FROM FATHER SMITH: YOU ARE GOD, WE PRAISE YOU

During the announcements at Mass last Sunday, I mentioned that this week the gospel reading is to be the story of the Feeding of the Five Thousand (Mark 6:30–44) and that next week we will hear the story of Jesus walking on the water, a passage which includes Jesus’ words, “Take heart, it is I; have no fear” (Mark 6:45–52). I then pointed out that on three out of the five Sundays in August we will hear a significant portion of the sixth chapter of the gospel of John, which contains Jesus’ words, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty” (John 6:35). (Normally, in Year B we would hear even more of John 6 during the month of August. This year, however, the Feast of the Assumption falls on Sunday, August 15, so on that day we will be hearing the readings appointed for the feast, and not John 6:53–59.)

I also suggested to the members of the congregation that they might prepare for those gospel readings by praying and thinking about the themes of gifts and the multiplication thereof, about generosity, grace, feeding, compassion, sacrifice, the Eucharist, and, of course, blessing.

Blessing is a particularly rich theme for both Jews and Christians. In our catholic tradition, we often think of blessing as asking God to bless a thing, a place, or a person, and we talk about the rite of blessing as a setting aside of a thing, a place, or a person for a holy purpose. Examples are the blessing of water, rings, churches, ashes, palms, rosaries, medals, sacred vessels, and the blessing of the people at the conclusion of Mass. Still, the tradition, and certainly the Prayer Book, make it clear that such blessings are not meant to invest people, spaces, or objects with some quasi-magical quality. (How this all works in popular religion is something else again, a topic, perhaps, for another day.) Therefore, the person or thing that has been blessed is often described as a sign of something else, almost always a sign of the presence of God, who is the source of every blessing. We see this quite explicitly in The Dedication and Consecration of a Church (BCP 567–79), where we read:

Bishop            Now, O Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, sanctify this place;
People            For everything in heaven and on earth is yours.
Bishop            Yours, O Lord, is the kingdom;
People            And you are exalted as head over all.

These words suggest that the rite is intended, through the power and grace of God, to “sanctify” the church building for the holy purpose of divine worship and that, as a result, the space will become sacred. However, the words of the rite do not suggest that this holiness is unrelated to the holiness of the One who is Lord—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Rather, the rite is suggesting, as all rites of blessing tend to do, that the sacred space (or person or thing) is but a special instance of the relationship that all created things are meant to have with the Creator, who in Scripture is repeatedly “blessed”—which is to say “thanked and praised”—for being the source of all goodness and every gift and grace.

In the Hebrew Bible, there are certainly people, spaces, and things that are “set aside for a holy purpose,” though exactly how this setting aside takes place is a complicated topic. However, in the Jewish tradition, prayers of blessing are almost always meant, not primarily to accomplish this “setting aside,” but rather to praise and give thanks. One such blessing is the blessing over bread, a blessing that is important for our understanding of the Last Supper and of John 6. The blessing goes like this, “Praised (or Blessed) are You, Lord our God, Ruler of the universe, who brings forth bread from the earth.” There is a profusion of such prayers of blessing in the Jewish tradition: blessings when one smells spices; or when one smells trees, shrubs, or flowers; or sees lightning, high mountains, a rainbow, or the ocean; or hears thunder; or sees an exceptionally beautiful person, tree, or field; or escapes grave danger or illness. There is a blessing to be recited when one receives good news and one for when the news is bad. The list of such blessings is a long one. One commentator points out, “The repeated blessings make the Jew continually aware of what God has graciously provided, turning the routine actions and occurrences of daily life into religious experiences” (Ronald L. Eisenberg, Jewish Traditions, JPS 2008, p. 391). Now, while such experiences are certainly experiences of awe, they are also experiences of joy, even giddiness, that are inspired not by the belief that prayer is meant to manipulate God into bestowing a gift, but rather by the sudden awareness that one is standing in the very presence of God who is blessed—worthy of praise—and who blesses abundantly.

