FROM FATHER WARREN PLATT: A NEW HISTORY OF SAINT MARY’S

My monograph on the history of the Church of Saint Mary the Virgin has a perspective and approach similar to my studies on the history of the Church of the Transfiguration on 29th Street, where I assist, and Saint John’s in the Village on 11th Street, where I have preached on occasion. Only one other book has been written on the history of Saint Mary’s, The Story of St. Mary’s by Newbury Frost Read, a member of the parish’s Board of Trustees. But this work, published in 1931, is largely devoted to administrative and financial matters.

My history of Saint Mary’s commences with an examination of the theological and liturgical setting of the Episcopal Church in the 1860s, a period characterized by a transition from a Tractarian churchmanship to a more explicit ritualism. This, too, must be examined and understood within the context of the development of the High Church movement as enunciated in the writings and mission of John Henry Hobart (1816–1830), III Bishop of the Diocese of New York.

My study of Saint Mary’s provides a detailed description of the life and vocation of the Reverend Thomas McKee Brown (1841–1898), the founder and first rector of the parish. Father Brown published very little, but the newspapers and periodicals of the day provide extensive coverage of the liturgies at Saint Mary’s and popular reaction to same. It was both a house of worship and a tourist attraction!

Father Brown’s successors continued the Anglo-Catholic tradition of the parish, each employing his own gifts, insights, and emphases. The parish’s third rector, the Reverend Joseph G. H. Barry (1858–1931; rector 1909–1928) combined his duties as rector with an impressive record of scholarly publications which lucidly delineated and explained a variety of theological and liturgical topics. Father Grieg Taber’s rectorate—Father Taber was Saint Mary’s sixth rector—had a decidedly pastoral approach, animated and influenced by a conservative piety which does not necessarily resonate with contemporary Anglicans. For example, there was a strong emphasis—indeed, some might say a fixation—with the Eucharistic fast from midnight, even after this was modified by the Roman Catholic Church in the 1950s. At this point some observers might conclude that Saint Mary’s, under Father Taber’s long rectorate of twenty-five years, exhibited both catholic and sectarian principles and tendencies.

The parish’s seventh rector, the Reverend Donald Lothrop Garfield (1924–1996; rector 1965–1978), personally known to this writer, sought to maintain the traditions of the parish while acknowledging and introducing the insights and benefits of new developments in liturgical theology and practice. The Reverend Edgar F. Wells, Jr. (1930–2020; rector 1979–1998) continued in the path of Father Garfield and introduced contemporary language into the liturgy. Both rectors sought a high intellectual plane in church apologetics, and they organized a wide variety of adult-education programs while also inviting distinguished visitors from other parts of the Anglican Communion to preach and lecture at the parish. A highpoint of Father Garfield’s rectorate was the visit of the Most Reverend Arthur Michael Ramsey, the Archbishop of Canterbury, to preside at the High Mass in October 1967, which marked the inauguration of the centennial anniversary celebration at Saint Mary’s.

Even the casual observer of the life and vocation of Saint Mary’s would note that for much of its history there was a focus on its singularity which sustained its leadership status in the Anglo-Catholic movement. But this could also produce some unusual manifestations. The 1955 edition of The World Almanac and Book of Facts provided a list of churches and religious bodies in the United States, supplying the membership of each and the number of houses of worship. In this extensive listing there appeared a denomination identified as The Church of St. Mary the Virgin with 800 members and one church building! This was obviously an error, but it pointed to the parish’s unique mission and reputation. — Warren Platt

It is hoped that Father Platt’s history of the parish will be published in 2023. We will inform readers of the Angelus when the history is available for purchase.

The Reverend Dr. Warren C. Platt is a native New Yorker, his ancestors having arrived in Brooklyn from County Tipperary, Ireland, in 1849. He is a graduate of Cornell University (B.A., 1966), Union Theological Seminary (M.Div., 1969), Columbia University (Master of Science in Library Science, 1970), and Columbia University (Ph.D., 1982). Prior to his retirement in 2009, he worked at Brooklyn Public Library and the Research Libraries of the New York Public Library. At the latter institution he was responsible for collection development in the area of religion and cognate disciplines, and he also wrote and edited the research guides which assisted readers in the utilization of the Library’s collections. During this time, he assisted at the Church of the Transfiguration celebrating Mass as well as delivering sermons and lectures, a ministry that he has continued up to the present. He has been published in various academic journals, principally in the areas of church history and library science, and his current area of interest is the history of the rise of ritualism in nineteenth-century Episcopalianism.

