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DEAR FRIENDS
There are so many popular and familiar hymns that praise the Holy Trinity that we could not possibly have sung them all this past Sunday on Trinity Sunday, so we’re letting a couple of them fall over into this-coming Sunday, The Second Sunday after Pentecost. It’s always appropriate to praise the Lord, One God in Three Persons, so there’s no problem liturgically. All three of last week’s hymns ended with a sung “Amen,” and two of this Sunday’s hymns will as well, and this usually leads someone to ask why we sing an “Amen” at the end of some hymns and not others. I received this very question last Sunday at Coffee Hour. The history of ending hymns with “Amen” is interesting, at least to me, but too complex to be addressed here (if you are really interested, ask me at Coffee Hour sometime), but the simple answer is that if a hymn contains a doxology, it should end with “Amen.” A doxology is a text which praises the Holy Trinity, usually naming each Person of the Godhead, e.g., “Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.” We actually use doxologies all the time in our liturgies—in the Opening Acclamation, after Collects and other prayers, at Blessings, etc., but whether spoken or sung, a doxology always concludes with “Amen.” In the case of hymns, sometimes the doxology only comes in the last verse, as in the hymns “From all that dwell below the skies” (Hymnal #380) and “All people that on earth do dwell” (Hymnal, #378); sometimes the doxology is spread out over all the verses, as with this Sunday’s hymn “Come, thou almighty King” (Hymnal, #365), in which the first three verses are each addressed to a Person of the Trinity and the fourth verse is a summary statement of praise; and sometimes the hymn is in praise of the Holy Trinity generally, and it may or may not name the Persons, as in last Sunday’s “I bind unto myself today” (Hymnal #370), which does name the Persons of the Trinity, and “Holy, Holy, Holy” (Hymnal #362), which does not but does say “God in Three Persons, blessed Trinity” in the first and fourth verses. In all three cases, the “Amen” should be sung at the end, and I have asked our organist Nathan to follow the traditional practice of adding the “Amen” to any hymn which is even vaguely addressed to the Holy Trinity or which names the Persons of the Trinity.
See you on Sunday.
Fr. Wallace
SOLEMN EVENSONG & BENEDICTION ON CORPUS CHRISTI
This Sunday, June 3 at 4:00 pm
The Brooklyn Deanery celebration of Corpus Christi will take place at Christ Church, Cobble Hill, with Solemn Evensong and Benediction, followed by a BBQ to which everyone is invited. Fr. Wallace is the guest preacher.
CELEBRATION OF FR. BOB’S MINISTRY AT ST. PAUL’S
Sunday, June 10
By now everyone has received the letter from Fr. Bob announcing that he will be leaving St. Paul’s. We are planning a grand celebration of his 15-year ministry on Sunday, June 10, part of which is the presentation of a gift of appreciation. If you would like to contribute to Fr. Bob’s gift, in appreciation and thanks for his ministry, special envelopes will be available in the service bulletin through June 10. You may also mail your contribution to the church or pay through the website. Remember to provide your name and pledge number (if you have one). Please make checks payable to St. Paul’s Carroll Street.
SEARCH COMMITTEE CO-CHAIRS APPOINTED
The Wardens and Vestry of St. Paul’s are very excited to announce that Monika Torrey and Keith Edwards have accepted the invitation to serve as Co-Chairs of the Rector Search Committee. This is the next step in St. Paul’s period of transition.
MUSIC STAFF CONTINUING
The St. Paul’s community has been very happy with the work of Alex Canovas and Nathan Taylor since they started in their current positions in mid-January of this year, and we are happy to announce that both of them have accepted the invitation to continue through the 2018-2019 program year—Nathan as Organist and Alex as Director of Music. Please take the opportunity to thank them for their hard work this year and congratulate them on continuing with us through 2019.
NO ONE DID FLEE . . . WE HAD A GRAND FLEA . . . MARKET, THAT IS!
St. Paul's is happy to announce that it raised $3220 during its Annual Flea Market last weekend!—this despite rainy weather all day Saturday and the cancellation of the Carroll Park Fair. A Flea Market is a tremendous undertaking, and we couldn't have done it without the all of the volunteers, some of whom started weeks ago, and their many, many hours of work. Special thanks to the Flea Market Coordinators: Sandy Miller, Madge Wilner, and Rob Snyder; and to Nick Mancino, who walked around in the rain wearing a sandwich board to bring people in. Congratulations to everyone for a job well done!
UPCOMING CONCERTS AT ST. PAUL’S
SUMMER SCHEDULE
Begins Sunday, June 24
As in past years in order to avoid the summer heat as much as is possible, Sunday morning masses will begin at 10:00 am beginning June 24.
THIS COMING SUNDAY AT ST. PAUL’S
The Second Sunday after Pentecost
- Solemn High Mass: 11:00 AM
- Sunday's Appointed Readings and Homily
- The First Reading—1 Samuel 3:1-20
- Psalm 139:1-5, 12-17
- Epistle—2 Corinthians 4:13-5:1
- The Gospel—Mark 2:23-3:6
- Sermon—Fr. Wallace
- Music
- Prelude: “Prayer” from Hänsel und Gretel—Engelbert Humperdinck
- Entrance Hymn: “Come thou almighty King,” Hymnal, #365
- Offertory Anthem: Search Me, O God—James Nares
- Communion Hymn: “Breathe on me, Breath of God,” Hymnal, #508
- Dismissal Hymn: “Thy strong Word did cleave the darkness,” Hymnal, #381
- Postlude: Festive Trumpet Tune—David German
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