FROM FATHER SAMMY WOOD: SAINT MARY’S IS AN ANGLO-CATHOLIC WITNESS

This is the third in an ongoing series I’m writing to unpack our vision here at Saint Mary’s, and today we come to the element of being an “Anglo-Catholic witness.” Saint Mary’s traces her Anglo-Catholic roots to her first priest, the Reverend Thomas McKee Brown, who described the church he founded as “a Free Church in this City of New York, to be worked upon a thoroughly Catholic basis.” When the church opened in 1870, Father Brown instituted daily celebration of the Holy Eucharist, put music near the top of his list of liturgical priorities, celebrated Solemn High Masses with deacon, subdeacon, and incense, and committed the young community to restoring to its worship those “outward adornments which are called the Beauty of Holiness.”

FROM ZACHARY ROESEMANN: ABOUT HOLY ICONS

What is an icon?

“Icon” means “image” in Greek. It is the same Greek word used in Genesis 1 (humans are made “in the image [eikon] of God”) and in Colossians by Paul when he speaks of Jesus as being the “image [eikon] of the invisible God.”

“Icon” in the sense of a holy painting has many definitions, but one I like is “a sacred traditional Christian image used for prayer and worship.” This brings in elements essential to understanding the nature of icons—that they are worthy of veneration like other holy things in the church, such as the Cross or the Gospels; that they are deeply traditional, with roots going back to the origins of Christianity; and that they are made for only one purpose: to help guide people to God in prayer and worship.

FROM FATHER JACOBSON: THE TWELFTH STATION

On Fridays during Lent, we walk the Stations of the Cross together each week at 6:00 PM. Last Friday, I led our journey around the church, and ever since I’ve been reflecting on the Twelfth Station: Jesus dies on the Cross. The passage read at this station, which comes from the Book of Occasional Services, is a condensed version of John 19:26–30, with a supplemental verse from Luke 23:46.

FROM FATHER SAMMY WOOD: SAINT MARY’S IS VIBRANT

This is the second in a series of articles in which I hope to unpack Saint Mary’s concise vision statement. You’ll remember that the Board of Trustees adopted this statement last fall to guide our common life during the next three years:

Saint Mary’s is a vibrant Anglo-Catholic witness in the heart of New York City. 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.

FROM FATHER PETER POWELL: WORSHIPING & FOLLOWING THE HOLY ONE

Isaiah 6:4: “The sound of their voices made the foundation of the Temple shake, and the Temple itself became filled with smoke.” (Good News Bible)

Did Isaiah in the eighth century BCE predict the establishment of Smoky Mary’s? This verse from the Prophet Isaiah would at least give us the impression that he approved of our style of worship. We have a mighty organ that brings the building alive and we’re famous for our smoke!

FROM DR. DAVID HURD: SANCTUS, SANCTUS, SANCTUS. . .

. . . Dominus Deus Sabaoth, or Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Hosts; or, in Rite II, Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might. This ancient hymn is raised at all celebrations of the Holy Eucharist and is, in fact, the original hymn historically embedded in the canon of the Mass.

FROM FATHER JAY SMITH: THE LIGHT SHINES IN THE DARKNESS

Fleishman Is In Trouble is a TV mini-series that premiered in 2022 and streamed on Hulu. It starred Jesse Eisenberg, Claire Danes, and Libby Caplan. It was based on a novel by Taffy Brodesser-Akner that was published by Random House in 2019. Toby Fleishman is in trouble. He really is. His marriage is a mess, and he and his wife can’t seem to fix it. He’s a successful doctor, but he doesn’t get the promotion that he wants and thinks he deserves.

FROM FATHER JAY SMITH: SINGING THE LORD’S SONG IN HARD TIMES

Derek Olsen’s retreat last Saturday got me thinking about prayer, worship, and holiness this past week. It may sound pretentious to talk about holiness that way, I know. But I think Derek’s point is that talking about holiness and worship is not pretentious at all. It’s like talking about breathing or drinking water. It’s something fundamental. It just means trying to pay attention to what’s most important in the world.

FROM RENEE WOOD: CATECHESIS OF THE GOOD SHEPHERD RETURNING TO SAINT MARY’S

As we’ve watched the church reopen from the pandemic these past two years, it’s been exciting to see the return of our younger congregants. In response, we’re reopening the atrium this spring and reviving Catechesis of the Good Shepherd (CGS) formation for children. 

FROM FATHER JAY SMITH: LEARNING HOW TO COOK FOR EACH OTHER

In the Sunday morning Adult Formation class last autumn, we began a series called “Conversion, Transformation & Life in Christ.” We talked about conversion from several points of view: sociology, theology, spirituality, and personal testimony. We then went on to discuss the work and thought of Saint Augustine of Hippo, that most famous of Christian converts.

