FROM FATHER JAY SMITH: THE FEAST DAY OF GOD

At staff meeting recently, Dr. Hurd told us a story from his time working at All Saints Church, Sixtieth Street. He said that one of the priests on that parish’s staff back then had argued that the choir season should end not on the Day of Pentecost but one week later on Trinity Sunday. “Why?” the rector had asked. David’s colleague responded, “Because Trinity Sunday is the Feast of God!” This amused us for many reasons—budgetary, musical, liturgical, and theological. (It should be noted that, here at Saint Mary’s, the choir season ends on the Feast of Corpus Christi, two weeks after the Day of Pentecost.)

I thought of what David’s colleague had said this week. He was right, of course. But, in another sense, his words were incomplete, if only because all speech about God is incomplete. God does not fit into the confines of human language, not even the most exquisitely precise language. This should not frustrate us. We should simply bring our beautiful and glorious inadequacy along with us when we pray and worship. If we await God’s presence “like watchmen for the morning” it’s because the dawn is God’s doing, not our own.

Of course, Christians must talk about God, and Christian talk about God is particularly rich because we believe that God is One in Three, Three in One. But the mystery of the Trinity means that when we talk about God it is as if we are turning a prism in our hands, considering God facet by facet—sometimes we talk about one of the Persons of the Trinity—Father, Son, or Holy Spirit—sometimes, of course, we say Trinity, and sometimes we simply say God, which is what Saint Teresa of Avila does in her lovely prayer, “Let nothing disturb you. Let nothing frighten you. All things are passing away: God never changes. Patience obtains all things. Whoever has God lacks nothing. God alone suffices.”

This week and in the next couple of weeks, we are turning that prism rather a lot. On Ascension Day the Son returns to the Father[1] who had sent him. On the Day of Pentecost, the Son keeps his promise and sends the Spirit. On Trinity Sunday, yes, the Feast Day of God, we do say God, but we can’t help also singing One in Three, Three in One. On Corpus Christi, we worship the Son, made present to and for us in the Bread and Wine through the power of the Holy Spirit.

What then are we to make of this coming Sunday, known simply as “The Seventh Sunday of Easter,” a Sunday that sits calmly, without a procession, with no special title, between Ascension Day and the Day of Pentecost?

When I took a look at the readings appointed for this coming Sunday, I began to wonder if we are not meant to turn the prism once again to consider the First Person of the Trinity, the One whom we will address at the beginning of the Eucharistic Prayer on Sunday, “It is truly right to glorify you, Father, and to give you thanks; for you alone are God, living and true, dwelling in light inaccessible from before time and for ever. Fountain of life and source of all goodness, you made all things and fill them with your blessing; you created them to rejoice in the splendor of your radiance.” Of course this is what we always do at Mass, we thank God the Father for what he has done and is doing in God the Son through the power of the Spirit, which is what we do when we turn the prism in that direction, in those moments when we feel called to praise the Unbegotten One, the One who is Source, Fount, and Origin.

The wonderful Anglican priest and poet, Malcolm Guite, has given us a poem appropriate, I think, for this Seventh Sunday of Easter, this particular Feast of God. As always, I am grateful to this poet who turns the prism for us so often and so well. — JRS

Which comes first, the fish or the river?
Malcolm Guite

Since every gift comes down from the All-Giver,
How can I choose between the Giver’s gifts
Or say which should come first, the fish or river?
He scatters first, and then calls us to gather,
To lavish on his work our smaller crafts
And sail our praise upstream, back to the Giver.

He gives His gifts when we are met together,
Not in our splits, our schisms, and our rifts:
We cannot prize the Fish and not the River,

Divide the two and say “which would you rather?”
We float through time on fragile little rafts,
But time and life alike flow from the Giver.

Away upstream, it all flows from the Father:
The stream is His own Spirit, giving gifts;
His Son, our brother, joins us in the River.

He is our ‘both-and’ God, not ‘or’, or ‘either’;
He gives full measure: steady, heady draughts!
The Giver must come first, always the Giver,
We prize alike His gifts: both Fish and River.

Copyright © 2024 by Malcolm Guite. Used with permission.

