VERITAS,
CARITAS, ET RISUS
This
January begins my third winter here in Chestnut Hill. This January will also include my third
winter sermon series. The last was on
Christian theology, with an autumnal interlude with Christian hymns. This
winter I will be exploring a whole new area: world religions.
What
will this mean? I will still be drawing
from the Bible for the scripture readings.
I will not be swapping the Book of Job for the Bhagavad-Gita. How will I manage that? I may wander from the prescribed lectionary
readings for a few Sundays, but not too far.
I will also not merely be presenting a pulpit-driven lecture series on
topics like the Eightfold Path or the pillars of Islam. These points of interest might inform the
sermons but will not determine them. Instead,
I will be seeking to engage in comparative theology, trying to understand the
many different ways religious people around the world approach God and how those
ways compare with a sense of God familiar here at the
Some
weeks it may seem like home territory. Judaism,
for example, is quite a familiar setting for Christian thought. But what does it mean to study Torah rather
than the “Old” Testament? Conversely,
other traditions may seem at first blush to be wildly different, utterly alien. Islam is often walled off as being radically
apart from the “West”; but such a view ignores that three faiths, not two,
arose from the line of Abraham. I will
try to assess what are the crucial differences in theology, meaning one’s
understanding of God, rather than the ethnic or cultural differences that are
often taken as the sum total of a religious tradition. The range of diversity within Christianity
may in some cases be broader than what is seen across the lines of supposedly
different religious traditions.
Comparative
anything is fraught with perils, whether it’s law, literature, cuisine, or
other. Comparative religion is all the
more so. No one chooses a religion
because he or she thinks it is wrong, yet there are considerable differences. Matters of faith may be firmly held as well
as fiercely protected. On the other
hand, some liberal religious folks like to browse about the global supermarket
of ideas, cherry-picking what they like without delving deeper into ancient
traditions or cherished beliefs. Neither
breezy familiarity nor rigid orthodoxy is my goal. And, of course, it is not my hope to engage
in spiritual tourism.
Rather,
I will try to examine differences and commonalities on the theological level. This will of course be through the lens of
Christian theology. Why? Because for good or for ill that is what I
know best. A person has one set of eyes,
one set of life experiences. As such, we
are each tied to the lessons, stories, and images we know and hold dear. Even as we gaze about with interest, even as
we seek to gain insights from some another place, we cannot help but see the
world from where we stand. With all this
in mind, let us look together.
God bless, Mark
January Sermons
January 1: We Three Kings: A Carol Sing
January 8: Hinduism:
The Rites of Life and the Task of Living
January 15: Buddhism: Seeing, Grasping and Letting Go
January 22: Judaism:
Righteousness and Repentance
January 29: Islam:
Revelation and Understanding
COFFEE
HOUR AFTER THE SUNDAY SERVICE
Everyone
is welcome at the coffee hour following the service each Sunday. We are most grateful to the volunteers in
charge of refreshments this month: the Welches on January 1; the Brookses,
January 8; Bill Powell and Judith Vanderkay, January 15; Pauline Ho Bynum,
January 22; and the Tagues, January 29.
OUR SCRIPTURES FOR
THIS SEASON
January 1: Ecclesiastes 3:1–13; Matthew 2:1–12;
Psalm 8.
January 8: Genesis 1:1–5; Luke 10:38–42; Psalm
29.
January 15: 1 Samuel 3:1–10; John
1:43–51; Psalm 139.
January 22: Jonah 3:1–5, 10; Mark
1:14–20; Psalm 62.
January 29: Deuteronomy 18:15–20;
Mark 1:21–28; Psalm 111.
BIBLE STUDY
Bible study meets in the parish hall at 10:00 a.m. each Thursday. We are studying the Book of Exodus.
ALTAR
FLOWERS FOR JANUARY 2012
January1: The
flowers on the altar celebrate the start of a new year.
January
8: The
flowers are given in loving memory of Mr.
and Mrs. Hamilton Thornquist by
Karen and John MacDuffie and Carolyn, Dan, Wiley, and Emma Chapman.
January
15: The
flowers are given in loving memory of Mr.
and Mrs. Philip R. Morss and Barbara Morss Marshall by their
family.
January
22: The
flowers are given in loving memory of Jane Ewell Dane by the Dane family.
January
29: The
flowers are given in loving memory of June H.
Vance and Verne Vance Sr. by the
Vance family.
Sock collection continues
Many thanks to all who donated
socks for people who are homeless, including the
USHERS
January
1: John Welch January
22: David J. Gabel
January
8: David Brooks January
29: Werner Lohe
January 15: G.
