Saturday, June 1st

2nd  Friends of Grace Gala Committee

9th  Greeters

16th  Emile and Juliet Cochet, in thanksgiving for Grace's baptism

23rd  Pastoral Care Committee

30th  Counters

Icon of St. Boniface, Apostle of Germany, Archbishop of Mainz and Martyr

 

Dear Friend of Grace,

If you haven't already purchased your tickets for the Friends of Grace Gala and Silent Auction, I hope you will today! It promises to be a fun event -- A Texas-Style Shindig -- and will raise money for the Saving Grace Fund. We are building the fund to address a current need -- repairing the sandstone arches on the front of the church.

The 20th Annual Bach Festival at Grace is coming up in July -- save the dates and join us! There's also news here of our Vacation Bible School program for all ages, Holy Pilgrimage DC 2013: Spirit, Art and Music, taking place in July and August.  

Regino Madrid, violin

Charlie Powers, cello 

Sarah Hart, violist

All works are by Johann Sebastian Bach

Stephen Ackert, organ and harpsichord

Claudia Chudacoff, violin

Ben Wensel, cello

Sonata in E Major for Violin and Harpsichord, BWV 1016 and Sonata in G Major for Cello and Harpsichord, BWV 1027 (both works, c. 1720)

Lawrence Molinaro, harpsichord

Shaughn Dowd, flute

and friends

The Goldberg Variations

Steven LeBrie, bariton soloist, in Carl Orff's Carmina Burana with the National Symphony Orchestra

 

It's summer - schedules change, the weather changes, the comings and goings at Grace take on a different tempo.  

 

Part of the summer tradition here is to take time to reach out and open up to experiences that help us on our Christian pilgrimage - which is to say, experiences that help us reach out and open up to the Spirit's guidance in and around us.

 

Grace's Summer Pilgrimage 2013: Spirit in Arts and Music is taking shape for the months of July and August.  In keeping with our parish's involvement in and celebration of arts and music, we will be visiting sites in the DC area that highlight just a few of the expressions of God's creative spirit.

 

Before the scheduled events begin, it's important to note that the Bach Festival (July 7, 10, 13 and 14) here at Grace will be a kind of 'prelude' to the rest of the summer's activities.  Plan to attend one or more of the concerts to prepare for more enlightenment and enjoyment as the summer progresses!

 

Though some details are still to be decided, the tentative schedule is:

 

• Thursday, July 18th: 6:30 PM, National Cathedral Gargoyle Tour; 7:45 p.m. Sung Compline (reservations required)

• Sunday, July 21st: 12:30 PM, Grace Church Organ Tour followed by art project 

• Monday, July 29th (tentative date): Time TBA, National Gallery of Art Scavenger Hunt

• Week of August 4th: Day, time and event TBA

• Sunday, August 11th: 12:00 noon, Howard Theater Gospel Brunch (reservations required)

Watch the weekly Thursday email from John, Sunday church announcements, The July 1st newsletter and Website for further details.

 

Don't forget - signup sheets will soon be on the kiosk outside after church - it is important to indicate your interest, especially for the first and final events which will require reservations.

 

The Summer Pilgrimage is intergenerational, and also a welcome way to bring along friends or neighbors for a glimpse of Grace's openness to and involvement in the world of the Spirit.  For questions, ideas, or to sign up please contact the church office or The Reverend Sarah Motley.

It's not only one day/ morning each week that is busy on the corner of Wisconsin Avenue and South Street.

 

Though Sundays at 8:30 and 10/10:30 AM draw the new and the venerable, the close-by and the far-flung to Grace Church, all week long this parish sits 'where cross the crowded ways of life' (Hymn 609) - in a constant stream of cars, pedestrians, tourists, neighbors, workers, shoppers, children, students and so many more.

 

From early morning to late evening, the sidewalks and the path through the garden in front of church are filled with people.

 

It is for this mix that Grace Church exists. Liturgies, programs, and prayers respond to the 'needs, concerns, and hopes of the world' (Book of Common Prayer page 543) in many ways.

 

For years, the Sunday afternoon/evening Eucharist has offered Grace parishioners and those exploring or seeking a church home, as well as passersby and occasional visitors, a time for worship that is 'the same but different' from Sunday mornings. 

 

It is a time for all who are simply seeking a moment to end the weekend and begin the week with scripture, prayer, bread, wine - communion and community with attention to the quiet time so many appreciate - a time to catch our breath and prepare for what the following week will bring.

 

This summer, the next phase of the Sunday Evening Eucharist will be a topic for discussion by those who attend - and for those who haven't yet. Reflections, ideas, and suggestions about how this service might serve and draw more people, are welcome.  

 

The Vestry has received a memo outlining some preliminary thoughts and will be more than happy to discuss them.  Or, send a note to The Reverend Sarah Motley, who will coordinate this informal, yet important, conversation. 

 

• Eastbanc construction next door has started. McCullough Construction is going to send an email to John Graham each week to let Grace Church know what is planned for that week. A pedestrian walkway has been set up for GMC.

• We have a baseline analysis of our retaining walls, and will do a resurvey when Eastbanc is finished construction.

• Two of the trees planted in December are dead. 'Care of Trees' told us that they are desiccated from winter planting. Paul Alligood and John Graham are working on a solution with Eastbanc.

• An engineering firm has taken samples of the sandstone for analysis. They observed that it is possible that the sandstone might be decorative, not structural. That may mean we can use composite, not sandstone replacement.

• The Churchyard looks great. Paul Alligood announced that the garden team had a good turn out and worked hard! The next garden work day will be on June 8.

• John Graham is working with GMC on a shared policy for response to disruptive behavior, either at GMC or in church services and events.

• Paige Hill reported that invitations to the Friends of Grace Gala will be going out this week. Learn More

• During 8:30 and 10:30 AM services on May 19, the Parish celebrated the time we had with Robert Hartmans and Bill Doggett. After the 10:30 service we enjoyed a festive "Music on the Lawn" celebration, moved inside due to threatening weather. The Vestry expressed their deep gratitude to Robert and Bill, and to Jeanne Jennings and friends for organizing Music on the Lawn. Learn More

• Starting on the Sunday of May 19, Sarah Motley, our new Assisting Priest, has made some changes to the 5 P.M. service. It is now listed as 'Evening Eucharist, and uses prayers from ENRICHING OUR WORSHIP, authorized by the General Convention of the Episcopal Church. Chairs are now arranged in a semi-circle. And refreshments are now offered following the service. Learn More

• Mystelle Ruble will be the chair of the 2013 Fall Parish Retreat. She will update us as she begins the planning process.