News from the Congregation April 8, 2022
‘‘ ‘Seek the Welfare of the City Where I Have Sent You Into Exile’ ; ‘Going all in for Holy Week ’ ” | Holy Week at the Cathedral, Volunteer at CCC’s Sunday Soup Kitchen, Aid for Ukraine, Columbarium Access | Sunday Programs: 8:30am Genesis Bible Study (Zoom), 10:30am Worship Service - In-Person and Online, 8:00pm Compline | Weekday Programs: M-S Morning and Evening Prayer (Zoom), Wednesday: 7:30pm Romans Bible Study (Zoom)
Canon Lee
This past week, I was able to attend the second meeting of our Episcopal Futures cohort. As a reminder, the Congregation of Saint Saviour is in a cohort with St. Mary's Church, Manhattanville and Christ Church, Sparkill.
We had a rich and moving discussion about the Shalom of God -- what that means, where we have found it in our lives, and where we might find it in our communities. We read a passage from Jeremiah that was the basis of our discussion. I'd like to share a portion of the passage with you as food for thought as we enter this most holy week of the year (Jeremiah 29:4-7):
Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.
The newsletter will be on break next week. I hope you have a meaningful and transformative Holy Week.
A Message from the Wardens
Senior Warden, Marsha Ra, on "You must be all in or you aren’t in at all! Thoughts about Holy Week"
Over the past weekend it was delightful to be on retreat at Holy Cross Monastery with 12 members of the Congregation of Saint Saviour. Retreats are always refreshing. There is the timeless rhythm of the monks’ prayers; the simple, but delicious food; the quiet of the Guest house. Father Tom Pellaton presented information on Celtic Christianity, including prayers from the Iona Community of which he is a member. There were wonderful discussions as people shared information on what Lent had meant to them growing up. We listened to each other and learned, as we always do, from the experiences of each. Father Pellaton also gave us an art project where we were able to use the right side of our brains. A group took a three mile hike in the area. We had a lot of fun.
Brother Robert Sevensky preached at the Sunday morning Eucharist building on a phrase that epitomizes the Christian life: “You must be ALL In, or you aren’t in at all!” Holy Week can be seen as embodying this notion. Those who come to Easter Sunday without having participated in Lent, in the liturgy of Maundy Thursday and Good Friday may have a very pale experience of Easter.
For me, being “all in” means continually examining my life in the light of the Christian message. It also means being open to new ways of understanding and interpreting the faith. It means dealing with change with trust, hope and faith. I confess that I’m not altogether able to do that, but I do try. Over the years there have been so many changes at the Cathedral and in our life together. Bishops, deans and clergy come and go and adjustments must be made each time. Our membership also changes over time, New York being a city where people also come and go. Perhaps the changes that are most difficult are those that involve how we pray together, our worship. I have always managed to adjust. I might miss something for years that has been dropped, but I’ve always learned to love the new. I’m grateful for that.
When I first came to the church the Cathedral was using the 1928 prayer book which emphasized a penitential approach to the Eucharist. The confession, said each Sunday, included the words “and there is no health in us, miserable offenders.” There was a prayer of humble access before receiving Communion in which we said that “we are not worthy so much as to gather up the crumbs from under Thy table.” When the new liturgy was adopted in 1979, the Eucharist emphasized the community around the table, with no humble access expressed--something perhaps easier for Americans to digest. I was astonished at the number of people who left the church in a huff when the older prayer book was dropped. Of course most of it still exists in Rite I, but we don’t use it very often. I guess we don’t like to admit that we, at least as a species, let alone as individuals are, in fact, miserable offenders. I continue to say a prayer of humble access before I receive the Sacrament and I hope the church restores this prayer in some form some day.