In Psalm 148, “fire, hail, snow, fog, and tempestuous wind” are invited to “praise the name of the Lord.” I grew up in Western New York. I remember throwing myself down into a snowbank on one moonlit night when I was a child and feeling the most incredible joy, a joy inspired, I think, simply because I was alive and the world was beautiful, though I didn’t have words then to say any of that. Winter can be lovely, but summertime, I think, is a season particularly rich with blessing. Wherever you are this week and wherever you travel during these summer months summer, may you be richly blessed and know it. May you know what it is to bless the Lord and sing, “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Hallelujah” (Psalm 150:6). —Jay Smith

YOUR PRAYERS ARE ASKED FOR Norman, Phil, Shayleigh, Richard, Emily, Brian, Larry, José, Liduvina, Jonathan, Emerson, Rita, Marilouise, Quincy, Florette, John, Shalim, Peter, George, Abraham, Dennis, Emil, Ethelyn, Hardy, Margaret, and Robert; for Jack, religious, and James, Randall, and Louis, priests; for all who suffer from COVID-19; for all who work for the common good; and for all the friends and members of this parish . . . GRANT THEM PEACE . . . July 18: 1876 Mary Lillian Winans; 1911 Florence Devine; 1917 Mary Lorenz; 1946 Virginia L. Berrian; 1949 Marian Wood Dale Rae; 1981 Pelham St. George Bissell.

SARA LOUIE COOKE, 1841–1892 . . . Sara Cooke’s tombstone does not tell us the date of er birth, but it does tell us the date of her death, July 21, 1892. (The entry has a transcription of the words on the tombstone: “In memory of Sara Louie Cooke/July 21, 1892/Rest eternal light perpetual grant her O Lord/I will bring you away peaceably saith the Lord/For mine angel is with you/And I myself caring for your souls.” Her bequest made it possible for our second and present church home to be built.

Newbury Frost Read wrote in The Story of St. Mary’s (1932), “"The Treasurer reported the late Miss Sara L. Cooke a member of this parish, had made this Church her residuary legatee. That upon inquiry he had learned that the amount coming to this Church ought to be at least one hundred thousand dollars. It was upon motion voted that the Treasurer be authorized to retain such counsel as is necessary to protect the interest of this parish” (link to the online version here). If memory serves (I’m away from the rectory), the total amount was close to $900,000.00. I look forward to being the celebrant and homilist for the Mass on Wednesday, July 21, 2021.

One reads in the Prayer Book in the service “A Thanksgiving for the Birth or Adoption of a Child”(pages 439–45) “The Minister of the Congregation is directed to instruct the people, from time to time, about the duty of Christian parents to make prudent provision for the well-being of their families, and of all persons to make wills, while they are in health, arranging for the disposal of their temporal goods, not neglecting, if they are able, to leave bequests for religious and charitable uses” (445). —Stephen Gerth

OUR FRIENDS IN CANTERBURY . . . The Very Reverend Robert Willis, the dean of Canterbury, has announced that congregational singing will resume at the cathedral on Monday, July 19. Dean Willis is a great friend of Saint Mary’s. Among other things, he appreciates our liturgical tradition and our parish’s historic commitment to the Daily Eucharist and Daily Morning and Evening Prayer. I invite you to visit the cathedral’s website to see the daily videos of Morning Prayer, usually led by the dean from the deanery garden, weather permitting.

Here is a link to Morning Prayer on Wednesday, July 14, 2021. In the Church of England, it is the day they commemorate John Keble, priest. The sermon he preached on July 14, 1833, is regarded as the beginning of the Oxford Movement that brought the Anglican Communion what we call the Anglo-Catholic Revival. Keble called his sermon “The National Apostasy.” You can read it here. He preached this sermon at the University Church of St. Mary, Oxford, Oxford. The dean’s remarks on Keble begin at minute 22:44. I think you will enjoy his unique ministry that has evolved during the pandemic. For the record, our parish commemorates John Keble on the date of his death, March 29. He died in 1866. We also commemorate another great English priest, Charles Wesley, who died on this date in 1788. I don’t want another Christmas and Easter without singing his hymns. —S.G.

