Greetings from Grace! 
In this Issue: Holy Pilgrimage DC, Episcopal Youth Group Pizza Party, Music on the Lawn and More!  

 

Grace Episcopal Church, Georgetown
1041 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007
202.333.7100 | 
In this issue...
Holy Pilgrimage DC 2013 Continues
Episcopal Youth Group Pizza Party - Join Us!
Music on the Lawn 2013
Holy Pilgrimage Gargoyle Tour Highlights
National Cathedral Forum on Torture
Vestry Notes
Upcoming Events
Sunday, August 4th
After the 10:00 AM Service
20s30s40s Bible Study: Luke's Gospel
 
2:00 PM 
Holy Pilgrimage DC 2013: Spirit, Art & Music
'Children of the Gospel' concert, National Building Museum.
Details on all events.
 
Tuesday, August 6th
6:30 to 9:00 PM
Parents Night Out
Detailsemail Helen Buhr if you plan to attend.
 
Sunday, August 11th
11:30 PM
Holy Pilgrimage DC 2013: Spirit, Art & Music
Tour of the Silver at Grace Church Georgetown. 
Details on all events. 
 
Sunday, August 18th
After the 10:00 AM Service
20s30s40s Bible Study: Luke's Gospel

Thursday, September 5th
5:00 to 7:00 PM
Music on the Lawn:
Sandra Y. Johnson and Friends (jazz, blues and R&B vocals)
Details on all events

Sunday, September 8th
5:30 PM
Multi-Parish Youth Group Pizza Party at St. John's
Parishioners ages 12 to 18 and their parents are invited
Email RSVP; Details on the event

Thursday, September 12th
5:00 to 7:00 PM
Music on the Lawn:
Cloudburst (vocal jazz ensemble)
Details on all events
 
Thursday, September 19th
5:00 to 7:00 PM
Music on the Lawn:
The Larry Brown Quartet (instrumental jazz)
Details on all events

Thursday, September 26th
5:00 to 7:00 PM
Music on the Lawn:
Marshall Keys and Herman Burney
(alto sax and upright bass)
Details on all events

Friday and Saturday, November 1st and 2nd
Annual Parish Retreat
Bon Secours Retreat Center, Marriottsville, MD
Phone (740.607.7420) or 
Email Mystelle Ruble to learn more. 
Coffee Hour Hosts

August
4th  Grace's Table
11th  20s30s40s Group
18th  Memorials Committee
25th  Greeters

September
1st  Vestry
8th  Music on the Lawn Committee
15th  Retreat Committee
22nd  Seminarian Lay Committee
29th  Stewardship Committee
Holy Eucharist, Wednesdays at 12:15 PM
Jonathan Daniels

Each Wednesday during the 12:15 PM service we celebrate a holiday or the life of someone important in the church. Here's the upcoming line-up: 

 

August

7th Transfiguration

14th Jonathan Daniels

21st St. Bartholomew, Apostle

28th Augustine, Bishop of Hippo
 
Please join us for this brief (30 minutes) but spiritually rewarding service. 
PNOParents Night Out,
August 6th
Leave your little ones with us on Tuesday, August 6th from 6:30 to 9:00 PM and enjoy an evening in Georgetown or simply some time to yourself. 

Helen Buhr and Chris Kreutziger will be on hand to have fun with the children.  

 

Please phone (301.529.2511) or email Helen Buhr if you plan to come. 
Ed Borchert's Birthday
Photo courtesy of Marie-Laure Poire

We celebrated Ed's 83rd birthday at Coffee Hour at the end of July. 

 

Wishes for many more happy birthdays and continued good health were offered by all. 

 

And the children waited patiently to enjoy the cake. 

 

Happy Birthday Ed!

August Birthdays

 

Joanna Bujard

Cynthia Cole

Barbara de Beaufort

Leila Harrington
Kaya Le Bouder
Terry Lenzner

Bill Mako

Bob Tobias

 

We'd like to include you in this list! Please email us with your birthday!

Bach Festival
The Teiber Trio

The Bach Festival was a superb success. 

 

Music was excellent, and the festival did better financially than in the two previous years. 

 

The sanctuary of the church is perfect for the type of chamber music featured in this festival.

EasterFlowersFlowers for the Church
It's always a pleasure to see flowers in the church! 

 

If you have a loved one or an event you'd like to commemorate, please consider contributing flowers for the Sunday services! 

 

You may deliver flowers to the church yourself on Saturdays or call 202-333-7100 or email the church office and we can order them and have them delivered for $65.
                                                                                      August 1, 2013
 
Dear Friend of Grace,

It's not too late to join Holy Pilgrimage DC 2013! The last two events are coming up -- please plan to join us. Learn more about the first event, the Gargoyle Tour at the National Cathedral, below

The Multi-Parish Episcopal Youth Group here in Georgetown is becoming a reality. Parishioners ages 12 to 18 and their parents are invited to a Pizza Party on September 8th to meet the leaders and discuss plans. Please save the date. RSVP via email and join us!  
 