Change has also touched how we observe Holy Week, which is crucial to my life of faith. It is a time to enter most intensely into the story of our Lord’s passion, death and resurrection. We live the days from Palm Sunday to Easter as though we are walking with Him. If at other times of the year I may take some of the story as myth filled with Truth, during Holy Week it simply become Truth. For 25 years Holy Week was celebrated at the Cathedral according to a pattern established by Dean James Parks Morton and Sub-Dean Canon Edward N. West. On Maundy Thursday the bishop washed the hands of everyone in the congregation (feet being considered too complicated and embarrassing, I think.) The fact that everyone was included was actually something quite new, I understand. Traditionally twelve men or lay leaders had their feet washed while everyone watched. When Dean Kowalski arrived, foot washing replaced hand washing and some people rebelled. They threatened to leave. Two women who supported hand washing started a campaign to have people go forward and offer their hands. I was personally uncomfortable with the foot washing, but went ahead with it anyway. It was, frankly a mixed experience for me. Sometimes I found it moving, sometimes creepy, but certainly very sincere and it means a lot to many people who participate in it. One member of our vestry shared at our last meeting that having her feet washed on Maundy Thursday was the most powerful experience she had ever had at the Cathedral. In 2019 Canon Malloy decided that everyone in the congregation would be invited to wash one another’s feet rather than leave it to the clergy. I was concerned, given the push-back the congregation expressed when we moved from hand washing a few years back. To my amazement, this new pattern was embraced by just about everyone in the congregation. I was wrong! There was no fuss at all. Have we, as a body changed? Have we grown up?
There were other large and small changes to what we did during Holy Week over the past 50 years. However, in 2020 we were faced with a huge and potentially devastating change: we lost our ability to gather together at all. For more than a year and a half connecting and praying over ZOOM, we dreamed of the day when we would return, when we would be once again the Body of Christ in the flesh. Yet when we returned it was to something almost totally new. Almost, I say, because the Eucharist remains, good preaching remains, glorious music remains. What was new was the collapsing of three morning services into one in a new space due to construction and with a streamlined liturgy. Some people who regularly worshipped at 9:00 a.m. were disappointed, but the truth is we were all together for the first time ever and I personally find this wonderful. I used to attend both the 9 and the 11 and knew people in both, but they didn’t know each other. Now we are all together and there is no excuse for us not to grow stronger as a community.
What will Holy Week be like in this new configuration, the Cathedral as construction site and COVID 19 still lurking in the background? I acted as a reporter and talked to Canon Malloy about what we can expect.
Palm Sunday will begin outside, as it did in 2019. We will gather at the Town Building and process around the close ending up in the Cathedral for the expected Palm Sunday liturgy. Maundy Thursday will include foot washing again, but the stripping of the altar will naturally be much less dramatic than when we were at the High Altar. Good Friday there will be distribution of the reserved Sacrament at 9:00 a.m. The noon liturgy, which will not include Communion, will take advantage of what we learned during the pandemic—that the steps of the Cathedral are an important bridge to the broader New York community. The service will begin inside, but will end with a procession to the steps where the beloved Kent Cross will be available for Veneration of the Cross by all present. It will remain on the steps until 3:00 p.m. so that anyone passing by may also see it and venerate it. The Easter Eve Vigil and Easter Sunday will be as they have been for many years: Glorious--just fewer people able to fit into the church.
I hope as many of you as possible can go “all in” during Holy Week. By entering into the Passion beginning on Palm Sunday and moving through Holy Week slowly, deliberately, with as much prayer as possible, the meaning of Easter will be deeper and will see you through the months ahead
NEWS FROM THE CATHEDRAL - Cathedral of Saint John the Divine (stjohndivine.org)
HOLY WEEK AT THE CATHEDRAL
Palm Sunday, April 10
10:30 AM — Palm Sunday Service (In-Person and Livestream)
Holy Tuesday, April 12
10:30 AM — Holy Tuesday Service of Collegiality With Renewal of Vows and Blessing of the Chrism (In-Person)
Maundy Thursday, April 14
7:30 PM — Maundy Thursday (In-Person and Livestream) Vigil will be kept in the presence of the Sacrament until midnight
Good Friday, April 15
9:30 AM — Good Friday Service of the Sacrament (In-Person)
12:00 PM — Good Friday Liturgy (In-Person and Livestream)
1:00 PM - 3:00 PM — Veneration of the Cross on Cathedral Steps (In-Person)
Holy Saturday, April 16
7:30 PM Easter Vigil (In-Person)
Easter Day, April 17
10:30 AM — Easter Day Service (In-Person and Livestream)
4:00 PM — Easter Day Evensong (In-Person)
Columbarium Visits - Please Schedule in Advance
Due to cleaning and ongoing construction at the Cathedral, some areas may occasionally be inaccessible. Anyone wishing to visit a loved one in the Columbarium is strongly encouraged to schedule their visit in advance via this Columbarium Visit Registration form.
