Dear Friends in Christ,
Sunday, November 29, marks the start of the liturgical year and the season of Advent. It is a season for new beginnings, when we make space in our hearts and in our lives for Christ to enter anew. Advent is a time of preparation, and here at Incarnation, we are making preparations in more ways than one.
We continue to make upgrades to sound and video in the sanctuary. We have installed five cameras, and additional microphones and lights will soon be in place to ensure that the beauty and true quality of our Christmas services can be experienced online. Lessons and Carols on Sunday, December 13, and both Christmas Eve services will be streamed on our YouTube channel. See this flyer for service times and read on to learn about the spectacular music we have in store.
FROM THE INTERIM DIRECTOR OF MUSIC:
One Advent collect invites a recurring mood of inner quiet (“Purify our conscience, Almighty God, by your daily visitation”), while another cries: “Stir up thy power, O Lord, and with great might come among us.” The range of music in Advent will reflect both these petitions.
The Advent and Christmas seasons offer us a chance to hear, among other pieces, some arias from Part One of Handel’s Messiah. Who could have guessed a year ago that we would have the extraordinary opportunity to experience, through their weekly solos, the individual artistry of Jamilyn Manning-White, Martha Sullivan, Janara Kellerman, Alex Guerrero, and Matt Curran, these wonderful singers from Incarnation’s choir?
Never mind the pandemic: From the audial point of view, the music for Lessons and Carols and the Christmas Eve Vigil will, I hope, be of a quality and quantity that Incarnation is used to. But things will look different due to the requirements of social distancing and safety. Singers and instrumentalists will be masked and spaced widely in the area before the chancel steps. The role of conductor/organist will be split, amoeba-like. The organist will be the wonderful Claudia Dumschat, Director of Music at the Church of the Transfiguration, our neighbor a few streets down.
The two services will feature music of five centuries by Michael Praetorius, J.S. Bach, Joseph Haydn, Herbert Howells, Alfred Burt and Paul Halley, among others.
Since March, all of our music, and the services, have been made available through the technical wizardry of Thomas Reefer, our Administrator. Thomas is also an accomplished organist; during rehearsals I depend on him to tell me if the organ is drowning out the singer, or something else egregious.
I am grateful to Adrian, the Vestry, and the congregation for their unstinting support which has all along sustained, truly and completely, Incarnation’s music program.
– David Ralph
I am pleased to announce that after enjoying Lessons and Carols and Christmas Eve services online, we plan to worship in person on Christmas Day at 11:00 a.m. Of course, our ability to gather in person is dependent on what happens with Covid numbers, and we will abide by all government and diocesan regulations and safety restrictions. We have had good success at smoothly and safely worshiping in person on Sundays at 8:30 a.m., which bodes well for Christmas Day, and I am grateful to the Vestry Reopening Committee as well as Staff and volunteers who have made that possible.
The success of the 8:30 a.m. Holy Eucharist on Sundays means that we can also bring back the 12:15 p.m. Holy Eucharist on Wednesdays. This service will return with the start of Advent, and the church will be open each Wednesday from 11:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. We are eager to offer this opportunity to parishioners and members of the surrounding community to gather mid-week for spiritual nourishment and comfort in our sacred space.
FROM THE INTERIM ASSOCIATE:
Family Ministries
As we enter into the season of Advent, we happily move forward with weekly celebrations in our virtual “Children’s Chapel” at 9:00 a.m. and at our late afternoon classes for Middle School Youth. As Zoom gatherings continue, our common life is thriving, and we are excited to be producing a Christmas Pageant that will premiere during the 11:00 a.m. service on Sunday, December 20. While it will not be quite the same as a usual Incarnation year, we hope it will be quite entertaining in its own right!
We also hope our families will join us for the Family Eucharist streamed on Christmas Eve at 4:00 p.m. This brief, informal service will include a children’s homily, a simple Eucharistic prayer, and a few favorite Christmas hymns.
In other family news, parishioner Uche Akwuba has helped reenergize the High School Youth Group with his new leadership; and the Incarnation parents gathered just before Thanksgiving to offer up our thanks to God during this very peculiar year.
20s/30s Group
Our 20s/30s Group has been meeting monthly this Fall, and in October welcomed a guest speaker from Holy Cross Monastery in West Park, NY. After our December meeting to round off the year (date TBD), we hope to announce details of a four-part speaker series beginning early in 2021.
Mission & Outreach
Operation Santa, our annual Christmas service project has begun! Parishioners are invited to select a letter written to “Santa” by a child in need and purchase gifts for that child. This year we are providing presents for 51 children living in a nearby homeless shelter. Contact Adrian if you would like to pick up a letter in person at the Parish House. You are also welcome to visit the Outreach page on our website to select a letter online. Please note, we ask that participants spend approximately $50 per child – and all presents must be gift wrapped and delivered to the Parish House (by hand or mail/courier) by Sunday, December 13.
