the Vicar
I missed writing to you in our last issue of the Messenger. I was away in "Jolly Olde England" visiting my family. Some of you may not know that my youngest son lives there with his wife and two little girls. My little granddaughters are four and one-half and three, just last October 29th. What bundles of energy!! Never a still moment except when they are asleep and even then they are not really still.
Now, here it is the Season of Advent, and Christmas is upon us. When I think of Christmas I think of children. And when I think of children I picture their bright-eyed expressions of "wonder and amazement" at all of the decorations and symbols of this season of Christ's birth. How do you explain to these curious and exuberant little ones that Christmas is not the tinsel and the bright lights, the expectation that Santa Claus will bring them anything they desire, a table so heaped with food and drink that it almost bows in the middle? How do you do that and still not destroy childhood fantasies which help them, and us to sustain hope?
I remember when my oldest son first questioned Santa Claus. It was hard for me to give up that fantasy with him. We had such fun "being Santa Claus" for our boys. But, answering his question as to whether Santa was real was like an initiation. Rather than taking something from him I gave him something more. I welcomed him into the world of growing-up. I told him that Santa Claus was a symbol of love, and that the Christ Child was love itself. I included him in the secret for which he was ready but his brother, three years younger, was not yet. And so he had great fun becoming Santa's helper on Christmas Eve. Rather than destroying love and closeness between us our bond became even stronger. When the time came for the younger one to question I followed the same plan. Then both of them reveled in being Santa to other little ones.
In our world today we cannot have too many symbols or actions of genuine love. Christ came into a world not so very different from ours. A world of wars, conquests, mistreatment of those who had less or who were less able. Our weapons are more sophisticated but theirs were no less deadly. Into that world of lust and chaos came the baby, the baby Jesus, the Savior. That world was so harsh that the power hungry King Herod had all little boy babies under two years of age killed because he was so afraid that the baby he had heard about would take his throne.
Is our world any different? Are our power structures any different? Are our leaders any different? I hope so. I hope that we have learned something about love in these two thousand years since that first Christmas. I hope you watched the children in your lives this Christmas. I hope you saw their eyes sparkle as you gave them a gift in love, whether it looked like a teddy bear or a toy fire truck. Then I hope you helped them understand what real love is as you put your arms around them, gave them a hug and kiss and told them that you love them more than life itself. If we expect our world to change we must show each other what it means to love as God loves.
My prayer is that we can all become in faith as "little children" for "of such is the Kingdom of Heaven". May you know the rich blessings of God in 2003.
Your pastor,
Barbara+
January Bible Study: "God's Promises and How to Access Them" at 9:15 AM Sundays
Diocesan Convention, Jan. 24-25, 2003. At Washington National Cathedral, The Rt. Rev. Barbara Harris, retired bishop suffragan of the Diocese of Massachusetts and newly appointed assisting bishop in the Diocese of Washington, will preach at the Convention Eucharist on the evening of January 24. The entire convention will be interpreted from 2 PM on Friday through the end of the convention on Saturday afternoon.
The Rev. Barbara Allen will attend along with delegate Rudy Hines. Marshall Wick is alternate delegate. All members and visitors are welcome to attend.
New webmaster needed! Assistance will be given in making the transition.
New Treasurer needed. Accounting or business administration experience is helpful but not required. There are other openings on the Mission Committee as well.
On Sunday, November 24th the Rev. Barbara Allen, Ed Knight and Ann Black visited Michael Martin at Shady Grove Hospital where he was recovering from an ulcer. Michael received a get-well card signed by St. Barnabas' members and then received Holy Eucharist. Michael is out of the hospital now and doing better.
The Rev. Barbara Allen will be in Syracuse, NY with her family from the evening of December 25 through the evening of December 30.
St. John's has a committee to improve the appearance of the front of the church building. There are planned changes in the signage around the building. Tom Hattaway and Jim Lindsay who are presently on the Mission Committee of St. Barnabas' have been invited to serve on that committee.
St. Barnabas' was invited to participate in several of St. John's outreach efforts and the Mission Committee will be working on that.