THE PARISH PRAYER LIST

We pray for those who are sick and for those in any need or trouble. We pray for those celebrating birthdays and anniversaries this week; for those living with drought, storm, flood, fire, and earthquake; and we pray especially for, Patricia, Ellie, Grace, Jason, Derek, Damar, Allison, Peter, Nadira, Gloria, Rachel, Mavis, Marilyn, Jane, Joanna, Ginny, Roger, Catherine, Tony, Pat, Penny, Steven, Sachakay, Lourdes, Luis, Liduvina, Joyce, Mary Hope, Marjorie, José, Gigi, Julie, Carol, Carlos, Christopher, Shalim, Greta, Quincy, Ava Grace, Bruce, Barbara, Robert, Jeremy, Charlotte, Greg, Abe, Ethelyn, Gypsy, Hardy, Margaret, Hardy, Debbi, deacon, and Rob and Rick, priests.

We pray for the repose of the souls of Thomas Ogletree and Wayne Meeks, scholars and teachers; and

For the Chemin Neuf Community and the Community at the Crossing;

For the religious orders of the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion;

For an end to the divisions among the churches;

For the people of Ukraine and for an end to the Russian invasion;

For coadjutor bishop-elect, Matthew Heyd;

For all those suffering from COVID-19 and for all those recovering from COVID-19;

For all refugees and those seeking asylum;

For the work of Neighbors in Need and for its guests;

For those without food, shelter, or work; and for those seeking work;

For those troubled by depression, anxiety, or addiction;

For all those visiting Saint Mary’s this week;

For the safety and welfare of our nation, city, and neighborhood.

STEWARDSHIP UPDATE

As of January 12, 2023, we have received 73 pledge cards for a total of $338,071—almost 85% of our $400,000 goal. For that, we thank you! However, that is only 50% of the pledging units from last year, so if you’re part of the Saint Mary’s family and have yet to submit a new pledge card for 2023—we need you! If you pledged last year and assume your pledge carries over, it actually doesn’t. We need you to provide instructions for 2023. The work of prayer and mission at Saint Mary’s is only possible because of the financial support of people like you. Our true operating budget far exceeds our stewardship goal, so the remainder must be drawn from our endowment, which is simply unsustainable.

Watch this newsletter for more information about finances at St. Mary’s in the coming weeks. And in the meantime, please consider making your pledge today—it’s as simple as clicking here to make your pledge online. 

NEIGHBORS IN NEED

We Need Volunteers! We need one or two people for several hours once a week to partner with Marie and MaryJane in sorting and hanging donated clothes.

We also need one or two strong people (with good knees!) for an hour or two twice a month to carry bags and clothing on hangers up the stairs and into Saint Joseph’s Hall for set-up (we could use help with set up as well). This month, set-up will take place on Thursday, January 19, and on Monday, January 23.

We Need Donated Clothing! We especially need coats, shoes (and boots) in all sizes, and children’s clothes.  We do not need professional attire, and we can’t use clothes that are heavily used, torn, or in need of laundering.

Would You Like to Learn More? Click here for the Neighbors in Need webpage or here to send us an email to discuss the program.

If You Would Like to Find Out how to organize a clothing drive in your building, please speak to Father Matt or to MaryJane Boland.

We Are Immensely Grateful to the following for their significant donations during recent months:

The people and clergy of Christ and Saint Stephen’s Church, West 69th Street
The residents of Father Matt Jacobson’s building on the Upper West Side
The residents of Daniel Picard and Mary Jane Boland’s building on the Upper West Side
The residents of Marie Rosseels’ building on the Upper West Side
The members and friends of the Church of Saint Mary the Virgin

We are also very grateful for the assistance we have received from:

Bank of America/US Trust, West 47th Street
Volunteers from Morgan Stanley
Volunteers from Janney Montgomery Scott, LLC
Volunteers from Christ and Saint Stephen’s Church
Our donors from our parish, neighborhood, city, and from around the country

And, as always, we are grateful to the members, spouses of members, and friends of the Church of Saint Mary the Virgin.

