THE SIXTH SUNDAY OF EASTER | MAY 5, 2024

ROGATION SUNDAY WITH MAY PROCESSION

Dear Friends,

I was joking with Fr. Locke the other day about the fact that the preacher has no shortage of themes to pick from this Sunday: it is the Sixth Sunday of Easter, with its set of assigned scriptures; the Sixth Sunday of Easter is also always Rogation Sunday (more on that in a moment); and being the first Sunday in May, it is also the Sunday we traditionally process a statue of Our Lady outside for "May Crowning."

Whether we have been Episcopalians for 50 years or 50 minutes, I suspect many of the terms or words above invite questions, especially "What is that?" and "Why on earth do we do that?" So!

• Rogation comes from the Latin "rogare" - to ask. Essentially, the Rogation Days are times when the faithful traditionally gathered in processions around the parish and marked the agricultural boundaries while asking God's blessing upon their fields -- for good weather and for a good harvest. There is a whole fascinating history of Rogation traditions in pre-Reformation and post-Reformation England, but there is not space for that here! In truth, many Episcopal Churches will make no mention of it this Sunday, nor use the Rogation hymns in the Hymnal; but it is a venerable tradition worthy of maintaining. It is essentially the Church's version of "Earth Day" long before that secular day on the calendar was established.
• In popular Catholic piety, Mary came to be associated with the month of May (likely because of all the flowers in bloom), even referring to her as "Queen of May" and May as "Mary's month." This tradition is largely absent from the majority of Anglican traditions now, and admittedly only celebrated in Anglo-Catholic parishes with a strong Marian piety. Saint Stephen's certainly fits that bill, and we are delighted to observe this tradition every May.

Part of prayers for our gardens and fields is the necessity of rainfall. Sunday's forecast currently predicts some rain, especially later in the day. If it is raining at 10:00, we will simply augment our Procession to go around the interior of the church and continue with mass as usual.

I look forward to celebrating these May devotions with you all on Sunday. Please do take time to continue reading below and see all the things coming up this week, particularly our first observance of Ascension Day with Solemn Mass since before the COVID pandemic.

Yours in the Love of our Risen Lord,

Fr. Benjamin +

Ascension Day Festival

Thursday, May 9th

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6:30pm Organ Recital

L'Ascension by Olivier Messiaen

Mark Steinbach

7pm Solemn Mass with Procession

Communion Service in D

Edward Bairstow

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O clap your hands

Ralph Vaughan Williams

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A champagne reception follows.

All is free and open to the public.

May is traditionally a time when special honor and devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary is given. One way we traditionally mark that is by having flowers in front of the statue of Our Lady in the Lady Chapel.

While we can cut flowers from outside, we would welcome contributions from your own gardens, if you are inclined.

You can also make a contribution towards flowers in honor or in memory of a beloved one (similar to what we do at Easter and Christmas). If you are interested in making a contribution, please send an email to Fr. Benjamin at rector@sstephens.org.

We are thrilled to welcome internationally renowned concert organist, Mark Steinbach, to S. Stephen's for his Ascension Day Recital on Thursday, May 9 at 6:30 pm.

Dr. Steinbach is University Organist, Curator of Instruments, and Distinguished Senior Lecturer in Music at Brown University here he teaches applied organ and seminars on topics such as historic performance practices and Olivier Messiaen.

Fittingly, Dr. Steinbach will offer Messiaen's 1933 masterpiece, L'Ascension. It's a work of solemn majesty, dazzling colous and near-static serenity and timelessness.

The recital and the Solemn Mass that follows are free and open to the public.

Please spread the word and join us for this majestic celebration of Our Lord's Ascension!

After last Sunday's masses, we finally switched off the boiler for the winter season (spring most definitely having arrived!) The church is very comfortable, but with nights and mornings still on the cooler side, you may feel inclined to keep a jacket on at mass if your body temperature runs on the "cooler side." As we seek to be good stewards of creation and our monetary resources, running the boiler for a few hours or a day at a time is not in keeping with those practices. Thank you in advance for your understanding.

As new families and individuals have come into the parish in the last year, it is time that we gather anew some basic information about parishioners and friends of the parish alike. We would like all active parishioners and newcomers to fill out a very basic questionnaire over the coming weeks and months as we update our databases. If you have been coming for years or decades, this will likely simply confirm information we already have, but it is useful all the same. These questionnaires will be available at the back of the church. You can also view it here and fill it out at home if you like. We will not put them in the offering plates, but they will be collected at Masses or can be returned to the parish office at any time.

Congratulations to Patrick Francis Canning, Jr. and Sydney Marie Canning who received the Sacrament of Baptism last Sunday!

Easter 6 | May 5 | May Crowning

Morning Prayer & Low Mass | 8 am

Solemn Mass with Procession of our Lady | 10 am

Coffee Hour | 11:20 am

Tuesday | May 7

Eastertide Feria

Noonday Prayer | 12 pm

Low Mass | 12:10pm

Wednesday | May 8

Julian of Norwich, c. 1417

Evening Prayer & Holy Communion | 6:30 pm

Young Adults Fellowship Dinner | 7:15 pm

Thursday | May 9

The Ascension of Our Lord Jesus Christ

Noonday Prayer | 12 pm

Low Mass | 12:10 pm

Mark Steinbach in Recital | 6:30 pm

Solemn Mass with Procession | 7 pm

Champagne Reception | 8:20 pm

Friday | May 10

Eastertide Feria

Noonday Prayer | 12 pm

Low Mass | 12:10 pm

Saturday | May 11

Eastertide Feria

Morning Prayer | 9:40 am

Low Mass | 10 am

Holy Rosary | 10:30 am

Easter 7 | May 12

Morning Prayer & Low Mass | 8 am

Solemn Mass | 10 am

Coffee Hour | 11:20 am

For Your Prayers

Prayers have been requested for: James Busby, Charles Calverley, Fr. Norman Catir, Ann Dake, Trudy Egan, Fr. Harrington Gordon, Katherine Hayslip, Laura Kline, Sharon Lloyd Clark, Sandy MacKenzie-Murdoch, Beverly Myers, Mabel Nimmo, Althea Norgriff, Daniel, Sarah Plunkett, Bryan Ripley, Adam Schneider, Rhoda Steinhart, Tammy Tinsley, Louis Verdelotti, Christopher Whittingham, Jeremy & Dyllis Wiening, Maida Williams.

Birthdays: Jenny Jones (5/7) and Karen V. Williams (5/9).

Ordination Anniversaries: The Rev'd Fr. Gary K. Sturni (5/8).

The Faithful Departed: Year's Mind: Marc V. Ragsdale (5/5), Elizabeth Anna Schumann (5/6), Robert Hale Ives Goddard (5/6), Edna Rawlings (5/6), Marion Beverly Hall (5/8), Estelle “Peg” Duncanson (5/10).

In the Anglican Cycle of Prayer, we are asked to pray for Igereja Episcopal Anglicana do Brasil (5/5), The Diocese of Egba, Nigeria (5/6), The Diocese of Egba-West, Nigeria (5/7), The Diocese of Egbu, Nigeria (5/8), The Diocese of Egypt (5/9), The Diocese of Eha-Amufu, Nigeria (5/10), The Diocese of Ekiti, Nigeria (5/11)

In the Diocesan Cycle of Prayer, we are asked to pray for For La Iglesia de la Ascension—The Church of the Ascension, Cranston, and the Church of the Ascension, Wakefield.

Giving to S. Stephen's

You can mail your pledge card or weekly/monthly offering to the church office, or pledge online here. Thank you for all the many ways in which you are already supporting S. Stephen’s.