaiah 49:1-7 – Isaiah

2.  Psalm- Psalm 40:1-12

3.  Epistle – 1 Corinthians 1:1-9

4.  Gospel – John 1:29-42

Isaiah is there to call  Israel back to God. He identifies himself as chosen before he was born (like Jeremiah, Paul and John the Baptist) and even named (like Jesus). At the first level, in vv. 8-13 God invites the exiles to return from Babylon But note also “a time of favor” (v. 8) and “a day of salvation”: these terms speak of the end times. God saves both now and in the era to come. 

In the Psalm, God has snatched a human being out of the realm of death and has given life back to him. This is the origin of this thanksgiving. But this thanksgiving is not ‘a return,’ a human answer or ‘offering’…— Yahweh has put the song of thanksgiving into the mouth of the singer which begets new obedience." The self-recognition or self-discovery in the Psalm is an experience every Christian faces.

Paul is called to be an “apostle”, one sent out by Christ to perform a special mission to the Corinthians.  God has strengthened them through their telling of the good news.  He has called them into “fellowship”, union with other believers which is union with Christ. It will be Christ who will really put them on a firm footing when he comes and God is the one we need to rely on ultimately. God is the one who really constitutes the community as a community of Christ, a Christian community. It began with God through Paul and it ends with God.

Jesus was baptized last week and now he is ready to get started in his ministry. He needs some helpers.

In the Gospel, those who are called gradually accept the identity of the one who calls them. With that goes whatever service the Lord calls us to.

There are three themes in the passage: John’s witness to Jesus, Jesus’ epiphany and identification, the call to discipleship. In this passage, Andrew and Peter are called to be disciples.

Read more about the lectionary…

Confession of St. Peter – January 18 – "Who do you say I am " 

This is not a confession of the church but relates to Peter, the Apostler ! It relates to an event in Matthew 16:13-20, Mark 8:27-30 and Luke 9:18-20. Jesus went to the predominately pagan region of Caesarea Philippi to question and deepen his disciples’ understanding of his role and theirs. “Who do you say that I am?”

Here is the Mark reading " Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” And they answered him, “John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.” He asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Messiah.” And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him."

We discover reading the selection on Peter in Holy Women, Holy Men that we are much like him – both godly and strong, sometimes weak and sinful.

“Peter figures prominently in the Gospels, often stumbling, impetuous, intense and uncouth. ““It was Peter who attempted to walk on the sea, and began to sink; it was Peter who impulsively wished to build three tabernacles on the mountain of the Transfiguration; it was Peter who just before the crucifixion, three times denied knowing his Lord.”

“But it was also Peter who, after Pentecost, risked his life to do the Lord’s work, speaking boldly of his belief in Jesus. It was also Peter, the Rock, whose strength and courage helped the young Church in its questions about the mission beyond the Jewish community. Opposed at first to the baptism of Gentiles, Peter had the humility to admit a change of heart, and to baptize the Roman centurion Cornelius and his household.”

Week of Prayer for Christian Unity Jan 18-25, 2020

Theme for 2020:
"Your right hand, O Lord, glorious in power;"
They showed us unusual kindness…(Acts 28:2)

At least once a year, Christians are reminded of Jesus’ prayer for his disciples that “they may be one so that the world may believe” (see John 17.21). Hearts are touched and Christians come together to pray for their unity. Congregations and parishes all over the world exchange preachers or arrange special ecumenical celebrations and prayer services. The event that touches off this special experience is the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.

Traditionally the week of prayer is celebrated between 18-25 January, between the feasts of St Peter and St Paul.

The readings are here.

"The materials for the 2020 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity have been prepared by the Christian churches in Malta and Gozo (Christians Together in Malta). On 10th February many Christians in Malta celebrate the Feast of the Shipwreck of St Paul, marking and giving thanks for the arrival of Christian faith on these islands. The reading from the Acts of the Apostles used for the feast is the text chosen for this year’s Week of Prayer. The story begins with Paul being taken to Rome as a prisoner (Acts 27:1ff). Paul is in chains, but even in what turns out to be a perilous journey, the mission of God continues through him. This narrative is a classic drama of humanity confronted by the terrifying power of the elements. The passengers on the boat are at the mercy of the forces of the seas beneath them and the powerful tempest that rages about them. These forces take them into unknown territory, where they are lost and without hope.

"Today many people are facing the same terrors on the same seas. The very same places named in the reading (27:1, 28:1) also feature in the stories of modern-day migrants. In other parts of the world many others are making equally dangerous journeys by land and sea to escape natural disasters, warfare and poverty. Their lives, too, are at the mercy of immense and coldly indifferent forces – not only natural, but political, economic and human. This human indifference takes various forms: the indifference of those who sell places on unseaworthy vessels to desperate people; the indifference of the decision not to send out rescue boats; and the indifference of turning migrant ships away. This names only a few instances. As Christians together facing these crises of migration this story challenges us: do we collude with the cold forces of indifference, or do we show “unusual kindness” and become witnesses of God’s loving providence to all people?

January 5, 2020

At the end of a year, we try to present a wrap-up article that includes the events significant in the life of St. Peter’s. We include the event title, a short description, a photo and a link to the story. We then try to go a step further. Was there a theme (or themes) that ran through the events of 2019 ? We think so for 2019 – Building Community Relationships.

Building Community Relationships. One of the threads that runs through 2019 is extending our reach and activities through the Port Royal Community and beyond. You can see it in the Spanish Bible Study that started in Lent and continued through the year, Hunters for the Hungry twice during 2019, the MS Walk as well as Shred-It in May, the Childrens’ Summer Program, the Season of Creation in Sept, the Way of Beauty retreat in November, the monthly Village Harvest which celebrated its 5th anniversary also in November, the Blue Christmas service at the end of the year.

See the pictures and stories through over 40 events in 2019.

Note, there is a table of contents with the list and links for the events covered. If you click on an event, it will scroll to it. There is usually a link to the event’s story and a related photo. There is a corresponding arrow on the right side of the screen that will take you back to the top.

The Week Ahead…

Jan. 6, 7pm – Epiphany Service

The Epiphany service was enjoyed by 12 hearty souls which began the “season of light” leading up to Lent on Feb. 26. The service begins in darkness and candles are lit representing God’s light shining again for all peoples. (One of the videos shows the lighting of the altar candles).

Links:

Sermon

Photos

Videos

Description

Jan. 8, 10:00-12:00pm – Ecumenical Bible Study

Jan. 12, 10am – Christian Ed on Genesis.

Jan. 12, 11am – The First Sunday after the Eiphany, Holy Eucharist, Rite II.

Jan. 12 – The First Sunday after the Epiphany Readings and Servers

Epiphany –  Jan 6 until Lent  begins Feb. 26, 2020

Adoration of the Magi – Bartholomäus Zeitblom (c. 1450 – c. 1519)

The English word “Epiphany” comes from the Greek word epiphaneia, which means “appearing” or “revealing.” Epiphany focuses on God’s self-revelation in Christ.  

Epiphany celebrates the twelfth day of Christmas, the coming of the Magi to give homage to God’s Beloved Child. 

The Epiphany celebration remembers the three miracles that manifest the divinity of Christ. The celebration originated in the Eastern Church in AD 361, beginning as a commemoration of the birth of Christ. Later, additional meanings were added – the visit of the three Magi, Christ’s baptism in the Jordan River with the voice from heaven that identifies Jesus as God’s son, and his first miracle at the wedding in Cana. These three events are central to the definition of Epiphany, and its meaning is drawn from these occurrences.

More about Epiphany

The Epiphany readings for Jan 6

The Epiphany readings are about travel, journey and ultimately sharing Christ’s light. But it is not easy as the opponents of Christ are present. Link to the readings:

• Isaiah 60:1-6
• Psalm 72:1-7,10-14
• Ephesians 3:1-12
• Matthew 2:1-12

Epiphany means “appearance of the Lord.” In the East, where it started, this feast was instituted not to recall the Magi, but the birth of Jesus, the Christmas, the appearance of the light. In the West—where Christmas was celebrated on December 25—it was received in the fourth century and became the feast of the “manifestation of the light of the Lord” to the Gentiles and the universal call to all people to salvation in Christ. Magi reveal the truth of John 1:9 – the true of God, coming into the world, enlightens all creation and every person. Every child is an incarnation of our beloved Savior.

Read more…

Epiphany Christian Ed. on Genesis begins Jan 12

“Let’s start at the very beginning..” So starts “Do Re Mi” in the “Sound of Music” film. But it also applies to Christian Ed in 2020 during Epiphany.

Genesis is foundational to the whole Bible, and to every human life. Genesis tells us who God is, who we are, how things went wrong, and the plan that God has put in place to return the earth to the way it was meant to be.

In Genesis, God’s purposes for the heavens and earth are distorted by sin spreading through all the earth. Even after Adam and Eve sin and are punished, the promise is given that the offspring of the woman will defeat the serpent and restore the earth. The focus is on one man: Abraham. Through him and his family God would bring blessing to all nations.

This promise is traced throughout the book in its genealogies, which provide the backbone of the entire book. Key divisions are traced by “These are the generations of,” tracing out the stories of key figures, starting with “the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 2:4–4:26), and going on to Adam (Gen. 5:1–6:8), Noah (Gen. 6:9–9:29), the sons of Noah (Gen. 10:1–11:19), Shem (Gen. 11:10–26), Terah (Gen. 11:27–25:11), Ishmael (Gen. 25:12–18), Isaac (Gen. 25:19–35:29), Esau (Gen. 36:1–37:1), and Jacob (Gen. 37:2–50:26). An amazing story, it is the longest book in the Bible.

Join us at 10am in the Parish House beginning Jan. 12, 2020 as we explore the very beginnings.

The Setting for Sunday, Jan 12

We have just celebrated the birth of Christ and will experience his death and resurrection on April 12. However, one key event we should put in the same category is Jesus’ baptism.  This Sunday is one of the weeks set aside for baptisms since we remember the baptism of Jesus early in Epiphany.  We usually include the section in the prayer book for the renewal of the Baptismal Covenant in the service. In the past we have also "sprinkled" people.

