Join us for Milk Punch Sunday! |
Sunday, December 15, 12:15pm |
King's Chapel Parish House
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Celebrate the holidays with family and friends at King's Chapel's annual Milk Punch luncheon on Sunday, December 15. After Morning Prayer, take a leisurely stroll down Beacon Street to the Parish House, which has been decorated in high style for the season. Enjoy a sumptuous brunch cooked by members of the Hospitality Committee (vegan option also available). Raise a glass of Kings Chapel's traditional Milk Punch or our new holiday punch (without spirits).
During the festivities, you'll enjoy popular carols and joyful holiday cheers.
The event will be extra special this year, as we welcome new members and also celebrate the baptism of Gideon Allen, son of King's Chapel members Amanda Cegielski and Chris Allen,
Please RSVP to Laura Zeugner, Administrative Assistant at laura@kings-chapel.org or by calling 617-227-2155 x 104
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This week David Waters gave me a new rose colored stole- the long scarf I wear around my neck during our worship.
I love this rose stole: I'm like my granddaughter in her new pink tutu. Joanna wears her pink tutu to be joyful and this week I've been wearing my new pink stole around the office to brighten my days, too.
The color of a minister's stole always represents the church season we're in. This Sunday I get to wear this new rose stole when we light the rose candle in the Advent wreath, for joy. The other three candles of the Advent wreath are blue or purple, but the candle for the third Sunday is rose colored, for joy. It symbolizes that though we're waiting, waiting, waiting for the Christmas baby not yet arrived, for promises that God has made that haven't yet fully been borne out, we're also invited to experience joy right now. Right now! A rose candle amidst the others.
My new rose stole will be perfect for the this Sunday, when we have our fun Christmas party lunch for everyone ("Milk Punch"), perfect for the day we're baptizing 3 month old Gideon Ciegelski Allen, perfect for the day we welcome 5 new members to our church and welcome them at lunch.
What one thing brings joy into your life today? Can you seek and savor that one thing, a small flame lit in the darkness? Perhaps you'll find it on Sunday when we're all together. That's my hope.
+Joy
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Tuesday Recital: Half Hour Messiah | Tuesday December 17 | 12:15 PM | King's Chapel, 58 Tremont Street
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| Join us for the final Tuesday recital of the year, when choir members Emily Bieber-Harris, Jennifer Webb, Andy Troska, and Daniel Perry once again offer the "Half-Hour Messiah", excerpts from Handel's evergreen oratorio, this Tuesday December 17 at 12:15 PM. Free admission, suggested donation $5 which goes directly to our wonderful singers. |
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Advent Book Group | "I Am Mary" | Wednesdays December 11 and 18 | 6:15 - 7:30 PM | King's Chapel, 58 Tremont Street
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The Rev. Joy Fallon will lead a small group discussion on "I Am Mary," a daily devotional by contemporary writer Carol Howard Merritt. This short, readable book gives fresh insights into Advent through the voice of a young woman "growing with child," and growing in faith. We join her journey. Copies will be available for sale after church for $4 each.
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Christmas Eve and Christmas Day Services
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Come join us for our annual Christmas Eve and Christmas Day services. The Family Pageant service begins at 5 PM; prelude at 4:30 PM. Our Lessons and Carols service begins at 10:30 PM, prelude at 10 PM. Our Christmas Day service, with Holy Communion, begins at 10 AM.
We hope that you can join us.
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December 22: Sandwich making and worship with common cathedral | beginning at 10 AM
December 24: Family Christmas Pageant | 5 PM
December 24 : Lessons and Carols Christmas Eve service | 10 :30 PM
December 25: Christmas Day Service | 10 AM
December 31: Evensong service and Potluck at the Parish House | 5:30 PM
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Preparing for the Holiday Festivities and Services
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Many church members and staff have been quite busy preparing for the upcoming holiday festivities and services. The church has been greened, the Parish House decorated, and the tree trimmed.....another way that we celebrate the meaning of Advent and the joy that Christmas brings.
Thank you to all who helped, especially to Anne Sexton for organizing the church greening, and to John Appleton for organizing the Parish House decorating. Thanks also to Joy and David for their team-building expedition in purchasing the Christmas tree one late night!