WE NEED YOUR HELP . . . If you have made a pledge for 2021, please continue to make payments on your pledge, if possible. If you have not yet made a pledge for 2021, we urge you to do so. If you can make an additional donation to support the parish at this time, we would happily receive it. Donations may be made online via the Giving section of the parish website. You may also make arrangements for other forms of payment by contacting our parish administrator, Christopher Howatt, who would be happy to assist you. We are grateful to all those who continue to support Saint Mary’s so generously. —The Stewardship Committee

AROUND THE PARISH . . . Shayleigh Katherine Dickson and Richard Thomas Page lived for a time on Forty-seventh Street, not far from Saint Mary’s. They were married here at Saint Mary’s on June 1, 2019. They moved from the neighborhood shortly thereafter. Their son, Osias, was born during the epidemic. Shay, Rich, and Ozzie joined us for Evening Prayer one day this past week. They are now settled into an apartment on Thirty-first Street, and Shay is expecting the couple’s second child sometime in the fall. While Father Smith and his parents talked, Ozzie, like many young children before him, enjoyed clambering on the pews and running in the center aisle. It was very good to see them here, and we hope to see more of them before too very long. Please keep them in your prayers . . . Father Stephen Gerth has been on vacation this week. He returns to New York on Tuesday, July 20, and to the office on Wednesday, July 21 . . . Father Jay Smith will be away from the parish on vacation from Monday, July 19, until Sunday, August 1. He returns to the office on Monday, August 2 . . . Would you like to donate altar flowers? We are looking those willing to donate altar flowers for all the Sundays in August and September, except for August 15. (During the month of September, we celebrate the following feast days: the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Holy Cross Day, Saint Matthew, and Michaelmas.) The suggested donation for flowers is $250. Donors often give flowers in memory of, thanksgiving for, or celebration of certain people or life events. Please contact Chris Howatt in the parish office, if you would like to donate or you may also speak to Brendon Hunter for more information . . . Please speak to the rector if you’d like to volunteer to take photographs on Sunday morning, during Mass or the adult-education classes. The photographs are used to illustrate the weekly newsletter.

THIS WEEK AT SAINT MARY’S . . . Sunday, July 18, The Eighth Sunday after Pentecost, Mass 11:00 AM, Father Jay Smith, celebrant and preacher; Evening Prayer 5:00 PM. The church opens at 10:00 AM and closes at 5:30 PM . . . Monday–Saturday, July 19–24, Mass 12:10 PM and Evening Prayer 5:00 PM. The church is open from 11:00 AM until 5:30 PM . . . Tuesday, July 20, Racism Discussion Group Meeting, 7:00 PM via Zoom. For more information about this ongoing weekly meeting, please call the parish office . . . Thursday, July 22, Saint Mary Magdalene, Mass 12:10 PM . . . Next Sunday, July 25, The Ninth Sunday after Pentecost: Mass 11:00 AM, Father Stephen Gerth, celebrant and preacher; Evening Prayer 5:00 PM.

CHRISTIAN EDUCATION . . . We are happy to announce that Father Peter Powell will be teaching in our adult-education program this fall on Sundays from November 7 until December 19. Father Powell has proven to be a popular Bible teacher both here at Saint Mary’s and at parishes in Connecticut. We are pleased that he will be able to teach in the autumn and again during Lent 2022.