We have many of our baptism articles one page, the Baptism Page.

Baptism in the Episcopal Church

From the Episcopal Library "This is full initiation by water and the Holy Spirit into Christ’s Body, the church. God establishes an indissoluble bond with each person in baptism. God adopts us, making us members of the church and inheritors of the Kingdom of God (BCP, pp. 298, 858). In baptism we are made sharers in the new life of the Holy Spirit and the forgiveness of sins. Baptism is the foundation for all future church participation and ministry."

From the Diocese of New York

We owe much to the Apostle Paul who, through his writings, left a record of how the early Christian community understood Baptism. 

Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? Therefore we have been buried with him by Baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life (Romans 6:3-4). 

Baptism was, for the early Christian community, a sacramental action to convey that one was experiencing spiritual conversion and renewal–the end of one life and the beginning of another in Christ. By using the metaphorical language and imagery of death, burial, and resurrection, the early community ceremonially expressed, that in Baptism, we die to our destructive and distorted ways of being, relating, and acting, and that by the goodness and faithfulness of God, we are raised from death to a new life, guided by and filled with the Spirit of God. It was an outward and visible sign of the spiritual transformation God was doing in one’s life. It was a symbolic action performed to depict what was happening within the life of one on a spiritual journey towards communion with God, the people of God, and all God’s creation. 

Although the metaphor of being raised from death to new life is the dominant image of Christian Baptism in the New Testament, no single image or metaphor can exhaust the rich meaning of one’s conversion and experience of spiritual renewal. Consequently, there developed other images and metaphors in Scripture that express how the early Chrisitan community spoke of their conversion of life and experience of renewal in the Holy Spirit. Among them are: 

Spiritual Rebirth (John 3:3-10)
Spiritual Awakening (Romans 8:37-39)
Initiation into the Body of Christ (I Corinthians 12:12-13)
Transformation of the whole person (Romans 12:1-2)
Made a new creature (2 Corinthians 5:17)
To turn from darkness to light (Ephesians 5:8, Colossians 1:11-14)
To be saved (Titus 3:3-7)

One 0f the questions in baptism is whether infants or children should be baptized automatically or there is a specific age ?

Read more about baptism…

Lectionary Epiphany 1, Jan 12 – The Baptism of our Lord

I.Theme –  The Promise of Christ and the revelation of the Trinity 

 "Epiphany"

This is the Sunday for the Baptism of the Lord. It takes us back first to Isaiah.

Isaiahs foreshadows the role Jesus will play. Isaiah promises justice and places the eventual Jesus in God’s sphere. “Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight, I have bestowed my spirit upon him.”  Like God he is to be “light to the nations” and to look after the downtrodden (bring out the prisoners from the dungeon) and those that suffer handicaps (eyes that are blind). There are new things to be declared.a 

The Psalm speaks on the role of God noting God’s supremacy, glory,strength and even with a powerful voice that ultimately gives peace to the people. The power of God is particularly evident in nature (waters, trees, the wilderness) . The Psalmist, speaking of God’s covenant with David to be fulfilled in the messianic promise (Psalm 29), is told that he will be named as God’s “first born – highest among the kings of the earth.”

With Isaiah, this story shares the theme of God’s concern for all humankind being impartial, and not limited to the Jews.

The New Testament readings bring Jesus to this mix. Peter is visiting Cornelius in the Epistle, an officer of the occupying Roman army and already a believer in God. Peter breaks Jewish law by visiting a Gentile. The story in Acts 10:34-43 tells of the missionary zeal of the early church in bringing this Good News of the Messiah, the King of Kings and servant King – not only to the household of Israel but to the Gentile world as well. The conversion of Cornelius marks an important turning point in which the Holy Spirit has broken through with a clear new direction, and Peter preaches to this Gentile convert of how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power.” 

With the Gospel, it shares the theme of Baptism. “how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power; how he went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. The reading is a capsule summary of Jesus meanings.  

Jesus baptism by John is to "fulfill all righteousness"  Jesus baptism in Matthew shows his continuity with God’s will seen in the Old Testament: the coming of the “Spirit of God” (v. 16), an Old Testament term, shows he is the Messiah; the words spoken by the heavenly “voice” (v. 17) are much like Isaiah 42:1: Jesus is the agent of God who will suffer for others – not the kind of Messiah people expected.  

Christ’s baptism in the Jordan was “theophany,” a manifestation of God to the world, because it was the beginning of our Lord’s public ministry. It was also a “theophany” in that the world was granted a revelation of the Holy Trinity. All three Persons were made manifest together: the Father testified from on high to the divine Sonship of Jesus; the Son received His Father’s testimony; and the Spirit was seen in the form of a dove, descending from the Father and resting upon the Son. 

The lectionary readings are here  or individually:

Old Testament – Isaiah 42:1-9
Psalm – Psalm 29
Epistle –Acts 10:34-43
Gospel – Matthew 3:13-17 

Read on…

December 29, 2019

At the end of a year, we try to present a wrap-up article that includes the events significant in the life of St. Peter’s. We include the event title, a short description, a photo and a link to the story. We then try to go a step further. Was there a theme (or themes) that ran through the events of 2019 ? We think so for 2019 – Building Community Relationships.

Building Community Relationships. One of the threads that runs through 2019 is extending our reach and activities through the Port Royal Community and beyond. You can see it in the Spanish Bible Study that started in Lent and continued through the year, Hunters for the Hungry twice during 2019, the MS Walk as well as Shred-It in May, the Childrens’ Summer Program, the Season of Creation in Sept, the Way of Beauty retreat in November, the monthly Village Harvest which celebrated its 5th anniversary also in November, the Blue Christmas service at the end of the year.

See the pictures and stories through over 40 events in 2019.

Note, there is a table of contents with the list and links for the events covered. If you click on an event, it will scroll to it. There is usually a link to the event’s story and a related photo. There is a corresponding arrow on the right side of the screen that will take you back to the top.

The Week Ahead…

Dec. 31 – 6pm – New Year’s Eve Gala, Parish House

Sunday, Jan. 5 – Second Sunday in Christmas Readings and Servers

Prayer of Thanksgiving for the year just past…

God of new beginnings, we thank you for the year just past, with all of its joys and wonders. We thank you for all that we were able to do together . We thank you for giving us opportunities to serve You well and in doing so to let your light shine in our church and out in our world. We pray now for Your guidance in this new year, and for the courage to follow You wherever You would lead us. We pray for the strength to carry out everything that You will give us to do. And may our love for one another reflect the transforming love that You have for each one of us. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen

And a Blessing for the New Year!

From Pastor Dawn Hutchings

“The art of blessing is often neglected. The birth of a New Year calls forth the desire in us to bestow a blessing upon those we love. Several years ago, John O”Donohue, one of my favorite Irish poet’s created a New Year’s blessing for his mother entitled Beannacht-for Josie. It is a blessing of superior quality. And so, on this New Year’s Eve, may you all receive this beannacht with my added blessing for a peace-filled New Year in which the God in whom all of creation is held, might find full expression in your miraculous life!”

Beannacht – A New Year Blessing
John O’Donohue

On the day when
The weight deadens
On your shoulders
And you stumble,
May the clay dance
To balance you.

And when your eyes
Freeze behind
The grey window
And the ghost of loss
Gets into you,
May a flock of colours,
Indigo, red, green
And azure blue,
Come to awaken in you
A meadow of delight.

When the canvas frays
In the currach of thought
And a stain of ocean
Blackens beneath you,
May there come across the waters
A path of yellow moonlight
To bring you safely home.

May the nourishment of the earth be yours,
May the clarity of light be yours,
May the fluency of the ocean be yours,
May the protection of the ancestors be yours.
And so may a slow
Wind work these words
Of love around you,
An invisible cloak
To mind your life.

The Work of Christmas

When the song of the angels is stilled,
When the star in the sky is gone,
When the kings and princes are home,
When the shepherds are back with their flock,
The work of Christmas begins:

To find the lost,
To heal the broken,
To feed the hungry,
To release the prisoner,
To rebuild the nations,
To bring peace among brothers,
To make music in the heart.

– Howard Thurman

Dr. Howard Thurman was an influential author, philosopher, theologian, educator and civil rights leader. He was Dean of Theology and the chapels at Howard University and Boston University for more than two decades, wrote 20 books, and in 1944 helped found the first racially integrated, multicultural church in the United States.

Christmas 2, Year A Lectionary Sunday, Jan. 5, 2020 

I.Theme –  God/Christ as Redeemer and Revealer 

Guido of Siena,13th Century Italian

The lectionary readings are here 

Jeremiah 31:7-14

Psalm 84

Ephesians 1:3-6,15-19a

Matthew 2:13-15,19-23

The details of the Gospel story, the flight into Egypt, makes it easy to forget the intent of it that shows God in control and not Herod or his son, even though it looks that way on the face of it with Joseph’s family side stepping the political moves of the day and winning out. God is leading us and with us even when events do not go our way.  We are not alone.  We have to look at the bigger picture, often difficult to see while we are going through life. 

This is a realistic story with our current world situation – the numbers of babies killed in Syria and the migrations away from that worn-torn land to Turkey and Lebanon. 

In Ephesians God has revealed his will in the sending of Christ, and he seeks to "gather up all things" in both heaven and earth in Christ. Christ is therefore both the Redeemer and the Revealer through the Holy Spirit. God’s accomplishing all things according to his will in Christ’s resurrection and reign. 

The idea of redeemer and revealer is present in the Old Testament reading of Jeremiah. The people deported from Jerusalem in Babylonia will return. There are images of redemption – God’s love and faithfulness to promises made remain intact through Israel’s infidelity and consequent judgment. God rescues this and builds a new life out of the rubble. There are images of revelation and promise – those who lived on the outside of society will not live that way. The hope is those who have suffered.

