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Worship Services
The Rev. David "Chip" Robinson
Vicar
All people of faith are welcome to receive Holy Communion at the Lord's Table
Christ Episcopal Church
1035 Lafayette Road
Portsmouth, NH 03801
Rite II at 10:30 am
Coffee Hour follows
Clergy office hours
Tues & Thurs 9am-12noon
200 High St.
Hampton, NH 03842
Saturday Rite l at 5pm
Rite II at 8:45 am
Coffee Hour after the service
Clergy office hours
Mon & Wed 9am-12 noon
The Vicar's sermons can be found by clicking on the link for either church and going to the Worship page.
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(603) 431-1809
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at Trinity Church, Hampton
(603) 929-7349
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Episcopal Churches on the Seacoast
Seacoast Convocation
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Ministry Schedule
Christ Church
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Going into the hospital?
Due to privacy laws, churches are no longer routinely informed if you or a loved one is admitted to the hospital. Please be sure you let us know when and where you will be a patient so we can be in touch with you and include you in our prayers and healing ministry. Don't assume the Vicar knows - he would much rather hear from several people than from no one!
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From the Vicar... 
Advent and waiting for Jesus
The Gospel lection for this Sunday, the third Sunday in Advent, presents us with the rather odd figure of John the Baptist. Jesus is recorded as saying that no greater man than he had been born.
John the Baptist was one of those folks we might well describe as "on the edge." Matthew and Mark tell us how his diet and his dress sense were weird, his living environment less than desirable. Luke tells us something more significant: He was quite clear about his mission, and that was his sole focus. He was given the task of preparing the hearts of the people to receive the great joy of the Messiah. John preached to them a clear message of repentance. He said that they must turn away from sin so that they would be able to recognize the Messiah when he comes. John gave them a baptism of repentance, a symbol of their liberation from the slavery of sin, which made them ready to greet their Redeemer.
People flocked to John to listen and to be baptized. He fulfilled his task with great zeal and passion. He preached about those aspects of the common life which went against the law of God.
The message we have been receiving through Advent is that we should repent. But, given the world we face today, repent from what? Repentance is a huge problem for us because it demands we examine every aspect of our lives. As I suggested in my sermon this past Sunday, it is not always as simple or as easy as just "baptizing" our own views of things and putting a religious "veneer" on them. We really have to think and pray.
Reflecting on all that has taken place in our nation and world these last few weeks, we might be getting a little bogged down in it all. That's why the Church tells us not only to repent (important as that is) but to rejoice. There's no doubt that the gospel is demanding, but we have the great joy of God's grace and the fellowship of each other spurring us on to true repentance. We have the great comfort of God's mercy which means we don't need to languish in slavery to sin. We're right on the threshold of our complete happiness. We're on the very edge of true joy. But that can be very unsettling. It is liable to make us want to keep things as they have always been.
When we put our energy into keeping things as they are and, we think, have always been, when we limit what's possible by what was, when the best we have to hope for is getting back to how things were, we forfeit the hope we are given in Jesus; a hope given us in baptism.
We should be Advent people; people waiting with joy and excitement for the coming of the Christ. That coming, as we know so well, is two-fold.
We obviously have the coming of Christ in terms of the annual remembrance of the birth of Jesus. This is the old, old story. This is stables and sheep, goats and cows; shepherds on the cold hillside; angels singing on high. This is the Christ Mass, for which we prepare, for which we wait and which we celebrate.
The other coming is Our Savior's return. He is coming back and those who belong to him will be with him. His coming again will not be the end of the world. Neither will it be the beginning of the end of the world - that was what happened at his first coming as a baby in a manger. His coming again will indeed herald the end of the beginning. We will move into a new way of living in the presence of our Lord and Savior. That is what we await. We should do that with great rejoicing.
May God bless you as you await the Advent of our Savior.
