DEAR FRIENDS 

This Sunday is an important one, and I trust everyone is planning to attend.  It’s our patronal festival, The Conversion of St. Paul, which will be celebrated with the all the ceremony it deserves, and immediately after mass, we will begin the Annual Meeting, at which we will approve the 2019 budget and elect new members to the vestry.  
 
Flu season is upon us, and I can attest from recent personal experience, it’s a quite debilitating. Every year when flu seasons arrives there are questions about receiving the Sacrament from the common cup, so I am repeating here for everyone’s benefit an eblast article I wrote last year addressing this issue.  
 
Receiving from the Common Cup During Flu Season
The first consideration is a theological one.  The Church has taught for centuries that Christ is fully and equally present in both the consecrated Bread and Wine and that nothing is lacking if Holy Communion is received “in one kind only” (called the Doctrine of Concomitance); that is, you do not have to receive both.  If you are unsure or uneasy about the Chalice for any reason, then simply do not receive the Blood.  The rubric in the Book of Common Prayer states only that “Opportunity is always to be given for every communicant to receive the consecrated Bread and Wine separately” (BCP, p. 407), but there is no requirement to receive both.  The same theological concept applies to anyone who is gluten sensitive (concerning the Host/Body), or sulfite sensitive or in recovery from alcohol addiction (concerning the Wine/Blood).  You need not take both.
 
The next consideration is a practical and scientific one.  Over the 70 years or so, there have been several rounds of tests concerning the transmission of germs, bacteria, viruses, etc., through the Common Cup. The last such serious series of tests was conducted in the 1980s and early 1990s during the height of AIDS epidemic here in the US.  The results were quite surprising.  First, precious metals, such as gold and silver (even ones which are plait) are not conducive to the transmission of germs, and chalices are generally made from gold and silver, as ours are.  In fact, scientists have now discovered that gold in particular actually kills germs. You have all noticed, I’m sure, the Chalice Bearer wiping the lip of the Chalice with a white linen cloth (called a purifcator) after each person receives.  This practice did not develop because of fear about germs; in fact, it has been in common practice since the Middle Ages.  Its purpose is to catch the Blood of Christ if It happens to run down the outside of the Chalice.  And, if you think about it, wiping the rim of the chalice with the same cloth over and over, or even rotating the chalice as is done in some churches, really doesn’t accomplish anything in terms of germ prevention.  The gold surface itself is the barrier.
 
Secondly, the tests in the 1990s also confirmed that alcohol is not a good vehicle for the transmission of germs.  There’s no surprise there—alcohol is used as an antiseptic even today.  Still, there are indeed some germs in the Wine, but the few germs which do find their way into the Wine do not come from so called “backwash” or from people’s mouths, as is commonly thought; they come from people’s hands!  Everyone is aware, I think, in the modern age that a person’s hands are the “germiest” part of the body.  So, when someone receives the Host in his/her hands and then the host is dipped in the Wine, either by the person or by the chalice bearer, more germs are passed than if the person just drank from the cup itself—this is especially true if someone’s fingers or fingernails touch the Wine.  The germs move from the hand to the Host into the Wine.  That might seem counter-intuitive, but many parishes discourage the practice of intinction (dipping the Host in the Wine) for just this reason.  It should be re-emphasized here that wine is not a good vehicle for the transmission of germs, but what germs do get passed come ultimately from people’s fingers.  I have already stressed to everyone who serves at the Altar that they need to wash their hands quite thoroughly before mass. 
 
A final consideration then is the manner in which a person receives the Host.  If you receive the Host in your hands and then put it in your mouth yourself, you are still potentially transmitting germs from your hands into your mouth.  This can be avoided by receiving the Host on your tongue directly from the priest, which, by the way, is the traditional Anglo-Catholic practice anyway (Traditional and sanitary.  Who would have thought?!)
 
This is a lot to consider—theologically, practically, scientifically—and each of you should make a decision for yourself as to how to receive the Body and Blood.  In short, is it possible for you to catch the flu or something from receiving the Wine from the Common Cup?  Yes.  It is probable?  No. You are more likely to catch something from shaking hands with someone on the street or at work than you are from the Common Cup.
 