This psalm praises God as the longed-for goal of the pilgrim. The “dwelling” of God is the Temple (and perhaps also the land of Israel). To live in the Temple is greatly to be desired: those who live there have security and happiness, even the birds (v. 3) who nest in the Temple area. Making a pilgrimage to the Temple offers these hopes. 

Read more..

December 22, 2019

See the story of these past Christmas…

Recent Services…

Pictures and text from Christmas Eve, Dec. 24, 2019

Videos from Christmas Eve

Sermon from Christmas Eve

Pictures and text from this Sunday, Dec. 22, 2019 – Christmas Play

Alex Long’s pictures of the Christmas play

Videos from this Sunday, Dec. 22, 2019 – Christmas Play

Pictures and text from this Sunday, Dec. 22, 2019 – Blue Christmas service,

Videos from this Sunday, Dec. 22, 2019 – Blue Christmas service

The Week Ahead…

Dec. 29 -11:00am – Lessons and Carols

Christmas , December 25, 2019

In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for see– I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord.

 

When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us." So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger.When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them

 

Explore Christmas Eve– A study of the scriptures, art and the meaning of the Christmas Scriptures.  

 

Explore the Art of the Nativity from 1200-2002  How the Nativity has been viewed by artists for 800 years. Go to the presentation  

Rediscovering the love of God this Christmas- a one minute video from the Acts8Movement of the Episcopal Church 

 

Origins of 30 Christmas Carols  
 

Unlikely Christmas Carols: Bruce Cockburn’s "Cry Of A Tiny Baby"

 

A post from teacher and theologian David Lose: "So maybe I shouldn’t describe this Christmas carol as “unlikely” in that Bruce Cockburn has explored the Christian story and theology, along with issues of human rights, throughout his forty-year career. But it may very well be unfamiliar to you. If so, you’re in for a treat, as the Canadian folk and rock guitarist, singer-songwriter’s beautiful retelling of the Christmas story blends elements of both Luke’s tender narrative of the in-breaking good news of God to the least likely of recipients – a teenage girl, her confused fiancee, down-and-out shepherds – with Matthew’s starkly realistic picture of a baby that threatens kings by his mere existence. 

Here’s the link to a video with the words .   

For more David Lose writing about the Christmas Eve and Christmas readings, check out the "Christmas sermon I need to hear."  

"Space in the Manger"

by Meghan Cotter. Meghan is executive director of Micah Ecumenical Ministries, a faith-based nonprofit that offers holistic care to the community’s street homeless

"Some time back, I watched a friend in need attempt to repair five years worth of disintegrating relationships. The library, a local gymnasium, a number of area businesses and even her family had cut off ties in response to her boisterously disruptive behavior.  

" She’d picked up criminal charges—a few nuisance violations, a trespassing or two and an assault on an officer. At times, even the agencies trying to help her had been left with little choice than dismissing her from their facilities. But the more the community isolated her, the more volatile became her symptoms. She grew angrier and louder. Her self-appointment as the spokesperson for her homeless peers turned radical, even threatening. Feeling ignored and stripped of personhood, she waltzed into a church one Sunday, intent on being heard. Just in time for the sermon she rose from the congregation, rolled out a sleeping bag and unleashed a number of choice words to convey the plight of Fredericksburg’s homeless.

" The following morning, the church pastor faced a critical decision. In the interest of safety for his congregation, he too considered banning her from his church building. Instead, he made up his mind to find a way to help this woman. By the end of the week, she was hospitalized and taking medications. Within the month she had stepped down to Micah’s respite home, which cares for homeless individuals when they are discharged from the hospital. She realized how sick she really was, and a new person emerged before our eyes. She reunited with family, paid off fines, regained her driver’s license, became remarkably motivated to comply with doctor’s appointments. She set goals—seeking disability, but only temporarily, going back to school, earning a nursing degree and finding a way to productively address the needs of the community’s homeless.

Read More…   

---

“Christmas on the Edge”
– Malcolm Guite

Christmas sets the centre on the edge;
The edge of town, the outhouse of the inn,
The fringe of empire, far from privilege
And power, on the edge and outer spin
Of turning worlds, a margin of small stars
That edge a galaxy itself light years
From some unguessed at cosmic origin.
Christmas sets the centre at the edge.

And from this day our world is re-aligned
A tiny seed unfolding in the womb
Becomes the source from which we all unfold
And flower into being. We are healed,
The end begins, the tomb becomes a womb,
For now in him all things are re-aligned.

---

Alexander Shaia – “Solstice, Shepherds & Your Animal Spirit”

Alexander Shaia is the author of Heart and Mind: The Four-Gospel Journey for Radical Transformation. A number of years we read the book together in Christian ed.

In this video he is talking about the shepherds in Luke’s Gospel. The video starts at the 2:42 mark to get to his main message:

You can read portions of the transcribed text here

“The text is really primarily about your life whenever your life is in the deepest night, when your life is in the deepest dark.”

“The Beauty of the Shepherds story in Luke is that it tells about the journey we make hearing deep in the night of our life an angel announce that there is a birth but that we have make a journey through the night to the dawn where we will see with our own eyes that fresh radiance born before us.”

---

A Christmas Message from Bishop Goff – "Where is this stupendous stranger?" 

Link to the video

"So I invite us all to a spiritual discipline in this holy season and that is to spend some time with someone you don’t ordinarily engage…maybe someone of a different generation either much older or much younger than you or someone of a different race or ethnicity, a different culture or religion, a different economic circumstance.

"Have a cup of coffee together or a meal together, talk and listen deeply. Look for the face of Christ in that person. Because as we come to really know a stranger in our midst we welcome Christ who was himself a stranger and we find surprising connections that we never imagined with other natives of this world God made.

---

Christmas Eve , December 24, 1968, at the Moon with Apollo 8

51 years ago on Christmas Eve we witnessed the moving reading of the first 10 verses of Genesis for the largest audience up to that time. They were told to something appropriate. The astronauts have reflected on the event. A newspaper friend of Borman tried to think of what to say and he could come up with nothing after a night’s work. His wife said (raised in convent in France) suggested, “Why don’t you start in the beginning” He said “Where?”. She said “Genesis in the Bible.” They reflected later – “Why didn’t we think of that.” Borman explained they tried to convey not happen stance but power behind world and behind life gave it meaning. As he later explained, “I had an enormous feeling that there had to be a power greater than any of us-that there was a God, that there was indeed a beginning.”

The full story is here

---

3 Saints after Christmas Day

1. St. Stephen Dec. 26

Stephen was among the earliest Christian martyrs, stoned to death for his beliefs. St. Paul not only witnessed the event but held the garments of those stoning Stephen which he regretted later on and carried a lasting sense of guilt.

2. John the Apostle Dec. 27

John, one of the Apostles, possibly lived the longest life associated with the Gospel, an author in that time and Evangelist spreading the Gospel to many in the Mediterranean area who were not of Jewish background. He is believed to be the only Apostle not martyred for the cause. He is associated with the Gospel that bears his name, 3 Epistles and possible authorship of the Book of Revelation.

3. Holy Innocents Dec. 28

The term “Holy Innocents” comes from Matthew’s Gospel Chapter 2. When Jesus was born in Bethlehem, King Herod, fearing for his throne, ordered that all the male infants of Bethlehem two years and younger be killed. These children are regarded as martyrs for the Gospel — “martyrs in fact though not in will.” This can be compared to the conduct of Pharoah in Exodus 1:16. “When you are helping the Hebrew women during childbirth on the delivery stool, if you see that the baby is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, let her live.”

---

Dec. 29, 2019 – 11am -A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols is the Christmas Eve service held in King’s College Chapel, Cambridge England and was introduced in 1918.  

Kings College Cambridge holds this service every Dec. 24. The main gate to Kings College opens at 7:30am for the 3pm service.  Many people get in the line by 5am for a 10 hour wait!

Here is their 2019 bulletin.

Here are musical selections from
1994

It was conceived by Eric Milner-White, the Dean of the College, for Christmas Eve 1918 whose experience as an army chaplain in World War I had led him to believe that more imaginative Christmas worship was needed by the Church of England.  He actually reached back to an earlier time for a service structure.

The original service was, in fact, adapted from an Order drawn up by E.W. Benson, later Archbishop of Canterbury, for use in the wooden shed, which then served as his cathedral in Truro, at 10 pm on Christmas Eve 1880. AC Benson recalled: ‘My father arranged from ancient sources a little service for Christmas Eve – nine carols and nine tiny lessons, which were read by various officers of the Church, beginning with a chorister, and ending, through the different grades, with the Bishop."

The story of the fall of humanity, the promise of the Messiah, and the birth of Jesus is told in nine short Bible readings from Genesis, the prophetic books and the Gospels interspersed with the singing of Christmas carols, hymns and choir music. The readings can vary as can the music. Traditionally, "Once in Royal David City" is the opening hymn. Beyond that the service is flexible.

An opening prayer that is used provides a focus: 

"We gather here to recall the mystery of our redemption.
Though sin drew us away from God, he never stopped loving us.
The prophets told of the coming of a Messiah
who would initiate a reign of justice and peace.
This promise was fulfilled in the incarnation of Jesus Christ.
Let us now reflect with joy on this wondrous mystery."

The 2018 bulletin is here. Pictures from the services are here.

Lessons and Carols is usually done at the beginning of Advent as an introduction to Advent or towards the end as a summary of all that has happened.

This St. Peter’s service is the perfect culmination of your Christmas week, a joyous celebration along with thoughtful, introspective moments. Plan now to attend.

---

King’s College Cambridge – As you have never seen it

The famous church in England, home of Lessons and Carols, built by Henry VII is altered by projectionist, Miguel Chevalier. 

To illustrate Stephen Hawking’s research about black holes, Miguel Chevalier imagines an immersive environment made up of thousands of constellations that plunge the guests into the mystery of the universe.

Video Link

More examples

---

December 15, 2019

“Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful.” ―Norman Vincent Peale.

