News from the Congregation November 5, 2021

Nov 5

Written By Steven Lee; Marsha Ra & Bob Deming

‘An Extraordinary Week at the Cathedral’; ‘Darkness and Light Are to You Both Alike’ | Volunteer at CCC’s Sunday Soup Kitchen, CCC Holiday Toy-Drive | Sunday Programs: 8:30 am Genesis Bible Study (Zoom), 10:30 am Worship Service - In-Person and Online, Virtual Coffee Hour |Weekday Programs: M-S Morning and Evening Prayer (Zoom), Wednesday: 7:30 pm Paul’s Letter to the Romans Bible Study (Zoom), Thursday: 7:30 YESS Bible Study (Zoom)

Canon Lee

I write to you from Holy Cross Monastery, where I am meeting with my spiritual director. It has been an extraordinary week at the Cathedral. The services for the "Fall Triduum" of the Eve of All Saints, All Saints, and All Souls, were profoundly moving. Among my favorite moments: singing the Taizé hymn on the steps of the Cathedral on Sunday evening, and then on Tuesday evening, hearing the wisdom of the poet Thomas Lynch. What a privilege to work and worship here.

A Message from the Wardens

Senior Warden, Marsha Ra, on Darkness and Light:

Sunrise at Holy Cross Monastery - Fall 2021 Retreat

If I say “Surely the darkness will cover me, *
and the light around me turn to night,”

Darkness is not dark to you; the night is as bright as the day; *
darkness and light to you are both alike. Psalm 139, 10-11

Darkness has been the theme of the past week, and it will become ever darker as we move forward in time. This Sunday Daylight Savings Time ends and we will be plunged into physical darkness. The days will become shorter and shorter until it begins to turn around at the end of December. For people who suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder or SAD this is the hardest time of year. For me the contrast is especially sharp between the beauty of October and the dreariness of November. In October, the bright yellow and gold of the leaves dance against the impossibly deep sapphire blue of the sky. Soon the colors will become muted shades of gray and brown and then the leaves will disappear entirely and gray will prevail. Darkness has also characterized our worship, as we observed the feasts of All-Saints and All Souls. This year the three days have been especially poignant as we participated in powerful Cathedral observances of all that we have lost to the pandemic, observances which ended in a frank acceptance of what was lost, but also a clear call for hope in the beauty of our memories.

Last weekend a group of congregation members spent time at Holy Cross Monastery on retreat. It was wonderful to be back at Holy Cross and to enjoy the warm hospitality of the monks. Praying with them and hearing the wisdom and insight of our retreat leader, the Rev. Canon Titus Presler, was as rich and deepening an experience as one could hope for. Yet I couldn’t help but be aware of how many of the monk’s stalls were empty last week. During the pandemic five of the monks had died. I could see them in my mind’s eye along with others who have left us over the years. Darkness and a sense of loss follow us through life, and our awareness of this is especially acute as the days grow shorter and colder.

We humans have developed ways of dealing with the lessening of light. In the secular world that surrounds us, it will soon be a time of feverish activity—a time to deny that we are in a period of darkness. Last year COVID made it impossible to do what we usually do: shop and spend too much, party too much, eat and drink too much. This year I suspect that much of New York City will go back to a period of wild indulgence in the attempt to deny the fading of the light, the ever-presence of loss and death.

But what of life in the church? The feast of all saints and all souls has ended, but throughout November the importance of remembrance will continue. Despite scaffolding erected all through the Cathedral for necessary repair work, the altars, or “ofrendas,” have transformed the atmosphere in the nave. Created by a brilliant Mexican artist, Sebastian Gamez, these two altars commemorate the Day of the Dead with glorious, feverish color—reds and golds, oranges and purples. While they include raw depictions of death—skulls and skeletons—they also contain so many objects of remembrance. The altars will remain in the Cathedral until Advent at the end of the month. Why not take time to study them and to leave your own offerings and mementos of loved ones who have died?

NEWS FROM THE CATHEDRAL - Cathedral of Saint John the Divine (stjohndivine.org)

CCC - Holiday Toy Drive

Even before the pandemic, hundreds of thousands of hard-working, low-income New Yorkers were teetering on the verge of homelessness and hunger. The economic devastation of the past 18 months has made things even a bit more dire… and the holiday season will be no exception.

Behind the sobering numbers that the news has been speaking about, people are terrified on where their next meal, coat or holiday items will come from especially the moms and dads in our shelter systems and the 3 tier low-income families.

Cathedral Community Cares knows the best way to help these families, to help put a smile on their faces and most importantly~~smile on the faces of their children.

To help these families, CCC is reaching out to you to see if you can help us by donating new assorted toys or gift cards in $25 increments that these families can use during the holiday season. Last year your generosity helped us support over 55 families and 113 children!

Remember NO DONATION IS TOO SMALL and anything you can do to help us help these families would be an amazing blessing.

All donations need to be at the Cathedral Community Cares office by November 30, 2021, so we can begin the sorting and fill in process.

NEWS FROM THE DIOCESE Home - Episcopal Diocese of New York (dioceseny.org)

NEWS FROM THE VESTRY

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 first week in December. Thank you so much for volunteering!