See you at Mass
Yours in Christ,
Fr. Wallace
 

RESCHEDULED MOVE FOR FR. WALLACE:  ALL HANDS NEEDED!

8:00 am to 4:00 pm, Saturday, January 26. 

We had to postpone Fr. Wallace’s move because of his flu, but now it’s back on.  He is moving to the 4th-floor apartment in anticipating of the much-needed revocation work on the 3rd-floor apartment.  We need ALL HANDS to help with schlepping his stuff up one flight.  Many hands make light work. 

ANNUAL MEETING

Sunday, January 27, immediately after the 11:00 am mass

• The list of the members in good standing who have Seat, Voice, and Vote at the Annual Meeting of the St. Paul’s Church (founded in 1849, incorporated 1850) is posted on the bulletin boards in the Parish Hall.  Please check to see that your name is there.  If you find an error, please contact Rob at rob@stpaulscarrollst.org or call the church office.  In order to vote at the Annual meeting, you must 1), be a baptized Christian an at least 17 years old; 2), attend St. Paul’s as your regular place of worship; and 3), have a record of giving.
• We will be electing two vestry members and one warden. The bios of the candidates are available on the back table.

PILGRIMMAGE TO THE HOLY LAND!

January 20th―29th, 2020

St. Paul’s is off to the Holy Land!  We announced at the Auction and I spoke about it again in my sermon on Epiphany that we are planning a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, using Nick Mancino’s company Journey’s Unlimited.  Please see the poster in the Parish Hall and the flyers on the back table for details. This is an extraordinary opportunity for experience a life-changing event.  Please don’t miss it!  Ask Fr. Wallace or Nick Gjeca if you have any questions.

2019 PLEDGE ENVELOPES AVAILABLE 

They are located in the back of the church.  Please pick yours up as soon as you can.

BLANKETS AVAILABLE

Winter is here! Fleece blankets are available in a bin in the back of the church for those of you who might get cold during the winter months.  Ask an usher to help you find them, and please thank Gaston Musella for providing them for us.
 

PRAYERS FOR ST. PAUL’S DURING THE TRANSITION AND RECTOR SEARCH 

As you read the Eblast each week, it is a good opportunity to take 30 seconds and offer a prayer for St. Paul’s during its transition and for the members of the Search Committee. Prayers to that effect will be included each week in the Eblast.

• For St. Paul’s:
  O God, by whom the meek are guided in judgment, and light riseth up in darkness for the godly: Grant us, we beseech thee, in all our doubts and uncertainties, the grace to ask what thou wouldest have us to do, that the Spirit of wisdom may save us from all false choices, and that in thy light we may see light,, and in thy straight path may not stumble; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen. 
• For the Search Committee: 
  Eternal God, the foundation of all wisdom and the source of all courage:  enlighten with your grace the Search Committee of this congregation, and so rule their minds, and guide their counsel that in all things they may seek your glory and promote the mission of your Church, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS

• Wednesday, March 6: Ash Wednesday
• Sunday, March 10, First Sunday in Lent

THIS COMING SUNDAY: January 27, 2019

The Solemnity of St. Paul the Apostle
Followed immediately by the Annual Meeting 

• Appointed Readings
  • The First Reading—Acts 26:9-21
  • Psalm 67
  • Epistle—Galatians 1:11-24
  • The Gospel—Matthew 10:16-22 
• Music
  • Mass Setting: Hurd—St. Paul’s Service
  • Organ Prelude: “Allegro marziale e ben marcato” from Six Organ Pieces—Frank Bridge
  • Processional Hymn: “Let all the Church acclaim St. Paul”—bulletin insert
  • Anthems:  “How Firm a Foundation,” arr. Dan Forrest & “Open Our Eyes”—Will C. MacFarlane.
  • Hymn at Communion: “We sing the glorious conquest,” Hymnal, 255
  • Hymn after the Dismissal: “Forward in faith”—bulletin insert
  • Organ Postlude: “Final” from Symphony No. 1, Op. 14—Louis Vierne