Pictures and text from this Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019

Videos from this Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019

The Week Ahead…

Dec. 18 – 10:00am – Ecumenical Bible Study

Dec. 18 – 3:00pm – 5pm Village Harvest Food Distribution

Help needed: 9:30ish, help needed to unload the truck. Many hands make light work. 1PM, help needed to set up. 3-5PM help needed for the distribution itself. Help the shoppers gather what they need. You can still bring cleaning supplies on the day since these are not available at the Food Bank. Thank you for your contributions of both food and time. Everyone can share in making this important St Peter’s ministry happen.

Sunday, Dec. 22, Fourth Sunday in Advent Readings and Servers

Dec. 22 – 11:00am – Advent 4, The Christmas Play

Dec. 22 – 4:30pm – Blue Christmas service and Eucharist

The Christmas Play

Here is a review on the Christmas Play from 2011 onward

Here are last year’s links:

1. Christmas Play

2. Christmas Play – videos

3. Christmas Eve

4. Lessons and Carols

The Blue Christmas service is new this year in the afternoon of Dec. 22. Is the Christmas Season a time when you feel sad, lonely, or depressed? We invite you to join us at this service to acknowledge these feelings and share in a time of reflection on the pain, sadness, or loneliness you may feel. We pray that you will find hope and comfort in knowing that you are not alone.

Christmas Schedule

Do you need a home this Christmas ? Our home is intimate, caring and spiritual looking for God’s guidance in what we do. And yes, we find room for all no matter who you are or your background. We welcome all! Join us on Christmas Eve for an uplifting experience.

Advent Online

Learn at your own pace, as much or as little:

New this year:

* Dickens, A Christmas Carol and the Bible

* Handel’s Messiah, Prophecy and Birth of the Messiah

* Matthew’s Infancy Stories

From Last year:

* Luke’s Canticles

“The Great Tree of Christmas”
Author Alexander Shaia talks the Christmas tree, a tradition adopted from the Celts. A fascinating perspective!

Advent Thoughts

Advent is a season of Watching and Waiting. It is a season of leaning into hope

Lord Jesus:
Come into our world and heal its wounds
Come into your church and raise it up
Come into our homes and make them holy
Come into our work and make it fruitful
Come into our minds and give us clarity
Come into our lives and make them beautiful
O Come, O Come Emmanuel

God of the past, the present and the future, grant me patience when I must wait, courage when it’s time to take action, and the wisdom to know when to wait and when to act. Amen.

Golden Hour at St. Peter’s

Come to St. Peter’s in the late fall and early winter between 4pm and 6pm and the beauty is overwhelming. These were taken on Friday, Dec. 9, 2016.

See the pictures

Article

Advent 1

Advent 1 links

Advent 2

Advent 2 links

Advent 3

Advent 3 links

Advent 4

Explore Advent, Part 4 – Over the Sundays in Advent there will be a presentation each week focusing on that week’s scriptures, art and commentary and how they demonstrate the themes of advent. Let’s continue with Advent 4.

From the Presiding Bishop-
Advent Messages 2012-2018 

Feast of the Annunciation –  9 months before we celebrate the nativity there is the related Feast of the Annunciation on March 25 which is described here .

Art of the Annunciation – The Annunication has been depicted in art for a thousand years. Here are 30+ images of that history .

Blessed Like Mary- David Lose invites us to understand that we are Blessed Like Mary .

National Geographic explores – “How the Virgin Mary Became the World’s Most Powerful Woman”

A Digital Nativity.

What if current social media like Facebook, Gmail, etc had been available at the birth of Christ ? Watch the Digital Nativity

December 15, 2019

“Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful.” ―Norman Vincent Peale.

Pictures and text from this Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019

Videos from this Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019

The Week Ahead…

Dec. 18 – 10:00am – Ecumenical Bible Study

Dec. 18 – 3:00pm – 5pm Village Harvest Food Distribution

Help needed: 9:30ish, help needed to unload the truck. Many hands make light work. 1PM, help needed to set up. 3-5PM help needed for the distribution itself. Help the shoppers gather what they need. You can still bring cleaning supplies on the day since these are not available at the Food Bank. Thank you for your contributions of both food and time. Everyone can share in making this important St Peter’s ministry happen.

Sunday, Dec. 22, Fourth Sunday in Advent Readings and Servers

Dec. 22 – 11:00am – Advent 4, The Christmas Play

Dec. 22 – 4:30pm – Blue Christmas service and Eucharist

The Christmas Play

Here is a review on the Christmas Play from 2011 onward

The Blue Christmas service is new this year in the afternoon of Dec. 22. Is the Christmas Season a time when you feel sad, lonely, or depressed? We invite you to join us at this service to acknowledge these feelings and share in a time of reflection on the pain, sadness, or loneliness you may feel. We pray that you will find hope and comfort in knowing that you are not alone.

Christmas Schedule

Do you need a home this Christmas ? Our home is intimate, caring and spiritual looking for God’s guidance in what we do. And yes, we find room for all no matter who you are or your background. We welcome all! Join us on Christmas Eve for an uplifting experience.

Here are last year’s links

1. Christmas Play

2 Christmas Eve

3.Lessons and Carols

Advent Online

Learn at your own pace, as much or as little:

New this year:

* Dickens, A Christmas Carol and the Bible

* Handel’s Messiah, Prophecy and Birth of the Messiah

* Matthew’s Infancy Stories

From Last year:

* Luke’s Canticles

“The Great Tree of Christmas”
Author Alexander Shaia talks the Christmas tree, a tradition adopted from the Celts. A fascinating perspective!

Advent Thoughts

Advent is a season of Watching and Waiting. It is a season of leaning into hope

Lord Jesus:
Come into our world and heal its wounds
Come into your church and raise it up
Come into our homes and make them holy
Come into our work and make it fruitful
Come into our minds and give us clarity
Come into our lives and make them beautiful
O Come, O Come Emmanuel

God of the past, the present and the future, grant me patience when I must wait, courage when it’s time to take action, and the wisdom to know when to wait and when to act. Amen.

Golden Hour at St. Peter’s

Come to St. Peter’s in the late fall and early winter between 4pm and 6pm and the beauty is overwhelming. These were taken on Friday, Dec. 9, 2016.

See the pictures

Article

Advent 1

Advent 1 links

Advent 2

Advent 2 links

Advent 3

Advent 3 links

Advent 4

Explore Advent, Part 4 – Over the Sundays in Advent there will be a presentation each week focusing on that week’s scriptures, art and commentary and how they demonstrate the themes of advent. Let’s continue with Advent 4.

From the Presiding Bishop-
Advent Messages 2012-2018 

Feast of the Annunciation –  9 months before we celebrate the nativity there is the related Feast of the Annunciation on March 25 which is described here .

Art of the Annunciation – The Annunication has been depicted in art for a thousand years. Here are 30+ images of that history .

Blessed Like Mary- David Lose invites us to understand that we are Blessed Like Mary .

National Geographic explores – “How the Virgin Mary Became the World’s Most Powerful Woman”

A Digital Nativity.

What if current social media like Facebook, Gmail, etc had been available at the birth of Christ ? Watch the Digital Nativity

December 8, 2019

Caption from left to right, top to bottom – The Peace, Bunch of birthdays celebrated, beautiful Sunday morning, Gifts from the congregation to social services, Carey Connors’ sermon, quartet practicing John Rutter for Christmas

Pictures and text from this Sunday, Dec. 8, 2019

Videos from this Sunday, Dec. 8, 2019

The Week Ahead…

Dec. 9 – 4:00pm – Vestry

Dec. 11 – 10:00am – Ecumenical Bible Study

Dec. 11 – 5:00pm – 6:30pm Village Dinner

Dec. 13 – 7:00am – ECM at Horne’s

Dec. 13 – 6:00pm -Spanish Bible Study in the Parish House

Dec. 15 – 10:00am – Christian Ed . Learn about the women who appear in Matthew’s genealogy of Jesus at the beginning of his gospel as well as Mary and Elizabeth from Luke

Dec. 15 – 11:00am – Advent 3, Holy Eucharist .

Coming up:

1. Poinsettia gifts due Dec. 8

2. Endowment Fund gifts due Dec. 15

3. Sunday, December 22 Blue Christmas Eucharist, 4:30pm

Sunday, Dec. 15, Third Sunday in Advent Readings and Servers

Advent in one weekend, Dec. 6-7

1.Port Royal Christmas – Fri. Dec. 6, 5:30pm. Over a 100 children enjoy Christmas with crafts, pizza and Santa.

2. Choir Retreat – Sat. Dec. 7, 10:00am–The choir had time to rehearse Christmas music which will include a piece by John Rutter. This was  followed by lunch. prepared by Brad.

3. Everett’s Christmas – Sat. Dec. 7, 5:00pm. 40 enjoyed a delicious pot luck dinner, over the top Christmas decorations, and Christmas caroling. Link has both photos and videos.

It’s Advent!

The name “Advent” actually comes from the Latin word adventus which means “coming.” It is a reminder of how the Jewish nation waited for the Messiah and how Christians are now waiting for the return of Christ.

Advent which begins on Sunday Dec. 2 is like a breath of fresh air -a new church year, a new set of Gospel readings from Mark, and the anticipation of the birth of Christ.

The Advent season is a time of preparation that directs our hearts and minds to Christ’s second coming at the end of time and also to the anniversary of the Lord’s birth on Christmas. It blends together a penitential spirit, very similar to Lent, a liturgical theme of preparation for the Second and Final Coming of the Lord, called the Parousia, and a joyful theme of getting ready for the Bethlehem event.

The Advent wreath, four candles on a wreath of evergreen, is shaped in a perfect circle to symbolize the eternity of God. The Advent Wreath is beautiful and evocative reminder of the life-giving qualities of light. The evergreens used in the wreath are reminders of ongoing life, even in the face of death.

There are 4 candles, one for each week in Advent, are used with one larger white candle in the middle as the Christ candle. During each Sunday of the Advent season, we focus on one of the four virtues Jesus brings us: Hope, Love, Joy and Peace. Three of the candles are purple. This is the color of penitence and fasting as well as the color of royalty to welcome the Advent of the King.