Our outreach discernment workshops continue with Deacon Denise LaVetty. We are making steady progress with the third workshop scheduled for Tuesday, December 8; and they’ve been so well received we will plan on a fourth and last workshop in early 2021. After that, we hope to have some clarity on choosing an additional mission and outreach initiative for our parish.
Moravian Open Door remains a significant mission commitment in our shared life despite Covid restrictions. This Fall, the Moravian Open Door Committee helped with Halloween celebrations. In December, we will be providing Christmas tree decorations, along with a Christmas meal.
We also are finalizing a parishioner sign-up for Crossroads – a community service organization that runs out of St. Bart’s on Park Avenue. We hope to serve in the food pantry and with lunch preparations before the end of the year. Please be in touch ASAP if interested.
– The Rev. Richard S.J. Pike
CHRISTMAS FLOWERS, MUSIC, AND OFFERINGS FOR THOSE IN NEED
Many people like to make donations for Christmas flowers or music as a memorial to or in thanksgiving for loved ones. Please mail your donations to the church office by Sunday, December 20, along with any names you would like to be listed in the Christmas Eve leaflet. The funds for the flowers and the supplemental choral and instrumental music are provided by this appeal.
Another holiday custom at Incarnation is the Christmas Fund. The Fund helps people within the Incarnation parish family who have financial needs; grants from the Fund are made in confidence. You can use the this form to make gifts to Christmas flowers, Christmas music, and the Christmas Fund. You can also request offering envelopes.
ADVENT AND CHRISTMAS ZOOMS!
While we cannot engage in a few of our favorite Incarnation holiday traditions, we are still finding ways of ringing in the season. Please join us for an array of Zoom offerings, with Zoom access information to be shared in the weekly e-minder:
“An Advent Adventure”
Thursday, December 3, 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. Guest speaker Bishop Andrew St. John offers a presentation on the themes of Advent. Come learn about the traditions and theological significance of Advent, and deepen your spiritual experience of this holy season.
“Jinglin’ All the Way Goes Virtual” Christmas Party
Thursday, December 10, 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. Bring a cup of grog, eggnog, mulled cider, hot chocolate or whatever your favorite beverage happens to be. There will be fun and festivities for every age from ‘one to ninety-two’! Enjoy a dramatic presentation of a favorite Christmas tale, sharing our favorite Christmas memories, songs to be sung, a trivia contest and more. Plus, we encourage you to wear your favorite holiday apparel – sequins and bling, reindeer ears, ugly sweaters, or a special challenge: how about decking out your face mask in holiday style? Thanks to Susan Ridgeway, Mona Antaramian and Jacquelyn Carson for organizing this special evening.
Lessons and Carols Reception
Sunday, December 13, 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. After streaming our 5:00 p.m. service of Lessons and Carols on YouTube, join us for a Zoom reception! The caroling continues with Melissa Fogarty, our Candlelight Communion Cantor, leading us in song and her spouse Jennifer Griesbach, Music Director at Grace Church in Hastings on Hudson, accompanying on piano. We’ll also have plenty of time for fellowship and other fun Christmas activities.
“The Greatest Gift”
Friday, December 18, 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. A new group of Incarnation Players puts on a staged reading of “The Greatest Gift,” a heartwarming Christmas play adapted from the 1943 short story by Philip Van Doren. Join us on Zoom to watch the talented cast and then share a toast and some festive Christmas cheer. We are excited to resurrect the thespian tradition at Incarnation! Thanks to Debra Moolin, Barbara Taylor and Florin Georgescu for bringing this production to the small screen (i.e., your computer or mobile device).
*****
A parishioner recently told me that thanks to our online offerings, she has felt closer to Incarnation this year than she has in the past twenty-four. What a testimony! At the same time, I know that limitations on our ability to gather in person weigh heavily on all of our hearts, especially as we enter the holiday season. There is much for us to celebrate, but there is still much to grieve as we make our way through the pandemic. Joy and sorrow often go hand in hand – in our personal lives and in the life of the church. Everyone’s experience is different, and please don’t hesitate to be in touch with Rik or me for pastoral needs.
You remain in my prayers. Trust that we will emerge from this time stronger in the shared knowledge that nothing can separate us from the love of God or of one another. And don’t be surprised if we have a “Christmas in July” Fair next summer! On behalf of the Rector, Wardens, Vestry and Staff, I wish you a blessed Advent and truly joyful Christmas.
Yours in Christ,
Adrian +
The Rev. Adrian Dannhauser
Interim Priest in Charge
