Do you, like me, wonder about the politics of our country right now? Where are we headed, what are our core values? In some ways, I feel out in a wilderness, confused. This week the story that will be read in churches across the land will be the prodigal son. Does it have new application in this time?
The prodigal son is often interpreted as the story of someone out in a wilderness, who returns, to be greeted lovingly by a father who forgives him, welcomes him home with open arms despite his profligate ways. I've loved this interpretation - the father, representing God - sandals flapping, robes fluttering, jumping up from the front porch and running, pell-mell towards the child. The one lost, now is found.
In this telling, the older, dutiful brother, cannot get over his self-righteousness, cannot rejoice that the young one's back home. We are told we don't want to be this elder brother!
But recently I've been putting myself into the places of all those in the story, putting myself into the places of the listeners who first heard this tale told by Jesus. Is there another way of digging deep into our wilderness experiences? What else is going on that we've missed?
Joy
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Lenten Study: Voices from the Gospel of Luke |
Wednesdays at 7 PM at the Church, March 2, 9, 16.
Have you ever wanted an overview of the whole life of Jesus - a summary, so you could get the gist? Here's your opportunity. On three Wednesdays, we will read the Gospel of Luke, the lectionary text that King's Chapel will be following throughout the year. We'll read from a simple play script written by a colleague of mine, using voices of men and women from Luke. Participants can "read" a voice from the Gospel script, or just listen. Each reading will be followed by a discussion led by the Rev. Joy Fallon. No preparation is required; scripts will be provided. You may choose to worship at the 6 PM service beforehand, or not; all are welcome. We'll serve a light dinner of soup.
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New Chairperson Orientation - Sunday, March 6, 12:30 PM - 2:15 PM
An orientation session for all new Chairs of Committees will be hosted on Sunday, March 6
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after church at the Parish House, by Betsy Peterson, new Parish Council Chair; by Senior Warden Cliff Allen, and the Revs. Shawn Fiedler and Joy Fallon. Lunch will be served. If you are a new Chairperson and have not RSVP'd, please let Betsy know at
betsypete@gmail.com
. Both incoming and outgoing chairs are encouraged to let Betsy know of topics that you think would be helpful to cover at this meeting.
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Coffee with the Clergy | March 13
Curious about King's Chapel? Got questions? Are you a new friend or a familiar face? The clergy of King's Chapel will be available for casual conversation and coffee on
March 13th at 10AM
in the Vestry of the church (located behind the pulpit). All are welcome.
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Listening Over Lunch, Palm Sunday | March 20, 2016 | Immediately after the Palm Sunday Service
Whenever I tell someone I am a minister, the question almost always follows, "And what do you believe?" I respond by reciting a litany of disbeliefs.
Reciting a litany of disbeliefs seems to be so much easier and safer. For some reason, I struggle in stating what I do believe. I think I find it hard to state my beliefs because the honest answer is that I am unsure. With each passing day, my beliefs seem to change just a bit. New experiences and insights lead me to new understandings of the world, of myself, of the divine. At King's Chapel, I am grateful for the grace and room to state my uncertainties and explore my beliefs. I am even grateful for the opportunity to explore together.
-Shawn
What are your beliefs? Or what are your questions about beliefs, if you don't think you have any? Every Sunday at Morning Prayer, the Reverend Fallon welcomes all, including doubters and skeptics. In that spirit of inclusion, the Adult Religious Education Committee invites you to the second in our series "Listening Over Lunch," immediately following the Palm Sunday service and Passion Play on March 20th. Join other churchgoers in an exploration of our diversities and commonalities over a light lunch at the Parish House. We will sit at small round tables, each with a discussion host and focus questions to help us begin. RSVP not required but much appreciated. (Contact Gretchen Horton at
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World Religions Through Their Scriptures:
HarvardX Course created by Harvard Divinity School
What do scriptures of major religions really say?