The Third candle is pink, a color of joy, the joy that Jesus is almost here and fasting is almost order. Gaudete Sunday (from the Latin meaning “rejoice”) which is taken from Philippians 4:4-5, the Entrance Antiphon of the day.

Advent begins in a season of darkness but using the Advent wreath we see light winning over darkness. Lighting candles is a way we can keep time in Church And as the season passes, and another candle is lit each week, light finally wins out over darkness with the turn of the solstice in the stars and the birth of Christ on the ground.

At the center of the wreath is a white candle, which is called the Christ Candle. This candle is lit on Christmas Eve as a reminder that Jesus, the light of the world, has been born and has come to dwell with us.

It is a season of waiting, of rest but also a time to find new beginnings. Since the 900s Advent has been considered the beginning of the Church year. It is antidote for our society’s frantic behavior during the holiday season. There is so much in the world that tells you, you are not enough or you haven’t do enough before Christmas but you have to find out during Advent that you are enough.

The altar changes during Advent to represent the new season, particularly in the use of color. Today, many churches have begun to use blue instead of purple, as a means of distinguishing Advent from Lent. Blue also signifies the color of the night sky or the waters of the new creation in Genesis 1. Blue emphasizes the season is also about hope and anticipation of the coming of Christ. Christ is about transformation as the sky changes from dark to light filling our lives with grace.

Advent Traditions

Advent Wreath

A St. Peter’s Advent and Christmas

See the Gallery

Advent is a season of preparation for the coming of Jesus as one of us. Jesus brought God’s light into the world during his lifetime and we expect him to return to reign in glory at the end of time.

1. Port Royal Christmas Lighting – Fri., Dec. 6, 6:00-7:30pm at the town Fire Hall. Food , games, songs and the lighting of the Christmas tree. –

2. Choir Retreat – Sat. Dec. 7, 10:00am–The choir had time rehearse Christmas music which will include a piece by John Rutter. This was  followed by lunch. prepared by Brad.

3. Everett’s Christmas – Sat. Dec. 7, 5:30pm. 40 enjoyed a delicious pot luck dinner, over the top Christmas decorations, and Christmas caroling.

4. Dec. 8 – Poinsettia form due as well as St. Peter’s Christmas family

5. Bethlehem Walk, Sun, Dec. 8, After Sun. Potluck luncheon This is a life-sized of outside reenactment of the city of Bethlehem at the time of Christ. The tour is outside and takes approximately 45 minutes Salem Baptist Church 465 Broad Street Road, Manakin, VA 23103 (6 miles west of Short Pump)

6. Village Dinner, Wed., Dec. 11, 5pm-6:30pm Braised Pork, Egg Noodles, Carrots, Brocolli, Fresh Apple Cake

7.  Dec. 15 – Endowment Fund, Episcopal Relief & Development gifts due

8. Christmas Play on Advent 4 – Sun. Dec. 22, 11am.   Videos  Each year it’s unique and at the same time a wonderful introduction to Christmas week.

9. Sunday, December 22 Blue Christmas Eucharist in the afternoon

10. Christmas Eve – Tues., Dec. 24, 4:00pm music, 4:30pm service – Holy Eucharist Rite II. Celebrating Christ coming among us.

11. Lessons and Carols – Sun. Dec. 29, 11am. This traditional Anglican service, developed in England, gives us the opportunity to hear the story of our salvation in Jesus Christ through scripture and song.  

12. New Year’s Eve Gala –   Tues. Dec. 31, 6pm. Parish House

Two Opportunities for Adult Christian Ed.

1. Sundays in the Parish House during Advent

On the first three Sundays of Advent, learn about the women who appear in Matthew’s genealogy of Jesus at the beginning of his gospel. What on earth is a prostitute doing in that list? Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist, and Mary, a young girl, unexpectedly find themselves with child. What is God up to? And what can these two women teach us about our own lives?

2. Advent Online learning. Learn at your own pace, as much or as little:

New this year:

* Dickens, A Christmas Carol and the Bible

* Handel’s Messiah, Prophecy and Birth of the Messiah

* Matthew’s Infancy Stories

From Last year:

* Luke’s Canticles

Advent 3, Dec. 15 is Gaudete Sunday

The third Sunday of Advent is known as “Gaudete Sunday.” The day takes its common name from the Latin word Gaudete (“Rejoice”). Its name is taken from the entrance antiphon of the Mass, which is: Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice. Indeed, the Lord is near. This is a quotation from Philippians 4:4-5, and in Latin, the first word of the antiphon is “gaudete”. We are most of the way through the season, closer to Christ’s birth and so that is the emphasis rather than coming again.

We light the rose colored candle in addition to the other 2 violet ones. Purple is a penitential color of fasting while pink (rose) is the color of joy. Long ago the Pope would honor a citizen with a pink rose (or a rose) Priests then would wear pink vestments as a reminder of this coming joy. Rose is also used during Laetare Sunday (the fourth Sunday of lent) to symbolize a similar expectation of the coming joy of Christ’s coming in Easter. The third Sunday of Advent is rose (pink) because pink symbolizes joy, the joy that Jesus is almost here. Adult Christian Ed discussed “Rejoice! What promises of God give you cause to rejoice?”

Theologian Henri Nouwen described the difference between joy and happiness. While happiness is dependent on external conditions, joy is “the experience of knowing that you are unconditionally loved and that nothing — sickness, failure, emotional distress, oppression, war, or even death — can take that love away.” Thus joy can be present even in the midst of sadness. Jesus reveals to us God’s love so that his joy may become ours and that our joy may become complete. As Nouwen says, “Joy does not simply happen to us. We have to choose joy and keep choosing it every day.”

This is break from some of the penitential readings earlier in Advent. How will you express joy this week? Consider the good things that have been given to you.

Besides the emphasis in joy, this is also “Stir up Sunday!” The collect has the words, ” Stir up your power, O Lord, and with great might come among us; and, because we are sorely hindered by our sins”. Let’s change the “our sins” to “missing the mark.” How can we hit the mark ? One way is to advantage of our opportunities.

“The Great Tree of Christmas”
Author Alexander Shaia talks the Christmas tree, a tradition adopted from the Celts. A fascinating perspective!

Advent Thoughts

Advent is a season of Watching and Waiting. It is a season of leaning into hope

Lord Jesus:
Come into our world and heal its wounds
Come into your church and raise it up
Come into our homes and make them holy
Come into our work and make it fruitful
Come into our minds and give us clarity
Come into our lives and make them beautiful
O Come, O Come Emmanuel

God of the past, the present and the future, grant me patience when I must wait, courage when it’s time to take action, and the wisdom to know when to wait and when to act. Amen.

Golden Hour at St. Peter’s

Come to St. Peter’s in the late fall and early winter between 4pm and 6pm and the beauty is overwhelming. These were taken on Friday, Dec. 9, 2016.

See the pictures

Article

Advent 1

Advent 1 links

Advent 2

Advent 2 links

Advent 3

Explore Advent, Part 3 – Over the Sundays in Advent there will be a presentation each week focusing on that week’s scriptures, art and commentary and how they demonstrate the themes of advent. Let’s continue with Advent 3.

A. Voices for Advent 3

“In Advent the church emphasizes these ways of continual change: Repentance. Conversion of life. Self-examination. Awakening. Deepening.  “

– Suzanne Guthrie

B. “You Don’t Want to Be a Prophet (Isaiah, Luke)

“Christmas without Anglicans?” – Anglican contributions to Advent and Christmas carols.

December 1, 2019

Pictures and text from this Sunday, Dec. 1, 2019

Videos from this Sunday, Dec. 1, 2019

The Week Ahead…

Dec. 3- Giving Tuesday in support of the Village Harvest

Dec. 4- 10:00am – Ecumenical Bible Study

Dec. 6- 6:00pm-7:30pm – Port Royal Christmas, 2019

Dec. 7- 10:00am – Choir Retreat at Brad’s home

Dec. 7- 5:30pm – Everett’s Christmas

Dec. 8 – 10:00am – Christian Ed . Learn about the women who appear in Matthew’s genealogy of Jesus at the beginning of his gospel

Dec. 8 – 11:00am – Advent 2, Holy Eucharist . Coming up today:

1. St. Peter’s Christmas Tree Family. Gift due today Dec. 8th. The gifts will be delivered to Caroline County Social Services for designated families

2. Poinsettia forms are on the back pew. Orders due today, Dec. 8th.

3.Today, Dec. 8, the Bethlehem Walk departs after church. What if you’d been in Bethlehem when Jesus was born? If you’d like to find out, join in this field trip to Salem Baptist Church in Goochland County, VA. This amazing experience is an opportunity to visit a recreation of the village of Bethlehem as it would have been in the time of Jesus.

Sunday, Dec. 8, Second Sunday in Advent Readings and Servers

Support the Village Harvest on Dec. 3, Giving Tuesday

• A $10 donation feeds 6 people, 12 pounds each. It provides 72 pounds of food and $430 in total value!
• A $20 donation feeds 12 people, 12 pounds each. It provides 144 pounds of food and $860 in total value!
• Donating $200 puts you and or your organization into the “Village Club” for special recognition since you have covered the food for one Village Harvest!

How to Give ? Two ways:

1 Go online on Dec. 3 and use St. Peter’s PayPal account and donate via credit card using this link or churchsp.org/givingtuesday2019/

2 On or before Dec. 3 make out a check to St. Peter’s with “Giving Tuesday” in the memo line

St. Peter’s Church
P. O. Box 399
Port Royal, Virginia 22535 or put it in the plate.

We have an online recap of the Village Harvest over 5 years here

It’s Advent!

The name “Advent” actually comes from the Latin word adventus which means “coming.” It is a reminder of how the Jewish nation waited for the Messiah and how Christians are now waiting for the return of Christ.

