The Eagle - March 2006

To approach the beginning of Lent is to stand at a door which is often more easily left unopened. It is a door which, once opened, leaves us in a confrontation with our imperfection and our brokenness. It is a door which shows us our humanity in some very unflattering poses...perhaps nowhere more clearly than in the Litany for Ash Wednesday (Book of Common Prayer, pp. 267-268). As we say the words which confess, "our self-indulgent appetites and ways...our anger at our own frustration and our envy of those more fortunate than ourselves... our intemperate love of worldly goods and comforts... our negligence in prayer and worship and our failure to commend the faith that is in us...", we confront a reality about human nature which we cannot attribute to everyone else but ourselves. And I, for one, find them difficult words to utter.

Yet, they are important words; for they, and the reality they confess, open yet a second door...it is the door which allows the grace of God to give us the strength and the means to attempt to heal our brokenness.

God cannot give strength to those who do not need it. God cannot heal those who have no illness. God cannot mend lives which are not broken. God cannot enter a life around which has been erected an impenetrable wall of self-reliance, perfection, and illusion.

It is my prayer this Lent that each of us will find courage to open that first door in order that God may enter through the second.

For remember, it is that same broken and imperfect humanity, revealed behind the first door and which we are called to seek to amend throughout the forty days of Lent, which is redeemed and raised to new life as the trumpets herald the Easter sunrise.

Rector’s Report ~ There follows the text of the Rector’s Annual Address to the Vestry on the State of the Parish. This was delivered at the Vestry Meeting on February 19, 2006.

This opportunity to offer to the Vestry a glimpse of my sense of the life of Saint John’s once a year is a new experience…having begun only last year…I still find it a bit alien.

Do I really have the wisdom to articulate the “state” of anything so complex as a community of 200-225 individuals…each with his or her own reasons for being here? I don’t really know, for I find, as life passes, I am increasingly struck by its mystery and the layer upon layer of reality that pervades the journey each of us makes.

I believe that Saint John’s is at the most pivotal moment in her journey since our arrival here some nineteen years ago.

It is not so much the nature of the institution to which I refer, but the nature of the world within which the institution functions, that leads me to feel this way.

Saint John’s is healthy. Services are well-attended. Various Parish organizations…the Choir, Choristers, Altar Guild, Flower Committee, Acolytes, and so forth are well populated and doing their jobs in a most wonderful manner…each contributing to the richness of the life here. Attendance at worship services is steady…averaging approximately 119 each week…with 7018 individuals involved in services over this last year…marriages, funerals, home communions for shut-ins, hospital visits, and baptisms occurring in good order and as needed…and, in general, amidst a sea of turbulence within the broader Church, a steadiness for which we ought be justifiably grateful. Our buildings are in good repair and being kept that way by avoiding the easy trap of delaying regular maintenance in order to keep operating costs at a minimum. The Parish’s outreach to the world around us, through the work of the Outreach Committee is ongoing and generous, and the musical life of our community, as we have pledged in our Mission Statement, continues to expand through the truly stunning efforts of our Music Director, Richard Busch, in overseeing the Concert Series, the Saint John’s Chorale, and the newly created evening “Salons.”

Financially, we are moving ahead with the Five-Year Plan (now in its forth year) to insure that giving is spread more broadly across the shoulders of all involved, and that concepts of Christian stewardship are being propounded and repeatedly brought to members’ attention and, hopefully, prayerful consideration. We have made solid strides…but we still have a considerable way to go. The arrival of Mary Schinke as Stewardship Chair this year is a major step in insuring the success of this “new manner” of doing business. There is simply no doubt, in my mind, that the members of this Parish, if they will to do, can comfortably allow it to keep offering the quality of worship, outreach, and education it now offers within the context of a fully-funded operating budget. This is a community of considerable privilege and substance. The needs of Saint John’s are modest and carefully controlled and need not represent any great strain upon her members to support…if they will respond to Mary’s message and an appreciation of the gift that we have here in this one small Parish Church.

Yet, the world around us seems to me to be bringing increasing pressure to bear on our ability to maintain this most gracious state.