~Gretchen
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Young and old alike came out for Advent Crafts on Sunday and we had a great time! We created lovely Christmas cards with Eleanor Score and Tim Nelson-Hoy, made holiday ornaments with Emanuel Genovese, decorated candles with Levina Wong, and kept our strength up with delicious holiday cookies that we iced and sprinkled ourselves at Sarah Graber's Christmas Cookie table! (For the healthy among us, George Boitano led us in the venerable tradition of clove oranges!) All this accompanied by the dulcet notes of Christmas tunes provided by Skip on the piano. My personal favorite was wreath making with Cindy Korb-Wellington--I'm looking at my Advent wreath as I type, and for a novice, I think it turned out pretty well! I can't wait to light the rose candle on Sunday!
Many thanks to all who worked so hard to make this event happen, especially George Boitano and Carol Genovese for their help in organizing and Gretchen Horton for her help with logistics. If you weren't able to make it this year, I'll save a spot for you at the Advent Wreath table next year!
~David
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First Church Panel Discussion on Slavery
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On Sunday December 8, History Program Director Faye Charpentier represented King's Chapel on a panel at First Church, Boston. Following their Sunday worship, members of First Church gathered for one of their Learning Community meetings, this month focused on themes of slavery, resistance, and New England Unitarianism. The panel included Faye Charpentier and Harvard Divinity School professor Dan McKanan, moderated by Neenah Estrella-Luna, an Associate Professor of Sociology at Salem State University.
As First Church begins to explore and grapple with their institutional history, this panel was a first step in sharing the history of slavery at New England churches with the community. Dan McKanan spoke about the history of slavery in New England and the stances of Unitarians and Universalists on slavery in the early 19th century. Faye followed by sharing about King's Chapel's experiences uncovering the church's history with slavery and offering advice based on what King's Chapel has learned so far. The panel was well-received by the First Church community, and we look forward to connecting with them further during this difficult but important endeavor. |
Boston Immigration Justice Accompaniment Network (BIJAN/Beyond) held a holiday party at the UU Urban Ministry on Saturday 12/7 to celebrate the work they have done in the past two years to support immigrant communities and immigrant-led organizations.Tim Nelson-Hoy and Amanda Pickett attended. To get involved in BIJAN, sign up HERE
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Colonial Society Book Release
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Last Thursday King's Chapel hosted the Colonial Society of Massachusetts for a book launch and reception for their latest publication, The Colonial Records of Kings Chapel, 1686 - 1776. Members of the Colonial Society and King's Chapel gathered at the Parish House to celebrate the publication. These two volumes, meticulously transcribed from archival materials by editor James B. Bell, include colonial Wardens and Vestry Minutes, records pertaining to the construction of the stone chapel, and the baptismal, marriage, and burial registers. Colonial Society President Donald Friary and Editor of Publications shared brief remarks, followed by James Bell sharing his highlights from the history that he learned during the process. Thanks to the Colonial Society, these records are now accessible outside of their original bound volumes at the Massachusetts Historical Society. Thank you to all who attended.
~ Faye |
A hardy--and hearty!--quintet braved the cold last Wednesday to represent King's Chapel in the Beacon Hill Holiday Stroll. What a delightful way to celebrate Advent! Warmed by a variety of teas, cookies, and delectable bourbon balls, we wended our way through the streets and shops of the Hill, singing carols to appreciative audiences by the light of shop windows. Horse-drawn carriages clip-clopped by as we sang "Dashing Through the Snow" and a brass band brought a bit of Beale Street to Charles Street as revelers shopped and strolled. We ended with a rousing rendition of "Good King Wenceslaus" and repaired to the shop of a gracious merchant who offered us cider and cookies while we thawed our hands and noses! Come join us next year--we'll save a songbook for you!
~David
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Morning Light | 9 AM
Rev. Joy Fallon, preaching
- Skip Lewan, piano
- Emilia Filippone, Verger
- Michelle Gaudet, Nursery
Morning Prayer | 11 AM
with Baptism and Welcome of New Members
- The Rev. Joy Fallon, Senior Minister
- David Waters, Minister for Education and Membership
- Heinrich Christensen, Music Director
- Amanda Pickett, Lector
- Anne and Peter Sexton, Advent Wreath Lighters
- Michael Bergeron, Head Usher
- Sylvia Soderberg, Usher in Charge
- KC Dalton, Todd Lee and Betsy Peterson, Ushers
- Clark Aitkins, Verger
The Readings:
Psalm 146: 5-10
Isaiah 35: 1-10
Matthew 11: 2-6
The flowers on the chancel are given by Peter and Anne Sexton with love and thankfulness for our three grandchildren Olivia, Sabine and Sebastian.