Advent which begins on Sunday Dec. 2 is like a breath of fresh air -a new church year, a new set of Gospel readings from Mark, and the anticipation of the birth of Christ.

The Advent season is a time of preparation that directs our hearts and minds to Christ’s second coming at the end of time and also to the anniversary of the Lord’s birth on Christmas. It blends together a penitential spirit, very similar to Lent, a liturgical theme of preparation for the Second and Final Coming of the Lord, called the Parousia, and a joyful theme of getting ready for the Bethlehem event.

The Advent wreath, four candles on a wreath of evergreen, is shaped in a perfect circle to symbolize the eternity of God. The Advent Wreath is beautiful and evocative reminder of the life-giving qualities of light. The evergreens used in the wreath are reminders of ongoing life, even in the face of death.

There are 4 candles, one for each week in Advent, are used with one larger white candle in the middle as the Christ candle. During each Sunday of the Advent season, we focus on one of the four virtues Jesus brings us: Hope, Love, Joy and Peace. Three of the candles are purple. This is the color of penitence and fasting as well as the color of royalty to welcome the Advent of the King.

The Third candle is pink, a color of joy, the joy that Jesus is almost here and fasting is almost order. Gaudete Sunday (from the Latin meaning “rejoice”) which is taken from Philippians 4:4-5, the Entrance Antiphon of the day.

Advent begins in a season of darkness but using the Advent wreath we see light winning over darkness. Lighting candles is a way we can keep time in Church And as the season passes, and another candle is lit each week, light finally wins out over darkness with the turn of the solstice in the stars and the birth of Christ on the ground.

At the center of the wreath is a white candle, which is called the Christ Candle. This candle is lit on Christmas Eve as a reminder that Jesus, the light of the world, has been born and has come to dwell with us.

It is a season of waiting, of rest but also a time to find new beginnings. Since the 900s Advent has been considered the beginning of the Church year. It is antidote for our society’s frantic behavior during the holiday season. There is so much in the world that tells you, you are not enough or you haven’t do enough before Christmas but you have to find out during Advent that you are enough.

The altar changes during Advent to represent the new season, particularly in the use of color. Today, many churches have begun to use blue instead of purple, as a means of distinguishing Advent from Lent. Blue also signifies the color of the night sky or the waters of the new creation in Genesis 1. Blue emphasizes the season is also about hope and anticipation of the coming of Christ. Christ is about transformation as the sky changes from dark to light filling our lives with grace.

Advent Traditions

Advent Wreath

Here is 2017’s Advent 1 in pictures. and also 2018

A St. Peter’s Advent and Christmas

See the Gallery

Advent is a season of preparation for the coming of Jesus as one of us. Jesus brought God’s light into the world during his lifetime and we expect him to return to reign in glory at the end of time.

1. Port Royal Christmas – Fri., Dec. 6, 6:00-7:30pm at the town Fire Hall. Food , games, songs and the lighting of the Christmas tree. –

2. Choir Retreat – Sat. Dec. 7, 10:00am–The choir will be gathering to rehearse Christmas music  followed by lunch. Set aside some time to pray this morning for Brad Volland, our organist, and our dedicated choir.

3. Everett’s Christmas – Sat. Dec. 7, 5:00pm. Gather round the Everett’s table for a delicious pot luck dinner, over the top Christmas decorations, and Christmas caroling. All are welcome.

4. Dec. 8 – Poinsettia form due

5. Dec. 8 – St Peter’s Christmas Tree Family. Bring Christmas gifts for the Christmas family to church for a blessing before they’re delivered to Social Services and then to the Christmas family.

6. Bethlehem Walk, Sun, Dec. 8, After service. This is a life-sized of outside reenactment of the city of Bethlehem at the time of Christ. The tour is outside and takes approximately 45 minutes Salem Baptist Church 465 Broad Street Road, Manakin, VA 23103 (6 miles west of Short Pump)

7. Village Dinner, Wed., Dec. 11, 5pm-6:30pm Braised Pork, Egg Noodles, Carrots, Brocolli, Fresh Apple Cake

8. Spanish Bible Study, Dec. 13, 6pm-8pm, Parish House

9.  Dec. 15 – Endowment Fund gifts due

10. Christmas Play on Advent 4 – Sun. Dec. 22, 11am.   Videos  Each year it’s unique and at the same time a wonderful introduction to Christmas week.

11. Sunday, December 22 Blue Christmas Eucharist, 4:30pm

12. Christmas Eve – Tues., Dec. 24, 4:30pm – Holy Eucharist Rite II. Celebrating Christ coming among us.

13. Lessons and Carols – Sun. Dec. 29, 11am. This traditional Anglican service, developed in England, gives us the opportunity to hear the story of our salvation in Jesus Christ through scripture and song.  

14. New Year’s Eve Gala –   Tues. Dec. 31, 6pm. Parish House

Two Opportunities for Adult Christian Ed.

1. Sundays in the Parish House during Advent

On the first three Sundays of Advent, learn about the women who appear in Matthew’s genealogy of Jesus at the beginning of his gospel. What on earth is a prostitute doing in that list? Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist, and Mary, a young girl, unexpectedly find themselves with child. What is God up to? And what can these two women teach us about our own lives?

2. Advent Online learning. Learn at your own pace, as much or as little:

New this year:

* Dickens, A Christmas Carol and the Bible

* Handel’s Messiah, Prophecy and Birth of the Messiah

* Matthew’s Infancy Stories

From Last year:

* Luke’s Canticles

Advent 1

Advent 1 links

Advent 2

Explore Advent, Part 2

“Advent is a time to look for “desert places”: the place of solitude, the place of true silence in which we can become fully awake to our sin and God’s forgiving grace which alone can heal it.”-Br. Robert L’Esperance

This week we focus on John the Baptist through scripture, art and commentary. Let’s move to  Advent 2.

John the Baptist presentation.

John the Baptist in art

St Nicholas Day is December 6. 

Here is a presentation that provides the background of this saint who has had a colorful and varied history over 1800 years.

November 24, 2019

Caption – Light in the church, Giving Tree for Advent, a November fall, Sermon illumination, Birthdays (father and son), Welcome Back from Aruba

Pictures and text from this Sunday, Nov. 24, 2019

Videos from this Sunday, Nov. 24, 2019

The Week Ahead…

Nov. 27 – 10:00am – Ecumenical Bible Study

Dec. 1 – 10:00am – Christian Ed – Women in Matthew’s Genealogy

Dec. 1 – 11:00am – Advent 1, Holy Eucharist

Dec. 1 – 12:00pm – Coffee Hour, Pot Luck

Dec. 3 – “Giving Tuesday”

Sunday, Dec. 1, First Sunday in Advent Readings and Servers

Why are we pushing Giving Tuesday, Dec. 3 in support of our Village Harvest food distribution ?

1. There is a need.

In a sermon on September 22, 2019 Catherine wrote “I have had people who come to the distribution tell me that they wouldn’t have had enough food to get through the month without the food we provide.”

The Free Lance-Star reported in Aug., 2018, “about 31,000 residents of Fredericksburg and the counties of Caroline, King George, Spotsylvania and Stafford consistently lack enough food to maintain a healthy, active life. They’re considered food insecure by the United States.” Department of Agriculture.

We are called to do like Jesus – and he fed people both physically and spiritually. Witness the stories of the Feeding of the 4,000 and 5,000.

2. There is a cost to recover.

We are averaging $187 (average 10 months) or over $2,250 a year. Help us recover the cost and even add to our resources to do more.

3. The ministry has been successful.

5 years later we have served over 6,800 clients over 64,500 pounds of food. This year the average pounds of food per person is over 12 which at $6 a pound is worth $72. It is clearly one of our more visible and valuable outreach expressions from our church.

4. We have goals and a way for you to help.

Our goal in #Giving Tuesday is to raise 7 months support or $1,350. Our goal last year was Giving Tuesday $1,200 and we collected $1,267.50. Thanks to all who contributed! We would like to shoot for $1,350 this year which is doable.

• A $10 donation feeds 6 people, 12 pounds each. It provides 72 pounds of food and $430 in total value!

• A $20 donation feeds 12 people, 12 pounds each. It provides 144 pounds of food and $860 in total value!

Help us on Giving Tuesday, Dec. 3

Two ways to donate:

2. St. Peter’s PayPal account

Thank you for your support!

Getting Ready for Advent!

The name “Advent” actually comes from the Latin word adventus which means “coming.” It is a reminder of how the Jewish nation waited for the Messiah and how Christians are now waiting for the return of Christ.

Advent which begins on Sunday Dec. 2 is like a breath of fresh air -a new church year, a new set of Gospel readings from Mark, and the anticipation of the birth of Christ.

The Advent season is a time of preparation that directs our hearts and minds to Christ’s second coming at the end of time and also to the anniversary of the Lord’s birth on Christmas. It blends together a penitential spirit, very similar to Lent, a liturgical theme of preparation for the Second and Final Coming of the Lord, called the Parousia, and a joyful theme of getting ready for the Bethlehem event.

The Advent wreath, four candles on a wreath of evergreen, is shaped in a perfect circle to symbolize the eternity of God. The Advent Wreath is beautiful and evocative reminder of the life-giving qualities of light. The evergreens used in the wreath are reminders of ongoing life, even in the face of death.

There are 4 candles, one for each week in Advent, are used with one larger white candle in the middle as the Christ candle. During each Sunday of the Advent season, we focus on one of the four virtues Jesus brings us: Hope, Love, Joy and Peace. Three of the candles are purple. This is the color of penitence and fasting as well as the color of royalty to welcome the Advent of the King.

The Third candle is pink, a color of joy, the joy that Jesus is almost here and fasting is almost order. Gaudete Sunday (from the Latin meaning “rejoice”) which is taken from Philippians 4:4-5, the Entrance Antiphon of the day.

Advent begins in a season of darkness but using the Advent wreath we see light winning over darkness. Lighting candles is a way we can keep time in Church And as the season passes, and another candle is lit each week, light finally wins out over darkness with the turn of the solstice in the stars and the birth of Christ on the ground.

