VERITAS, CARITAS, ET RISUS

Over the summer, I have been trying to organize my life as I transition into my new community in Chestnut Hill. Simultaneously, I am also planning on taking my son around New England to visit college towns as he begins his final year at Exeter: Providence, Williamstown, Hanover, and so on. As I think about his new stage in life, I must consider the beginning of a new chapter in my own.

I thought about what I might say in my first newsletter piece, but first and foremost I had to find a title for the column. I wanted to choose something new, something that reflected my hopes for my new church and my new home. As I perused my son’s college materials, I noticed that each school had its own motto, which in theory reflected its overarching philosophy about learning and the wider world. What better way to begin a ministry than to reflect upon a few words that characterize my ideals for this new relationship? I decided to use Latin words to maintain the idealized sense of a true motto, while also utilizing my three courses of Christian Latin before they decay into academic disuse.

Veritas is the Latin word for truth. This is the one-word motto of my Cambridge alma mater, but it also reflects my lifelong search for truth, religiously and intellectually. I cannot make any grand pronouncements as to the pending completion of that search, but I sincerely hope that together we will strike out to find something new in this bewildering world we share.

Caritas, an important concept in Christian ethics, is the Latin word for love or charity. The distinction is notable because the term has been used to highlight differences between Catholics and Protestants since the Reformation. Catholics focus on “charity” because of the notion that good works in this world have a bearing upon one’s place in the next. Protestants translate the term as “love” because of their emphasis on salvation solely through divine grace, the love evidenced by the Resurrection. My personal take on this distinction is one of bemusement. This false distinction serves to obscure the significance of the entire life of Jesus. The living Jesus was a model of charity and ethical living, while Jesus on the cross was a sign of transcendent love and self-sacrifice.

Lastly, risus is the Latin word for laughter. This term may seem an odd choice to some; but humor arises from the juxtaposition of incongruent items, and laughter reflects our ability to comprehend that strange geography. Such laughter ideally should not be about derision or sarcasm but about appreciation and understanding. Being able to laugh in spite of the ups and downs of life is a great blessing. As we gather in twos and threes to share our stories, I pray that we can together experience the joy of such fine company. And as we attempt to search out Truth, may we live our lives with a spirit of Love.

I look forward to September and the new chapter in the life of First Church.

God bless, Mark

OUR SCRIPTURES FOR THIS SEASON

September 13: Proverbs 1:20–33; James 3:1–12; Mark 8:27–38; Psalm 67.

September 20: Proverbs 31:10–31; James 3:13–4:3 and 4:7–8a; Mark 9:30–37; Psalm 105.

September 27: Esther 7:1–6, 9–10 and 9:20–22; James 5:13–20; Mark 9:38–50; Psalm 130.

WELCOME TO OUR NEW MINISTER

September 13 will be our first Sunday service of the coming church year.  The Standing Committee, on behalf of the First Church, extends a very warm welcome to Mark Caggiano on his first Sunday as our new called minister.  We hope that many of the congregation will be present to welcome Mark. The Standing Committee

BOUILLON HOUR EVERY SUNDAY AFTER THE SERVICE

Members of the congregation, friends, and visitors are invited to enjoy simple refreshments and fellowship in the parish hall every Sunday following the service.

ALTAR FLOWERS FOR SEPTEMBER 2009

September 13: The flowers are given in loving memory of Walter T. St. Goar by his family.

September 20: The flowers are given in loving memory of Mr. and Mrs. Reginald Jenney by her daughters, Kitsy Smith and Mimi Baird.

September 27: The flowers are given in loving memory of Mr. and Mrs. Samuel H. Thomas by Mr. and Mrs. Samuel L. Batchelder.

READING GROUP

We are reading Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout and will meet at Susan Welch’s (47 Norfolk Road) at 7:30 p.m. on Monday, September 14, to discuss the book. Everyone is cordially invited to join us.

BIBLE STUDY

Bible study will continue on Thursdays at 10:00 a.m. in the parish hall.

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

“Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you” (Matthew 7:7).

When Jesus spoke of prayer, he instructed us to be direct and diligent. For quite some time I searched for just the right church where I might be the director of religious education. I perused the job board at Andover Newton Theological School and I prayed to God. Finally, this past February, I found it—the First Church in Chestnut Hill! I e-mailed Joan Hunt, and the rest, as they say, is history. You have all made me feel very welcomed, and I have loved working with the children of the First Church. It was an honor to be asked to return this fall; I am looking forward to the upcoming academic year.

We have been busy this summer reorganizing some of the space (thank you, Brian, Joan, Mark, Nick, and Alyssa!). I have been looking at various curricula online as well as resources already available in our classroom. Kendra McCabe has agreed to come back to help with the little ones; she is a wonderful addition to our church school. I am thankful that Brian Cartwright will continue to share his gift of music as well as his carpentry skills—look soon for our new storage space! Early Church will continue to be at 10:00 but now will be held in the Sunday school classroom. Sunday school starts at 10:30.

When we resume Sunday school in September, we will spend the month doing some reflective and community-building activities, focusing on who we are as children of God, as a church community, and as a Sunday school family; what our individual gifts are that we bring to church; and what we want our Sunday school to be. We now have a bulletin board in a corner of the parish hall that will keep you updated on what the children are doing, saying, and thinking. Check it out!

Please contact me with any concerns or questions you may have, and please feel free to knock on our doors—they will always be open! Elizabeth Moran, DRE

USHERS

September 13: Herbert P. Dane September 27: John W. Gittinger Jr.

September 20: Dorothy Baldini

Music for SEPTEMBER 2009

September 13 (16th Sunday after Pentecost)

Preludes: “Adagio in A Minor” ― Bach

“Echo Fantasia” ― Sweelinck

Anthem: “Cantata Domino” ― Pitoni

Response: “I sought the Lord” ― “The Revivalist,” 1869

Anthem: “O Savior of the world” ― Goss

Choral Amen: “Fourfold” ― Barrow

Postlude: “Toccata in A Minor” ― Sweelinck

September 20 (17th Sunday after Pentecost)

Preludes: “Chorale Prelude” ― Buxtehude

“Ciacone in E Minor” ― Buxtehude

Anthem: “Laudate Dominum” ― Mozart

Response: “God is our refuge and strength” ― Mozart

Anthem: “Adoramus te, Christe” ― Mozart

Choral Amen: “Twofold” ― Traditional

Postlude: “Fugue in C Major” ― Buxtehude

September 27 (18th Sunday after Pentecost)

Preludes: “Siciliano” ― Bach

Variations on “O Christ who art the light and day” ― Bach

Anthem: “Call to remembrance, O Lord” ― Farrant

Response: “O Christ who art the light and day” ― Bach

Anthem: “Turn Thee again” ― Attwood

Choral Amen: “Threefold” ― Traditional

Postlude: “Little Prelude and Fugue in F” ― Bach