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This Week at
Emmanuel Church
October 19 - 26
Read below about some of
the things that are important to us...
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This Sunday ~ Holy Eucharist
at 10:00 am in
the sanctuary
SUNDAY PARKING - the Back Bay Garage on Clarendon Street - address: 500 Boylston St., Boston 02116. Pink tickets are available during coffee hour. Your ticket is good for a 3 hour period on Sunday between 8:00am to 8:00pm. The price for 3 hours is $5. Beyond that the regular rate applies.
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Prayer Vigil ~ keeping watch
Emmanuel Church and Central Reform Temple will be at prayer in the days surrounding the election, for a peaceful transition, and for healing and reconciliation in our nation. Noon day prayer will be held in the Lindsey Chapel on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, Nov. 7-9.
Bishop Gates has called the people of the Diocese of Massachusetts to a 48 hour prayer vigil, starting at noon on Sunday, November 6 and ending at noon on Tuesday, November 8. Each parish is asked to participate in a way that fits the congregation. Emmanuel is not a neighborhood parish, so trying to keep a physical vigil presence at 15 Newbury wouldn't include many people. Rather, our strength is in our wide reach.
I am asking that we keep the vigil by having individuals commit to an hour of prayer for each one of the 48 hours (or if we're lucky, more than one person can be praying at a time). You can pray, or meditate, or make music or art, or write -- how and where you pray is up to you. We will trust you to keep watch.
Our parish operations manager, Amanda March, has a schedule, so you can call or email her with the hour that you would like to cover for Emmanuel Church:
parishadmin.emmanuel@gmail.com or 617-536-3355 x 10. Please sign up for an hour to pray for Love to guide the people of this land in the election, that by faithful administration and wise laws, the rights and dignity of all might be protected. This is something that every one of you can do and I hope you will.
Finally, we will extend the welcome of our sanctuary and chapel for prayer and quiet reflection on Election Day between 9 am and 7 pm. as a way to welcome our neighbors for whom we are a polling place. -- plw
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Help us welcome Dan Bell!
Dan Bell is joining the Emmanuel staff as part-time Administrative Assistant with responsibilities for extending the ministry of this community and our building, coordinating building use, event sextons, contracts, and other administrative duties. Dan has begun working with Christen Mills this week in order to have as smooth a transition as possible during this busy time of the year.
Dan is also the Protestant Chaplain at Tufts University. He has an MDiv and an MA in Religion from Yale, and is a postulant for the priesthood in the DioMass ordination process.. His administrative and program management experience has included work at St. Stephen's in Lynn and the Life Together program of the diocese.
Dan will typically be in the parish office on Mondays and Fridays for full days, and Wednesdays for a few hours.
Welcome Dan!
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A message from Amanda Grant-Rose,
Executive Director of common cathedral -
After a summer away BostonWarm is back home on Monday's and Friday's from 8am-1pm. All of us at BostonWarm and common cathedral would like to thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm supporting BostonWarm. We simply could not run BostonWarm without all the wonderful support Emmanuel supports. Come and visit any Monday or Friday for good food and great community!
BostonWarm is, of course, not new for us and we are fully engaged in this ministry - and we need volunteers to assist the day-center staff. Recently the Diocese of Massachusetts awarded Emmanuel Church a $10,000 congregational development grant to continue hosting BostonWarm here on Mondays and Fridays during the 2016-2017 year. The grant will help defray the cost of utilities and building related expenses, so that we can offer hospitality to more than 70 unhoused community members, and relieves a portion of the fund-raising burden for common cathedral, which administers the day center. In our parish hall people are able to get warm, access much needed food, and build intentional supportive community with some of our most vulnerable neighbors.
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common art ~ a longtime member of the Emmanuel community
Ms. Heidi Lee is on the leadership staff of common cathedral as Artist In Residence. She believes in the potential of the arts to heal and make people whole again. Recently she shared her thoughts and experience in the following reflection.
What is the most surprising aspect of this service work?
The most surprising aspect is that my stereotypes are constantly cancelled out. Just when you start to believe that everyone who experiences homelessness has a crushed spirit and closed off heart from all they experience, you realize that there is much to be learned from their patience, in depth understanding of humanity, their humor, their desire to treat others with dignity despite how they are treated, and hope. Hope for a better tomorrow if not today.
How does this service work impact your life?