Also mark your calendars for Music on the Lawn 2013, every Thursday night in September. A list of performers appears here. 

And, as always, please take a moment now to get caught up on upcoming happenings at Grace. 

In Christ's Redeeming Love,
John Graham, Rector
'Children of the Gospel' Concert at the National Building Museum
HolyPilgrimage Summer Pilgrimage 2013: Spirit in Art and Music
By The Reverend Sarah Motley

 

Back for another summer run, Grace Church's own version of summer Bible camp will be holding its final two events in August!  

 

The programs are meant for all - including children, and anyone else who would enjoy a way to come to know other Grace Church families 'off site.'  

 

Also, these visits are an excellent way to invite along friends, family or colleagues to introduce them to Grace's approach to the life of the Spirit.

 

Sign up sheets are on the kiosk outside of church (or in the parish hall in case of Sunday rain).  Or, contact the office via email or phone (202-333-7100) to register.  Come one, come all! 

 
Sunday, August 4th 2:00 PM, 'Children of the Gospel' concert
National Building Museum (Metro: Red Line, Judiciary Square)
This free concert in one of the capital's  most impressive museums will give us a chance to hear a special group sponsored by the Washington Performing Arts Society.
 
Sunday, August 11th 11:30 PM, Tour of the Silver, Grace Episcopal Church, Georgetown
Helen Buhr and Sally Stanfield will be giving us a guided tour of the silver chalices used at services as well as trophies that are a part of Grace's history.

  

For more information Email The Reverend Sarah Motley.

youthgroup Pizza Party to Learn More About the New Multi-Parish Youth Group

We invite both parishioners ages 12 to 18 and their parents to join us for this first session to meet Jeanne and Patrick (our youth group leaders), discuss when the group will meet and brainstorm ideas for activities.

 

When:   Sunday, September 8th at 5:30 PM
Where:  Blake Hall, St. John's

              3240 O Street, NW, Washington, DC 20007
RSVP:     To Jeanne Jennings, 202.365.0423 or Email Jeanne

              (So we will be able to order enough pizza for everyone)

 

Quick Overview:

  • Audience: Members of Grace and St. John's Parishes who are ages 12 to 18 and their friends (older members will be 'junior leaders' who help plan as well as participate in activities)
  • Leaders:
  • When: Monthly meetings every 3rd Sunday, from 5:30 PM to 8:00 PM (tentative; dinner will be served)
  • Location: Grace, St. John's and other venues as appropriate
  • Goal: To create a multi-parish Youth Group that will:
    • Provide a Christian-based community for fellowship, support and fun
    • Enhance and strengthen members' relationships with Jesus Christ
    • Empower these young people to have a positive impact in our community
    • Encourage members to become witnesses and ambassadors of the Gospel

Some initial ideas for activities:

  • Participate in a spiritual exercise using the Labyrinth in Georgetown's Waterfront Park
  • Movie Night: Watch an appropriate popular movie and discuss Christian themes in the story
  • Church Lock-in: host a pajama party with fun, Christian-based activities at Grace, St. Johns or the National Cathedral
  • Bingo Ministry: provide a meal and run a bingo tournament for clients at Georgetown Ministry Center (may be eligible for volunteer credit for schools)
  • Prepare dinner and eat with Georgetown Ministry Center clients participating in the Community-based Overnight Shelter (November through February)
  • Attend a Nationals Game
  • Go ice skating as a group at the outdoor rink in Georgetown (November through February)

Marshall Keys and Herman Burney performing at Grace's Whitsunday Music on the Lawn Celebration
MOTLMusic on the Lawn 2013
By Marie-Laure Poire

 

Please mark your calendar and come join us to celebrate the end of the summer and the beginning of fall for the second edition of Music on the Lawn! 

 

This year, we will welcome the following four jazz bands: 

 

Thursday, September 5th  

Sandra Y. Johnson and friends (jazz, blues and R&B vocals)

 

Thursday, September 12th
Cloudburst (vocal jazz ensemble)

 

Thursday, September 19th

The Larry Brown Quartet (instrumental jazz)

 

Thursday, September 26th

Marshall Keys and Herman Burney (alto sax and upright bass)

 

Check the News and Events section of our Website for more information or email the office.

Photo courtesy of Martin Fischer
gargoyleSummer Pilgrimage Begins with a Gargoyle Tour at the National Cathedral
By Fielding Fischer

On Thursday, July 18th, fourteen members from Grace Church in Georgetown visited the National Cathedral together, but not just for any reason, for the Gargoyle tour.  