West Saltonstall
RELIGIOUS EDUCATION
Thank
you, parents, for helping your children participate in the Christmas pageant. As they became more involved with the story,
they added their own unique acting skills and impromptu actions that brought
the story to life.
After
we celebrate Epiphany on January 8, we’ll turn to retelling the Bible stories
we encounter with a variety of puppets—another great way to let the children
play with the stories and make them their own.
Youth
Group: Rev.
Caggiano sent the Youth Group on a surprising and educational scavenger
hunt in the church. There is a wealth of
treasures to discover in our sanctuary. We
then climbed the stairs to the bell tower (many thanks to Dana Flynn for
cleaning the area before we got there!) and were amazed at the size and
thickness of the bell. We want to
“polish” the bell, if that is an option, and take rubbings of the Paul Revere
name. Joan
Hunt,
Committee Volunteers INVITED
If you are
interested in serving on any of the various committees of the
READING GROUP
We are reading Let
the Great World Spin by Colum McCann and will meet to discuss the book at
Molly Batchelder’s house (303 Goddard Avenue, Brookline) at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, January 10. Everyone is cordially invited to join us.
OUTREACH COMMITTEE
Last spring members of the congregation
participated in several outreach activities at the UU Urban Ministry in Roxbury. Now that the holiday season is over,
volunteers are needed for several programs there. Specifically, on Saturday, January 28, we
have been asked to prepare food for the Beyond Shelter lunch, a celebration of
families who have "graduated" from Renewal House, a shelter for
abused women. Food preparation (5 to 6
people) will be at the
Looking
ahead to February, we are committed to making dinner for the Urban Ministry
Youth Program on Wednesday, February 8, from
Sally Baker, Outreach
Committee Chair
(617-566-7564 or sallybbaker@comcast.net)
THANKSGIVING
THANKS
The Thanksgiving Food and Flower
Sale went off beautifully. The morning
was bright and sunny, and splendid work by all the volunteers created a panoply
of homemade delights and eye-catching decorations. The event raised $6,500 for the outreach program
of the
Deborah Brooks and Isabelle Cazales-Evans,
Cochairs
GREAT BOOKS DISCUSSION
GROUP
Our book for January
is Plato’s The Republic (selections). We will gather for discussion in the parish
hall at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, January 25,
and everyone is welcome.
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Music for JANUARY 2012
January
1 (New Year’s Day – Three Kings Carol Sing)
Preludes: Variations on “What God
ordains is always good” ― Pachelbel
Anthem: “How excellent Thy name, O
Lord” ― Handel
Response: “The star proclaims the King is
here” ― Bach
Anthem: “We have seen his star in the
east” ― Titcomb
Choral Amen: “Twofold” ― Ramsey
Postlude: “Toccata in G Major” ― Pachelbel
January
8 (First Sunday after Epiphany)
Preludes: Variations on “O God Thou faithful God” ― Bach
Anthem: “The heavens are telling” ― Beethoven
Response: “Abide, O dearest Jesus” ― Bach
Anthem: “Achieved is the glorious
work” ― Haydn
Choral Amen: “Twofold” ― Traditional
Postlude: “Little Prelude and Fugue in C
Major” ― Johnson
January
15 (Second Sunday after Epiphany)
Preludes: “Blessed Jesus, at Thy word” ― Bach
“Chorale;
andante sostenuto” (Sonata VI) ― Mendelssohn
Anthem: “Grant us Thy peace” ― Mendelssohn
Response: ”Blessed Jesus, at Thy word” ― Bach
Anthem: “How lovely are the
messengers” (St. Paul) ― Mendelssohn
Choral Amen: “Twofold” ― Mendelssohn
Postlude: “Little Prelude and Fugue in D
Minor” ― Bach
January
22 (Third Sunday after Epiphany)
Preludes: “Two Miniatures” ― Peeters
“Aria” ―
Peeters
Anthem: “Thou O Jehovah abideth
forever” ― Copland
Response: “O light invisible” ― Persichetti
Anthem: “Have mercy on us” ― Copland
Choral Amen: “Threefold” ― Persichetti
Postlude: “Andante con moto e maestoso” ― Peeters
January 29 (Fourth Sunday after
Epiphany)
Preludes: “Adoro te devote” ― Titcomb
“Antiphons III and V” ― Dupré
Anthem: “Lo, a voice to heaven
sounding” ― Bortniansky
Response: “O Lord, we pray” ― Drozdov
Anthem: “Hail, holy Light” ― Kastalsky
Choral Amen: “Threefold” ― Bortniansky
Postlude: “Trumpet
Tune in C Major” ― Johnson