PRAYING FOR THE CHURCH & FOR THE WORLD

A Prayer to Mary, Queen of Peace

We ask you, Queen of Peace, to help us respond with the power of truth and love to the new and unsettling challenges of the present moment. Help us also to pass through this difficult period, that disturbs the serenity of so many people, and to work without delay to build every day and everywhere a genuine culture of peace. — Pope John Paul II (2001)

We pray for an end to war and violence, remembering especially the people of Gaza, Israel, the West Bank, Lebanon, Sudan, Ukraine, Russia, Iran, the Red Sea, Myanmar, and Yemen. We pray for justice and for an end to violence and division in our neighborhood, city, and nation.

We pray for the people and clergy of our sister parish, All Saints Margaret Street, London, and of the parishes of the Midtown Clericus.

We pray for those preparing for baptism on the Day of Pentecost.

We pray for those who were confirmed or who reaffirmed their faith on Ascension Day: Ruth Ann Berkowitz, Camrin Delgado, Shane Delgado, Roland Larbie, Ro Miller, Vicki Shelton, Claudia Vega, and Flannery Wood.

We pray for Nicole Palma and Joe Rodriguez, who are preparing for Holy Matrimony on Saturday, May 11, at Saint Luke’s Church, Forest Hills, New York.

We pray for those celebrating birthdays and anniversaries this week; for those who are traveling; for the unemployed and for those seeking work; for the incarcerated and for those recently released from prison; for all victims of violence, assault, and crime; for all migrants and those seeking asylum, especially those sheltering in our neighborhood; for those struggling with depression, anxiety, or addiction; for those whom we serve in our outreach programs, for our neighbors in and around Times Square, for the theater community, for those living with drought, storm, punishing heat, flood, fire, or earthquake; and for those in any need or trouble.

We pray for those who have asked us for our prayers, especially Tony, Renee, Kevin, Hilary, Christine, Donald, Richard, Josh, James, Carl, Nettie, Chrissy, Liduvina, Robert, Randy, Carlos, Christopher, Claudia, Zoe, Alex, Jan, Jeff, Aliza, Bob, Chuck, Eleni, Linda, Pat, Marjorie, Carole, Luis, Liduvina, David, Clark, Willard, Virginia, Rolf, Sharon, Quincy, Robert, Randy, June, José, Manuel, Suzanne, Abe, Gypsy, Hardy, Giovanna, Rita, and Bob; James, Jack, Barbara Jean and Eleanor-Francis, religious; Ignacio and Lind, deacons; and Robby and Stephen, priests.

We pray for the repose of the souls of Mary J. Scofield (1905); Ina Thomas (1922); Alice Raymond (1924); and Laverne, niece of parishioner John Derek Norvell, whose year’s mind is on Sunday, May 12.

PLEASE JOIN US ON

THE DAY OF PENTECOST
Sunday, May 19

Said Mass 9:00 AM (Rite One)
Adult Formation 9:45 AM
Procession, Solemn Mass, and
Holy Baptism 11:00 AM
The Reverend Landon Moore, Preacher
Evening Prayer 5:00 PM

TRINITY SUNDAY
Sunday, May 26

Said Mass 9:00 AM (Rite One)
Solemn Mass and Te Deum
The Reverend Sammy Wood, Preacher
Evening Prayer 5:00 PM

THE BODY AND BLOOD OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST: CORPUS CHRISTI
Sunday, June 2

Said Mass 9:00 AM (Rite One)
Solemn Mass, Procession to Times Square,
and Eucharistic Benediction
Preacher TBA
Evening Prayer 5:00 PM

AIDS WALK NEW YORK UPDATE

This week, we gained two new teammates and are now up to sixteen members! We raised an additional $3,549 which gets us to $45,246 out of our goal of $50,000! With the Walk just over a week away, please consider helping us reach our goal. Thank you to all who have supported us so far!

This year, AIDS Walk New York takes place on Sunday, May 19. To join the team, to support us with a donation, or to follow our progress, please click here. If you have any questions, please speak with one of the team captains: MaryJane Boland, Clark Mitchell, and Father Matt Jacobson. We are grateful to all those who continue to support this ministry.

CONCERTS AT SAINT MARY’S

On Saturday, May 18, 2024, at 8:00 PM, The New York Repertory Orchestra plays its final concert of the 2023–2024 season. Program: Johannes Brahms: Academic Festival Overture; Hector Berlioz: La mort de Cléopâtre (Sarah Nelson Craft, mezzo-soprano); Howard Hanson: Symphony No. 4 (Requiem). Admission is free. A donation of $15.00 (or more) is gratefully accepted.