Fr. Chip
Schedule of Christmas Services
Christmas Eve
Christ Church 4:30 p.m. Christmas Carol Sing
Rite II 5:00 p.m. Festival Holy Eucharist,
A family-friendly celebration with children's sermon. We are inviting parents of Little Blessings and the Village Preschool children to bring their families
Trinity Church 7:30 p.m. Christmas Carol Sing
Rite II 8:00 p.m. Choral Holy Eucharist
A joyous Christmas Eve candlelight celebration with music and combined choirs
Christmas Day
Trinity Church 10:00a.m. Holy Eucharist, Rite I
A quiet celebration for those who desire a more traditional setting for the Nativity service
Women Singing Out presents:
Gratitude & Grace - Carols New and Old
Showcasing Benjamin Britten's A Ceremony of Carols, this year's Christmas program will be on Sat. Dec. 12th at 7:30 p.m. at Christ Church, Portsmouth, and Sun. Dec. 13 at 3:30 p.m. at First Church Congregational, Rochester, NH. Tickets available from Betty Lane or Suzanne George at Christ Church or at www.womensingingout.org. These concerts support the work of the First Church Congregational Rochester Food Pantry through audience member donations of food and funds at the concert.
Advent Quiet Morning
Sat. Dec. 12, 2015, 9:30 AM - 1:30 p.m.
St. Peter's Church, Beverly, MA
The Search for Community: Reflections from Howard Thurman, Martin Luther King Jr., and Desmond Tutu led by the Rev. Derrick Muwina. Hosted by The Society of the Companions of the Holy Cross, and St. Peter's Church, 4 Ocean St., Beverly, MA. Lunch is provided at no charge. Please RSVP to Betty Lane (bquality@comcast.net) or Louise Valleau (978) 470-8065 or lvalleau517@gmail.com,so that we make sure we have enough food for lunch. You can also contact Betty Lane if you wish to arrange carpooling.
Salvation Army Giving Tree at Christ Church
Christ Church began its annual Salvation Army "giving tree" tradition last Sunday, the first Sunday of Advent. Tags are hanging from the tree for you to choose. Each tag lists the gender and approximate age of a child in need. You can buy a toy, plus something useful such as an item of warm clothing, and bring your present to put under the tree by this Sunday, Dec. 13. There is also be a box for canned goods to donate to the Salvation Army.
Our Shared Ministry Cycle of Prayer
Each week, in both of our churches, we pray for one ministry we share and one or two households in each church. About once every six weeks, we will instead using the Shared Ministry Collect we prayed throughout the opening months of our Shared Ministry.
In our prayers the next two weeks, we give God thanks for...
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Dec. 13
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Our partnerships within the Seacoast Convocation; John & Tena Wolf; Alberta True, Heather Lake
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Dec. 20
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Christ Church's partnership with Cross Roads House; Allyson Young; Peter & Cathy Wahl, Trevor & Ethan
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Christmas Festival Lessons and Carols
Sunday, Dec. 27 in both churches
The Christmas Festival of Lessons and Carols is adapted from an Order drawn up by E.W. Benson, who would later become Archbishop of Canterbury, for use on Christmas Eve 1880 in Truro Cathedral. King's College later adapted the service for their own use, and that is the version that has become most familiar today. Wherever the service is observed and however it is adapted, whether the music is provided by choir or congregation, the pattern and strength of the service derive from the lessons and not the music. The center of the service is still found by those who "go in heart and mind" and who consent to follow where the story leads.
I would encourage you to invite friends to join you on Sunday, Dec. 27 as we hear again the readings from Holy Scripture that tell the story of God's enduring promise of redemption through the birth, life, death, and resurrection of his Son, Jesus. The carols sung are chosen to reflect on these passages and meant to help anchor us more securely in heart and mind as we rejoice in the birth of our Lord and Savior. It is a fitting way to remind ourselves that Christmas is a twelve-day feast, full of rich opportunities for enjoying the narrative and music that open to us the mystery of the Incarnation.
If you would be interested in reading one of the Lessons that day, please sign up on the sheet at the church entrance, speak with me or contact me by email (see below). We will need several readers in each church, so there is plenty of room for volunteers!
- Fr. Chip
Thank you to Christ Church Christmas Fair volunteers
For all who served, crafted, baked, donated and helped in any way with the Christ Church Christmas Fair last Saturday, Dec. 5, THANK YOU again. This annual event continues to be a successful way to serve our local community, as well as raise funds for church programs.
Tena Wolf
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Contacts
The Rev. David "Chip" Robinson, Vicar
Christ Episcopal Church, 1035 Lafayette Road, Portsmouth, NH 03801
phone: 603-436-8842
Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9:00-Noon
Trinity Episcopal Church, 200 High Street, Hampton, NH 03842
Shared Ministry Administrator: Nita Niemczyk
phone: 603-926-5688
Office hours: Monday-Friday from 9:00-1:00
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