Church

Happy New Year 2017!

Lindsey

It was wonderful to start off 2017 at church! In place of our regular service (sermon and Eucharist) we did “Christmas Lessons and Carols with Holy Communion.” I have always loved Christmas songs, but my appreciation for Christmas hymns has grown over the past few years. During the offertory, our choir sang the “Sans Day Carol,” arranged by John Rutter. It is a lovely hymn that directly connects Christmas with Easter, and while I have listened to this song many times (I have the album), there’s always something special about hearing hymns in the context of a service, and followed by Holy Communion.

Now the holly bears a berry as white as the milk,
And Mary bore Jesus, who was wrapped up in silk:
And Mary bore Jesus Christ our Saviour for to be,
And the first tree in the greenwood, it was the holly!

Now the holly bears a berry as green as the grass,
And Mary bore Jesus, who died on the cross:
And Mary bore Jesus Christ our Saviour for to be,
And the first tree in the greenwood, it was the holly!

Now the holly bears a berry as black as the coal,
And Mary bore Jesus, who died for us all:
And Mary bore Jesus Christ our Saviour for to be,
And the first tree in the greenwood, it was the holly!

Now the holly bears a berry, as blood is it red,
Then trust we our Saviour, who rose from the dead:
And Mary bore Jesus Christ our Saviour for to be,
And the first tree in the greenwood, it was the holly!

A holy Lent begins with humility

Lindsey

The Very Rev. Samuel G. Candler, the dean of my church, had some wonderful pre-Ash Wednesday thoughts that I wanted to share:

A holy Lent begins with humility, which is a deep word. The word “humility,” comes from the Latin word, “humus,” which means, of course, “organic earth,” or “dirt.” I think humus is actually “good dirt.” For Christians, to be humble does not mean getting stepped on like a doormat; it means being “down to earth” like good and honest soil. Humility means being real, being authentic about who we are, not thinking more about ourselves than what we really are. Humility means being the fertile soil which allows great things to grow. (Read the full post on Dean Candler’s blog.)

Also, for those who can handle a Lenten laugh, this is pretty hilarious.  I’m going to participate this year! I figure at the very least it will be educational:

Salty

Lindsey
The three great church fathers, Saints Gregory, John Chrysostom, and Basil, lived in the fourth century and advocated the doctrine of the Trinity. Each hierarch bears an omophorion, a white stole decorated with crosses that Orthodox bishops wore to signify their spiritual authority. Icon of the three hierarchs, probably Thessaloniki, first half of 14th century, tempera and gold on wood, Athens, Byzantine and Christian Museum
The three great church fathers, Saints Gregory, John Chrysostom, and Basil, lived in the fourth century and advocated the doctrine of the Trinity.
Icon of the three hierarchs, probably Thessaloniki, first half of 14th century, tempera and gold on wood, Athens, Byzantine and Christian Museum

Last weekend my mom and I took a very impromptu trip to Washington, DC. We had two goals: see the Heaven and Earth exhibit at the National Gallery of Art and attend Sunday morning service at the Washington National Cathedral. We had a great time, and even snuck in a show at Shakespeare Theatre Company!

The sermon was on Matthew 5:13-20 – “you are the salt of the earth.” It’s a verse that always confused me, but Dean Hall’s sermon cleared that up. As Christians, we are the flavor of the earth. We are valuable and hardy. It’s really worth it to watch the sermon – it starts at the 32 minute mark (just before that, you can actually see me in the bottom left corner as they process after the Gospel reading, super short blonde pony tail, haha).  I cook with salt a lot (Kosher salt, no less), and I’ll think about it differently every time I use it!