Hi, Everybody:
Saturday at 10 am is the dress rehearsal for the Christmas Pageant – very important! Be sure to get the kiddies there and ready so the pageant can be its awesomest! (I’m sure that’s a word. I think the angels say it in one of those new Bible translations: “Glory to God in the awesomest!”)
This Sunday, December 17, is the 3rd Sunday in Advent, Fill the Food Barrel Sunday, and, of course, Christmas Pageant Sunday. The kids will be replacing the sermon at the 10 am worship Service with a performance of “The Musicians’ Holiday” written by our very own Kathleen Keating. You won’t want to miss the fun, music, message, and inevitable cuteness they will bring. Also this Sunday, there will be an HTLC Council Meeting at 11:30 am, which was postponed from last Sunday. Bell Choir will be rehearsing at 11:30 am as well.
This is also the last Sunday to sign up to bring poinsettias and still have your dedication printed in the bulletin on Christmas Eve. The plants can be any size and color you wish. Please deliver the plants to the church Activity Room by 10 am on December 23 and mark them with your name by writing it on a provided craft stick and putting it in the soil. That way, you can easily retrieve it after the 8 pm service on Christmas Eve without any argument as to whose is whose. (Ah, the Great Poinsettia Battle of ’82. I remember it well…)
Various Groups are going on hiatuses (hiati?) this week: Sunday School, Confirmation, and Tuesday Bible Study will not be meeting again until the week starting January 14.
Now we come to December 24, which, being a Sunday this year, is both the 4th Sunday in Advent and Christmas Eve. At the 10 am Worship Service, the Choir (aided and abetted by the Bell Choir) will be taking over the sermon slot with the return of the annual Sermon in Song. We will have Christmas Eve Services at 4 pm and 8 pm. Both will have the requisite candle lighting and singing of “Silent Night.” The Instrumental Group will perform at the 4 pm service, and the Choir and Bell Choir will perform at the 8 pm service. Between the two evening services, Randy and Vicky Kuhlmann will be hosting what I like to call an Inter-Service Nosh at their house, and all are invited! This year’s theme is Christmas in the UK – foods from the British Empire (the beer will probably be served at room temperature for authenticity’s sake). Directions to their house will be available in the narthex.
The church office will be closed for Christmas Day, and office hours that week will be iffy at best. Better to call first to see if anyone is there (probably not) before trying to drop in.
December 31 is not only New Year’s Eve, but it is also a Sunday – Christmas 1! The 10 am Worship Service will be our annual Service of Poems and Carols. As you may have guessed, it is chock full of familiar Christmas Carols and recitations of lovely Christmas poems and no Sermon. (That’s right – over the course of five services Pastor Tim only has to write one sermon! Not that I’m complaining: I only have to listen to one sermon.) Then, after the service, there will be a Christmas Brunch in Holland Hall with all sorts of brunchy treats provided by Hospitality. Please sign up at the Media Table so they have an idea of how many to plan for. So, regardless of how this year has been for you, end it by listening to poems, singing carols, and eating!
– Keith
your friendly Parish Life Coordinator (i.e. Church Secretary)