CCC Clothing Closet Hoodies from the Heart Campaign
This Lenten season, the Cathedral Community Cares Clothing Closet is hosting a clothing drive of hoodies and sweatshirts to bring warmth and love to our neighbors in need Donations of new, unisex hoodies in all sizes can be dropped off at the CCC Offices on the main driveway south of the Cathedral. All monetary donations made to CCC during the Lent season will benefit the Hoodie drive as well. As always, the Cathedral is abundantly grateful for the support and generosity.
HUMANITARIAN RELIEF FOR UKRAINE
Episcopal Relief & Development is supporting Action by Churches Together (ACT Alliance) as it provides critical assistance to support people affected by violence in Ukraine. Working through ACT member Hungarian Interchurch Aid (HIA) and other local organizations, ACT Alliance is providing emergency assistance such as food, shelter, water and basic supplies to refugees and people displaced within Ukraine. Donations to Episcopal Relief & Development’s Ukraine Crisis Response Fund will help the organization and its partners continue to provide assistance to people displaced by the crisis in Ukraine.
NEWS FROM THE DIOCESE Home - Episcopal Diocese of New York (dioceseny.org)
An Invitation from the Committee to Elect a Bishop to Share Your Thoughts
The Committee to Elect a Bishop warmly invites and encourages lay and ordained members of the Diocese of New York to share their thoughts on the characteristics and qualities they want to see in the next Bishop Diocesan the major priorities of the Diocese of New York. All responses will ONLY be shared with members of the Committee to Elect a Bishop. Please click HERE to go to the Bishop Search Website and complete the simple online form.
NEWS FROM THE COMMUNITY
NEWS FROM THE VESTRY
GIVE/SERVE
Questions about Realm, the Congregation’s Online Hub for Giving, Volunteering, and Reaching Out to One Another
The Admin team would love to hear from you. Whether you need help making the shift to online donations, setting up your account, or just want to know what Realm can do for you, please contact Laura and Bob at this email address: info@saintsaviour.org
CCC - Volunteer Opportunity at Sunday Soup Kitchen
Join us at CCC's Sunday Soup Kitchen (8:30 am - 11:00 am) to help prepare and distribute food.. Please CLICK HERE to sign up! Shifts are open through the second week in June. Thank you so much for volunteering!
THIS SUNDAY, April 10, 2022
In-Person Worship at the Cathedral
10:00 am - Doors to Cathedral open.
Note: Procession for Palms will begin at Towne Hall, near the guard station inside the driveway.
10:30 am - Eucharist Service (apprx. 1 hour)
7:00 pm - Choral Compline
The Cathedral requires those entering its buildings to show proof of vaccination and to wear a mask.
You can also watch a Livestream of the Cathedral Worship Service
On Facebook: http://facebook.com/StJohnDivineNYC
On the Cathedral website: http://www.stjohndivine.org
WEEKLY CATHEDRAL CONGREGATION PROGRAMS
Monday-Saturday | 8:30 AM Morning Prayer | 5:30 PM Evening Prayer
Wednesday 7:30 pm Bible Study | Paul’s Letter to the Romans | Congregation Zoom Link (Returns April 20)
Sunday 8:30 am Bible Study | Genesis| Congregation Zoom Link (Canceled April 17)