FROM GLADYS RAMOS-REYES: MY SPIRITUAL JOURNEY

Raised by a staunch Roman Catholic mother, I spent many of my childhood days reading and debating the Bible with my brother.  One of life’s adversities led me to disconnect from the Roman Catholic faith during my teenage years. I then spent what felt like a lifetime searching for a new faith. Throughout this time, my own spirituality began to unfold, and I began using language such as “I’m one of God’s helpers,” a very active role in my personal life.

Simultaneously, I was developing different marketable skillsets, which led to administrative work. Eventually, I began working for an adoption agency where I have spent the last thirty-four years. A change in leadership at the agency led to some job insecurity, but it also inspired me to explore new career possibilities. My husband, Luis, became my number-one supporter and he encouraged my decision to go to college at night while I continued to work during the day. Through my degree and license in social work, I feel privileged to provide therapy to the adoptee population and continue to work in administration. I feel like I have come full circle and in the path that Lord intended for me.

Luis also introduced me to Saint Mary’s many years ago. I felt the presence of the Lord and Saint Mary the moment I walked into the church and knew it would be my second home. Today, being one of God’s helpers is still my greatest joy, and I am grateful for the countless opportunities I am afforded to help humanity and to do God’s work. — Gladys Ramos-Reyes

Gladys Ramos-Reyes is a member of the parish. Hers is the latest contribution in a series of essays in which parishioners are asked to reflect on the links among faith, study, work, and life. Gladys received an associate degree in human services from the Borough of Manhattan Community College. She then attended Lehman College, where she was awarded bachelor’s and master’s degrees in social work. She is a licensed master social worker (LMSW) in the State of New York. She recently completed the year-long course in family therapy at the Ackerman Institute for the Family and is now working with clients as she prepares to sit for the licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) examination.

THE PARISH PRAYER LIST

Prayers are asked for the sick, for those in any need or trouble, for those celebrating birthdays and anniversaries this week, for those who are travelling, and especially for Dickie, BG, David, Stuart, Salman, Mary, Barbara, James, Claudia, Ben, Allen, Marjorie, Shalim, Greta, Liduvina, Quincy, Florette, José, James, Laverne, Frank, Carlos, Loretta, Ken, Abraham, Gypsy, Margaret, Emil, Pat, Robert, Jim, religious, and Scott, priest.

You are invited to pray:

For the safety and welfare of our city and our nation;

For peace in Ethiopia, Ukraine, Myanmar, Syria, Israel, Gaza, and Yemen;

For an end to violence, suspicion, hatred, and discord;

For those suffering from depression, anxiety, and addiction;

For all refugees;

For those without food, shelter, or work;

For the work, presence, and ministry of the Church of Saint Mary the Virgin, its people and its clergy.

TIMES AND LOCATIONS OF DAILY AND SUNDAY LITURGIES:

Monday–Saturday: Daily Mass 12:10 PM, Lady Chapel

Monday–Sunday: Evening Prayer 5:00 PM, Choir and Church

The Solemn Mass on Sunday morning at 11:00 AM is celebrated in the Church

AROUND THE PARISH

Keeping up to date with pledge payments: It is not uncommon for us to experience cash-flow problems during the summer months, we urge all our members and friends to stay current with their pledge payments, and we welcome donations in support of the parish’s mission during this time. If you have questions, please contact the parish treasurer, Steven Heffner.

We are grateful to all those who continue to support Saint Mary’s so generously.

Saint Mary’s Book Club: Our first book, which we will read this summer, is Marilynne Robinson’s novel, Gilead (Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2004). We will be meeting in Saint Benedict’s Study at 12:45 PM on Sunday, September 18. Sandwiches and beverages will be provided. If you would like to join us, please send Father Jay an e-mail.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

On Thursday, September 29, the Feast of Saint Michael and All Angels, we will keep the feast with a Sung Mass at 6:00 PM. A quartet from the choir will sing. The preacher at the Mass will be the Reverend Dr. Lloyd Alexander Lewis, Jr., Molly Laird Downs Professor of New Testament Emeritus at the Virginia Theological Seminary. Dr. Lewis—known to many of his friends and colleagues as Tony—also served parishes in Brooklyn and on Long Island and taught at the General Theological Seminary. He was, for a time, Dean of the George Mercer, Jr. Memorial School of Theology and Bishop’s Deputy for Education in the Diocese of Long Island. He is a learned scholar, a kind and compassionate pastor, and a fine preacher and priest. We hope that many of our members and friends will be able to join us on Michaelmas to celebrate the feast and to hear Father Lewis preach.

ABOUT THE MUSIC

Sunday’s organ voluntaries continue a series, begun earlier this month, of the eight “Little” Preludes and Fugues traditionally attributed to J.S. Bach (1685–1750). These pieces are now widely believed to have been composed by one of his pupils, very likely Johann Tobias Krebs (1690–1762), or his son Johann Ludwig Krebs (1713–1780). Of these eight preludes and fugues, four are in major keys of C, F, G, and B-flat, and the remaining four are in their relative minors of A, D, E, and G. The standard ordering of these eight pieces begins with BWV 553 in C Major and progresses up the scale to BWV 560 in B-flat. This morning’s prelude will be BWV 556 in F Major, and the postlude will be BWV 554 in the relative minor key of D. BWV 556, for the prelude, may be the least likely of the eight Preludes and Fugues to have been composed by Sebastian Bach. The prelude especially is stylistically much more suggestive of post-baroque classical composition. Its accompanying fugue has a similar harmonic and textural simplicity as it continues in the bright spirit of F Major. BWV 554, numbered second in the collection and played for the postlude, has an A-B-A-shaped prelude, as did BWV 556. The fugue, with angular theme, is modest in length and follows logically after the prelude.

