News from the Congregation January 7, 2022
‘Columbarium Staffing’; ‘The Congregation and the Cathedral ’ | All In-Person Worship Goes Online, Dean’s Letter on 1/12 Zoom Meeting with Reverend Malcolm Byrd, Ralph Adams Cram Society Meeting, Memorial Tribute for Desmond Tutu Hybrid Service, Volunteer at CCC’s Sunday Soup Kitchen, Serve on the Vestry | Sunday Programs: 8:30 am Genesis Bible Study (Zoom), 10:30 am Worship Service - Online |Weekday Programs: M-S Morning and Evening Prayer (Zoom), Wednesday: 7:30 pm Romans Bible Study (Zoom)
I am pleased to announce that Paul McAllister has been hired as the part-time Administrative Assistant to the Columbarium. Paul is a graduate of the Episcopal Divinity School, where he received the Richard D. McCall Award for Excellence in Liturgy. He is currently the part-time parish administrator of St. Matthew's and St. Timothy's Episcopal Church. He will work 15 hours per week for the Cathedral.
I've asked Paul to introduce himself to our community:
My first memories of church are filled with joy. My friends and I were altar boys who tried desperately to make each other, or the rector, laugh during a service. I have always associated church with fun. Having worked in several parishes in Boston, Cambridge, New York, and the US Military, I find it to be just about the most fulfilling work I have ever done. Being able to unite joy and fulfillment is just about the greatest blessing I can imagine. I hope we all get to experience both of those things in daily life.
Paul joins a strong Columbarium team. I have asked Adrienne Laws, a long-time member of the Cathedral staff, to be the team's overall coordinator. Adrienne will continue to handle sales in the new limestone section, as well as support prior sales in the marble section. Roxane Orgill, a professional archivist, manages the Columbarium's file digitization and electronic database projects. Roxane will leave us when these projects are finished in a few months, but she will return periodically to process, upload, and store new files. AE Freisler, a member of the Cathedral's finance office, provides the Columbarium a few hours a week to handle several technical details.
A Columbarium requires many different skills: pastoral care for a grieving family, lack of squeamishness in handling human remains, archival competence, sales and marketing savvy, financial ability. No one person can do it all.
The apostle Paul makes the same point at the end of 1 Corinthians 12:
Indeed, the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot would say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear would say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole body were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. (1 Corinthians 12:14-18)
What is true about a body (and a Columbarium) is true about a church. No one person can do it all. In our community, we are so blessed to have talented members who play different roles for the church. The latest example comes this week, as Episcopal Relief and Development announced that one of our own, Putney Cloos, has been appointed to its Board of Directors.
A Message from the Wardens
Junior Warden Bob Deming on his final thoughts:
I have three more reflections. I am not counting down: I am just making clear reality. On February 6th there are elections for Vestry members at the Annual Meeting, and there will be a new Junior Warden.
My choice of topic is the relationship between the Congregation and the Cathedral. I have been on the Vestry for 7 years, and this topic comes up periodically. Can I add anything to what people already know? I think I can. This reflection is the setup; the reflections that are to be posted on January 21st and February 4th are the follow through.
I am a member of the Congregation and I love the Cathedral. My loyalty is to both, but if I have to choose a side, I go with the Congregation. There are two reasons.
First, the Congregation is a small community within a large establishment. When I started in the late 1980s as a regular attendee of the Cathedral, I was attracted to the 9 AM Sunday Service. It met in St. James Chapel. Attendance of that 9 AM service was about 60, and I got to know many of the congregants. I continue to exchange Christmas cards with two who have since left the Cathedral.
Second, in comparison to the Cathedral’s big challenges, the Congregation has minor issues. Everyday life generally consists of the mundane, and that is why I am home with the issues that tend to crop up in the Congregation.
In the second and third reflections, I will seek to boost the Congregation and its relationship with the Cathedral. I will piggyback on the perspective of the author Jonathan Haidt, and his metaphor of the elephant and the rider.
NEWS FROM THE CATHEDRAL - Cathedral of Saint John the Divine (stjohndivine.org)
Dean’s Letter on 1/12 Zoom Meeting with Reverend Malcolm Byrd
I hope that you had a joyous and healthy holiday celebration. I’m writing to invite you to a Zoom meeting we are hosting on Wednesday, January 12th at noon. In addition to sharing important updates on the Cathedral’s programs and priorities, I will be joined by Reverend Malcolm Byrd, Pastor, Mother AME Zion Church.
In 1956, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his sermon “The Death of Evil upon the Seashore” at the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine in an ecumenical program commemorating the second anniversary of the Supreme Court’s school desegregation decision in Brown v. Board of Education. Thousands of people attended this event. King’s sermon likened the plight of African-Americans during segregation to that of the Israelites in Egypt until the Supreme Court opened the Red Sea of justice in a landmark decision. Even as we remember racial justice triumphs of the past, we know the work is not finished. Join the Cathedral in a conversation with the Reverend Malcolm Byrd, Pastor of Mother AME Zion Church in Harlem, NY to learn how we can recommit ourselves today and every day to work for racial justice, foster unity, and champion human dignity.