 

The tour began at 6:30 PM when the majority of the group traveled upstairs to the seventh floor to a small room in the attic of the Cathedral.  

 

The group was met by a funny and nice tour guide who was constantly making jokes. 

 

Once everybody had made their way up to the small room the tour officially started and the tour guide told us a bit about the Cathedral itself and then started a 45 minute slideshow about the gargoyles and grotesques on the National Cathedral's roof.

 

During the slideshow we learned about grotesques, the small statues on the roof, and gargoyles, which are statues that help drain the water off the the sides of the building. We also learned about many of the current gargoyles that sit on the roof off the cathedral, and what they represent.  

 

There were gargoyles of every kind including animals, monsters, chimeras, representations of the people who carved the gargoyles, and many more.  There were also many sorts of grotesques on the building, over 1,000 in total, including angels, winners of contests for naming a grotesque on the National Cathedral, and even a Star Wars character. 

 

Yes, you read correctly, Darth Vader from Star Wars sits proudly on the roof of the National Cathedral as well.

 

After the slideshow was over many people in the tour decided to take the nearly 300 steps down to the ground level of the cathedral where we then went outside to take a look at the gargoyles and grotesques for ourselves. 

 

Unfortunately, pretty much just as the group made it outside rain drops began to fall and the tour was over for almost everybody. However, a small group from the members of Grace Church went back into the cathedral for a service of Compline, or a service to end the day, which was interrupted with a few rather loud rolls of thunder.

 

I certainly enjoyed the tour and I believe that everyone else from Grace Church did too, even Aidan who is only three years old. This tour has been the most fun out of the other tours that I have done at the National Cathedral and is definitely worth going to.  

 

These pilgrimage events are definitely worth going to and I am always looking forward to the next one.

 

The last two pilgrimage events are happening in August! Learn more here and plan to join us!  

National Cathedral Forum on Torture / Update on National Religious Coalition against Torture
Helma Lanyi, Episcopal Peace Fellowship, DC

Dean Gary Hall of the Washington Cathedral invited The Reverend Richard Killmer, executive director of the National Religious Campaign against Torture (NRCAT), to the June 2 forum. 

 

The Episcopal Church is a member of NRCAT. Reverend Killmer showed the ecumenical short movie "Ending U.S.-Sponsored Torture Forever" and then answered questions posed to him by Dean Hall. 

 

The movie is ecumenical because representatives of the three Abrahamic faiths, Christian, Jewish, and Muslim, refer to the basic tenets of their religion which in each case forbid torture under any circumstances.

 

In the U.S., 18 U.S.Code section 2340-A declares torture to be a felony, and the U.S. is also a signatory to the U.N. Convention against torture of 1984, ratified in 1987. Treaties have the force of law. During the movie, President Linda Gustitus of NRCAT, declared that three actions have been called absolutes which cannot be committed:  Genocide, Slavery, and Torture. 

 

Reverend Killmer explained that this American position has a proud history. 

During the Revolutionary War, even when enemy Hessian soldiers mistreated their American prisoners, George Washington did not permit torturing them in return. 

 

Indeed, U.S. forces took pride during the Second World War that they did better than the axis forces by refraining from torturing Japanese and German prisoners of war. As Rabbi Serotta said in the movie, if man is fashioned in the image of God then torture is a direct violation of God.

 

Many believe that in our recent history the mistreatment of prisoners, in Abu Ghraib most evidently, amounts to torture, and has done much to discredit the country. President Obama issued an executive order on January 22, 2009, which forbids torture and bases treatment of prisoner solely on the Army Field Manual. 

 

NRCAT is calling for an accounting of the "enhanced interrogation" practices sanctioned by the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel under President Bush. Some countries whose people have suffered officially-sanctioned human rights violations have set up so-called Truth and Reconciliation Commissions which hold officials who have sanctioned such violations accountable. 

 

The Senate Intelligence Committee has finished a report on this matter, but the report has not been made public. While some hold that the aforementioned treaties and statutes have settled these issues once and for all, NRCAT believes the Intelligence Committee report should be made public so the country can finally air the many different opinions about the definition and practice of torture.  

