Nov. 8 Music and Flowers

Although Sunday morning was pretty dreary outside, it was very different inside at St. Dunstan's.

To start off, we had a guest preacher, Laura Bryant, who shared a very insightful sermon with us.

Our anthem, Locus iste: This place was made by God, was very moving. The choir is very dedicated, and continually matures under the direction of Parish Musician, Dr. Thomas Gibbs.  Tom introduces the choir, and thus, the congregation, to various composers and styles.  What may be overlooked is that some of the compositions are actually Tom's own.  Such was the case this past Sunday with Locus iste.

Refrain:  Locus iste [This place] was made by God priceless, a holy place.
This is the house of God, the gate of heav'n, the court of God. Refrain.
Behold the tabernacle of God is with God's people; God will dwell them. Refrain.
At you altars even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow a place she may lay her young. Refrain.

You can listen to it here:
https://app.box.com/s/xriiu9rrlrhl07mtnpzx7jr6onp08sy1


The floral arrangement was, usual, beautiful. Floral arrangements are sometimes taken for granted, but St. Dunstan's is very blessed to have talented and committed members on its Flower Guild.




Arrangements from previous Sundays (as well as other pictures of Parish Life) can be viewed at St. Dunstan's Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/StDunstansATL/photos_stream

Flying Pig Barbeque, Blessing of the Animals

Lotsa fun yesterday...

So, a hardy crew, led by Geoff Walker, showed up before the sun came up to smoke pork butts and chicken for St. Dunstan's annual Flying Pig Barbeque.

In attendance were Geoff (obviously), new parishioner, Lee Cline, Joseph Henry Monti, Steve and Connor Mark, former parishioner Danny Woodward, and Geoff's son, Wells.

First order of the day is to generate coals in the fire barrel, then prepare the butts for smoking.

Once the meat's on the grill, then we chill, and marinade and flip the butts every so often.

While the meat is smoking, the 8:30 service is held next to the smoking pit.

When the butts are done, it's time to put the chicken on.

A chopping crew arrives in the afternoon.

Unfortunately, the photographer was wiped out and didn't get pictures of the actual dinner, but lots of folks showed up for good food, good music, and good fellowship.

For more pictures of the Flying Pig Barbecue, check out our Facebook album.

This Sunday, we're looking forward to the Blessing of the Animals in the Beech Grove.

Bring your furred, feathered or finned friends to the Beech Grove for this special service at 10:45. No Sunday School this day.

This and That, Salt Lake City edition

(from Tricia's "This and That" email to St. Dunstan's. Tricia is currently in Salt Lake City serving as a deputy representing the Diocese of Atlanta at the Episcopal Church's General Convention.)

Dear friends,

"Let the whole world see and know that things which were cast down are being raised up, and things which had grown old are being made new."

These words are from one of my favorite prayers in our prayer book. We are certainly seeing them come to life this week.

In last Sunday's sermon I shared my deep feelings of despair and hopelessness in the wake of the Charleston massacre, feelings that I know were shared by many of you. That sermon was really a pep talk to myself, a reminder that we must not give in to the evil we deplore, a reminder that even in our darkest days God is with us, a reminder that we must continue to do the good that we can do, even when it feels like we are throwing pebbles at a giant.

I could never have predicted on that day the events of this week, events which show the truth of the words of this prayer.

This week we have seen the Confederate flag, a symbol of hatred and racism and the worst evil of this country, being brought down, a sign that black lives do matter.

This week we have seen the Supreme Court uphold the Affordable Care Act, making health insurance available to millions of people, a sign that poor lives matter.

This morning we have seen the Supreme Court decree that same sex marriage is legal all across our nation, a sign that gay lives matter.

Things which had been cast down are being raised up, indeed.

I deeply believe that all of this is the work of the Spirit, God's resounding word that the evil of Charleston, the evil of racism and injustice and idolatry of weapons is not the final word. And we rejoice.

As we rejoice, we must remember there is still work to be done. But we face the work with renewed hope and vigor, rejoicing in the power of the Spirit. Alleluia, alleluia!

Thanks be to God.

Tricia

Grant Us Wisdom, Grant Us Courage

Like most of you, I was deeply saddened by the news of the shootings in Charleston last week.

And, like some of you, I missed church yesterday because I was out of town this past weekend for a family event. Because I was missed church, I also missed Tricia's sermon on recent events.

Luckily for us though, Tricia has shared the text of sermon, which can be found here:
https://app.box.com/s/bxid3uhxvi2yc3l5wjf5iw8l0gsy0sfl

As is the norm for Tricia, she shares some pretty powerful ideas in her sermon.

What do you think?

March From Selma to Montgomery, AL

From our rector, Tricia Templeton:

I leave tomorrow for Alabama and on Saturday morning will begin the march from Selma to Montgomery, retracing the heroes of the Civil Rights movement took 50 years ago. We arrive in Montgomery on Wednesday. Five days, 54 miles. The National Park Service is sponsoring this "Walking Classroom," and has arranged for us to meet with those on the original march and those involved in struggles for Civil Rights today along the way. Several have asked how they can support us on the way. Here's one way. I have written this litany that I will pray every morning before we begin. I invite you to pray it with me throughout the walk.

Litany for Selma

Gracious God, as we set out on this pilgrimage make us ever mindful of those who have walked this way before us, remembering their courage, strength and dignity in the fight for justice.
We are walking on holy ground.

We remember the countless number of African Americans who were martyred in the battle for Civil Rights, including Jimmie Lee Jackson, the Rev. George Lee, Lamar Smith, Medgar Evers, and James Chaney.
We are walking on holy ground.