When? Wednesday, January 12, 12:00-12:45 p.m. (EST)
How? A Zoom link will be shared once you RSVP
RSVP: please RSVP by emailing jlaufer@stjohndivine.org
Ralph Adam Crams Society - Zoom Thank You with Dean Daniel - 11/19/22
Have you included the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in your estate plans? If so, you are a member of the Ralph Adams Cram Society! We would like to thank you by inviting you to a special virtual event for Cram Society members hosted by the Rt. Rev. Clifton Daniel III, Dean of the Cathedral, on Wednesday, January 19, 2022, at noon. Named for the Cathedral’s visionary architect, the Ralph Adams Cram Society recognizes generous individuals who are building the Cathedral’s future by including it in their estate plans. From the Cathedral’s beginning, bequest gifts have played a critical role in helping the Cathedral to nourish bodies and souls. We will be joined by Cathedral expert Dana Settles who will provide a fascinating glimpse into those Gilded Age New York social and business titans who brought Cram’s vision to reality – a tradition you have continued in this day! Please respond to Priscilla Bayley by January 14th at pbayley@stjohndivine.org. A link to the Zoom address will be provided upon response.
Archbishop Desmond Tutu Memorial Tribute 2/13 - Hybrid Service.
Join the Cathedral and the global community on Sunday, February 13 at 4:00 PM for a memorial in tribute to The Most Reverend Desmond Tutu, Archbishop Emeritus of Cape Town, anti-apartheid activist, theologian, rights advocate, and humanitarian (1931-2021). Joined by The Most Reverend Michael Curry, Presiding Bishop of The Episcopal Church, The Right Reverend Andrew Dietsche, Bishop of the Diocese of New York, and The Right Reverend Clifton Daniel, Dean of the Cathedral, this hybrid memorial service will celebrate Archbishop Tutu’s legacy and prophetic voice for justice.
Cathedral Closings — All GROUP IN-PERSON activities are temporarily suspended or have gone online.
Out of an abundance of caution, and following guidance from New York City and federal health experts, this year’s New Year’s Eve Concert for Peace has been rethought, and will be livestreamed from the Nave without an audience. No tickets will be needed to livestream the performance, which will be posted on our website, Facebook, and YouTube channel.
To further safeguard the health of our wider New York City community, all in-person events are suspended for the month of January, including:
The Cathedral’s weekday 12:15 pm Holy Eucharist services.
The Sunday afternoon 2:00 PM New Community services.
All in-person concerts, events and gatherings, including Great Music in a Great Space, outdoor groups using spaces on the Close, and group tours.
The Sunday morning 10:30 AM services will be a service of Ante-Communion, livestreamed from the Cathedral, but absent a congregation.
ADULT BAPTISM AND CONFIRMATION CLASS
Adults who are interested in Baptism or Confirmation at the Easter Vigil 2022 should contact the Vicar. The class will begin in the New Year.
NEWS FROM THE DIOCESE Home - Episcopal Diocese of New York (dioceseny.org)
NEWS FROM THE VESTRY
* NOTICE OF ANNUAL MEETING *
The Annual Meeting of the Congregation of Saint Saviour will be held on Sunday, February 6, 2022 after the 10:30 AM service. At the Annual Meeting, vestry elections will be held.
The Congregation’s vestry is made up of twelve people which includes the Vicar. New members are elected each year for up to a three-year term, and two wardens lead the vestry, and each serves a staggered two-year term.
What does the vestry do? Since the Cathedral has a Board of Trustees responsible for many of the things that vestries of parish churches deal with—namely all matters related to the building—our vestry is in the enviable position to deal primarily with issues related to building community and encouraging spiritual growth. The vestry therefore has a special charge to offer welcome to potential new members and visitors alike. The vestry also manages the congregation’s assets—primarily the money collected through our stewardship program. To serve on the vestry:
• You must be a baptized Christian and a member in good standing of the Congregation for at least one year prior to the election.
• To be a warden you must be a confirmed Episcopalian and you must have served as a member of the vestry in the past.
• You must be able to regularly attend vestry meetings. Vestry meetings are held online in the evening of the third Tuesday of every month, unless otherwise noted. The meetings in 2022 will be on January 18th; February 15th; March 15th; April 19th; May 24th; June 21st; September 20th; October 18th; November 15th; and December 20th.
• Each vestry member also serves on at least one subcommittee, and these meetings take place regularly throughout the year.
Four vestry positions (one for a three-year term, two for a two-year term, and one for a one-year term) and one warden position for a two-year term are up for election at the Annual Meeting in February 2022.
If you are interested in serving on the vestry, please contact the chair of the Nominations Committee, Sonia Omulepu by January 7, 2022.
GIVE/SERVE
Questions about Realm
Christopher Clowdus and Neil Reilly invite your questions about Realm, the Congregation's giving database, at this email address: stewardship@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 and to staff Saint Saviour's Table. Please CLICK HERE to sign up! Shifts are open through the third week in February. Thank you so much for volunteering!
THIS SUNDAY, January 9, 2021
In-Person Worship at the Cathedral has been canceled. Instead, there will be a livestream, online Ante-Communion “Service of the Word.”
Online Ante-Communion Service - 10:30 am
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 Jan 5)
Sunday 8:30 am Bible Study | Genesis| Congregation Zoom Link