FROM FATHER SAMMY WOOD: ON CHASUBLES OVER THE AGES

One of a handful of garments mentioned in the Bible is the “cloke” or phaelonen, a heavy overcoat of woolen cloth that fell round the wearer’s body like a large cape. Saint Paul, quite the traveler, asked Timothy: “When you come, bring the cloak (φαιλόνης) I left with Carpus at Troas, also the books, and above all the parchments.” (2 Timothy 4:13) Worn over other garments, it provided extra warmth and protection from the elements. By the 4th century, the small Pænula was worn by common Roman citizens, but senators and officials used a larger, much richer version, which in time was adopted by bishops, priests, and other church officials.

FROM FATHER JAY SMITH: AND HEAVEN AND NATURE SING

Thomas Hardy’s poem, “The Oxen,” was published in The London Times on Christmas Eve 1915, the second year of the Great War. In April of that year, at the Second Battle of Ypres, the German army had released 200 tons of chlorine gas and 6,000 Allied troops had died within ten minutes. On September 25, 1915, at the Battle of Loos, the British used poison gas for the first time, releasing 140 tons of gas at the beginning of the battle. Around 26,000 German soldiers died during the Battle of Loos.

FROM FATHER SAMMY: THE PARADISE TREE

Trees have long stood for fertility and rebirth in the popular imagination, symbolizing eternal life in cultures from Egypt and Israel to China. Sometime in the Middle Ages, the first Christmas trees appeared in Western Europe—traditionally the modern Christmas tree originated in Germany, perhaps in line with the legend that Martin Luther was walking home on a dark December night when he was moved by the beauty of the starlight through the branches of a fir tree (or perhaps not).

FROM RICHARD MAMMANA: AVE AND THE ARROW, ALL ONLINE IN ONE PLACE

December was the culmination of two significant digitizing efforts related to the history of Saint Mary’s: all known issues of printed parish periodicals The Arrow (1891-1899) and Ave (1932-2004) are now available in searchable, downloadable format free of cost on the Internet Archive (IA).

FROM FATHER SAMMY: A VISION FOR SAINT MARY’S

My son is Patrick.

On his saint’s day back in 2022, soon after we moved to New York, I watched a documentary called St. Patrick: Pilgrimage to Peace. And I heard a line that’s come back to me again and again and again in the months since: 

The imperial world is gone, but nonetheless there’s somebody here in Gaul saying: “Patrick, there’s a big island out there. It needs to be Christianized—that’s your life’s mission.”

FROM JENNIFER STEVENS:
WHO IS MY NEIGHBOR?

Prison has challenges. Ministry has challenges. So, it will hardly come as a surprise to anyone that Prison Ministry has unique challenges. The main program for which I volunteer as a distance-learning mentor is called Crossroads Prison Ministry. It has done an admirable job of navigating procedural fences for the participants. With God’s help, Crossroads has managed to create a space for fellowship between people in the prison system and people all across the United States who care deeply about them. There are no strangers, only neighbors.

FROM GRACE MUDD:
FRIENDS ACROSS THE POND

Sitting at the crossroads of the world, Saint Mary’s gets a lot of visitors from all over this country and from many other countries, as well. Visitors have often been shown around by the Guild of Saint Martin of Tours or, more recently, been able to follow the audio tour available via QR codes posted around the church. But there are also often less formal tours offered; visitors to Smoky Mary’s are often especially interested in seeing the Smoke Room, and thurifers are frequently called into action to show them around!

FROM THE ANTI-RACISM GROUP: FOUR WORDS OF BLESSING

Over the past three years, our weekly “Conversations on Race” (via Zoom) have evolved into a free-flowing process that always starts and ends with a prayer. These prayers are often unconventional and drawn, by Ingrid Sletten, from a wide variety of sources. We prepare for each meeting by reading in advance from a pre-selected book (usually a chapter per session) that deals with race on a broad spectrum.

FROM FATHER JAY SMITH: WHAT WE TALKED ABOUT IN BIBLE STUDY THIS WEEK

At the Brown Bag Bible Study on Wednesday, we talked about Mark 1:16–20, The Call of the First Disciples:

As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the sea—for they were fishermen. “And Jesus said to them, “Follow me and I will make you fish for people." And immediately they left their nets and followed him.

FROM FATHER PETER POWELL: SHARING GOD’S GRACE

Christian life if lived well should inspire us to be generous. Being generous to me has always meant generously giving from my substance, not my excess, to further the work of the spirit in our world. Barbara and I more than tithe. Not all of that tithe goes to Saint Mary the Virgin, but the largest portion does. More of that tithe goes to churches and church-related activities than to anything else. We don’t give because we’re hoping God will notice and reserve a special place for us in heaven. We give because we know that we lead a Grace-filled life, and we share that Grace by furthering the work of this particular Christian community in this larger secular society.