“10 Christmastide Resolutions for 2024”
John 1: 1-18 Rev. Andrea Castner Wyatt Trinity Episcopal Church, Newtown CT December 31, 2023, First Sunday After Christmas “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” The beginning, the Prologue, to John’s gospel. We were given the exact same passage to reflect on together almost a week ago, on Christmas morning. Our Lectionary insists: it is still Christmas, according to tradition. We must keep Christmastide. “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.” Monday morning, Christmas morning, I did preach on this text; wrestling with John’s ancient Greek philosophy, still basking in the glow of our marvelous Christmas Eve. Almost a week later, how odd: the exact same scripture reading. I don’t know about you, but I am not in the same place as a week ago! My girls packed up and went back to their lives. I felt that familiar emptiness when the full house returns to being the empty nest. Leftovers. Laundry. Medical appointments. Some of you may have taken down the Christmas tree, sweeping up dry needles. It has been SO gloomy and damp. But here, this morning, it is still Christmas. We are reminded to keep Christmastide. “And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth.” Christmastide can last all week! Epiphany is not until next Saturday! The song tells us: there are 12 days of Christmas, not just one. In culture around us, Christmas is already packed away. New Year’s Eve tonight! Perhaps some of you are off to Times Square! We are surrounded by memories of the year now ending, predictions for the year to come. Perhaps we face 2024 with curiosity! A new calendar, a clean slate … it’s like a writer with a fresh sheet of paper or a painter with a blank canvas waiting to be filled … a new year full of possibilities and hope, breaking old patterns, creating new opportunities. Maybe there are joyful events to contemplate – weddings, graduations, adventures. Or, perhaps we peer around the corner of the year with dread. Ooh, an election year. Maybe: challenges with health or family or work. As we wrap up the hottest year ever in recorded human history, what will the weather pattern we are in – ‘El Nino’ – what will this mean for 2024? Whether we face a New Year with joy, with curiosity, or dread: tonight, it is upon us, this great turning of the year. This morning, Christian tradition reminds us to face into a new year bathed in the light of Christmastide - still very much with us. We need this reminder. Our Collect this morning: “Almighty God, you have poured upon us the new light of your incarnate Word: Grant that this light, enkindled in our hearts, may shine forth in our lives.” So … how? How can we keep the light of incarnation - enkindled in our hearts - shining brightly in our lives? How might we equip ourselves to be bearers of light as we travel forth into 2024? Some make resolutions to eat less sugar, spend less money; how might we resolve to shine forth more light? We can draw from the deep well of our faith. We can travel into 2024 drawing on powerful resources of Spirit, that can keep us empowered, help us shine the light of Christ - no matter what we encounter. So …10 Christmastide resolutions! Resolution #1. Stay grounded in God, in prayer. Whatever spiritual practice works for you, just do it. Christian Centering Prayer. Buddhist meditation. Yoga; whatever. And when you stop doing it; don’t beat yourself up, just start again. #2. Stay rooted in community. We learned, in pandemic isolation, how much we need community. Don’t forget those hard-won lessons. Reach out. Novelist E M Forster writes, in Howards’ End: “Only Connect!” None of us can sustain our ministries, our activism alone; we cannot thrive in isolation. Resolution #3. Swim against the tide of increasing division. Talk to people who are different from you, listen to their stories, witness their circumstances. Reach out beyond your comfort zone. Don’t give in to the temptation to demonize ‘the other,’ whoever that other is. Resolution #4. Be realistic; but stay hopeful! Not one of us is singlehandedly going to save the world. But we CAN have an impact in our own local circles of influence. Think of our lives, our activism as concentric circles. They do ripple outward. #5. Don’t try and do it alone. Learn to ask for help. I’m not good at this one. Be humble enough to hand off your cross when it gets too heavy. Know your limitations. And keep someone next to you that you trust who can pick up your cross and carry it for you. #6. Learn resilience. We are vulnerable people. There are times of when it is simply too much. There are times when we need to step back and heal; be patient with ourselves, with each other. But we can learn to trust that we will come back, and maybe even stronger, wiser. Resolution #7. Keep the Gospel in the center. Keep Christ’s Gospel of radical inclusion, of healing, of liberation at the heart of your action, and it will have integrity. See his Incarnation everywhere. #8. Stay flexible. Stay limber. Be ready to act at a moment’s notice. Be ready to make connections and change course. We never know when an amazing opportunity may come along to participate in God’s mysterious ways. Resolution #9. Know you are loved. Remember you are God’s beloved! Knowing we are loved simply for being who and what we are can help us face just about anything. And Resolution #10: Stay joyful. Because, ultimately, it’s not about us and our efforts, It’s about God. God’s Spirit can and will and does break into human history in ways that continue to confound and surprise us. Incarnation can and will and does happen in ways beyond our wildest imagining. In this season of Christmastide, as we move into Epiphany, remember: Transformation happens, and Light shines! God is a lot bigger and a lot more mysterious than our limited human senses can fathom. “Almighty God, you have poured upon us the new light of your incarnate Word: Grant that this light, enkindled in our hearts, may shine forth in our lives.” Amen.
