My Dear Trinitarians, What a winter it has been! Even lovers of snow and hibernating with a book (like me) have about had it. How often can this describe also how we (or those we love) feel about daily living, or about some area of life that is particularly frustrating? It is easy to get bogged down, pessimistic, to lose the way. Lent was in ancient practice both a time for those about to be baptized to prepare to join the community of the faithful, and a time for “notorious sinners” to prepare to rejoin it. What could that have to do with us today? Lent can be a time of pausing to reflect, to return to the path, to prepare. However, if we make this a test of our will, rather than a time of listening; or if we each try to simply “better ourself” by ourself, without regard to where and to whom we come from and belong, we can wind up feeling as if we are simply going through the motions of something old-fashioned and not very meaningful or useful. If we do pause for reflection, then questions about who we are meant to be and want to be, what we feel we are called to or want to do next can naturally arise. We so often talk about finding ourselves, but do we really know whom it is we are seeking? We all have a story, and, more particularly, we all have a story with God that is not finished yet. Pausing to really look deeply into our own stories, and looking at other’s stories is a wonderful way to make some of the connections, to bridge some of the gaps that we want to in our lives. This Lent we will offer a different kind of “study”, called “Finding the Sprit Within”. We will all have the opportunity to look at our own spiritual autobiography and to meditate and pray on what it is telling us now about our journeys, about our place in this outpost of our Diocese, and how God is calling onwards in service of God’s kingdom, and the work God has “given us to do.” A workbook (with suggested and selected readings) will be available starting Ash Wednesday, and we will have sessions on Sundays March 16, 23 and April 6 (after the 10:00 service)—feel free to come to any or all of these. I am also inviting anyone who is working on any aspect of this program to meet with me privately to go over writing, thoughts, or questions that may arise for you! (There will be a signup sheet in the back of the church.) Reminders and additional questions or materials and possibly recordings of sessions will be on our Facebook page so remember to “Like” us. (If you wish to receive any information put on Facebook by e-mail please contact the office.) You might also want to consider attending the Friday contemplation/Requiem listening sessions organized by Mike Callahan as a way of making time for some peace and reflection! This is wishing you a Holy Lent! With love in Christ, TRINITY BELLS MARCH 2014
Transcript
My Dear Trinitarians, What a winter it has been! Even lovers of snow and hibernating with a book (like me) have about had it. How often can this describe also how we (or those we love) feel about daily living, or about some area of life that is particularly frustrating? It is easy to get bogged down, pessimistic, to lose the way. Lent was in ancient practice both a time for those about to be baptized to prepare to join the community of the faithful, and a time for “notorious sinners” to prepare to rejoin it. What could that have to do with us today? Lent can be a time of pausing to reflect, to return to the path, to prepare. However, if we make this a test of our will, rather than a time of listening; or if we each try to simply “better ourself” by ourself, without regard to where and to whom we come from and belong, we can wind up feeling as if we are simply going through the motions of something old-fashioned and not very meaningful or useful. If we do pause for reflection, then questions about who we are meant to be and want to be, what we feel we are called to or want to do next can naturally arise. We so often talk about finding ourselves, but do we really know whom it is we are seeking? We all have a story, and, more particularly, we all have a story with God that is not finished yet. Pausing to really look deeply into our own stories, and looking at other’s stories is a wonderful way to make some of the connections, to bridge some of the gaps that we want to in our lives. This Lent we will offer a different kind of “study”, called “Finding the Sprit Within”. We will all have the opportunity to look at our own spiritual autobiography and to meditate and pray on what it is telling us now about our journeys, about our place in this