I'm daily challenged to look past the small things that are not worth the fight and to put my all into the things worth fighting for. I learn perspective. I learn that pain does not always need to lead to fear, resentment, anger, or hopelessness. I learn that life is precious, and there is always something to live for.
Where do you see God at work among and within the common art community?
I see God at work in the small gestures. I see God at work in those who choose to serve lunch or cut the vegetables when they've only had two hours of sleep last night because someone stole their sleeping bag. I see God at work in those who give up their seat for another artist because they see the need of another. I see God in the artist who decides to give up their time to share art techniques with a fellow struggling artist, even though they have to produce three more paintings in the next hour because their next meal depends on what they sell on the streets that day. I see God in the small gestures of compassion, humility, and grace in offering humanity to another by treating each other with dignity.
What is the best part of this work? The most challenging part?
The best is knowing that the gift of God's love always abounds at common art.
The most challenging is witnessing friends who continue to battle addiction and severe mental illness with an unwillingness to seek treatment.
What kinds of support would help this community?
We always make good use of old and used canvases, brushes, and acrylic paints! We need guests to come see what our program is all about and to spread the word so that everyone (housed or unhoused) can take advantage of our program! You are welcome to come!
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Central Reform Temple congregant Marilyn Levitt will be giving a Benefit Recital on behalf of Emmanuel Center on November 20, the Sunday evening before Thanksgiving. She will be performing operatic arias & art songs in six languages with William Merrill as piano accompanist. Marilyn has been associated in different capacities with both the New England & Boston Conservatories. She is excited to be giving this concert in the gorgeous main sanctuary of Emmanuel Church. Please do join her for an exhilarating evening with your neighbors & friends. Suggested donation is $15. Proceeds will benefit the Emmanuel Center.
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A change near the high altar in Lindsey Chapel
Lindsey Chapel was built with an aumbry in the wall to the left of the high altar. We've decided since we have it, to start using it! The word "aumbry" is Middle English, from the Latin word armarium, meaning a cupboard or a safe. If the cupboard is free-standing, it is called a "tabernacle" from the Hebrew Bible, meaning tent or dwelling. In some Christian practice, consecrated wafers not consumed during communion are reserved in an aumbry or tabernacle for people who were unable to be present at the Eucharist because of illness or infirmity. When the reserved sacrament is in the aumbry or tabernacle, a candle is lit to indicate its sacred presence as a public reminder of God's hospitality in Christ's Church without exception, and our ongoing concern for all those who are suffering.
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Fruit of the Vine at Communion
Our trial use of adding grape
juice at communion has been declared a success! Both grape juice
and wine will be served at the communion station in front of the baptismal font. The grape juice will be in the ceramic chalice. Only wine is available at the rail. Our offering of non-alcoholic fruit of the vine is in response to recent calls within the Episcopal Church for Episcopalians to re-examine our relationship with alcohol, and because of our heritage of the Emmanuel Movement (forebear of AA). As a matter of theology, the Episcopal Church teaches that receiving only bread or only wine constitutes full communion. However, just as we began to offer gluten-free bread, we add non-fermented grape juice to our sacramental offering to extend the hospitality of the sacrament.
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Tuesday morning Bible Study
will resume next month in the
mornings from 7:30-8:30 a.m. in the Emmanuel Room (through the kitchen of the Parish House). Come whenever you are able to join us for this lively conversation with the Rector. This Bible Study meets in odd-numbered months.
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Name Tags for All
Because it's always nice to be able to attach a name to a face, we encourage you to wear a name tag. You may find them along the wall in the Parish Hall, alphabetized by FIRST name. And in our efforts to make Emmanuel Church a more welcoming and inclusive community for all, we invite you to put your pronouns (he/him, she/her, etc.) on your name tag. By doing this, we help make Emmanuel Church a more welcoming place for transgender worshippers. If you don't see a name tag along the wall in the Parish Hall, and would like to have one, please find Penny Lane at coffee hour or email her at
penelopelane77@gmail.com with your name and pronouns.
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Have you ever wondered about the stories behind Emmanuel's beautiful building? Today, it is home to thriving communities from Emmanuel Church and Central Reform Temple, to Twelve-Step programs and ministries to the homeless, and to dozens of music and performing arts events from Emmanuel Music and others every year. We are excited to announce that Emmanuel Church is starting to offer free, guided tours of its historic Sanctuary and Leslie Lindsey Chapel. For a taste of Boston's 19th century history and an eyeful of Boston's best architecture in the oldest building on Newbury Street, call Christen Mills at (617) 536-3355 x21 or email at
parishassist.emmanuel@gmail.com to schedule a tour.
