A Service of Advent Lessons and Carols is one of my favorite moments in the liturgical year. I sang it in different choirs until I was ordained, and then read the parts designated for the Rector after becoming a priest. This year I got to do it all! It was tremendously fun to sit with our choir for the whole service, to hear Julia on flute, and Chip at the organ, and to be warmly aware of our wonderful singing congregation. Colin and Amelia joined Chip and Julia for a fun and surprising percussion session on the Advent processional. There will be things we will tweak going forward, but for this moment, there is only gladness.
Before going in, I reminded the choir (and the Rector!) in prayer that this was about praising God, not about performing. As so often happens in this parish, the sum was even greater than the parts! The Holy Spirit has a habit of showing up at Our Saviour and we often depart feeling more blessed than the reasons we might count. Perhaps that is why we were so successful with our Toys for Happiness drive. As Manning said, “Santa’s Sleigh is full!!”
Our gratitude in singing and praying together after so many months of extreme adaptations to the Pandemic is almost boundless. The Pandemic is not over, of course, but we are actively—though carefully— living into the hope that awaits us. It is my continuing prayer that our people will return, and that others will find us. We have a lot of love to share.
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