VestryVestry Notes from the July Meeting 
By Barbara de Beaufort 
  • The majority of the July 15 Vestry Meeting was devoted to a presentation by Alfonso Narvaez, from Aeon Preservation, of his proposal for the repair and restoration of the sandstone arches over our windows.
  • A subcommittee on stonework repair was appointed. Paul Alligood, Stephane Le Bouder, Diana DickBeth Lee, Peter Wallace and our Rector, John Graham will follow up with Alfonso and authorize the work if the firm estimate fits within our budget and requirements. 
  • The Friends of Grace Gala raised $27,034. as of 7/15/13 for the stonework repair.
  • Paul Alligood reported that Garden Day was on July 13th. Volunteers removed the weeds that came up after all the rains. The turnout and the weather were both excellent! We are so thankful for our beautiful garden and gardeners!
  • The Bach Festival was a superb success.  Music was excellent, and the festival did better financially than in the two previous years. The sanctuary of the church is perfect for the type of chamber music featured in this festival.
  • Adam Harrington's Discernment Committee has been meeting regularly. Please hold Adam, Diana Martin, and the Discernment Committee in your thoughts and prayers. 
  • Sarah Motley, Assistant to the Rector, initiated planning for a combined Youth Group with St. John's Church, Georgetown. There has been lots of interest and enthusiasm on the parts of both congregations. The next meeting is scheduled for the first week in August.
  • Christian Education Summer Pilgrimage begins on July 18th with a tour of the gargoyles at the National Cathedral. Next, Sunday, July 21, will be the Grace Church organ tour/art project. 'Save our Seminary' tour  and walk in Silver Spring, MD will be Saturday, July 27. The grand finale, 'Children of the Gospel' concert will be at the National Building Museum, at 2 on Sunday, August 4.
  • Marie-Laure Poire and John Graham are planning our Music on the Lawn series scheduled for Thursdays in September. Jeanne Jennings has had to resign as coordinator because of increased work requirements; John and Marie-Laure expressed their gratitude for the strong foundation Jeanne has laid over the last two years. 
The full minutes of the Vestry Meetings are filed in a binder in the Volunteer Office in the Rectory, after they have been approved by the Vestry. 

 

Weekly at Grace
 
Sundays
8:30 AM
Holy Eucharist

 

9:45 AM
Prayers for the Nation and the World
Held outside at the Memorial Cross, includes remembrance of the Fallen (only the last Sunday of each month; 15 minutes)
 
10:00 AM
Holy Eucharist 
Music, child care and Sunday School

 

6:00 PM Summer Time!
Evening Eucharist
Plan to stay for refreshments after the service
 
Laying on of Hands for Healing, second Sunday of each month at the 8:30 AM, 10:00 AM and 6:00 PM services. 

 

Tuesdays
12:15 PM
Centering Prayer
35 minutes
 
Wednesdays
12:15 PM
Holy Eucharist
30 minutes
 
Saturdays
11:30 AM
Grace's Table

From September through May, Grace's Table offers hot lunch, Bible study and fellowship for persons who are homeless or living on the margins. 

 

This ministry is also offered on some Saturdays over the summer, contact the office for specifics.  

About Grace

Grace Episcopal Church, Georgetown, was founded nearly 150 years ago to serve the laborers, craftsmen, shopkeepers, and watermen of the Georgetown waterfront.

By 1857 regular services were being held in a wooden chapel that stood in the southwest corner of the churchyard, where the World War I Memorial Cross now stands.

Outreach to the community, particularly lower Georgetown, remains a vital ministry of Grace.

To that end we host a variety of events for the public, including an annual Bach Festival and Music on the Lawn. Our parishioners are also active volunteers for the Taste of Georgetown, which supports the Georgetown Ministry Center, located in the basement of our Rectory. 

Grace Church is committed to providing a spiritual refuge for everyone living and working in the Georgetown area regardless of their religious affiliation. 

Visitors to Grace find a warm welcome, wonderful music, and a heartfelt faith. We are located on the east side of Wisconsin Avenue, just below M Street and the Canal, in the heart of Georgetown. 

Please join us for a service, an event, or just moment of quiet during your day. A weekly schedule of events appears in the column to your left.

Sunday Parking: 3 options

 

1. South Street Lot behind the church - 20 spaces free until 1:30 PM with one time use pass from Grace Church entrance.

 

2. Eagle Bank Lot across Wisconsin Avenue from the Church - 8 spaces free until 1:30 PM with one time use pass from Grace Church and limited use based on availability for the 6:00 PM service


3.
Cinema Garage on K Street just east of Wisconsin Avenue - 2 hour free parking until 1:00 PM with a separate exit ticket from Grace (exit tickets just inside the church left side door) - use both tickets at the pay station to leave the garage.

Weekday Parking at the Cinema Garage on K Street just east of Wisconsin Avenue - Monday through Thursday Day and Night and Friday until 6:00 PM. 2 hour free parking with a separate exit ticket from Grace (exit tickets just inside the church on the left) - use both tickets at the pay station to leave the garage.

 

Grace Episcopal Church
1041 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007
202-333-7100  |  Office@GraceDC.org  |  www.GraceDC.org