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Dear Friends and Family Members of St. Thomas’s,
Sunday’s unseasonably cool weather was more than matched by the warmth of our Eucharistic worship. Two hymns in particular warmed our hearts and quickened our steps. "Siah Hamba" (“We are marching in the light of God”) served as the processional. Remember the days when we struggled with the rhythm even with organ accompaniment—and the later addition of a drum? Our singing this week was joyful and spirited, without accompaniment of any kind. The offertory anthem was a contagious Zimbabwe song, “Njalo” (“Always we pray, always we give, always we bless, always….”). Always we make Eucharist in the common life of faith we share together. Njalo.
 
Musically, there are three important dates coming up:

• Pentecost Sunday, May 23, the choirs will sing for the 10:00 a.m. liturgy, which includes two baptisms; they will return at 5:00 p.m. for the final Evensong of the season.
• Sunday, May 30 our choirs have accepted the invitation of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, New York City, to sing at the 11:00 a.m. liturgy and again at 5:00 p.m. Evensong. If you’ve ever wanted to see St. John the Divine, this is the Sunday to do it.  (Warning: the Rector may become green with envy if you’re away from St. T’s—he will be here holding down the fort. However, all is fair in love and music.) Some of you may want to carpool and attend Evensong!
• Sunday, June 6, our Junior Youth Choir will sing at the 10:00 a.m. service, bringing to a close the formal music program for 2009–2010.

 
Lest we think the choir is off for a well-deserved rest, many of them will simply swing into action on the other side of Memorial Day, rehearsing for the summer musical Annie. Never a restful moment for the talented!
Our proverbial cup of blessing certainly runs over this Sunday:

• At the 10:00 a.m. service, we will host a group of parishioners from Christ Episcopal Church in Norwich. They would like to meet the people of St. Thomas’s, experience worship here, and learn more from a parish that works intentionally to be inclusive and radically welcoming—extending lavish hospitality to all, without exception. Please be on hand to welcome and greet our visitors, talk with them during Coffee Hour, then gather in the Lady Chapel to help answer questions they might wish to ask.
• Also, during Coffee Hour, our own Mary-Jane Rubenstein will meet with the Adult Forum to discuss and answer questions about her recent and fascinating article. Printed copies are available at St. T’s, or you can find it online here. Help yourselves to coffee, then join the meeting in the Rector’s office.
• During the 10:00 a.m. service and at Coffee Hour, we will honor Cate and Stu Horton for making possible the two-decade ministry of brown-bag lunches for New Haven’s homeless. While their organization, generosity, and hard work have enabled many at St. Thomas’s to share in this ministry, they have borne the heat of the day. Our intent on Sunday is to present them with a “purse”—free will donations—that they will designate for their favorite charity. There is still time to contribute.

 
Finally, please note this message from Jenny Brown:

• This past Sunday, my daughter Anna and I announced that we will be traveling to Nicaragua soon, and we requested any books, small toys, clothes, shoes, or school/art supplies that you might want to donate.  We mentioned that some of these items need not be “gently” used; we have heard that families and schools in Nicaragua are happy to receive reasonably clean, functional supplies, even if they are not in the best of shape. We would be happy to receive donations at our home, 15 Loomis Place in New Haven (click here for a map) or we could come to pick things up at your house.  Just email me at jennifergerardabrown@gmail.com or call me at 203-415-7025. The part of our message that was not sufficiently clear was timing. We are leaving this Sunday, May 16. If we are to take any supplies from you, we’ll need them ASAP, and no later than Saturday, May 15. We fear that “deadline” may not have come through in our announcement, so we want to let you know now, with apologies for any confusion.

 
Faithfully,
Fr. Ray+