What interpretations rise to prominence in a given historical or cultural moment? Which decline, and why? Who gets to interpret what scriptures mean? How do communities of faith negotiate differences within their own traditions?
On March 1, Harvard Divinity School is launching a new edX course, "World Religions Through Their Scriptures," a free open online course that introduces participants to some of the central texts of five major world traditions and examines common themes (gender, violence and peace, the arts, etc.) through the lens of their different scriptures. Registration is now open.
The course instructors and panelists are: Diane Moore, Senior Lecturer on Religious Studies and Education and director of the Religious Literacy Project; Karen King, Hollis Professor of Divinity; Charles Hallisey, Yehan Numata Senior Lecturer on Buddhist Literatures; Ali Asani, Professor of Indo-Muslim and Islamic Religion and Cultures; Shaye Cohen, Nathan Littauer Professor of Hebrew Literature and Philosophy; and Neelima Shukla-Bhatt, Associate Professor of South Asian Studies, Wellesley College.
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SAVE THE DATE: King's Chapel Concert Series: Mozart Mini Marathon | Sunday, April 17
The King's Chapel Choir, soloists, and chamber orchestra, conducted by Heinrich Christensen, present Mozart's Missa Brevis in B Flat Major, KV 275, and Vesperae Solennes de Confessore, KV 339.
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Doors open at 4:30pm, open seating. Validated discount parking is available at One Beacon Garage, across the street from the chapel. Tickets are on sale now, click here to purchase!
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SAVE THE DATE:
Lecture Series on Unitarianism - History and Where We Go, April and May
The
Rev. Stephen Kendrick, of First Church Boston, will give this Spring's three Minns lectures on the Wednesday evenings of April 27, May 4 and May 11, at his church. The topic is Unitarian Universalist life - past, present, and future. For more information, and to sign up, go to the Minns Lectures website:
http://www.minnslectures.org/
. Dinners will be provided at 6 pm, and the lectures will begin at about 7:15 PM, at First Church.
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Easter Flower Dedications
Every year for Easter, our sanctuary is beautifully decorated with tulips, daffodils, hydrangeas and other exuberant signs of spring. After the cold winter, this is certainly something to look forward to!
We rely on dedications from members and friends of King's Chapel to fund the decoration of the church.
If you would like to contribute flowers for the Easter Service as a memorial to a loved one, please send to the Parish House:
1) the name of individuals you wish to honor or remember
2) your name, address, phone number and email
3) a check ($50/ per Easter Memorial Plant) with "Easter Flowers" in the memo line
4) Whether you would like to pick these up immediately after the service or take to a shut-in.
ATTN: Parish Administrator
King's Chapel Parish House
64 Beacon Street
Boston MA 02108
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Help Decorate our Beautiful Sanctuary
The chancel committee is asking for help decorating the church for Easter
Sunday.
Decorating will take place on the Saturday
March 26th. As Lent will be drawing to a close I can promise you hot chocolate, donuts, plus lots of fun and laughter! The time to gather will be sent out in an email as we get closer to the date. Please notify Gretchen Horton, Parish Administrator, if you can help.
administrator@kings-chapel.org
Anne Sexton
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Wednesday, March 2, 6PM
The Rev. Joy Fallon,
Preacher
- Mindy Hinkel, Soloist
- Amy Meyer, Hospitality
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Sunday, March 6, 9AM at The Little Chapel
The Rev. Joy Fallon,
Preacher
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Sunday, March 6, 11AM | Fourth Sunday in Lent with Holy Communion
The Rev. Joy Fallon,
Preacher
- Betsy Peterson, Lector
- Anne Sexton, Head Usher
- Cliff Allen and Cathy Price, Ushers
- Carolyn Conley-Das, Verger
The Readings:
- Psalm 32: 1-7
- Old Testament: Joshua 5: 9-12
- New Testament: Luke 15: 1-4, 8, 11-32
The flowers on the Communion Table are given with grateful hearts by the Perkins Family in loving memory of Reverend Palfrey Perkins, Linda Wellington Perkins, Reverend Arthur Wellington Perkins and newly gathered to thy glory, Peter Palfrey Perkins.