ABOUT THE MUSIC ON THE SECOND SUNDAY AFTER THE EPIPHANY: JANUARY 15, 2023

The organ prelude on Sunday morning is Fantasia on Wondrous Love by David Hurd, organist and music director at Saint Mary the Virgin. It was composed for a collection of organ pieces issued in 2016 by Selah Publications in commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of the Association of Anglican Musicians (AAM). The three stanzas set to this well-known Southern Harmony melody, which will be sung as Sunday’s post-Communion hymn, provided the inspiration for the distinct sections of this single-movement organ piece. The title stanza, “What wondrous love is this,” is represented by a gently inquisitive trio with the melody played in alto register on the pedals. The second stanza, “To God and to the Lamb I will sing,” is expressed in a bolder, angular style, with melody in the tenor. The third, “And when from death I’m free,” shifts to a more reflective mood with the melody in canon at the fourth. The canonic voices are played in the alto register by the feet and left hand, amidst flowing string celeste accompaniment. A brief coda, in which a bit of the opening “Wondrous love” trio is heard once again, concludes the piece.

The musical setting of the Mass on Sunday morning is Messa a quattro voci da cappella by Claudio Monteverdi (1567–1643). Monteverdi, the great Italian madrigalist, was one of the most important composers to flourish at the juncture of European Renaissance music and the emergence of the Baroque musical art. He was one of the legendary musicians to have directed music at San Marco, Venice, and later in his life was ordained a priest. With his L’Orfeo, written in 1609, Monterverdi became the founder of opera as we know it today. His Vespro della Beata Vergine of 1610 may well have provided a model and an inspiration for the great Passions and oratorios of the later Baroque composers—notably Bach and Handel—that would also stand as monumental pillars of sacred music even to our own day. Monteverdi’s Mass for Four Voices was published posthumously in 1650 in a collection which also included psalms and a litany to the Blessed Virgin.

Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina (c. 1525–1594) is generally recognized as the composer whose work, more than that of any other single composer, defined the summit of Renaissance polyphony and established canons for evaluating appropriate church music that remain in place to our time. The motet sung during the administration of Communion is Palestrina’s Sicut cervus, a setting for four voices of the beginning of Psalm 42. Of Palestrina’s more than three hundred motets, Sicut cervus is particularly beloved for its elegant simplicity and accessibility, and the broad devotional appeal and liturgical application of its psalm text. — David Hurd

AROUND THE PARISH

On Wednesday, January 11, Father Sammy Wood and Father Jay Smith met with representatives of the Church of Saint Clement, 46th Street—Father Tom Miller and Mr. Corey Brothers. Corey is one of the wardens at Saint Clement’s. Father Miller, a priest of the Diocese of New York, now retired, celebrates the Eucharist and preaches at Saint Clement’s on a regular basis. At the meeting, the histories and present circumstances of the two parishes were discussed, as well as ways in which the parishes might cooperate in mission and ministry as well as prayer and worship. One result of the meeting was Saint Mary’s commitment to resume its support of the Saint Clement’s Food Pantry. The Pantry serves hundreds of residents of the Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood, providing groceries, three weekends per month. We will now begin to collect non-perishable food items which will be delivered to Saint Clement’s. Stay tuned for further details.

Many Sundays and feast days in 2023 are available to donate the altar flowers. Among them are Sundays, February 5 and 12; and Sunday, March 19 (Laetare Sunday). Please contact Chris Howatt if you would like to make a donation for one of the available dates.

Evensong & Benediction will not be offered during the month of January. It will resume on Sunday, February 5, 2023, at 5:00 PM, and is normally offered on the first Sunday of the month in lieu of said Evening Prayer between October and June.

Father Matt Jacobson will be away from the parish from the evening of January 8 through Friday, January 27, though can be reached by email. He will be the celebrant at the Solemn Mass on Sunday, January 29, the Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany.