CHRISTIAN EDUCATION AT SAINT MARY’S

The Sunday Morning Adult Formation Class . . . The last set of classes in the Conversion & Transformation series continues this Sunday with the second of our three meetings. Father Jay Smith is leading this final series, which is entitled Living in Hope: Following Jesus in the Second Half of Life. We’ll consider the work and thought of those who have written about regret, forgiveness, managing retirement, the “missed life,” the spirituality of aging, and living, thriving, and being transformed after fifty (or thereabouts). We will consider how one might experience the presence of God when one has become—sometimes unawares, sometimes unhappily, sometimes with expectation—an elder. This is a class for one and all, and we will benefit from the presence of both the young and those who have entered into this “second half of life.”

The Catechesis of the Good Shepherd is up and running on Sundays at 9:45 AM for the younger members of our congregation. Learn more about this formation program for children in an article by Renee Wood from a prior issue of The Angelus. Catechesis of the Good Shephard Level 1 formation is designed for ages 3-6. Older children are welcome to join and assist with the younger children. Parents can drop off their children at the Atrium (Parish House, Second Floor) at 9:45 AM and pickup is at 10:45 AM. If you have any questions about the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd or would like to enroll your child, please send Renee an email. Please keep this important program in your prayers!

NEWS & NOTICES

Coming Up: A Celebration of Juneteenth . . . This year the Juneteenth celebration will take place on Wednesday, June 19. Please join us on Sunday, June 16, in Saint Joseph’s Hall, after Mass and a bit of Coffee Hour, as we recognize parishioner Angeline Butler for her life’s work as a performer and Civil Rights activist. She will share her motivations and experiences since her college activism in 1960. Angeline helped organize the 1963 March on Washington with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and has taken part in many demonstrations and presentations promoting racial justice since that time. Angeline studied at The Juilliard School, and after that time performed widely as an actress and singer and has taught at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice for many years. You can read more about Angeline’s life and work on the John Jay website.

We give thanks for Angeline’s faithfulness and hard work, her self-sacrifice, and for her talent and her humor. Come meet and hear this extraordinary woman on June 16 as we mark Juneteenth, this important event in the life of our nation. — The Anti-Racism Discussion Group

Pride Month at the Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine . . . Iconic Pride returns for June 2024, with a new theme! The theme of this year’s events is Pathways of Pride inspired by the textile installation Divine Pathways by Anne Patterson on display in the cathedral nave through June 2024. Upcoming events at the Cathedral during the month of June include a discussion with Dr. Charlie Bell and Dean Patrick Malloy of Dr. Bell’s book Queer Redemption; a Pride Eve kick off celebration featuring a special performance and the turning on of the iconic Pride Lights inside the Cathedral; a book talk with Chloe Davis on her new young readers’ edition of The Queens’ English, hosted in partnership with The Cathedral School of Saint John the Divine; Pride Family Picnic, including a Drag Story Hour at The Cathedral School and a performance by The Queer Big Apple Corps Marching Band; and a Pride Evensong featuring a community choir open to all. Visit the cathedral website for updates and more information.

More on Pride Month . . . The New York City Pride March will take place on Sunday, June 30. Stay tuned for updates on how Saint Marians can march with other Episcopalians and show their pride.

Would you like to donate altar flowers and support the work of the Flower Guild? We are hoping to receive donations for May 26, and all the Sundays in June, including June 2, Corpus Christi. The suggested donation is $250. Please contact Chris Howatt in the parish office for more information and to reserve a date.

Fulfilling Your Pledge: A Gentle Reminder . . . As we begin to think about warmer weather and the approach of summer, we ask all our members and friends not to forget Saint Mary’s during the summer months. If you have made a pledge, please try to stay up to date on your pledge payments. And if you would like to make a donation to the parish—or make a mid-year pledge—we would be very happy to receive it.

ABOUT THE MUSIC AT THE SOLEMN MASS ON THE SEVENTH SUNDAY OF EASTER, MAY 12, 2024

The organ prelude is the first movement of L’Ascension by Olivier Messiaen (1902–1992). Born in Avignon, son of the poet, Cécile Sauvage, Messiaen 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. The brilliant light and vivid colors of this magnificent church proved a defining stimulus to Messiaen’s musical imagination for sixty years. The majesty of Christ asking that the Father glorify him is the first of the four movements of L’Ascension. This movement, like the fourth, was originally scored for orchestra in 1933 and transcribed by the composer for the organ later the same year. It carries the text from the Gospel according to John, “Father, the hour has come; glorify your son as your son has glorified you.”