I see the biggest challenge in our life as a Parish, and as a Vestry, to be that of figuring out how to find the time to be a community…a community of faith. It is the Vestry’s responsibility to be those who model for others how this can be done in a world that, increasingly, in the words of my grandmother, “makes us feel like we are being pecked to death by a flock of geese.”

The demands upon each of us in the world of 2006 are astonishing. I look at the young families in our midst, seeking to balance two jobs and two or three children and sometimes homes two hours apart, and wonder over and over, “How in heaven’s name do they do everything that they do?”

And yet, if we do not set priorities to insure that the Church is more than just a place we are to be from 10.00-11.00am on Sundays…a place in which something is done that is a part of our “schedule”…I fear that it becomes, increasingly, simply one of the myriad providers who give something to us and from which we must move quickly on to the next thing that is to provide whatever it provides.

How to find time to sing in the choir or attend the Adult Forum (which, in the case of this Parish, possessing the services of both Rowan Greer and Randall Balmer, two of the leading lights in the academic world of the Church, probably is one of the most prestigious Forums in the county)…or serve on a committee…or attend Evensong…or a concert…or teach Sunday School…or help with the Youth Group…or step up to head the, hopefully soon to be formed, Adult Education effort or the Parish Life Committee…or assist Dave Poole at “Loaves and Fishes”…or organize a potluck supper…or attend the services of Holy Week…or come to the Chapel to pray…or attend the Wednesday Eucharist?

I do not have the answer to these questions, and I find I ponder them more almost than any other issue that I confront within our life today.

What I do know is that, without the sense of community such prioritizing engenders, the Church, along with those institutions that have historically stabilized society…given it a vision of something deeper than the demands and promises of the world around it…will be marginalized into the role of “service provider” and lose it power to be an agent for change and justice and peace and community.

This, I perceive, as the most pressing challenge this body faces…not just this year…but into the foreseeable future. It is the one on which I believe the leadership of Saint John’s should begin to focus its attention in a consistent and long-term manner.

I am not suggesting that we try to reclaim a past that is gone forever…the world changes…and the Parish life of my childhood in a wee village in Southern Ohio is gone. What I do not believe we want the Church to lose, however, and what I would contend should not change, is its historical hallmarks of community and hospitality.

Our challenge here at Saint John’s is to come to understand how this can be affected in the beginning of a new millennium in the language and life of new generations with new needs and new ways of seeing life.

Each of us, in our own turn…and as a group, must put our minds to this issue, for, as I noted, I think much hangs upon its outcome.

Saint John’s is a remarkable place…unique in my experience of 61 years as a Christian. No one could ask to serve with finer Parish leaders…nor to serve a finer Parish. I am eternally grateful for the opportunity.

Evensong will be sung on Sunday, March 19^th

for the Third Sunday in Lent

as well as Palm Sunday, April 9^th.

John Stainer’s masterpiece, “The Crucifixion,”

will be offered in its entirety as the anthem

at the Evensong of Palm Sunday.

We hope that many members of the Parish

will take this opportunity at 5.00pm on each date

to close their Sabbath in the midst of this

ancient service of music and prayer.

Loaves & Fishes ~ Our day for Loaves & Fishes is Friday, March 17^th. Please sign up for cooking food or delivering it and serving it at Loaves & Fishes. The sign-up sheet is in the Parish House. Please have the pans of food delivered by Noon on the 17^th. Please note: we are needful of volunteers to help with serving on that day. It will not take a great deal of your time, but it will be a tremendous help at the Soup Kitchen.

Mite Box Sunday ~ On Easter Sunday, April 16^th, during the 10.00 am service, the children of the Church School are invited to be in Church with their families as part of the Easter Liturgy. They will present their Mite Boxes during this service. They will receive these boxes beginning the first Sunday in Lent and will put an offering in them during the course of this season. The gifts will be collected and sent to an organization chosen by the children that assists those in need. It is a wonderful thing which the young people do in this regard, and we urge all of you to congratulate them on their efforts.