The musical setting of the Mass on Sunday is New Plainsong by David Hurd, organist and music director here at Saint Mary’s. This setting was composed in 1978 at the request of the Standing Commission on Church Music of the Episcopal Church as the revision of The Hymnal 1940 was gaining momentum. The Commission desired a setting which would be for the contemporary language Eucharistic texts what John Merbercke’s 1550 setting had been for the traditional English words. As such, New Plainsong is chant-like and almost entirely syllabic, that is, only one note is sung per syllable. Modest keyboard accompaniments are provided in this Mass setting, but its vocal lines alternatively may be sung unaccompanied. New Plainsong subsequently has been included in The Hymnal 1982 and in worship resources of other denominations. A revised edition of New Plainsong issued in 2018 accommodates newer Roman Catholic usage.

The cantor on Sunday morning is baritone, Muir Ingliss, a regular member of the Choir of Saint Mary’s. During the Communion he will sing Lord God of Abraham from the oratorio Elijah by Felix Mendelssohn (1809–1847). Mendelssohn was certainly a prodigy of his day, distinguishing himself as a conductor, composer, pianist, organist, and musical visionary. He is largely credited for reintroducing the music of Johann Sebastian Bach to the early nineteenth-century musical world. His contributions as a composer form a significant bridge from classical to romantic style and generously include the categories of orchestral, choral, stage, chamber, piano, vocal and organ works. His music is said to have set the canons of mid-Victorian musical taste. His oratorio Elijah, Handelian in inspiration, was completed and first performed in 1846. Elijah’s aria Lord God of Abraham, introduced by a short recitative, is the fourteenth of the oratorio’s forty-two movements. It draws its text from 1 Kings 28:30, 36–37.

A New York City native, baritone Muir Ingliss is a graduate of Bard College. He has sung a number of leading roles in both opera and oratorio, including Mozart’s Nozze di Figaro, Brahms’s Requiem, and Handel’s Messiah. He has been a member of the Choir of Saint Mary’s since January 2022.

THIS WEEK AT SAINT MARY’S

Sunday, August 21, The Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 16C), Solemn Mass 11:00 AM. The readings are Isaiah 58:9b–14; Psalm 103:1–8; Hebrews 12:18–19, 22–29; and Luke 13:10–17. Father Wood will celebrate, and Father Jacobson will preach the sermon.

Next Week, August 28, The Twelfth Sunday After Pentecost (Proper 17C), Solemn Mass 11:00 AM. The readings Are Ecclesiasticus 10:12–18; Psalm 112; Hebrews 13:1–8; Luke 14:1–14. Father Smith will celebrate, and Father Wood will preach. The prelude before Mass will be Prelude and Fugue in G minor, BWV 558, by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750), and the postlude will be Prelude and Fugue in B-flat Major, BWV 560, also by Bach. The Mass setting on August 28 will be Music for the Lord’s Supper by McNeil Robinson (1943–2015). The vocal solo, sung by cantor Charlotte Mundy, will be Bach’s Letzte Stunde, brich herein from Cantata 31.

Upcoming Commemoration: Wednesday, August 24, Saint Bartholomew, Apostle; Thursday, August 25, Louis, King of France, Mass 12:10 PM; Saturday, August 27, Henry Winter Syle, Priest,  and Thomas Gallaudet, Priest, Missioners to the Deaf.

The Holy Eucharist is celebrated Monday–Saturday at 12:10 PM in the Lady Chapel.

Holy Hour. Wednesday mornings 11:00–11:50 AM, in the Lady Chapel. A time for silent prayer and contemplation before the Blessed Sacrament. The Holy Eucharist follows at 12:10 PM. We invite you to join us.

NEIGHBORS IN NEED

The Neighbors in Need program is Saint Mary’s principal outreach ministry. It was founded by members of the parish, along with resident sisters and friars and members of the parish’s clergy staff. We “own” it and run it. We provide clothing and basic, but essential, hygiene items to our neighbors in Times Square. Your cash donations and gifts of new and lightly used clothing make this ministry possible.

The September Drop-by will take place on Friday, September 16.

The October Drop-by will take place on Friday, October 21.

The November Drop-by will take place on Friday, November 18.

We welcome cash donations and donations of athletic shoes, jeans, socks, and underwear for both men and women.

Beginning in the autumn, we will gladly receive donations of cold-weather clothing such as coats, scarves, gloves, and thermal underwear.

If you would like to volunteer for Neighbors in Need, please contact Marie Rosseels.

Our goal is to continue to distribute clothing and hygiene items to those in need in the Times Square neighborhood. We are grateful to all those who continue to support this ministry.

This edition of the Angelus was written and edited by Father Jay Smith. Father Matt Jacobson helps to edit and is responsible for formatting and posting it on the parish website and distributing it via mail and e-mail, with the assistance of Christopher Howatt, parish administrator, and parish volunteer, Clint Best.