At the center of the wreath is a white candle, which is called the Christ Candle. This candle is lit on Christmas Eve as a reminder that Jesus, the light of the world, has been born and has come to dwell with us.

It is a season of waiting, of rest but also a time to find new beginnings. Since the 900s Advent has been considered the beginning of the Church year. It is antidote for our society’s frantic behavior during the holiday season. There is so much in the world that tells you, you are not enough or you haven’t do enough before Christmas but you have to find out during Advent that you are enough.

The first week of Advent is all about hope. Lamentations 3: 21-24: “Yet this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; “therefore I will wait for him.” (NIV).

The altar changes during Advent to represent the new season, particularly in the use of color. Today, many churches have begun to use blue instead of purple, as a means of distinguishing Advent from Lent. Blue also signifies the color of the night sky or the waters of the new creation in Genesis 1. Blue emphasizes the season is also about hope and anticipation of the coming of Christ. Christ is about transformation as the sky changes from dark to light filling our lives with grace.

Advent Traditions

Advent Wreath

Here is 2017’s Advent 1 in pictures. and also 2018

A St. Peter’s Advent and Christmas

See the Gallery

Advent is a season of preparation for the coming of Jesus as one of us. Jesus brought God’s light into the world during his lifetime and we expect him to return to reign in glory at the end of time.

1. Port Royal Christmas Lighting – Fri., Dec. 6, 6:00-7:30pm at the town Fire Hall. Food , games, songs and the lighting of the Christmas tree. –

2. Choir Retreat – Sat. Dec. 7, 10:00am–The choir will be gathering to rehearse Christmas music  followed by lunch. Set aside some time to pray this morning for Brad Volland, our organist, and our dedicated choir.

3. Everett’s Christmas – Sat. Dec. 7, 5:00pm. Gather round the Everett’s table for a delicious pot luck dinner, over the top Christmas decorations, and Christmas caroling. All are welcome.

4. Dec. 8 – Poinsettia form due

5. Dec. 8 – St Peter’s Christmas Tree Family. Bring Christmas gifts for the Christmas family to church for a blessing before they’re delivered to Social Services and then to the Christmas family.

6. Bethlehem Walk, Sun, Dec. 8, After service. This is a life-sized of outside reenactment of the city of Bethlehem at the time of Christ. The tour is outside and takes approximately 45 minutes Salem Baptist Church 465 Broad Street Road, Manakin, VA 23103 (6 miles west of Short Pump)

7. Village Dinner, Wed., Dec. 11, 5pm-6:30pm Braised Pork, Egg Noodles, Carrots, Brocolli, Fresh Apple Cake

8. Spanish Bible Study, Dec. 13, 6pm-8pm, Parish House

9.  Dec. 15 – Endowment Fund gifts due

10. Christmas Play on Advent 4 – Sun. Dec. 22, 11am.   Videos  Each year it’s unique and at the same time a wonderful introduction to Christmas week.

11. Sunday, December 22 Blue Christmas Eucharist, 4:30pm

12. Christmas Eve – Tues., Dec. 24, 4:30pm – Holy Eucharist Rite II. Celebrating Christ coming among us.

13. Lessons and Carols – Sun. Dec. 29, 11am. This traditional Anglican service, developed in England, gives us the opportunity to hear the story of our salvation in Jesus Christ through scripture and song.  

14. New Year’s Eve Gala –   Tues. Dec. 31, 6pm. Parish House

Two Opportunities for Adult Christian Ed.

1. Sundays in the Parish House during Advent

New this year:

* Dickens, A Christmas Carol and the Bible

* Handel’s Messiah, Prophecy and Birth of the Messiah

* Matthew’s Infancy Stories

From Last year:

* Luke’s Canticles

Advent 1

Advent in 2 minutes Check out this Youtube video

Advent in 1 minute– A 2015 video from St. Mary’s Cypress

Explore Advent, Part 1– Over the next 4 Sundays there will be a presentation each week focusing on that week’s scriptures, art and commentary and how they demonstrate the themes of advent. Let’s get started with Advent 1.

Advent is the time when we change to a different year in the Lectionary. This year we move from Year C to A and from a concentration on the Gospel of Luke to Matthew.  There are several articles which are a general introduction to Matthew 1. Shortest from christianity.about.com 2 Longer from the Catholic Bishops

Interested in the Church calendar ? Matthew’s interest about time in First Advent lends itself to understand how we measure time.

Collected Advent resources

1. Advent resources for 2019 from the Episcopal Church Foundation.

2. From the Episcopal Church

3. From the Diocese of California

4. Advent at home

5. Create your own Advent Calendar

The Season of Advent is alive with colors, candles, wreaths and song. David Bratcher has written a wonderful article on Advent traditions.

There are several articles/presentations about the infancy narratives 1. Brief summary between Matthew and Luke  2. Longer comparison

Advent is a time of music. Here is a link to National Cathedral’s Advent Lessons and Carols on Dec. 1, 2019

November 17, 2019

Carey’s sermon Nov 17, Carey and Catherine at Annual Convention, St. Peter’s against leaves, Cookie’s review of the 225th Annual Convention, Greeting to Carey and her mother, 5 year anniversary this week of the Village Harvest

Pictures and text from this Sunday, Nov. 17, 2019

Videos from this Sunday, Nov. 17, 2019

The Week Ahead…

Tues, Nov. 19- 9:30am – Village Harvest unloading

Help needed: 9:30ish, help needed to unload the truck. Many hands make light work. 1PM, help needed to set up. Wednesday, 3-5PM help needed for the distribution itself. Help the shoppers gather what they need. You can still bring cleaning supplies on the day since these are not available at the Food Bank. Thank you for your contributions of both food and time. Everyone can share in making this important St Peter’s ministry happen.

Tues, Nov. 19- 3:00pm – ECW Tea

Wed.,Nov. 20- 10:00am – Ecumenical Bible Study

Wed.,Nov. 20- 3:00pm – 5:00pm Village Harvest. Its our 5 year anniversary!

Wed.,Nov. 22- 6:00pm – 8:00pm Spanish Bible Study

Nov. 24 – 11:00am – Last Pentecost, Christ the King – Holy Eucharist Rite I

Nov. 24 – 11:00am – Last Pentecost, Christ the King – Holy Eucharist Rite II

Sunday, Nov. 24, Christ the King Readings and Servers

November Special Giving

1. UTO (United Thank Offering)

Betty Kunstmann will distribute the Blue Boxes on Sunday, November 3. Return the box or a check to St Peter’s with UTO in the memo line by Sunday, December 1.

Giving to the UTO increased across the nation in 2018. The UTO gave an additional $200,000 in grants this year. Four of the grants supported projects in the Anglican Communion.

At St. Peter’s, the Fall Ingathering a year ago was $563.32. (Spring ingathering was $325.36 for a total of $888.68 for the two ingatherings in 2018. The comparative total in 2017 was $757.09.)

2. ECM Thanksgiving

Collection begins Nov 3 and ended Nov. 17.

The ECM collected $287.50 last year for a Thanksgiving meal for 5 families, adding 2 families in 2018.

$237.77 was spent for Thanksgiving food for 5 families. They exceeded their scope in 2018 by adding 2 families this year.

ECW Tea, Tues, Nov. 19, 3pm

This event will be held at the home of Cookie and Johnny Davis

Last year 18 ladies came to Cookie Davis’ home to celebrate Thanksgiving, feast and fellowship and to consider ideas for distributing ECW funds for the end of 2018. They have collected about $4,000 from the monthly Village Dinners. In addition they were looking ahead to plan for 2019.

Here is the story on last year’s event with photos.

The Village Harvest at 5 – an appreciation

We reached a milestone  Nov. 20, 2019 – The Village Harvest, our food ministry, 5 years old

Let’s go back to its roots. Why  was it established?

The first notice of this ministry in November, 2014 said “The cost of food continues to rise and knowing that some of our Port Royal community might find it difficult to keep food on the table, St. Peter’s Episcopal Church wants to help. A new food ministry,  ‘Village Harvest’ will provide seasonal fresh produce once a month along with other  food and other supplies.  As we embark on this venture, it is our hope that we can grow it to help meet the specific needs of the community we serve.”

On Nov. 19, 2014  we attracted 60 clients and gave out 300 pounds that day. 5 years later in 2019 we are averaging almost twice that number at 112 and 4 times are much food. I have called it “Give a Little, Gain a Lot”

5 years later we have served over 6,800 clients over 64,500 pounds of food.  This year the average pounds of food per person is over 12  which at $6 a pound is worth $72. It is clearly one of our more visible and valuable outreach expressions from our church.  We are called to do like Jesus – and he fed people both physically and spiritually. Witness the stories of the Feeding of the 4,000 and 5,000.

…Read more…

Giving Tuesday is coming up on Dec. 3

#GivingTuesday is a global giving movement that has been built by individuals, families, organizations, businesses and communities in all 50 states and in countries around the world

We have two days for getting deals for us– Black Friday and Cyber Monday. On #GivingTuesday, we have a day for giving back. Giving Tuesday can us share what we are doing with the larger community.

Our goal last year was Giving Tuesday $1,200 and we collected $1,267.50. Thanks to all who contributed! We would like to shoot for $1,350 this year which is doable.

We are targeting the Village Harvest again in 2019 due to costs of the ministry. We are averaging $187 (average 10 months) or over $2,250 a year. Help us recover the cost and even add to our resources to do more.

* Your $10 donation would feed 6 people. Each would get 12 pounds of food or 72 pounds in total.

* Your $20 donation would feed 12 people. Each would received 12 pounds of food of 144 pounds in total.