A reminder: Father Sammy Wood will be away from the parish, leading a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, from Tuesday, March 14, until Saturday, March 25.

THIS WEEK AT SAINT MARY’S

Saturday, January 14, Richard Meux Benson, Priest and Religious, 1915, and Charles Gore, Bishop and Religious, 1932, Mass 12:10 PM

Saturday, January 14, Eve of the Second Sunday after the Epiphany, Evening Prayer 5:00 PM

Sunday, January 15, The Second Sunday after the Epiphany, Adult Education in Saint Joseph’s Hall at 9:30 AM (entrance is easiest via the door at 145 West 46th Street, the Parish House); Solemn Mass 11:00 AM; Evening Prayer 5:00 PM

Monday, January 16, Martin Luther King, Jr., Birthday. Federal Holiday. The church opens at 9:00 AM and closes at 12:00 PM. The Holy Eucharist is celebrated in the Lady Chapel at 10:00 AM. Morning and Evening Prayer are not said in the church. The parish offices are closed.

Tuesday, January 17, Antony, Abbot in Egypt, 356, Morning Prayer 8:00 AM, Mass 12:10 PM, and Evening Prayer at 5:00 PM

Wednesday, January 18, The Confession of Saint Peter the Apostle. The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity Begins. Morning Prayer 8:30 AM, Holy Hour 11:00 AM, Mass 12:10 PM, Evening Prayer 5:00 PM

Thursday, January 19, Wulfstan, Bishop of Worcester, 1095, Morning Prayer 8:00 AM, Mass 12:10 PM, and Evening Prayer at 5:00 PM

Friday, January 20, Fabian, Bishop and Martyr of Rome, 250, Morning Prayer 8:00 AM, Mass 12:10 PM, and Evening Prayer at 5:00 PM

Saturday, January 21, Agnes, Martyr at Rome, 304, Morning Prayer 8:00 AM, Mass 12:10 PM, and Evening Prayer at 5:00 PM

Saturday, January 21, Eve of the Third Sunday after the Epiphany, Evening Prayer 5:00 PM

Our regular daily liturgical schedule, Monday through Friday, is Morning Prayer 8:00 AM, Mass 12:10 PM, and Evening Prayer at 5:00 PM. Holy Hour is offered on Wednesday at 11:00 AM and Thursday’s Mass includes a Healing Service. On Saturday, Mass is celebrated at 12:10 PM and Evening Prayer is prayed at 5:00 PM. On Sundays, Solemn Mass is offered at 11:00 AM and Evening Prayer at 5:00 PM.

REPORT FROM ROME

Father Matt Jacobson is in Rome and writes, “All is well here. We took a long walk down the Via Appia Antica today, starting from the Catacombs of San Sebastiano and heading away from the city. This is probably the most scenic stretch. While preparing Sunday’s update for the homepage on our website, I realized that next Saturday [January 21] is the feast day for Sant’Agnese. This is when they bless the lambs from which they will take wool to make the pope’s pallium. The parish of Sant’Agnese is a short walk from where we’re staying, and so I will try to make it. The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity is also coming up and I plan to attend some of the associated liturgies, including the Vespers led by Pope Francis at San Paolo fuori le Mura on the Conversion of Saint Paul [January 25], which concludes the week.”

A HISTORY OF THE WEEK OF PRAYER FOR CHRISTIAN UNITY

In 2023, the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity begins on Wednesday, January 18, The Confession of Peter the Apostle. The Week ends on Wednesday, January 25, The Conversion of Paul the Apostle.

The biblical text chosen for the Week is Isaiah 1:12–18, with a particular focus on v. 17: “When you come to appear before me, who asked this from your hand? Trample my courts no more; bringing offerings is futile; incense is an abomination to me. New moon and sabbath and calling of convocation — I cannot endure solemn assemblies with iniquity. Your new moons and your appointed festivals my soul hates; they have become a burden to me, I am weary of bearing them. When you stretch out your hands, I will hide my eyes from you; even though you make many prayers, I will not listen; your hands are full of blood. Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your doings from before my eyes; cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, plead for the widow. Come now, let us argue it out, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be like snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool” (NRSV).

