Friends,

 

From Trinity Sunday through the end of July we will be saying the Nicene Creed together in worship. I know this is a difficult exercise for many people. Sometimes, it's been a difficult exercise for me. But many of us love it and miss it. This part of the liturgy came up for the Liturgy Planning Team in the past few months. We had begun saying and got used to saying a short Affirmation of Faith:

 

We believe in God the Creator,

by whom every person in heaven and on earth is named.

We believe in God the Son,

who lives in our hearts through faith, and fills us with his love.

We believe in God the Holy Spirit,

who strengthens us with power from on high.

 

But this left some in our community feeling a little cold. They missed the longer story, the familiar words of the Nicene Creed, a centuries old statement of belief. I also wondered how we might react to the creed and come up with our own ideas of faith if we never heard it, or never understood what it meant. If we banish it from our liturgy, how are we able to push against it? In the "Intro to St. Mark's" course and in our youth confirmation class, we ask class members to evaluate parts of the creed and form their own ideas. They can't do that without knowing the starting point.

 

Actually, I like saying the Creed together with my faith community. It helps shape a common understanding of faith. I don't believe that we need to share the exact same ideas about faith, or be in lock step together about what faith means. But I do want to be able to say that we have some conception of a life lived together, exploring what faith means and trusting in wisdom that came before us.

 

As I like to say, St. Mark's is a lab of liturgy. We try different things, different words, and see how it works. Some of this liturgy will be fresh and new; some of this liturgy will be ancient. We can tolerate and even embrace very old tradition as well as brand new theology. To me, it feels good to affirm our faith together, using the language of our spiritual ancestors. 

 

Peace,

Justi

Dear St. Mark's,

Among the music planned for this coming Sunday are two solos sung by Paul Bugge.  A member of the Chancel Choir for some 24 years, Paul has been a strong leader in the group and has contributed enormously to the success and beautiful singing that the choir has produced over the years.  He and Linda will be moving out near Winchester, VA soon and will thus discontinue singing at St. Mark's on a regular basis.  I mention all this for two reasons.  First, if you feel inclined to do so, please thank Paul for the wonderful service he has given to St. Mark's.  Second, Paul has been the only bass we have had singing with the Chancel Choir at the 11:15 service for quite some time.  In order to sing the vast majority of good choral music in existence, the choir needs the bass part (the lowest part for men) covered.  So, to all men with lower voices, please consider this your invitation to join the Chancel Choir this summer or for the coming season starting in September.  It is crucial we get one or two more men to sing with the choir at the 11:15 service!  Have questions or are you on the fence about singing with the choir?  Please reach out and contact me - even if you have doubts - and I clarify any questions you have and encourage you to give it a shot.

Peace,
JEFF