This past Sunday, we attended St. Paul's church for their 10:00 service to hear a friend of ours preach. St. Paul's is directly across the street from Ground Zero. When 9/11 occurred, this church opened its doors to the rescuers of the disaster. From that day forward, the church was forever changed.
Like I said above, we attended church there this past week. This service was incredible for several reasons. First, it was St. Paul’s. This chapel is a powerful place to visit. For NYC, it is quiet and somber inside. As you walk around the museum part of the chapel, you feel the emotional effects of 9/11….your heart aches. The displays show you the courage of firefighters, police, and volunteers trying to rescue survivors. You see the hearts of other volunteers as some displays tell about the food served, the massage’s given, the teddy bears placed on the tiny cots rescuers slept on, etc. These volunteers poured themselves out to the rescue volunteers in order to provide love and support as well as a place of comfort for much needed rest. Then there are notes and messages and origami… the pouring out from the people of our country and from around the world. It is truly an emotional experience to witness this love being spread out over and over in the midst of a terrible tragedy.
Second, the service (which is held in the center of this museum) is what I would call a “non-traditional” Episcopal service...which is a welcome break for me. High church is the name of the game here in the city. I don’t mind these….but sometimes it is nice to have a break from the formality of a high church service. This service follows the New Zealand prayer book. The structure and the prayers are different in this service (you might be able to tell it has an Episcopal flair to it). The music is non-traditional as well. As different as it was, it was full of life (esp. when the “droning” or humming started and the children could not stop laughing with our friend’s mom!). I found it comforting to be a part of the uniqueness of the service.
Finally, our friend Stefanie did the sermon. It was awesome to watch her deliver her sermon. She was so comfortable in front of everyone and her message was inspiring. She spoke about Jesus’ time in the wilderness being followed up by a visit home to the temple. His fellow town’s people reject him and what he has to say. They want to throw him off a cliff. Stefanie talked about trips into our own wildernesses and the change that comes from these trips. The message really struck home with me (see the blog about Sunsets to understand why). Trips to the wilderness do change people….and sometimes people like the change and sometimes people don’t like the change. It is all part of the journey.
Between this service and Stefanie’s sermon, I left with a sense of renewal. Seminary is a trip into the wilderness. As it is with life, this trip is not being done alone. We are all in the wilderness as individuals and as a community. Each one of us has different people to lean on along our way. Yet, it is still our personal trip into the great unknown. Then, you get to go home to the town’s people. Who knows…..maybe the thought of being thrown over cliffs is closer than you think. But I am sure not!!! I hope that we can each embrace our own individual change in order to grow into the person that God has created for us to be. Then you can say the trip was well worth the ride!
Thanks Stefanie for a great message!!
Like I said above, we attended church there this past week. This service was incredible for several reasons. First, it was St. Paul’s. This chapel is a powerful place to visit. For NYC, it is quiet and somber inside. As you walk around the museum part of the chapel, you feel the emotional effects of 9/11….your heart aches. The displays show you the courage of firefighters, police, and volunteers trying to rescue survivors. You see the hearts of other volunteers as some displays tell about the food served, the massage’s given, the teddy bears placed on the tiny cots rescuers slept on, etc. These volunteers poured themselves out to the rescue volunteers in order to provide love and support as well as a place of comfort for much needed rest. Then there are notes and messages and origami… the pouring out from the people of our country and from around the world. It is truly an emotional experience to witness this love being spread out over and over in the midst of a terrible tragedy.
Second, the service (which is held in the center of this museum) is what I would call a “non-traditional” Episcopal service...which is a welcome break for me. High church is the name of the game here in the city. I don’t mind these….but sometimes it is nice to have a break from the formality of a high church service. This service follows the New Zealand prayer book. The structure and the prayers are different in this service (you might be able to tell it has an Episcopal flair to it). The music is non-traditional as well. As different as it was, it was full of life (esp. when the “droning” or humming started and the children could not stop laughing with our friend’s mom!). I found it comforting to be a part of the uniqueness of the service.
Finally, our friend Stefanie did the sermon. It was awesome to watch her deliver her sermon. She was so comfortable in front of everyone and her message was inspiring. She spoke about Jesus’ time in the wilderness being followed up by a visit home to the temple. His fellow town’s people reject him and what he has to say. They want to throw him off a cliff. Stefanie talked about trips into our own wildernesses and the change that comes from these trips. The message really struck home with me (see the blog about Sunsets to understand why). Trips to the wilderness do change people….and sometimes people like the change and sometimes people don’t like the change. It is all part of the journey.
Between this service and Stefanie’s sermon, I left with a sense of renewal. Seminary is a trip into the wilderness. As it is with life, this trip is not being done alone. We are all in the wilderness as individuals and as a community. Each one of us has different people to lean on along our way. Yet, it is still our personal trip into the great unknown. Then, you get to go home to the town’s people. Who knows…..maybe the thought of being thrown over cliffs is closer than you think. But I am sure not!!! I hope that we can each embrace our own individual change in order to grow into the person that God has created for us to be. Then you can say the trip was well worth the ride!
Thanks Stefanie for a great message!!
This is beautiful! Thank you for the vivid image of such a sacred place. You guys are great friends and truthfully more like family as we continue this ride through seminary. The great part about the Episcopal Church is that there is enough variety for everyone... and if you still can't find one you like, there is always camp!!
ReplyDeleteLove~Stef