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Emmanuel Church Photography and Social Media Statement
Communicating through social media helps our efforts to build community and expand our reach to people who are new to Emmanuel, as well as to Emmanuelites around the world. Volunteers help spread the Word by taking photos before, during and after services, posting and sharing online. We value the sanctity of our worship and aim to strike a balance between sharing life at Emmanuel and creating a sacred space for all, filled with wonder, love, thanksgiving and praise. No one will be tagged or identified by name in a photo without their permission and other privacy wishes will be respected on request. If you are interested in helping in these efforts or have concerns please see a vestry member after the service. Please check out Emmanuel's online venues and follow us to help grow our global presence!
This Week @ Emmanuel is linked from our website's homepage and Twitter.
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Musings from the Margins...
Hello to the Emmanuel Church community! My name is Kate Solow and I am this year's intern from Lesley University. I am in my second year working towards my Masters in art therapy and mental health counseling. I got my BFA in Illustration from Massachusetts College of Art and Design, and hope to use those skills both as an art therapist and as a children's book illustrator. I am excited to be this year's intern and am grateful for the opportunity to work with and learn from the different populations served by the church.
The three programs that I'm participating in are Art and Spirituality, common art, and Café Emmanuel.
The Art and Spirituality program takes place at the Suffolk County House of Correction, and is a workshop in which women housed in the prison can make greeting cards to send to their loved ones who are outside of prison. I have already spoken to a couple of the women about making drawings for them to color in, and they were excited about that idea. I am looking forward to learning about the types of drawings they would like to create together. As I learn about the kind of drawings they want, I will try to help with specific art-related techniques or skills that they may like to learn. The underlying goal is to help them use art as a means of expressing their feelings toward those from whom they are separated because of where they are. I hope I can help them in making that connection through the use of art.
The common art program provides unhoused and marginally housed folks with a studio space to create art. I love that this is a welcoming space where people can come to eat and rest in addition to making art. I also love that there is an art show each week - this shows the community that their art is taken seriously and respected. I have already begun making connections with people, and have enjoyed working with individuals when they have specific art technique questions.
Finally, Cafe Emmanuel is a social lunch group for LGBTQ older adults. It's been great to hear stories from the folks there. I am looking forward to learning more about them and hearing what they have learned over the years. As a member of the LGBTQ community, I feel honored to be able to connect with elders in my community. I'm excited to share my skills with them as I learn from their life experience.
As an art therapist, I hope to help people use art to be both seen and heard. I'm looking forward to learning and growing these skills through working at Emmanuel. Art can be an essential component of healing and growth, and everyone deserves access to it. I'm excited to get to work with such strong and diverse programs. I have already felt so welcomed into the Emmanuel Church community - I know we will learn a lot from each other this year!
- Kate Solow
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"This Week at Emmanuel"
E-News & Updates
"This Week at Emmanuel" is a weekly e-mail digest of announcements and upcoming events at Emmanuel. If you'd like to receive these, simply e-mail Amanda March at parishadmin.emmanuel@gmail.com.
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EMMANUEL CHURCH supports the mission of religious, social service, and artistic organizations in Boston by providing space and some staff support for meetings, concerts, events and functions. As our mission states, Emmanuel Church strives for justice and peace. And your financial contributions help us continue to support these organizations vital to the health and spiritual wellness of the City of Boston. We are proud to support the mission of:
* AA and Al-Anon Meetings
* Artists-in-Residence: Sara Peattie, Puppeteer & Ted Southwick, Woodcarver
* Back Alley Puppet Theater & Free Lending Library
* Back Bay Chorale: weekly rehearsals
* Boston Gay Men's Chorus: weekly rehearsals
* Boston Early Music Festival
* BostonWarm day center for people who are without shelter
* Calliope: weekly rehearsals
* Central Reform Temple
* Ecclesia Ministries: BostonWarm day center for people without shelter; common art studio program for unhoused people
* Eliot Center: Safe Haven, a transitional shelter for women
* Emmanuel Music
* Ethos: weekly GLBT Senior luncheon
* Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti
* New England Watercolor Society gallery
* Onnuri I:um Chapel Korean Presbyterian Campus Ministry
* Universal Worship in Boston: A Celebration of One Human Family
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Amanda March,
Parish Operations Manager
617-536-3355, x 10
parishadmin.emmanuel@gmail.com
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