In today’s reading from Hebrew Scriptures, we hear of young Samuel, apprentice to Eli, the priest at Shiloh.  We’re told that “the word of the Lord was rare in those days; visions were not widespread.”  That’s the way it felt in mid-March 2020.  Covid-19 had caused us to shut the doors of St. John’s Church.  We no longer gathered together for worship on Sunday mornings to hear the word of the Lord.  And while Covid continued to spread and the death toll to rise, the vision for our future as a vibrant Church community was unclear.

​As things we had taken for granted ceased – everyday interactions, children in schools, hugs – we felt uncertain about how to proceed.  Like Samuel and Eli, we weren’t sure how to interpret our new circumstances.  But we knew that more than ever we needed one another to faithfully hear and follow the whisperings of the Holy Spirit.  St. John’s Church since mid-March 2020 can be characterized as a community saying, “Speak, Lord, for your servants are listening.”

​​This sermon serves as my priest’s report for St. John’s Annual Meeting which will occur immediately following this worship service.  Given the year that 2020 was, it wouldn’t be a surprise to hear from me that all that was accomplished was survival.  Surviving a pandemic is no small achievement.  That, however, does not begin to describe St. John’s in 2020.  Thanks to God’s working through us, we have much to celebrate today.

The Vestry has approved the minutes of its November meeting; they're available below.

​Remember that members of the congregation are welcome to observe Vestry meetings: please contact Senor Warden John Eads for the Zoom link to upcoming meetings.

Today is Gaudete (gow-day-tay) Sunday.  Gaudete is a Latin word meaning “rejoice.”  In Advent, we prepare for the coming of Jesus.  But on Gaudete Sunday, we break out of our posture of waiting and anticipating and let loose with rejoicing.  Even the Advent candle we light on this day recognizes this change in attitude.  It’s a different color – pink rather than blue.  Just looking at the Advent wreath, we can see that we are more than halfway through this season of expectation.  Even as the days outside grow shorter and the nights longer, in our hearts the light grows, the darkness dissipates.

​From the Church’s perspective, the Advent wreath is a recent custom.  It gained popularity in Europe in the 1800s and was brought to the United States in the 1900s by German immigrants.  Surely we must classify as a new thing anything that’s been around as a church tradition only 100 years!  A parishioner from my childhood church claims she’s been around longer than that.  The point of this is to let you know that the symbolism of Advent wreaths is newly created and evolving.  One recent idea is that the pink candle, the Gaudete Sunday candle, symbolizes the Virgin Mary.  Whether this has any basis in history I don’t know, but it does work well and fit nicely with our liturgy.