We remember those of other races and creeds who died answering the call to work for justice for all God’s people, including the Rev. James Reeb, Viola Liuzzo, Jonathan Daniels, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner.
We are walking on holy ground.

We give thanks for the progress that has been made in the past 50 years, but pray for the strength and wisdom to resist those in our own day who devise new obstacles to the ballot box.
Lord, hear our prayer.

We remember those who are still denied their Civil Rights, including our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters who can not marry the people they love.
Lord, hear our prayer.

We remember those who are marginalized by poverty, by their immigration status, by the color of their skin or their religion. May we never grow weary in the fight for justice for all God’s people.
Lord, hear our prayer.

Facing the rising sun of our new day begun,
Let us march on til victory is won.

The Apple Tree Carol

We had a special treat yesterday for our Offertory Anthem. It was The Apple Tree Carol composed by our Parish Musician, Tom Gibbs, and beautifully performed by Susan Hauser, soprano, and Steve Hauser, soprano saxophone.

                                       The Apple Tree Carol

The tree of life my soul hath seen, laden with fruit and always green.
The trees of nature fruitless be compar'd with Christ the apple tree.

His beauty doth all things excel: by faith I know but cannot tell
the glory which I now can see in Jesus Christ the apple tree.

For happiness I long have sought, and pleasure dearly I have bought:
I miss'd of all: but now I see 'tis found in Christ the apple tree.

I'm weary with my former toil. Here I will sit and rest awhile.
Under the shadow I will be of Jesus Christ the apple tree.
                                                                           (18th century, anonymous)

Note from the composer: "I think of this text as fitting for almost any time of the liturgical year. Our parish is fortunate to have a sensitive, expressive soprano soloist, and also a fine soprano saxophone player who is equally sensitive and expressive. As the piece progresses, the two soloists exchange melodic ideas, and the organ provides harmonic underpinning and occasionally also takes part in the melodic exchanges. At the crucial dramatic moment of the text, however, the organ drops out and leaves the two soloists on their own."

You can listen to it here:
https://app.box.com/s/tcv53k8x7cuuf712njn5xzu4m36yeu0c

This year, Easter is on ...

Do you know when Easter is this year?  Sure, you can Google it, but what did people do before computers and Google?

Excerpted from Tricia's email to the parish:

The 12 days of Christmas have come and gone, and we are now in the season of Epiphany, known as the season of light. The church calendar is set each year around two dates, those of Christmas and Easter. Christmas, of course, has the same date every year, and we can find the first Sunday of Advent (the beginning of the church year) by backing up the four Sundays before Christmas. Easter is a bit trickier. The official explanation is that Easter is always the Sunday after the full moon that occurs on or after the spring equinox on March 21. Got that? The earliest day that Easter can be is March 22; the latest is April 25. The date of Easter is important because from it the rest of the church calendar is set. Back up 40 days from Easter (excluding Sundays) and you will know the date of Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent. Go forward 40 days and you get the feast of the Ascension. Go 50 days from Easter and you get the feast of Pentecost, the beginning of the longest season of the church year, that lasts until Advent.


There may be astronomers among us who can tell the date of Easter by looking at the stars and keeping track of the phases of the moon, but most let someone else do the calculations and rely on the calendars to tell us when this holy day is. (Or you can check the chart on page 880 in the prayer book that tells you the date of Easter through the year 2089). But in the church’s early days calendars were a luxury afforded only the privileged few. So it became a liturgical practice that every year the first Sunday after Epiphany (the January 6 celebration of the arrival of the wise men), a cantor would give the “Easter proclamation,” announcing in a chant the date of Easter and corresponding liturgical dates of the year. Of course these days we have that information literally at our finger tips. But Tom and I thought it would be interesting and fun to do the Easter proclamation. So come to church Sunday and find out when Easter will be this year. I already know, but I’m not going to spoil the surprise.

So, after all that, you can still go to Google to find out when Easter is this year.  But in the tradition which Tricia mentioned, you can listen to the Easter Proclamation.

Listen to Cantor John Morgan tell us about Easter and the rest of the church year:
https://app.box.com/s/sihkj673bu7muyk3nxxg

So now you know.

Led by a Star

If you weren't able to make it to church this past Sunday, we missed you and hope to see you soon.

Sunday was actually the Second Sunday of Christmas, but we celebrated Epiphany a couple of days early.

As we entered the nave, many of us (including the choir) saw photos in the pews and the choir stall. A fellow choir member leaned over and asked if I had any idea what it was. I had to admit that although it appeared to be an abstract painting, I had no idea what it was.

What do you think?

All was made clear when Tricia began her sermon. Here's the short version as posted by Tricia on Facebook:

An Epiphany offering. My favorite painting of the three kings does not hang in a museum or grace the pages of any art book. It hangs in our house and was painted by my mother. She didn’t start out to do a painting of the magi. Joe and I had asked her to do an abstract painting. But as she painted the forms began to emerge. Can you see them? Three kings, on horseback, not camels (as some of the earliest depiction of the magi showed).
They ride out of the mist with intensity, the horses galloping, the kings leaning forward in their saddles, determined to get to their destination as quickly as possible.
I love that the kings emerged from my mother’s canvas without warning, and I love that when she realized it she allowed them to continue, following their lead, not knowing where they would take her, having faith she would end up in the right place.
That in itself is the essence of this story.
The wise men set out, following a star, not knowing where it would take them or what they would find.
But they trusted that God would lead them where they needed to go, even if it wasn’t anywhere they could have predicted.
May we have the courage to do the same.

The complete text of Tricia's sermon can be found here.

As always, you can find past sermons here:

http://www.stdunstan.net/sermons.htm