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Dear Beloved of Trinity Church: no, it’s not yet Halloween, but we are looking ahead to a special day in our Church calendar. On Sunday, November 5th , we will celebrate All Saints Sunday at our 9:30 AM service of Holy Eucharist.
We have two Invitations for you! First, please send any names you would like us to read aloud on that Sunday to our Church Office as soon as possible. Secondly, we also invite you to bring photos of your Saints, your loved ones, to place in the nooks and crannies around our historic Sanctuary. Now, these can be loved ones among your family or friends that you remember with love. Or, they can be images of the saints of Christian history. Oh, the stories such pictures tell! When they are with us in our historic Sanctuary, they are a visible reminder of an invisible truth: the communion of saints surrounding and upholding us, always. All Saints Day - a day when we glimpse eternity. We remember our own saints: those who taught us courage and honesty, how to love and do justice, walk humbly with God. Good and faithful folk who, in their own way, built the Kingdom of God on earth. All Saints Day. We remember those saints of Christian history who exhibited unusual courage, extravagant generosity, and peace in the face of adversity. We remember those who gave even their very lives. Send us a name, bring in a photo! We will find that they are here, with us! They are in us, among us, between us … all around us. Invite a family member or friend to pray with us on All Saints Sunday. On Sunday, October 1st , you might just see St. Francis, who so loved all of God’s creatures, at Trinity Episcopal Church! 1:00 PM, at the Labyrinth/Gazebo, behind the Church.
You will see some interesting critters. Meow, cluck, woof … moo?? We invite you to bring your beloved pet/s – or barnyard friends, for a special Blessing of the Animals as we celebrate the Feast Day of St. Francis of Assisi. Bring your puppy, kitty, turtle, chicken, llama, hamster, etc. Anybody have a goat?? Come join us at the Gazebo/Labyrinth area behind Trinity Church – hang around for conversation. If you are unable to load up your llama or hamster, we invite you to share in this Prayer of St. Francis: Lord, make me an instrument of your peace, where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; and where there is sadness, joy. O, God, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love; for it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen. An Invitation for all Newcomers and Visitors at Trinity Church …
New friends - we value the gift of your presence among us, and we’d love to get to know you. Please stay after worship on Sunday, September 17th for conversation and treats. Come to the Library, meet with Rev. Andrea and other newcomers, and learn more about the Trinity parish family. How has God’s Spirit brought you here at this time? Bring your questions about Trinity Church and your hopes for what spiritual community can mean in 2023. RSVP or questions to Rev. Andrea. If you’d like to be added to our weekly E News, contact us at: [email protected] or call at 203-426-9070. It’s September! Oh, my! We welcome our families back to worship and Church School
… and we are so excited to Bless our Backpacks in this ‘Back to School’ season. Adults, too, may be going to the office, or beginning new adventures. So … Kids and Adults alike … bring your backpack, laptop bag, tote bag – whatever! - to Church for a special blessing! We will pile them up during the Worship service and pray for all of us to enjoy new learning and growing this fall. Remember, the Spirit of God is with us everywhere we go, and we can share the love of Jesus with everyone we meet. Beloved ones, our life together at Trinity Church is beginning to take on aspects of Summer Sabbath - and we celebrate this!! Church School and Choir are entering a time of rest, and some are beginning to travel.
But for those of us who are in town … a special invitation! Immediately following worship on Sunday, June 25th we are invited to process down the driveway (or the elevator) to our newly-renovated elevator door entrance. We will bless our now fully-accessible entrance with prayer. This door now operates with a push-button for those using wheelchairs or walkers. The door is also linked with our electronic key-fob system, and will be programmed to be open at the same time as the glass doors at the rear of the building. Join us for a brief ceremonial but informal blessing. Trinity has had an elevator for decades … but the door has never been fully accessible until now. This is indeed something to celebrate! We are invited to come back in for conversation at 11:00 AM with Trinity’s Creation Care Team about current environmental initiatives – all are welcome. Rev. Andrea I am glad to be back in the office this week. I am so grateful for your prayers as I recover from surgery. Chuck and I are both thankful for your many expressions of support. Trinity has been blessed with lay sermons from Vestry members Patrick Corrigan and Lisa Mages, and clergy support from the Rev. Alan Dennis and the Rev. Salin Low. We are well launched into the season of Pentecost.