At the communion rail following the service Todd Lee will greet those
interested in learning more about King's Chapel.
After the service, all are invited to the Milk Punch Luncheon at the Parish House.
Each Sunday, 10% of the plate collection will go to our Community Action strategic partners:
common cathedral, the Louis D. Brown Peace Institute, and the Unitarian Universalist Urban Ministries, to do works of mercy, justice, and healing. All cash and checks not specially designated will be considered a plate offering.
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This Sunday, the music all draws its inspiration from the so-called
O Antiphons.
The Roman Church has been singing the "O" Antiphons since at least the eighth century. They are the antiphons that accompany the
Magnificat canticle of Evening Prayer from December 17-23. They are a magnificent theology that uses ancient biblical imagery drawn from the messianic hopes of the Old Testament to proclaim the coming Christ as the fulfillment not only of Old Testament hopes, but present ones as well. Their repeated use of the imperative "Come!" embodies the longing of all for the Divine Messiah. You will recognize the pattern from the hymn "O Come, Emmanuel", which in turn inspired Daniel Pinkham's Variations for organ that you will hear for the pre- and postlude.
English composer John Stainer set several of the
O Antiphons to his own music, and you will also hear an example from the 16th century by his compatriot Robert Ramsey,
O Sapientia.
We also embark on a musical Christmastide journey - over the next several weeks, the choir will sing local contemporary composer Kevin Siegfried's multi-movement cycle
Vidimus Stellam, written for ChoralArt of Portland, ME. It begins, suitably, with a setting of an O antiphon,
O Oriens. It will last us well into Epiphany, with one movement per Sunday! Kevin cites as his inspiration the famous
Christmas Cantata by Daniel Pinkham, one of his teachers and mentors during his studies at New England Conservatory.
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December 17, 12:15 PM
Emily Bieber-Harris, soprano
Jennifer Webb, alto
Andy Troska, tenor
Dan Perry, bass
Heinrich Christensen, organ
Handel:
The Half-Hour Messiah
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Tuesday Morning Meditation 7:30 AM| Parish House
Tuesday Morning Meditation meets in our Parish House at 7:30ish to 8:30. In decent weather we sometimes annex the Public Garden for a more mindful contemplation. This brief coming side by side with others in your church community can bring some welcome fun, joy and/or peace to your day. In the words of one, "I find so much of my life to be so busy and full of wrestling that the idea of just sitting together with others is powerfully renewing for me." Never meditated before? Drop by and give it a try. For more details contact Gary Riccio at
gary.riccio@me.com or Stephen Courtney at
scourtney@sstudio.comcix
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Lectio Divina | Quiet Reflection with Bible Passage| Wednesdays 1PM through December 11 | Joy's Office in the Parish House, 3rd Floor
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The Rev. Joy Fallon brings a short bible passage, often one that will be read on the following Sunday; the small group reflects in quiet on it for 10-20 minutes; then group members may offer thoughts. People are not required to say anything. This ancient practice may lead to a deeper understanding of scripture, or a glimpse of how God may be present in your own life. It is a small, open group for anyone interested. Drop in once or weekly; no experience needed.
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Want to know what's
going on at
King's Chapel?
Click
HERE
to view the King's
Chapel Calendar at our website
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Volunteer: Sign up for Hospitality
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Anyone can help!
Enter your email address and select a spot to fill. New volunteers may choose to co-host with a buddy.
Questions? email hospitality@kings-chapel.org
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We are grateful to those who provide for flowers each week, during our Morning Prayer service.
If you would like to give flowers in honor of a loved one, please contact Anne Sexton, chair of our Chancel Committee at
annewsexton1@gmail.com . The cost for an arrangement is $85; a check can be mailed to the Parish House, indicating the date you have chosen and the inscription you would like.
We have the following dates open for the remainder of the year:
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Contributing to Between Sundays
Our e-newsletter is sent each Thursday afternoon. Want something in Between Sundays? Feel free to email
administrator@kings-chapel.org with a written piece and/or pictures before Wednesday at 5 PM.
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Accessibility Assists
Our beautiful Georgian sanctuary was designed by Peter Harrison and completed in 1754. To make our services and programs more accessible, one of the box pews has been made wheel-chair accessible. Ushers are available to assist those wheelchair users to that pew. Additionally, we have installed an accessible bathroom on our main floor. An usher can direct you to the vestry.
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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