The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity was first proposed—as the “Church Unity Octave”— in 1908 as an observance within the Roman Catholic Church by Father Paul Wattson (1863–1940), founder of the Franciscan Friars of the Atonement in Graymoor, New York. Father Wattson began his life and ministry as an Episcopalian, however, and first conceived the idea of prayer for unity while an Anglican and Anglo-Catholic. Therefore, this week has a special meaning here at Saint Mary’s and in many Anglo-Catholic parishes.

Father Wattson was born in Millington, Maryland, and baptized Lewis Thomas Wattson. He received his B.A. (1882) and his M.A. (1885) from Saint Stephen’s (Bard) College and his B.D. from the General Theological Seminary in 1887. He was ordained deacon on June 5, 1885, and priest on December 12, 1886. He began his ordained ministry in Port Deposit, Maryland, and then became rector of St. John’s Church, Kingston, New York. In 1894, he began publishing The Pulpit of the Cross, an Anglo-Catholic parish bulletin. In 1895 he became the superior of an Episcopal mission in Omaha. In December 1898 he and Lurana Mary White founded the Society of the Atonement, an order which was to work for the unity of the church. On July 27, 1900, he made his monastic profession before Bishop Leighton Coleman of Delaware and took the name Paul James Francis. In 1903, he began publishing The Lamp, which stressed the reunion of the Anglican Communion and the Church of Rome. Wattson founded the Church Unity Octave in 1909, an eight-day period of prayer for Christian unity. Around that time, he had begun to doubt the validity of Anglican orders, and on October 30, 1909, he, Mother Lurana, and fifteen others were received into the Roman Catholic Church. Wattson was ordained a Roman Catholic priest on July 16, 1910. He died in Garrison, New York in 1940. His departure for Rome did not prevent Father Wattson and his companions from continuing their work, promoting the cause of Christian unity.

In the 1930s, it was suggested by Abbé Paul Couturier, a Roman Catholic priest in France, that the basis for prayer be broadened to include all who desired unity in Jesus Christ, without reference to the Pope. Also in the 1930s, Wattson changed the name to the Chair of Unity Octave. Since 1966 the Faith and Order Commission of the World Council of Churches and the Vatican Secretariat for Promoting Christian Unity have worked together on common international texts for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.

This year’s texts and other materials related to the Week are available by following this link or by visiting the website of the World Council of Churches (WCC).

The text for this history is taken from the Glossary of Terms found on the Episcopal Church’s website, the website of the Society of the Atonement, and Wikipedia. Those texts have been adapted for this edition of the parish newsletter.

ADULT EDUCATION 2023

The Eucharist: the Gifts of God for the People of God
February 5, 12, 19; April 23, 30; and May 7, 14, at 9:30–10:30 AM
in Saint Benedict’s Study in the Parish House, 145 West 46th Street

Sunday, January 15, 22, 29, 9:30–10:30 AM, in Saint Joseph’s Hall. Father Sammy’s contribution to our year-long adult formation series on the Eucharist is a move from the theoretical to the practical, a chance to unpack some of the theology of our “central act of worship” and to ask how it affects our everyday lives at St. Mary’s. Week One (January 15) lays some groundwork with a session on the Meaning of the Mass. Week Two (January 22) builds on that foundation by looking at the Movement of the Mass, our ceremonies and rituals; and the final installment—Week Three (January 29)—follows the path we’ve been on to its logical conclusion—that we’re Moving from Mass to Mission. Please join us in Saint Joseph’s Hall at 9.30 AM on Sunday for coffee and conversation.

On the Sundays in February, Father Jay Smith will teach a series of three classes in which he will continue last fall’s conversation about Eucharist as Presence, contrasting Catholic and Protestant conceptions of the Eucharist, discussing theology and doctrine, as well as poetry and hymn.

To find Saint Benedict’s Study, please enter Saint Joseph’s Hall via the entrance at 145 West 46th Street, bear right and head down the long hallway which takes you past the rest rooms, the windows, and then head toward the Sacristy. The classroom is located on your left, just short of the doors to the Smoke Room, the Control Room, and the Sacristy.

This edition of the Angelus was written and edited by Father Jay Smith, except as noted. Father Matt Jacobson also edits the newsletter 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.