Shrove Tuesday, February 21st

A Pancake Supper will be hosted by our mighty Breakfast Crew, tonight, Tuesday, February 21st, 6:00 - 7:30 p.m. Come for the pancakes and stay for the decadent desserts!

Ash Wednesday, February 22nd

Usher in the Season of Lent with us, Wednesday, February 22nd:

• Holy Eucharist, noon.
• Choral Eucharist, 7:00 p.m.

Evening Prayer - In Person & Via Zoom

Throughout Lent, Evening Prayer will be offered Monday - Friday, 6:00 p.m. via Zoom and in-person at the church, February 23rd - Wednesday, April 5th.

Join the Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/5519234542?pwd=WkdjMXcvdE01elR0Q2N5d20wTU1lZz09

Kurt Lutz and Tim Mulder will be leading this brief, devotional service which dates back to the monastic movement, preceding the Church of England and the American Episcopal Church. This service is one that may be led by lay people because it was included in our Prayer Book for personal devotions in the home as well as gathered worship in church. If you would like to lead the service one night, contact the church office.

Sundays in Lent

During the 10:00 a.m. service on February 26th, the choir will process while singing “The Great Litany,” inviting God’s people to reflect upon their lives, confess their sin, and be reconciled with God and one another. During subsequent Sundays in Lent, the worship service will begin with “The Penitential Order,” recognizing who we truly are and who God is for us.

Wednesday Mornings with the Guys - On Zoom

Starts Ash Wednesday, February 22nd

The Sunflower: On the Possibilities and Limits of Forgiveness, by Simon Wiesenthal

Simon Wiesenthal was a Jewish prisoner in a Nazi concentration camp. One day he was called to the bedside of a cruel S.S. officer who was about to die from cancer. The officer asked Wiesenthal’s forgiveness for his terrible acts. That story is the first half of the book. The second half asks us, as the readers of this true story, what would we have done had we been in that situation? Responses from authors who hail from a variety of faith traditions - Jewish, Christian, Buddhist, Atheist, and others – invite us to reflect on the meaning of forgiveness.

So, guys, grab a cup of coffee and join us Wednesdays, 8:00-9:00 a.m. on Zoom with members of the parish of St. John on the Mountain in Bernardsville. For years, men from this parish have gathered to read and discuss books about faith; this Lent, they would like to invite anyone interested in the topic to join them in this consideration of forgiveness. 

Join the Zoom Meeting:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/4349412985?pwd=VTRCVVJPRGhBUXVKOFE3b3VmQ1g4QT09

Password: 379

Wednesday Evening Prayer, Potluck Supper, & Presentation

Hanging by a Thread: Questions of the Cross, by Samuel Wells

Evening Prayer, 6:00 p.m.

Potluck Supper, 6:30 p.m.

Presentation, 7:00 p.m.

Join us for five Wednesday nights in Lent to consider what the cross means - and does not mean - for us as people of faith today. There is no need to purchase the book to participate in the sessions. The Reverend Tim Mulder will lead a discussion regarding novel ways to look at the cross as laid out by the author, Samuel Wells, including perspectives that may challenge us, but also possibly deepen our faith in God.

• “It is finished.” What is? Some of our old notions of the cross, March 1.
• Hymns about the cross that have shaped our faith, March 8.
• Bankrupt Atonement – Healing Atonement, March 15
• An exploration of the movie "Striped Pajamas" as a parable of the cross, March 22
• God "with" us versus God "for" us, March 29

All are invited to attend and participate as they are able. Bring an entree or a side dish to share. Christ Church will provide beverages and desserts. Contact the parish office to assist with set-up and clean-up.

This Lententide, the choir of Christ Church will embark on a series of recitatives, airs, and choruses form George Frederic Handel’s famous oratorio, THE MESSIAH. The Messiah is written in three parts. The first part deals with the prophesies concerning Advent and Christmas. The second part is about the passion of Christ and the third, the resurrection. We will be concentrating on the second part during this series. Each Sunday in Lent will feature a solo and chorus from the work. The chorus will be sung during the Offertory and the solos during the administration of Communion. The repertory will be as follows:

Lent 1 / February 26

• Chorus, Behold the Lamb of God
• Air, He was despised, Anastasia Marchese, mezzo-soprano

Lent 2 / March 5

• Chorus, Surely, he hath borne our griefs
• Recitative & Arioso, Thy rebuke / Behold and see, Curt Wilson, tenor

Lent 3 / March 12

• Chorus, Let all the angels of God worship Him
• Air,  Thou are gone up on high, John Beasley, baritone

Lent 4 / March 19

• Chorus, All we, like sheep, have gone a-stray
• Air, He shall feed his flock, Susan Tummillo, soprano, and Come unto Him, Jessica Caruso, soprano

Lent 5 / March 26

• Chorus, Their sound is gone out into all lands
• Air, How beautiful are the feet of them,  Deborah Mello, soprano          

Palm Sunday / April 2

• Chorus, Lift up your heads
• Air, If God be for us, who can be against us? Shannah Yerofeyev, soprano

Easter Day / April 9

• Chorus, Hallelujah!
• Duet, O death, where is thy sting? Anastasia Marchese & Curt Wilson
• Air, I know that my redeemer liveth, Shannah Yerofeyev, soprano

Messiah (HWV 56) is an English-language oratorio composed in 1741 by George Frederic Handel. The text was compiled from the King James Bible and the Coverdale Psalter by Charles Jennens. It was first performed in Dublin on 13 April 1742 and received its London premiere nearly a year later. After an initially modest public reception, the oratorio gained in popularity, eventually becoming one of the best-known and most frequently performed choral works in Western music

Church Breakfast & Annual Meeting

Join us on Sunday, March 5th, 8:45 - 9:30 a.m., in our newly remodeled Holley Hall for the Annual Meeting and a special Church Breakfast as we celebrate the generosity of parishioners Danise Tellefsen and her husband, the late Paul Pfeil.