outpost of our Diocese, and how God is calling onwards in service of God’s kingdom, and the work God has “given us to do.” A workbook (with suggested and selected readings) will be available starting Ash Wednesday, and we will have sessions on Sundays March 16, 23 and April 6 (after the 10:00 service)—feel free to come to any or all of these. I am also inviting anyone who is working on any aspect of this program to meet with me privately to go over writing, thoughts, or questions that may arise for you! (There will be a signup sheet in the back of the church.) Reminders and additional questions or materials and possibly recordings of sessions will be on our Facebook page so remember to “Like” us. (If you wish to receive any information put on Facebook by e-mail please contact the office.) You might also want to consider attending the Friday contemplation/Requiem listening sessions organized by Mike Callahan as a way of making time for some peace and reflection! This is wishing you a Holy Lent! With love in Christ,
TRINITY BELLS MARCH 2014
PARISH HAPPENINGS
Harry visiting with Bettie Olsen in Williamsburg, VA Trinity Sunday School students and parents gathered
with Mother Margo just before Christmas to celebrate the joy of the birth of Jesus
TAG/BOOK SALE In between snowstorms, icy roads and freezing temperatures we held a sale on a beautiful if cool day (30 degrees). The need to hold it then rather than in warmer weather was to clean out the Book Room in order for it to be renovated for use as an infant care room for the upcoming daycare center. We paired the media sale with a Tag Sale in order to attract more people. We emptied the upstairs room of stored goods and added them to the jewelry and pocketbooks that were donated. People came all afternoon, attracted to the sale by the wonderful publicity generated by Ruth Fick. Book and record dealers had been notified and many came. Hundreds of 33, 45 and 78 rpm records have found a new home. Could you have passed up vintage record covers of early Madonna, Elton John and Billy Joel with hair? Many people purchased lots of books to help pass away the hours while housebound by the weather. In the end we made $630, and we recycled many, many items. What we had left went to the Glen Cove Sr. Center Resale shop, Locust Valley Library Book Sale, and Big Brothers-Big Sisters retail store. Thanks to those who donated things, helped setup, and worked the day of the sale. Barbara Holzkamp and Helen Oehrlein
BUILDINGS & GROUNDS
Even though there are the same number of days on the calendar that define the winter season, some winters certainly seem longer than others, this being one of them. Whereas a white Christmas is sometimes wished for and beautiful, not sure that it has to linger to March!
Plowed 'snow mountains' in our parking lots, icy steps and paths, the rumble of avalanches off our roofs, numerous icicles hanging from the gutters and frozen downspouts- these have all been a part of the season. Unfortunately, conditions like these tax even the most
sound building elements, and so there have been some leaks throughout. Two areas in Penson Hall and one in the kitchen are the most notable.
Speaking of avalanches, which some of us have heard on a Sunday morning when the snow ‘lets loose’…in my second year here at Trinity I was shoveling the snow off the patio near the steps with my back to the church when I heard a loud noise; and then there I was, buried in snow above the waist! It took a passerby driving by to dig me out.
As I write this, the sun is shining, temps are in the 40s, and the earth is emerging from under its white blanket. Spring will soon be upon us.
Mike Callahan
OUTREACH
It just amazes me when people who no longer live in our area remember us with such generosity, warmth and kindness. It kind of reinforces the fact that we did something right to earn this loyalty and thoughtfulness. It is particularly amazing and encouraging when it comes from a young person who grew up in our parish. Wow, how awesome is that? Thank you so much for remembering outreach and thank you to everyone who has donated to outreach in some way. Many, many people have benefited and even been saved in some way from the generosity of this little church. As Helen Keller would say, " The Best and most Beautiful things in the World cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart." I know the generosity of Trinity has touched many hearts. It is a new year and with new enthusiasm, we start our outreach mission. If you would like a copy of "A year in Outreach 2013," please let me know.