Retreat at Priestfield
Advent Study series
Also discussed were the issues these women had to cope with and how these women's stories connect to our stories contemporarily. The "Advent Bible Study" has focused on reading two passages together as a class in sign language and analyzing the stories for meaningful symbols and images that can help us understand what we are waiting and preparing for in this season and to learn more about Advent. A final Advent study will be led by Rev. Barbara Allen on Sunday Dec 22. Next Rev. Barbara Allen will be leading a study in January called "God's Promises". We plan to continue to offer 9:15 AM Sunday morning Bible Studies on a variety of topics and are always open to new suggestions for upcoming topics!
Editor's Note: During the Advent Study, participants created an Advent Banner featuring an angel, a star, and the words "Emmanuel" and "God With Us".
Senior Warden's Conference
The topics included how the members of churches react to spending and why it is important to spend within a set of priorities. There was a skit where people acted in the roles of members and the vestry of a certain church to show what it is like in our daily lives. It is no different with other churches than with ours! Other topics included health insurance issues that people came up with and wanted to share with us in order to get feedback from one another.
On November 21 she met with Bishop Chane, Paul Cooney and the Rev. Dr. Roger Pickering. This began an on-going conversation between St. Barnabas' and the Diocese in relation to the possibility of St. Barnabas' Mission becoming a "non-traditional" church. There are at least two other groups in the Diocese the size of St. Barnabas' with similar circumstances who are in the same discussion with the Diocese.
The Diocese is supportive of a more aggressive campus ministry in the local colleges and universities including Gallaudet University.
Christmas Day Signed Service at St. George's in Glenn Dale with the Rev. Barbara Allen and the Rev. Michael Hopkins We will have an article on the Christmas Day service in the next edition.
Of course, after the service, there is time for fellowship both in the chapel and especially downstairs during coffee and refreshments hour. This way we can be welcoming and friendly but also give people the chance for reflection and spiritual renewal before the service.
Did you know the meaning of the colors of the candles on the Advent Wreath? Three candles are violet or blue, and one candle is rose. There are different interpretations for the colors, but one interpretation your assistant editor encountered recently is that the blue or violet candles represent penitence, and the rose-colored candle which is for the Third Sunday in Advent, symbolizes the day of rejoicing. (This explanation comes from the program book for the Joy of Christmas concert that was held at Washington National Cathedral on December 14 through 16.)
Did you know the flowers on the altar of St. Mary's Chapel are donated by St. Barnabas' Mission the first Sunday of each month. The flowers are available following our service to be taken to the sick and shut-ins. Check with Marlene Hines if you desire the flowers for someone.
March 2001 - March 2003
Vice-Chair: Virginia Lindsay
Asst. Vice-Chair: Rudy Hines
Secretary: Tom Hattaway
Treasurer: Jim Lindsay
Asst. Treasurer: Ed Knight
Members At Large: Christina Duley, Marlene Hines, Steve Holst, Marshall Wick
2003
Schedule and Readings
Services are in Sign Language with voice interpretation for hearing persons.
Jeremiah 31:7-14; Ephesians 1:3-6,15-19a; Matthew 2:13-15,19-23; or Luke 2:41-52; or Matthew 2:1-12; Psalm 84 or 84:1-8
January 12 First Sunday after the Epiphany
Isaiah 42:1-9; Acts 10:34-38; Mark 1:7-11; Psalm 89:1-29 or 89:20-29
January 19 Second Sunday after the Epiphany
1 Samuel 3:1-10(11-20); 1 Corinthians 6:11b-20; John 1:43-51; Psalm 63:1-8
January 26 Third Sunday after the Epiphany
Jeremiah 3:21-4:2; 1 Corinthians 7:17-23; Mark 1:14-20; Psalm 130
February 2 Presentation of Jesus in the Temple
Malachi 3:1-4; Hebrews 2:14-18; Luke 2:22-40; Psalm 84 or 84:1-6
February 9 Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany
2 Kings 4:(8-17)18-21(22-31)32-37; 1 Corinthians 9:16-23; Mark 1:29-39; Psalm 142
February 16 Sixth Sunday after the Epiphany
2 Kings 5:1-15ab; 1 Corinthians 9:24-27; Mark 1:40-45; Psalm 42 or 42:1-7
February 23 Seventh Sunday after the Epiphany
Isaiah 43:18-25; 2 Corinthians 1:18-22; Mark 2:1-12; Psalm 32 or 32:1-8
March 2 Last Sunday after Epiphany
1 Kings 19:9-18; 2 Peter 1:16-19(20-21); Mark 9:2-9; Psalm 27 or 27:5-11