Services of Holy Week

Maundy Thursday ~ On Maundy Thursday, the service will take place with Communion and the Stripping of the Altar at 7:30 p.m. Following the Service, the Vigil before the Reserved Sacrament will begin at 10:00 p.m. As you recall from previous years’ discussion of the Vigil, the Tabernacle which stands in the corner of the Chapel contains the Reserved Sacrament…communion hosts consecrated at previous Eucharists and used with each Eucharist that takes place at Saint John’s in a literal and figurative commingling of all that has gone before with all that is happening immediately. The presence of this Sacrament, the body of Christ, is marked by the light which burns over the Tabernacle signifying the presence of Christ in our midst. This light is known as the Light of the Presence. During the hours of this particular night, which remembers our Lord’s betrayal, trial, and eventual murder, it is customary in many places throughout the Church for members of the congregation to keep watch in the Chapel by the Reserved Sacrament. This watching with Christ is, for many, a most powerful moment in the course of the year…one of silence, reflection, and prayer on the oft times painful realities of the human journey. The idea is that members of the Parish sign up for one hour “shifts” of keeping watch in the Chapel. It is perfectly reasonable to have more than one person in the Chapel at any one time, and we hope a response of such a magnitude might well be the case. Feel free to sign-up on the sheet provided at Sunday Services, return the form attached on the pink sheet (by mail or in the offering plate), call the Office, or simply to come to the Chapel during the hours of the Vigil. If you have any questions about this please feel free to give the Rector a call (868-2527).

Good Friday Services ~ On Good Friday, the service at Saint John’s will take place from Noon until 1:30. We will be using the liturgy from the Prayer Book for Good Friday allowing Communion to be received from the Reserved Sacrament. The Choir will be present for this service. We hope that you will mark your calendar now to be at Saint John’s for the full 1 l/2 hours from Noon until 1:30 p.m. to mark the hours of our Lord’s passion and death and to share with him in this time of anguish.

Easter Eve ~ There will be traditional Easter Vigils at Saint Michael’s Church, Litchfield at 7.30 p.m. and at Trinity Church, Torrington at 8.00pm. All members of Saint John’s are most cordially invited to either of these Services.

Easter Day Services ~ On Easter Day, services at Saint John’s will take place at 8:00 and 10:00 a.m. At 8:00 a.m. the Eucharist will be celebrated with hymns and, at 10:00 a.m., the Eucharist will be a most festive celebration with music and an egg hunt afterwards. Please note that, at the 10:00 a.m. service, families are invited to bring their children. There is no Church School that day. There will be some snacks and juice set out in the Undercroft in case parents have a child who becomes very unhappy, and they would like to take them down stairs for a “break” for a few moments. Otherwise, it is our belief, on this day of days, the entire Parish Family ought to be together to mark the greatest gift we know as Christians.

6– 9^th Grade Group ~ This group has been meeting with Bett Alter on a regular basis during this year and seems to be developing into a sound and worthwhile undertaking on the part of Saint John’s. During March this group will meet on the 5^th and the 26^th at 10.00am in the Parish House Library. Refreshments will be served. The topic for the meeting of the 5^th will be: The Shared Journey - Peers, Heroes and Mentors...WHO influences WHO you are?

Adult Forum for Lent ~ During Lent, the Adult Forum will be lead by Dr. Randall Balmer. You have heard of Dr. Balmer and his involvement with the life of Saint John’s in previous Eagles and during Church the past week or two. We hope very much that you will not fail to take advantage of this remarkable gift he is giving us. Full details of the gatherings are at www.stjohnswashington.org on the bottom of the Christian Education page under the heading “Adult Forum Scxhedule – Lent 2006”

Thank You from Becky O’Brien ~ Becky O’Brien, the senior at Shepaug High School, who, for her Senior Project, was collecting items to support the work of the Susan B. Anthony Project has written a note offering us her gratitude for all we did to help her efforts. It follows:

Vestry News ~ At its regularly scheduled meeting of February 19, 2006 the following received attention:

A formal program instituting new members, confirming the role of current members, and swearing in the Wardens took place in the context of a beautiful lunch at Steven and Mary Schinke’s home.

Winston Fowlkes, Treasurer, gave a brief report on the financial state of the Parish. The Rector offered his Annual State of the Parish Address (reproduced elsewhere in this Eagle), Ann Burton, Parish Historian, gave a most informative talk on her work as Historian and Archivist of the Parish and records she has so beautifully preserved here, and a wonderful time was had by all.