And what a week for re-entry! We look forward to an amazing concert on Saturday evening, June 10th at 7:30 PM. The Connecticut Choral Society will present John Rutter’s Mass of the Children; your donations will benefit Newtown Youth and Family Services. With gratitude, we also anticipate our final day of Church School on Sunday, June 11th with appreciation of our many volunteers in our formation programs for children and youth. Come - enjoy some special music offered by the children of our Church School. As Frances Chamberlain prepares for summer sabbath with her family, we celebrate her magnificent accomplishments this past year. ‘Miss Frances’ has tenderly nurtured a brand new program for children - with such creativity, and with love. What a year we have had! We rejoice in her many gifts, and wish her blessings until late August. We pray for all those affected by wildfires, and by wildfire smoke. Stay safe this week! See you soon. Rev. Andrea On behalf of the leaders and staff of our Trinity Episcopal Church, I wish you the many blessings of Holy Week.
We need to be together to pray about Christ’s passion, and crucifixions in our day. We need to be together to ponder suffering and redemption. I invite you to be present for our observance of the ‘Triduum,’ the most holy time in the Christian liturgical year. Maundy Thursday begins ‘The Paschal Triduum’ – meaning, ‘the three days.’ Since the days of ancient Christianity, the three services of Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and the Easter Vigil are one continuous liturgical event. This liturgy represents the heart of the Christian faith, the message of salvation, and the healing power of redemption. The Triduum commemorates the Paschal mystery - the Institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper, Christ’s Passion, his Crucifixion, his descent to the dead, and his glorious resurrection at the Great Vigil of Easter. During these three days, we pass over with Christ from death to life. We will remember each event in the drama of salvation and enter together into the mystery of dying and rising again with Jesus Christ. May the peace of Christ be with you all. May God's peace be with you, Rev. Andrea Castner Wyatt Risk, a Christian way of life, following Jesus!
Please join Rev. Andrea on Sundays at 11:00 AM - Noon during the season of Lent! Grab a snack at coffee hour and gather in the Library/Johnson Room. We will begin on Sunday, February 26th and will continue on Sundays, March 5, 12 and 26. Please read the Introduction and Chapter 1 for our first conversation. We will use as our text Professor Amy-Jill Levine’s book Entering the Passion of Jesus. Please register with Rev. Andrea by email. Also, let Andrea know ASAP if you need a copy of the book, or click here to purchase it yourself. Here’s a description of the text: “Jesus’ final days were full of risk. Every move he made was filled with anticipation, danger, and the potential for great loss or great reward. Jesus risked his reputation when he entered Jerusalem in a victory parade. He risked his life when he dared to teach in the Temple. His followers risked everything when they left behind their homes, or anointed him with costly perfume. We take risks as we read and re-read these stories, finding new meanings and new challenges. In Entering the Passion of Jesus: A Beginner’s Guide to Holy Week, author, professor, and biblical scholar Amy-Jill Levine explores the biblical texts surrounding the Passion story. She shows us how the text raises ethical and spiritual questions for the reader, and how we all face risk in our Christian experience.” Amy-Jill Levine (“AJ”) is Rabbi Stanley M. Kessler Distinguished Professor of New Testament and Jewish Studies at Hartford International University for Religion and Peace and University Professor of New Testament and Jewish Studies Emerita, Mary Jane Werthan Professor of Jewish Studies Emerita, and Professor of New Testament Studies Emerita at Vanderbilt University. Trinity Episcopal Church will begin hosting two new support groups this month.
Led by clergy and trained volunteers, both groups are open to all. They are interfaith and nonsectarian. You Are Not Alone: Grief Support Group will begin Thursday, February 16, 4-5:15 pm. You Are Not Alone: Caregiver Support Group will begin Thursday, February 23, also meeting 4-5:15 pm. All are invited to share their story and receive and give support in a confidential, non-judgmental listening space. Groups meet in the library, on the second floor of Trinity Church, 36 Main Street. Entrance to the building is through the glass doors on the eastern side of the building. Use the driveway at 12 Church Hill Road, shared with Newtown Hook & Ladder. There is ample parking at the church. Registration is requested and can be done here. Additional information is available at 203-426-9070 or by email. |
The Rev. andrea castner wyattThe Rev. Andrea Castner Wyatt is honored to accept the call of Trinity Episcopal Church to serve and lead as Rector. She looks forward with joy to walking with the people of Trinity Church, and to discovering with you what Jesus is up to in Newtown, CT. Contact Rev. Andrea at [email protected] or by calling 203-426-9070. |