This year, Father Powell will be teaching a class about the Holiness Code, Leviticus 17–27. He writes, “I have long been attracted to the Holiness Code as the source of much of what has become Christian Ethics. The foundation of the call to be ethical is that we are called to be Holy because the Lord Our God, who brought his people up from the land of Egypt, is Holy. To be Holy is to be a people apart. This fall and then again in Lent we will look at these chapters and related chapters in the Torah that ground us in what we undertake when we say we are children of God. Our faith has expectations. These are not the easiest chapters to read so we will do so carefully as we learn about ourselves and our faith. In these chapters you will find the texts used to argue against same-sex marriage as well as the texts used to mandate the forgiveness of debts. How do we read these texts today in a way that takes each seriously while understanding them in their context? We live in a church that encourages marriage for all who desire it. Are we in conflict with the bible or might there be, as I think there is, another way of treating these difficult verses? We live in world in which some are calling for the forgiveness of all student debt (and some for the cancelling of all debt for the poor), what does the call for Jubilee have to say about how we are Christians today? These are only two of the many ethical issues raised in these chapters. I look forward to studying with you in the fall.”

ABOUT THE MUSIC . . . Joséph Jiménez (or José Ximenes), composer of Sunday’s organ prelude, was an organist at Saragossa in 1654. Apart from that fact, the thirty-four organ works attributed to him, and the date of his death (1672), nothing is known about him. In The History of Keyboard Music to 1700, musicologist Willi Apel has written that, in the hands of such composers as Jiménez, “the baroque Tiento evolved into a national type, which cannot be likened to anything else. The peculiarity of the species consists in a wealth of formulae, which may best be called pictorial, for indeed these compositions acquire a picturesque, scenic quality. They represent a kind of drama, a colorful theater, on which certain figures appear, linger for a while, and then make room for others—all without real continuity or unification, but in a loose array whose meaning and attraction lies in its kaleidoscopic changes.” Today’s postlude is also from a Spanish composer, one who lived a century-and-a-half after Ximenes. José Lidon (1752–1827) entered the Royal Chapel of Madrid as an altar boy in 1758 and was taught by organist Antonio de Literes. From 1768, he held music directing positions at Orense Cathedral and the Madrid Royal Chapel, successively serving King Charles IV and King Ferdinand VII. From 1805 until his death, he was Maestro de la Capilla Real in Madrid. Where the Tiento by Jiménez demonstrates an improvisational late Renaissance/early Baroque keyboard practice, José Lidon’s Sonata, also on the first tone, presents a clear late Baroque Italianate two-sectioned structure. The first section leads to a dominant cadence and the second returns to the home key. Lidon’s Sonata is intended for harpsichord or organ with a “royal” trumpet.

The musical setting of the Mass on Sunday is Grosse Pointe Service by David Hurd, organist and music director at Saint Mary’s. This setting was commissioned by Christ Church, Grosse Pointe, Michigan, to honor Frederic DeHaven at the time of his anticipated retirement as organist and choirmaster of that parish. This unpublished setting is for unison voices and organ and was premiered at Christ Church, Grosse Pointe, in 2007. It was subsequently sung as the setting for daily Eucharist at the 2008 Sewanee Church Music Conference. It utilizes the Rite II Eucharist texts and includes Kyrie and Trisagion in addition to the Gloria in excelsis, Sanctus, and Agnus Dei to be sung at Mass on July 18, the Eighth Sunday after Pentecost.

The cantor this coming Sunday is soprano, Sharon Harms. During Communion she will sing L’épouse, the fifth of the nine-movement song cycle Poèmes pour Mi by Olivier Messiaen (1908–1992). Messiaen was born in Avignon, son of the poet Cécile Sauvage. He was a student of Marcel Dupré and Paul Dukas at the Paris Conservatory where he became professor of musical analysis, philosophy, and aesthetics in 1942. His legendary tenure as titular organist of Trinité, Paris, began in 1931. Messiaen composed the song cycle Poèmes pour Mi in 1936 and 1937 and dedicated it to his first wife, Claire Delbos. It was first performed in a version for soprano and orchestra but was also published in a piano edition. The composer is also the poet, whose own words are animated by one of the most distinctive musical vocabularies of twentieth-century western music.