After the service, all are invited to Coffee Hour,
hosted by Cathy Price and friends of the hospitality committee.
At the communion rail following the service,
Bill Kuttner
will greet those interested in learning more about King's Chapel.
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From the Bench
By Heinrich Christensen
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Our pre- and postludes
this Sunday
will be settings of the old American hymn Wondrous Love.
The choir continues the wilderness series with the third of Daniel Pinkham's Passion Music motets. This week O vos omnes ("Is it nothing to you who pass by? Behold and see if there is any sorrow like my sorrow"). It will be paired with a Spanish Renaissance setting of the same text by Victoria. The communion music is from Missa Brevis by contemporary Icelandic composer Stefan Arason.
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Tuesday, March 8, 12:15 PM
J.P. Christian Milde, tenor
Cathy Meyer, organ
Mendelssohn & Reger
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On Sunday, March 13th, all collection not designated for the Annual Appeal will go towards the
Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless.
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Interested in Membership?
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More News from
The Parish
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We Weep with those who Weep
We are saddened to learn of the passing of the Rev. Matthew McNaught. Rev. McNaught served as the interim minister of King's Chapel from 1999 to 2001 following the ministry of Rev. Carl Scovel. His obituary can be found here. Notes of condolences may be sent to Anna McNaught, 742 E Lake Ave, Baltimore, MD, 21212; or to Mark McNaught, 15 Residence Jean-Baptiste de la Salle, 35000 Rennes, France.
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A good crowd stayed after the 11 AM service on Sunday, joining in our annual meeting. Reports were given, a budget passed, and those retiring from wonderful service for our church thanked. They include Vestry members Todd Lee and Amy Meyer; Parish Council Chair Carolyn Russ; and former Committee Chairs John Bowman, Todd Lee, Orian Welling, Bill Kuttner, Louise Perkins, Anne Sexton, Charles Perry and Dean Denniston. Deep appreciation was expressed to all!
The handouts included important things all of you may want, and that we can make available via email if you'd like them. Let us know. They are the bios of all the new leaders, including all Committee Chairs; the updated Church Directory listing new members, and updating addresses/emails; and the Ministers' Annual Report, told in pictures and text. Please contact Gretchen Horton, Parish Administrator at
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Joyful days in the City - Have you seen the ducklings?
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One of the things I love most about Boston are the unexpected moments that make me break out into a wide smile. Sometimes it's the beautiful blue jays or cardinals who appear in the Parish House garden, all winter long. Sometimes it's the fun things in the Public Garden - like these wonderful hats and scarves that appeared on the Make Way for Duckling ducks this morning. While walking back from lunch today I saw our frequent visitor and neighbor Katy Fagan snapping photos of them, and discovered that it's her daughter who coordinated the knitters who dressed the little ducks so wonderfully. Next time you're at the parish house, cross the street and take a look!
Joy
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Orientation for New Chairs -
Sunday, March 6 at 12:30 PM
Joint Vestry and Parish Council Meeting -
Tuesday, March 8 at 6:00 PM
Adult Religious Education Meeting-
Tuesday, March 15 at 7:00 PM
Community Action Committee Meeting-
Tuesday, April 5 at 6:30 PM
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Accessibility Assists
Our beautiful Georgian sanctuary designed by Peter Harrison and completed in 1754, has been lovingly maintained by the congregation since its completion. One of the box pews has been made wheel-chair accessible. Ushers are available to assist those who are wheelchair-bound to that pew.
A sound system has been installed in the sanctuary of The Chapel to amplify the sound during worship services. Hearing assistance devices are available for your use. Please see an Usher for assistance.
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Contributing to Between Sundays
Want something in Between Sundays? Feel free to email Simon at
simon@kings-chapel.org with a written piece and/or pictures before Wednesday at Noon!
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