The Mass setting on Sunday is Missa Brevis by David Hurd, organist and music director at Saint Mary the Virgin. Missa Brevis was composed for and first performed on Ascension Day 1991 while Dr. Hurd was Director of Music at All Saints Church, Manhattan. It is dedicated to the Reverend R. DeWitt Mallary, Jr., who was rector of All Saints Church at that time. The Kyrie, not sung at this Mass, is in Greek, and the remaining parts are in Latin. The musical themes of each movement of this setting are derived from the rendering of the letters of Father Mallary’s name as musical pitches. These pitches are intentionally arranged to achieve upward melodic gestures suggestive of the Ascension. Each movement of the Mass is compact and rhythmically straightforward. The words are presented directly in angular melodic shapes and lean harmonic textures. The Mass is scored for four-part choir, although solo voices complement the choral parts in the Agnus Dei.

The motet sung during the administration of Communion is by William Byrd (c. 1540–1623). Byrd, like the slightly older Thomas Tallis (c. 1505–1585), enjoyed the favor of Queen Elizabeth I and composed effectively for both the English and Latin Rites of his time. His motet Non vos relinquam orphanos, often sung in English as I will not leave you comfortless, is a five-voice setting of a Magnificat antiphon for the first Vespers of Pentecost. It was published in the second book of his Gradaulia (1607). The text source for this motet is John 14:18 and 16:22. Sunday’s organ postlude is from the Orgelbüchlein (“Little Organ Book”) of Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750), a collection of forty-six short and masterful pieces based on chorales for the liturgical year, mostly composed between 1708 and 1717 while Bach was court organist in Weimar. The text of the chorale Heut’ triumphiret Gottes Sohn, first published in 1591, has variously been credited to Kaspar Stolzhagen, Jakob Ebert, and Basilius Förtsch. Its first line translates as “Today God’s Son arose from death and triumph won.” The melody used by Bach in BWV 630 is attributed to Bartholomäus Gesius in Gesius’s own hymn publication of 1601. — David Hurd

THE INSTITUTE OF ARAB AND ISLAMIC ART (IAIA)
22 Christopher Street, New York, NY
Wednesday–Sunday 12-6pm
https://www.instituteaia.org/
Current Exhibition: Endless Night, Work by Nabil Kanso; April 30–August 24, 2024

The Institute of Arab and Islamic Art (IAIA) is an independent, non-profit hub that promotes and advances the artistic and cultural dialogue between New York City and the Arab and Islamic worlds. IAIA serves as a much-needed platform for creative, innovative and forward-thinking artists, curators, critics, scholars and intellectuals. Through diverse education programs, a multi-disciplinary exhibition space, knowledge-building facility, a residency program and an emphasis on collaborations with cultural organizations around the globe, IAIA provides a convivial, welcoming environment for the international community to learn about and engage with an often over-simplified culture.

IAIA presents works by artists from the Arab and Islamic worlds, including video art, traditional media, performances, archival exhibitions, installations, and commissioned works. Collaboration with artists that do not belong to the said category is vital, as IAIA will be dedicated to fostering a cross-cultural dialogue.

  We need your help to keep holding our services. Click below, where you can make one-time or recurring donations to support Saint Mary’s. We are very grateful to all those who make such donations and continue to support Saint Mary’s so generously.

Saint Mary’s is a vibrant Anglo-Catholic witness in the heart of NYC. With our identity in Christ and a preference for the poor, we are an inclusive, diverse community called to love God and each other for the life of the world.

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.

[1] In the Bible, at times God is both referred to and addressed as “father.” The use of this language is painful to some while it comforts others. It would be limiting and unorthodox to insist that the First Person of the Holy Trinity be referred to only as “father.” That would be trying to squeeze God into a box made by human hands. In the end, of course, when speaking of God, “father” is a metaphor, just human language, sometimes useful, sometimes illuminating, always inadequate. It’s just one more turn of the prism. At least that’s how I see it and am talking about it. But, then, human language is always insufficient.