…Read more about the Village Harvest and Giving Tuesday…

Online Courses for Advent and Christmas

A Christmas Carol, about the redemption of Ebeneezer Scrooge has many references to the Bible as well as Dickens’ life. We have the entire book in this course plus many ‘drop-down’ asides that cover the connections

The Messiah, A Christmas favorite, is an Oratorio. What is an Oratorio and how different is it from an opera ? The Christmas portion of the Messiah is only part 1 of the larger work. We will concentrate on its plot, it use of Bible readings as well as see and hear some great performance

Here is the link to both courses

Christ the King Sunday, Nov 24, 2019 

We celebrate Christ the King Sunday as the last Sunday of Ordinary Time just before we begin Advent. It is the switch in the Liturgy between Years A, B, and C. This year we will switch from Year C with a focus on the Gospel According to Luke to Year A reading passages from the Gospel According to Matthew.

The earliest Christians identified Jesus with the predicted Messiah of the Jews. The Jewish word "messiah," and the Greek word "Christ," both mean "anointed one," and came to refer to the expected king who would deliver Israel from the hands of the Romans. Christians believe that Jesus is this expected Messiah. Unlike the messiah most Jews expected, Jesus came to free all people, Jew and Gentile, and he did not come to free them from the Romans, but from sin and death. Thus the king of the Jews, and of the cosmos, does not rule over a kingdom of this world

Christians have long celebrated Jesus as Christ, and his reign as King is celebrated to some degree in Advent (when Christians wait for his second coming in glory), Christmas (when "born this day is the King of the Jews"), Holy Week (when Christ is the Crucified King), Easter (when Jesus is resurrected in power and glory), and the Ascension (when Jesus returns to the glory he had with the Father before the world was created).

The recent celebration came from the Catholics in the 20th century who saw some dangerous signs on the horizon…

Read more…

Church Liturgical Year Table

This time of year there is a focus on the church calendar as we end one year and begin another. Here is a handy table. We have a separate page that provides descriptions of the calendar details.

Christ the King Lectionary Sunday, Nov 24, 2019 

I.Theme –   Jesus –  A real king – bringing God’s reign of justice and mercy to earth 

The lectionary readings are here  or individually: 

Old Testament – Jeremiah 23:1-6
Psalm – Psalm 46
Epistle –Colossians 1:11-20
Gospel – Luke 23:33-43

This is a transitional Sunday. Christ the King Sunday signals the end of Ordinary Time and the end of our use of the Year C readings. 

The end of year readings are partially about kingship – good kings, bad kings and our treatment of them.  Jeremiah provides an analysis of bad kings – blamed for scattering the sheep and being evil. This is not just one ruler but a trend.

A secondary theme is God’s role in all of this. God will make good kings again and restore the people’s relationship to the earth and to each other. The Psalm demonstrates God’s protection and like a King defense of the people.  It is a praise psalm.  While there will be troubles, dislocations and wounds,  ultimately God will be bring peace end division. 

All of this culminates in the Gospel reading. Jesus is God’s way of ruling in this world and in the world to come.  His ruling was born out of struggle. We are there with him with criminals on either side of him.

Then we see Jesus exercising his dominion in the midst of mockery, coercion, and arrogance. His two "words" from the cross in Luke’s account enact his authority. The first (Luke 23:34) fits powerfully in the narrativep style=: "Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing!"

The second (Luke 23:43) anticipates Jesus’ authority as the Son of Man, conferring mercy on sinners in God’s ultimate judgment: "Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise."  He is there meeting the needs of those around him. 

Joining Jesus in paradise had nothing to do with dying. It had nothing to do with being raised from the dead. It had everything to do with seeing beyond the appearances to the truth, that God is victorious in the cross. It has everything to do with the thief’s realization that his own condemnation on the cross bore no relationship to his standing before God. 

He asks neither to be rescued from this plight nor revenged for his suffering. Rather, he wants only to be remembered, to not be forgotten. And how does Jesus respond? He exceeds even the criminal’s wildest expectations, declaring that today, even now, he would enter with Jesus into paradise.  In that moment, he became free. 

The Gospel is the story of how Jesus the Messiah of God brought God’s reign of justice and mercy to earth, and Luke’s account presents the crucified Messiah enacting God’s reign, surrounded by mocking, brutal violence.

David Lose writes how Jesus became a real king. "What kind of king is this, who welcomes a criminal into his realm and promises relief and release amid obvious agony? It is a king who refuses to conform to the expectations of this world, who will be governed neither by its limited vision of worthiness nor its truncated understanding of justice. It is a king who is not content to rule from afar, but rather comes to meet us in our weakness and need. It is a king willing to embrace all, forgive all, redeem all, because that is his deepest and truest nature. It is, finally, our king, come to usher us into his kingdom even as he implores us to recognize and make more manifest that kingdom already around us. 

Read more…

November 10, 2019

The Beauty Retreat, Nov. 9, 2019

Pictures and text from this Sunday, Nov. 10, 2019

Videos from this Sunday, Nov. 10, 2019

The Week Ahead…

Nov. 13- 10:00am – Ecumenical Bible Study

Nov. 13- 5:00pm – 6:30pm – Village Dinner

Nov. 14-16 – Annual Convention – Diocese of Virginia

Nov. 17 – 10:00am – Christian Ed – Carey continues her discussion on mission

Nov. 17 – 11:00am – Pentecost 23- Holy Eucharist

Sunday, Nov. 17, Pentecost 23 Readings and Servers

November Special Giving

1. UTO (United Thank Offering)

Betty Kunstmann will distribute the Blue Boxes on Sunday, November 3. Return the box or a check to St Peter’s with UTO in the memo line by Sunday, December 1.

Giving to the UTO increased across the nation in 2018. The UTO gave an additional $200,000 in grants this year. Four of the grants supported projects in the Anglican Communion.

At St. Peter’s, the Fall Ingathering a year ago was $563.32. (Spring ingathering was $325.36 for a total of $888.68 for the two ingatherings in 2018. The comparative total in 2017 was $757.09.)

2. ECM Thanksgiving

Collection begins Nov 3 and ends Nov. 17.

The ECM collected $287.50 last year for a Thanksgiving meal for 5 families, adding 2 families in 2018.

$237.77 was spent for Thanksgiving food for 5 families. They exceeded their scope in 2018 by adding 2 families this year.

ECW Tea, Tues, Nov. 19, 3pm

This event will be held at the home of Cookie and Johnny Davis

Last year 18 ladies came to Cookie Davis’ home to celebrate Thanksgiving, feast and fellowship and to consider ideas for distributing ECW funds for the end of 2018. They have collected about $4,000 from the monthly Village Dinners. In addition they were looking ahead to plan for 2019.

Here is the story on last year’s event with photos.

Giving Tuesday is coming up on Dec. 3

#GivingTuesday is a global giving movement that has been built by individuals, families, organizations, businesses and communities in all 50 states and in countries around the world

We have two days for getting deals for us– Black Friday and Cyber Monday. On #GivingTuesday, we have a day for giving back. Giving Tuesday can us share what we are doing with the larger community.

Our goal last year was Giving Tuesday $1,200 and we collected $1,267.50. Thanks to all who contributed! We would like to shoot for $1,350 this year which is doable.

We are targeting the Village Harvest again in 2019 due to costs of the ministry. We are averaging $187 (average 10 months) or over $2,250 a year. Help us recover the cost and even add to our resources to do more.

* Your $10 donation would feed 6 people. Each would get 12 pounds of food or 72 pounds in total.

* Your $20 donation would feed 12 people. Each would received 12 pounds of food of 144 pounds in total.

…Read more about the Village Harvest and Giving Tuesday…

Online Courses for Advent and Christmas

A Christmas Carol, about the redemption of Ebeneezer Scrooge has many references to the Bible as well as Dickens’ life. We have the entire book in this course plus many ‘drop-down’ asides that cover the connections

The Messiah, A Christmas favorite, is an Oratorio. What is an Oratorio and how different is it from an opera ? The Christmas portion of the Messiah is only part 1 of the larger work. We will concentrate on its plot, it use of Bible readings as well as see and hear some great performance

Here is the link to both courses

Lectionary, Nov. 17 2019

I.Theme –   Emphasizing the Divine over the Secular

 "Pantocrator – Christ"  -El Greco, 1600

This portrait is of Christ as the ruler, the resurrected presence, who in God form, speaks to us. The scripture reading for today from Luke is a hard one, in which Jesus warns his disciples of hard tests ahead. This painting provides a vision of a savior who will sustain, and in the end, triumph over suffering and death. 

The lectionary readings (Proper 28) are here  or individually: 

Old Testament – Malachi 4:1-2a 
Psalm – Psalm 98 Page 727, 728 BCP 
Epistle –2 Thessalonians 3:6-13 
Gospel – Luke 21:5-19 

This week begins apocalyptic readings that will continue through Advent 1. The faithful are the targets, here. What to do in contemporary crises? Don’t panic, Don’t give up the work you have been doing. Praise God and relish in his power and majesty.  The tone of the readings coincide with the increasing darkness and shorter days in this season.   

The readings are to counter the problem of the delayed return of Christ. Paul expected the second coming of Jesus very soon, initially certainly in his lifetime. However as the event was delayed, some used Paul’s writing as abandononing his work.

The Old Testament reading of Malachi provides speeches in dialogue style, where the prophet scolds the priests and the congregation about various malpractices and against tired religious scepticism. This passage seems a conclusion of these speeches contrasting the fate of the evil doers with those of the obedient faithful, destruction for the first and healing for the second.  

The best is yet to come as shown in Psalm and the Gospel

A second theme is God’s power and magesty which will be the heart of next Sunday. This best seen in the Psalm This psalm is an eschatological hymn, culminating in shouts of praise at the coming of God, the ruler of the world and all creation to judge the world with justice and fairness. Only a new song can begin to describe the wonders of God’s power.

Just as 2 Thessalonians admonishes us not to grow tired in doing good, so Luke reminds us today to look at hardship and persecution as a chance to tell the gospel, the good news. Jesus tells us again: Do not be afraid! Not a single hair of our heads will be lost and standing firm will bring us through the trouble and to life.

The when and how of Christ’s second coming is not our concern. What is our concern is the faithfulness with which we pray, sing, tell and live love until he comes.   

…Read more about the lectionary…