Greetings, from within the sanctuary, and doesn’t it feel nice again! In the past few weeks I have informed choir members in a few forums (Zoom meeting in early November with follow-up notes, and a lengthy email last week) with a number of my thoughts about moving us toward a renewed musical life in the […]
Staff
What Are We Waiting For?
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if Advent came filled with angels and alleluias?Wouldn’t it be perfect if we were greeted on these December morningswith a hovering of heavenly hosts tuning their harps and brushing up on their fa-la-las? Wouldn’t it be incredible if their music filled our waking hours with the promise of peace on earth […]
A Beautiful Ritual
Dear friends, On a Sunday afternoon in November, about thirty people gathered in Edwards Hall and on Zoom for the first program in Open Spirit’s Multi-Faith Collaborative series, Liberating Hope: Spiritual Perspectives on Climate Change. The program, called Planting Seeds of Hope: A Gathering for Inspiration, featured beautiful slide shows created by Fran, a reading […]
Music News November
In the interest of utmost caution as we return to the sanctuary, the Edwards Church Council voted in October to refrain from singing in the sanctuary during our initial worship services. While we are sad about this fact, it felt like the right decision at the time of that meeting and all we can do […]
Pulling Up Tent Stakes
“And they came, everyone whose heart was stirred,and everyone whose spirit was willing, and brought God’s offering to be used for the tent of meeting, and for all its service, and for the sacred vestments.” Exodus 35:21 Dear friends, This November finds our beloved community again in a time of uncertainty and change. As the leaves change […]
Sanctuary!
Dear friends, After almost twenty months of worshipping virtually and outdoors, we are preparing to move into the sanctuary in November. What a journey it has been! It is cause for celebration—celebration of the beauty and peace of our sanctuary; celebration of the beauty and peace we have experienced through slide shows and origami cranes, […]
A Vision for Edwards Church Music
I had been hoping for more clarity in the world before trying to provide a fuller picture of my vision for Edwards Church Music once we get back into the sanctuary. But it has become clear to me in the last few weeks especially, that it could be a while before everything makes complete sense […]
One Small Kindness
“The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.” Matthew 13:31-32 […]
A Wondrous Surprise
Dear friends, What a wondrous surprise! Thank you for the very special service honoring our twenty-five years of ministry together. The video was so moving, with so many thoughtful, loving expressions of thanks. And then a knock on the door…and another…and another. It felt like love overflowing. I couldn’t have possibly imagined such a lively, […]
At the Crossroads
Greetings, friends. The release of this newsletter falls right on the cusp of knowing some things in general terms about Edwards Church Music this fall but not yet having full details figured out yet. One of the greatest things I’ve learned during the pandemic was that music helped get many of us through a very […]