Youth Group News ~ The Super Bowl Sunday Grinder Sale was a big success. Thanks to all who helped sell and make grinders: Reid Sorell, Tabor, Alana, and Aiden Crumrine, John Gillespie, Tucker and Tyler Deane-Krantz, Linnea and Mrs. Morris and Dr. Sorell who shopped; and thanks to all who bought grinders.

February 25 was the Youth Group Ski/Snowboard Trip to Mohawk. Tabor, Aiden and Linden Crumrine, Reid Sorell and Ally and Peter Hill all had a great time. Thanks to Mrs. Hill for the hot chocolate and goodies to warm up with after being on the slopes.

Look for a bowling outing and a reunion of the West Virginia kids after Spring Vacation.

Outreach Committee News ~ The Outreach Committee has recently had an intriguing presentation from Family Service of Greater Waterbury and plans to respond with a visit to this social service agency that focuses particularly on families, employment opportunities for adults, and children at risk. The visit is scheduled for Thursday morning, March 9th, at 10 a.m. The Outreach Committee would welcome anyone else interested to come along. Call or e-mail Ted Bent 868 0577 or (tedbent@earthlink.net) who will arrange for transportation. To find out more about this organization, log onto its website at www.familyservicegw.org

Music Notes ~ My article this month is doomed to be a rather prosaic one, I'm afraid; full of announcements. Although they may tell of excitements to come, announcements in and of themselves tend to be pretty dusty going - lots of names and dates and times getting entangled with one another and generally leaving the reader (especially if the reader is yours truly) utterly fogged as to exactly who is going to be doing what, where, and when. But I'll try to imbue the following with as much dash and glamour as I possibly can.

On Friday, the 31st of March, another in our series of 'Salon' Concerts will be given in the Parish Hall, featuring Collegium Musicum, the premiere choral group of the Taft School, under the direction of Bruce Fifer. Collegium will be singing music from their recently completed tour of Spain (including music of the Spanish Renaissance, and traditional American tunes and hymns). As usual with these events, a light supper with suitable libations will be served at 6.30pm, with the musical portion of the evening beginning at approximately 7.15pm. These Salon Concerts have proved enormously popular in the past, which means that reservations for this 'limited seating' event are a must. Further details can be found on the enclosed green sheet.

Two days later, on Sunday, the 2nd of April, Mr. Michael Bawtree will present an organ recital in the Church as the third program in the Saint John's Concert Series. Michael, coming to us all the way from Glasgow, is already known to many of you as possessing two of the hands in the Bawtree/Busch Piano Duo. This concert will give you the opportunity to hear his superb artistry as an organist. His program will include works by J. S. Bach and contemporary composers James MacMillan and Judith Bingham, and will close with Edward Elgar's noble Sonata in G Major, which I'm convinced will sound particularly glorious on our magnificent Wicks instrument.

On the liturgical side of things, there are two upcoming Evensongs that I'd like to bring to your notice. On Sunday, March 19th at 5.00pm, the choir will sing Evensong for the Lenten Season. The music for the evening canticles at this service will be George Dyson's sensitive and beautifully tender setting in F Major, and the anthem will be My Days Are Like An Evening Shadow, by contemporary composer Jean Berger. On Sunday, April 9th at 5.00pm (Palm/Passion Sunday), Evensong will include, as an extended anthem, The Crucifixion, 19th century composer John Stainer's beloved meditation on the Passion of our Lord. I can't think of a better way to prepare for the most profound week of the liturgical year.

And there you have it. Prosaicism Unlimited, with apologies. But at least I have been prudent enough to spare you the first draft of this article, in which I had had the idiotic idea of trying to cast the whole thing in the style of Jane Austen. After all, so I reasoned, she would have been able to knock together a list of dates and times, keeping the reader chuckling and charmed all the way, with no problem at all. But I was soon shown the error of my plan. Unless you happen to be Jane Austen, a feat I wouldn't even attempt, you're sure to come a cropper. Whilst she was capable of sailing effortlessly through sentence after sentence of the most hugely complicated sort, I, on the other hand, soon after setting forth into such sentences, generally find I've unaccountably misplaced something - like the verb! - and simply can't find my way out again on the other end.

But do, please, make special note of all the above goings on. March and April will be particularly eventful months. Not to mention May and June!