Dawn Weill
REQUIEM NIGHTS AT TRINITY (Fridays in Lent)
Starting on Friday, March 7th, I will again be playing various performances of the Requiem on our CD player in a darkened church. These will begin at 7pm and each one runs approximately a half hour in length (with the Verdi playing on two Fridays). Light refreshment afterwards in choir room. I would invite you to give at least one of these a try, as it can be a moving and meditative experience. Dates and renditions are: 3/7 John Rutter - Written in 1985, a convincing affirmation of Christian doctrine pertaining to death and eternal life. Particularly inspired by the example of Faure's Requiem, as he was not interested in grandiose passages designed to generate terror at the fear of the Last Judgment, but rather quieter and more contemplative text. 3/14 Camille Saint Saens - Written in 1878 in eight days. A sorrowful piece, without the theatricality found in other Requiems of the period. Particularly effective use of harps. 3/21 Maurice Durufle - Commissioned in 1947. Uses numerous themes from the Gregorian 'Mass of the Dead'. Nearly all thematic material in the work comes from chant. 3/28 Gabriel Faure - Composed in late 1880's, revised in the 1890's and finished in 1900. Intimate setting with moments of tempestuousness. Defied tradition by emphasizing a tender, even comforting aspect of death, interpreting it as a departure from this troubled world and a hopeful arrival in a place of peace and eternal rest. 4/4 & 4/11 Giuseppe Verdi - First performed in 1874. Vigorous rhythms, sublime melodies, and dramatic contrasts. 'Its elegiac, spiritual moments are combined with a heartfelt intensity and stirring theatricality, setting it a long way from the masses of Bach or Mozart'. Mike Callahan
IN MEMORIAM
Since the last issue of Trinity Bells a number of people with long connection to the parish, former parishioners and family members of parishioners have died. They are loved and will be missed:
Anne K. Benenson
Thompson Wolf (Son of the late Faith and Norman T. Wolf)
We also pray eternal peace and rest for Alexis Alexander's Mother and Lisa deBruin's Mother.
(If we have missed anyone, forgive us, and please let us know; we'd be happy to include them in the next issue.)
CAN YOU HOST A COFFEE HOUR?
After the 10:00 service every Sunday the parish meets for hospitality and fellowship, usually in the Fireplace Room. All are welcome! The church provides coffee, tea, sugar & paper goods. The host provides food (such as coffee cake, fruit, cheese, bagels etc) for about 30 people, as well as milk. On the 2nd Sunday of every month, we celebrate parishioners’ birthdays, so the host brings a small birthday cake. If you would like to host a coffee hour or if you have any questions, please call Maryellen Hansen at 516-671-5661.
MUSICAL NOTES
"In the Bleak Mid-Winter" is a favorite hymn that has been appropriate so many weeks this winter! We have been enjoying the cozy warmth of worship in the Fireplace Room where we are all close together and our enthusiastic singing is magnified by the intimate surroundings. Our beautiful sanctuary is patiently residing over our community, waiting for our joyful return as spring approaches. We are working on a stirring musical setting of Psalm 122 that will be part of that celebration, "I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord." We have had a long Epiphany season to catch our breath and be ready for Mardi Gras (music and pancakes 3/2) and Ash Wednesday (3/5), and the gift of another Lenten season of reflection. Come raise your voice as part of our wonderful congregation as we worship to. On January 26th, our Cathedral of the Incarnation in Garden City was the site of a beautiful concert dedicated to my Dad. The Mineola Choral Society (including our own Trinity Choir singers Diane Graf, George Graf, and Bob Seaman) made the music of Brahms' German Requiem soar to new heights and directly touch the hearts of all the many people in attendance. Martha Regelmann
NORTH SHORE SHELTER
Trinity recently delivered what has become an annual gift to the men's shelter at the Presbyterian Church in Glen Cove. Thirty men who sleep there received new underwear and undershirts, along with gift cards for Dunkin' Donuts. We thank the parish for supporting this effort with their monetary donation toward this effort. Co-coordinators: Sarane Ross and Barbara Holzkamp
BURNING BOOKS The next Burning Books selection is Bringing Up the Bodies, the second book of Hilary Mantel's trilogy based on the life of Thomas Cromwell. Like the first, it won the Man Booker Prize for fiction. Charles McGrath in the New York Times wrote, “Bringing Up the Bodies is in many ways a study of power and influence, how to acquire it and how to use it, and makes you realize that serving at court under a willful monarch is not so very different from negotiating your way through the corporate maze, except that now your master can only sack you, not send you to the Tower.” The discussion will take place on Thursday, April 10 at 7:30 pm at the Platts, 20 Salem Way in Glen Head. All are welcome.
“FINDING THE SPIRIT WITHIN”
Please join us for a Lenten study on 3 Sundays: March 16, 23 & April 6 (after the 10:00 service). A workbook with suggested and selected readings will be available beginning Ash Wednesday (March 5).
Please see further details in Margo’s “Dear Trinitarians” letter on the front page.
IN CASE YOU WERE WONDERING…
Our Daycare project is proceeding along nicely, and we still hope to open in September. Stay tuned for more info to come…
