News from the Congregation October 22, 2021
‘Making Outsiders Feel Like Insiders’; ‘Surprised by Joy’ | Volunteer at CCC’s Sunday Soup Kitchen, ‘Lamentation, Thanksgiving, Hope:’ Oct 31-Nov 2| 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, Wednesday: 7:30 pm Paul’s Letter to the Romans Bible Study (Zoom)
Canon Lee
I am so proud of how the Cathedral is making room, so that outsiders feel like insiders.
Global Mission Fair: Last Saturday, the Cathedral was the host of the Diocese of New York Global Mission Fair. I had the privilege of chairing the organizing committee, which was made up of other members of the Global Mission Commission. I had many favorite moments, including moderating a conversation on decolonizing global mission with our own Fr. Daniels and the Rev. Canon Ranjit Mathews from the Episcopal Church in Connecticut.
As the Dean often reminds us, the Cathedral's congregation is the entire Diocese of New York. It was wonderful to welcome so many from across our diocese to their Cathedral home.
New Community Korean Language Service: The New Community services under the leadership of Mother Kyrie Kim continue to gain momentum. This past Sunday, the service was in Korean, and there were 15 people in attendance. Future services will be in Japanese, Mandarin Chinese, Spanish, and even English.
Lamentation Thanksgiving Hope: As we approach All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day, the Cathedral will be offering a 3-day cycle of services to commemorate all those we have lost during the pandemic. Part of the commemoration will be the building of two Día de Muertos altars (ofrendas) in the Nave. Click here for the schedule of services.
A Message from the Wardens
Senior Warden, Marsha Ra, on "The mystery of joy"
I had a dear friend for many years who wanted to have faith but just couldn’t. He depended entirely on his brain, on logic. As he grew older he would call me and ask me detailed questions about verses in the Bible. He had favorites and even loved a few hymns. But he just couldn’t take the leap and believe. When he was dying, his wife, an ardent Presbyterian, was afraid that he would be damned if he wasn’t baptized. She talked him into it. He told the minister that he was being baptized to put his wife’s mind at ease, but that he didn’t really believe. It amazed me that the minister baptized him anyway. I’m glad that he did it for the wife’s sake. However, baptized or not baptized it has saddened me all these years that my friend never felt those moments of transcendence and sensed God’s presence. He never knew that grace-filled joy. I pray that I never lose the gift of faith that I never asked for, but was given anyway.
Last Sunday Father Daniels gave another challenging sermon which dealt with the impossibility of saying yes to God, and yet doing it anyway, never knowing what the cost will be. It also dealt with those mysterious moments when we almost instinctively know we are encountering God in an instant, those moments when we seem to sense and share in the glory of God. They don’t last long, but they are life-changing. Forgive me Father Daniels if I misrepresent your words. I listened to the sermon twice and it led my mind to consider those moments when joy overcomes me and I can’t really explain why. It was a moment like that many years ago that led me to become a believer and to the church. If a biologist tells me the joy comes from a surge of serotonin in my brain, I will answer that this may be so, but that I know who put that serotonin there, and I am grateful for those joy filled moments and the hint of the Divine presence they represent for me. Despite the aches and pains and reduced energy that come with getting old, joy stubbornly remains and continues to stop me in my tracks. C.S. Lewis wrote a book called “surprised by joy” and I think the title alone is enough to describe what happens when God’s grace breaks in. Sometimes it happens because of beauty, sometimes by noticing the light of a few stars reaching us from the distant past, and sometimes it is just inexplicable. The world is certainly full of trouble and evil. In my life I struggle to be a decent person and to love. Yet despite the pain, the evil and the struggle, I can’t ignore those moments of unearned joy and they fill me with gratitude.
On Saturday I went to the ballet, something I’ve been doing since the 1980’s. I can’t say I know much about ballet, but I go and I watch and listen and really enjoy it. Dancers come and go. The great ones speak to me in their movement and it’s always sad when they retire. But the other side is the joy and wonder when a young person appears and takes his or her place as a great dancer. Last Saturday a young man of 20, a soloist, danced to the music of Chopin partnered with an established principal. His dancing was overwhelming and took my breath away. I confess that he actually brought me to tears. For a few moments I was transfixed. As he leapt around the stage you could hear a collective gasp from the audience. I left the theater thankful for this young man, for the continuity his dancing represented, for the talent God gave him and the hard work that made it possible for him to lift up the hearts of over a thousand strangers. I couldn’t stop smiling. Joy!
On Sunday I worked in the soup kitchen for about an hour and a half -- washing down tables, then making 100 sandwiches while chatting away with the other laborers in the field. There is a joy in that kitchen as dozens of volunteers, under the watchful eye of Robert, rush around getting the meal ready to distribute. When I’m not chatting (if you know me it’s one of my weaknesses) I love to listen to the sound of the volunteers working. I remember when I used to stop and listen to the sound of people in the beauty parlor on a busy day—a moment away from everything in the world, in a cocoon where skilled professionals tend to women getting pampered for an hour or two. Although it is a luxury and might not please the Calvinists among us, the sound of the place always makes me smile. It feels so positive. That’s what the soup kitchen feels like on Sunday morning. God is in the sound of the activity.
After the kitchen work, I attended the 10:30 service, loved the music, listened carefully to the sermon and prepared to receive the Body of Christ. What struck me in this Sunday liturgy was the sound of silence. The beauty of the music, the power of the words, all surround moments of such profound silence that the presence of God seems to fill the nave. Do you notice that? After the service and a procession to bless the new pantry, I went to lunch with three other congregation members that I have known since the 1980s. Chris Scott was one of the small group of people who started and helped run the soup kitchen. He, Kristin Bergfeld, Manny Lampidis and I had lunch and shared memories. All three were celebrating birthdays. When we finished I was actually able to walk home which came as a lovely surprise. God is definitely good. Joy!
Wishing you many joy-filled moments!
NEWS FROM THE CATHEDRAL -
Dedication of the new Cathedral Community Cares Food Pantry
This past Sunday, immediately after the service, the clergy, acolytes, and congregation processed to the Town Building, which houses Cathedral Community Cares (CCC). The Dean spoke about the addition of a new food pantry to the CCC ministry, and the Sub Dean prayed a prayer of consecration. Thomas Perry, Director of Cathedral Community Cares, cut the ribbon, signaling the official opening of the new food pantry.
NEWS FROM THE DIOCESE
VESTRY MEETING NOTES
At the October Vestry meeting this past Tuesday, the Vestry voted unanimously to amend the Congregation's bylaws so that three Vestry members are elected for a term of three years, rather than four members. This means a Vestry of 9 Members, 2 Wardens, and the Vicar.
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 October. Thank you so much for volunteering!
THIS SUNDAY, October 24, 2021
In-Person Worship at the Cathedral
10:00 am - Doors to Cathedral open.
10:30 am - Eucharist Service (apprx. 1 hour)
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
After the Sunday Service (11:45ish AM) - Digital Coffee Half-Hour Congregation Zoom Link
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
Sunday 8:30 am Bible Study | Genesis Congregation Zoom Link