More about Sunday’s Cantor: Praised as “superb,” “luscious-toned,” “extraordinarily precise and expressive,” and “dramatically committed and not averse to risk” by the New York Times, American soprano, Sharon Harms, is known for fearless performances and passionate interpretations of works new and old for the recital, concert, and operatic stage. A member of the Argento Ensemble, Ms. Harms has premiered the music of some of today’s leading composers and her repertoire spans a versatile spectrum of periods and styles. She has sung with Da Capo Chamber Players, East Coast Contemporary Ensemble, Eighth Blackbird, Ensemble Recherche, Ensemble Signal, International Contemporary Ensemble, Juilliard Center for Innovation in the Arts, Limón Dance Company, MET Opera Chamber Orchestra, New Chamber Ballet, Pacifica Quartet, Princeton Festival Opera, Simón Bolívar Orchestra, Talea Ensemble, and Third Coast Percussion, among others. She has also been a guest artist with the American Academy in Rome, Colorado College Summer Music Festival, Columbia University, Cornell University, June in Buffalo, MATA Festival, University of British Columbia, University of Chicago, University of Notre Dame, Radcliffe Institute, and Resonant Bodies Festival, and a fellow at the Tanglewood Music Center. Ms. Harms is soprano faculty for the Composer’s Conference at Brandeis University and was a visiting guest instructor at East Carolina University in 2017. She appears on the Albany, Bridge, and Innova labels. You are invited to visit www.sharonharms.com for more information.

NEIGHBORS IN NEED . . . At our monthly Drop-by Days, we distribute clothing and toiletry and hygiene items to those in need in the Times Square neighborhood. Our next Drop-by Day is scheduled for Friday, August 20. Volunteers work from 1:30 PM until 3:30 PM. Our guests are invited into the church at 2:00 PM and we close our doors at 3:00 PM. We need six (6) volunteers for each Drop-by. If you would like to volunteer, please contact Marie Rosseels, MaryJane Boland, or Father Jay Smith. You may reach them by calling the Parish Office at 212-869-5830.

At the moment, we would welcome donations of travel-size hygiene items such as toothpaste, toothbrushes, shampoo, deodorant, hand sanitizer, and feminine hygiene products. We are also very happy to receive donations of single-trip MTA Transit cards. These are useful for our guests who need to travel to soup kitchens, appointments at health clinics, or meetings with social workers. We are so grateful to all those who continue to support this ministry so generously.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR . . . Friday, August 6, The Transfiguration of Our Lord Jesus Christ . . . Sunday, August 15, The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary . . . Tuesday, August 24, Saint Bartholomew the Apostle . . . Monday, September 6, Labor Day . . . Wednesday, September 8, The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary . . . Saturday, September 11, Requiem Mass for Victims of Attacks on 9/11/2001 . . . Tuesday, September 14, Holy Cross Day . . . Tuesday, September 21, Saint Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist . . . Wednesday, September 29, Saint Michael and All Angels.

AT THE MUSEUMS . . . The building housing the Frick Collection—the mansion located at Fifth Avenue and Seventieth Street that once belonged to the industrialist and notorious opponent of labor unions, Henry Clay Frick (1849–1919)—is now closed for extensive renovation. Much of the collection has been temporarily moved to the former home of the Whitney Museum of American Art, 945 Madison Avenue at Seventy-fifth Street. We have heard from a friend of the parish that it has been very interesting to view some of the Collection’s most famous paintings, including the portraits of Thomas More and Thomas Cromwell by Hans Holbein the Younger (1497/1498–1543), from a very different perspective in the new space. A curator’s discussion of the portrait of Thomas More is available for viewing on YouTube by following this link.

This edition of the Angelus was written and edited by Father Stephen Gerth and Father Jay Smith. Father Gerth is responsible for posting the newsletter on the parish website and for distributing it via mail and e-mail, with the assistance of Christopher Howatt and parish volunteer, Clint Best.