Collect of the Day: O God, whose blessed Son came into the world that he might destroy the works of the devil and make us children of God and heirs of eternal life: Grant that, having this hope, we may purify ourselves as he is pure; that, when he comes again with power and great glory, we may be made like him in his eternal and glorious kingdom; where he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. Readings for this Sunday, the Twenty-fifth Sunday after Pentecost, are found here: Ruth 3:1-5; 4:13-17 Psalm 127 Hebrews 9:24-28 Mark 12:38-44 Today's Sermon was given by Father Manny, and is available to stream or download below.

It is incredibly exciting and a blessing for us at Christ Church to be hosting a Choral Evensong on this Sunday evening to honor all our newcomers. We hope you will join us in welcoming all who are new to our common life. This feature of our rich Anglican liturgical tradition will become a part of our common life at Christ Church. This Choral Evensong is scheduled for Sunday, November 11 at 5:00 p.m. in Old Brick. We will then host a reception in the Parish Hall following the service.

This Sunday, we will gather as a community of faith to receive and bless the pledge cards for the Pledge Your Love Campaign. This is an important spiritual exercise where we offer to God that which He has blessed us with - life, family, friends, community. The idea of a good life raises important existential questions... Is life today as good as it gets? And is what we have been given good? How can it be good when it is often punctuated with heartbreaks, pain, and destruction? A few days ago I visited with a parishioner who asked such a question about the meaning of life. These are tough questions which have no easy answers. The good news, however, is that there are ways in which we can live with these questions, and they are tied up with the choices we have to make during life's often cold winter - both chronologically, and experientially. For me, this is the main reason why maintaining, keeping, or wearing an attitude of gratitude becomes such an important part of our lives. The gift of gratitude makes it possible for us to discover within ourselves the voice that offers praise - to say “thank you!” Our reality is one in which the human ability to praise may be the most important gift given to us by God. For it speaks of a natural response to our bewilderment at the goodness of existence - even during the cold winter months when all is bleak and dreary, when all we have left to turn to is a God who appears to be absent from us. What gives me great joy is that when our grateful impulse rises, when human life begins to sparkle, even in the darkness of the soul’s winter, gratitude brings the rumor of good news and the hint that spring is on the way and that God never abandons us. It takes an attitude of gratitude to feed on the impulses that looks beyond its present challenges. It is often tempting to conclude that we can only grieve or thank God in the privacy of our homes. But there’s something significant and transformative about coming together to publicly thank God, even during those winter months of grief. That is why Christ Church and its varied and growing ministries become particularly important during this time - not only for those who have found this to be their spiritual home, but also for those who have not, and for those may yet come along. Our continued existence and our thriving ministries make it possible for all of us to hold each other up in prayer, give thanks for each other, and to touch others in transformative ways. This, too, demands an attitude of gratitude. The psalmist asked a rhetorical question, “What can I give back to God for the blessings He’s poured out on me?’ To this question, Saah Johnson - a parishioner - will respond that God doesn’t need our money, God simply need our hearts. Hearts that are willing to offer sacrifices of thanksgiving and praise, hearts that are willing to adopt an attitude of gratitude, hearts that are willing to honor the Lord with their substance, and with the first fruits of their increase, as Proverbs teaches. Teilard de Chardin once remarked that “Humanity is being taken to the point where it will have to choose between suicide and adoration.” At Christ Church, however, we intend to choose adoration; more to the point, we choose thanksgiving, not only for what God has done in our lives but for what God continues to do in our lives. And for that reason, we can wear an attitude of gratitude. God has been more than good to us, and to our community of faith. In my world, YOU make life happen here at Christ Church because of your attitude of gratitude. Without your generous support, we wouldn’t be able to grow new ministries, deepen existing ones, or be deeply involved in the business of helping transform the lives of the children of God who find themselves on the margins of our society. It is for these reasons, and many more, that we bid your kind generosity - that the voice of thanksgiving may soar within you, particularly at this time. I've learned that sometimes thanksgiving comes more easily. At other times, it is more of a sacrifice. Saint John of Avila (1500–1569) wrote, ‘One act of thanksgiving when things go wrong with us is worth a thousand thanks when things are agreeable to our inclination.’ So then, whether thanksgiving is easy or a sacrifice, it is worth our effort and more. The psalmist was so moved by God’s graciousness that he/she remarked that, "I’m ready to offer the thanksgiving sacrifice and pray in the name of God. I’ll complete what I promised God I’d do, and I’ll do it in company with his people, in the place of worship, in God’s house." At Christ Church, if you will. I therefore invite you to join us at Christ Church this Sunday, where we will gather all the pledges for the year, offer a prayer together to the God who has been more than good to us, and calls upon us to heartily wear an attitude of gratitude. Thanks so much. See you on Sunday! ~Manny

Collect of the Day: Almighty God, you have knit together your elect in one communion and fellowship in the mystical body of your Son Christ our Lord: Give us grace so to follow your blessed saints in all virtuous and godly living, that we may come to those ineffable joys that you have prepared for those who truly love you; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen. Readings for this Sunday, the Twenty-fourth Sunday after Pentecost, are found here: Isaiah 25:6-9 Psalm 24 Revelation 21:1-6a John 11:32-44 The Sermon for this week was given by a guest, Chaplain Gerard Washington. Please take time to stream or download it below:

It's almost here! Tonight, November 3rd, will be Christ Church's 29th Annual Auction! The auction, Christ Church's largest fund raiser of the year, will be held from 7:00 to 11:00 p.m. Doors will open at 6:30 p.m. There will be child care available from 6:30-9:30 p.m. We will have large and small items such as special meals, vacation getaways, tickets to an event, your services, baskets of goodies, hand-crafted items, works of art, picture frames, seasonal decorations, and much more. The success of the event is entirely because of your generous contributions to the live and silent auctions, so thank you for your generosity! If you're interested in attending, or have any questions, please email us.

When I was in high school, I visited a mercy ship with my mother. The ship had docked at one of Ghana’s ports and among providing health, dental and eye care to the many people who had need, but they also had an unbelievable array of books for sale. As I walked through the aisle, I was blown away by the sheer number of books. As I walked, my eye chanced up on a book with the title “Enough is Enough.” It was one of the many books my mother bought from the ship that evening. Unfortunately, I didn’t read the book and so I can’t share any story about what was inside. My satisfaction, really, has more to do with the title and, especially at this time, where eleven (11) of our Jewish neighbors would be gunned down by one man who could not tolerate the depth of his hatred. He had been burning deep within, not out of some desire to do good, but to destroy life. His victims had simply gathered to pray, to reach out to the God who created the world and each of us, and who still extends his bounteous grace and mercy upon us. I have always had a problem with those who either believe they are more human than others or less human than others. Either way, it undermines and discredits the grandeur of God’s creation or, more insidiously, it perpetuates the false claim of any racial supremacy or the idea that some deserve to live while some do not. Our fellow parishioner Dione Mahoney sent me a quote by Rabbi Heschel as she reflected on the carnage in Pittsburgh - "Just to be is a blessing. Just to live is holy. We must make a persistent effort to be worthy of the name human." By Rabbi Heschel’s standard, we can debase the worthiness of the name "human" to the point where we would not even be worthy to be called human. I believe that when we miss the point of being human, when we lose our touch with compassion, and when we fail to recognize the depth of our human interdependence, we fail to express in deed and in action the grandeur of God’s creation, the diversity of God’s creation, and the fulfilling blessing of being human. There once was a Jesuit priest by the name Gerard Manley Hopkins. His poetry expressed the fullness and wonder of God’s creation. As we reflect on what it means to be human, I want to share one of his beautiful and enduring poems with you: The world is charged with the grandeur of God. It will flame out, like shining from shook foil; It gathers to a greatness, like the ooze of oil Crushed. Why do men then now not reck his rod? Generations have trod, have trod, have trod; And all is seared with trade; bleared, smeared with toil; And wears man’s smudge and shares man’s smell: the soil Is bare now, nor can foot feel, being shod. And for all this, nature is never spent; There lives the dearest freshness deep down things; And though the last lights off the black West went Oh, morning, at the brown brink eastward, springs— Because the Holy Ghost over the bent World broods with warm breast and with ah! bright wings. This poem reminds me of what the Psalmist said in 139, “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” Who knew the psalms any of the victims may have been praying before they were shot? Is it possible that any one of the victims may have been reading Psalm 139 while a gunman was standing right across the street, seething with hatred? I think we miss the point entirely when we forget that we are beautifully and wonderfully made, and that to live is to praise, to praise is to be human, and within the context of praise is where we find affirmation and fulfillment even when we are at the lowest point in our lives. We are at the lowest point. Dark clouds of anger, hatred, bigotry, anti-Semitism, racism and fear hang over us. We are at the point where enough is more than enough, and where we are crippled by our inability to change human hearts. But I pray you do not lose hope. I pray you do not lose fervor but as Paul said, to serve enthusiastically. If you are able, I invite you to join us tonight for a Vigil at 7:30 p.m. in Old Brick. Let’s give ourselves one more opportunity to celebrate God’s majesty in creation - in creating all those we mourn, and you and me, one as human, one in diversity, and one in love. ~Manny

We will hold an All Saints' Day Vigil this Thursday, November 1st. It will be held in Old Brick, and commence at 7:30 p.m. This will be an evening of prayers, reflections and music in remembrance of our loved ones, as well as of all victims of hatred - including those in Pittsburgh this past weekend. We will also celebrate our common humanity, and pledge our support for unity, for peace, and for love. Please join us.

This Sunday, October 28th, we will be gathering in the church at 5:00 p.m. Our Music Director, Adam Detzner, will be presenting an organ recital. Our brand new Rodgers 599 church organ has recently been installed in our choir loft, so together we will celebrate the joyful sound of this majestic instrument, as it will be played for our parish family and the general public. Immediately following this special performance, we will be hosting a reception in the lower level of New Brick. This gathering will reflect our celebration of God's generosity, for our parish has countless reasons to feel grateful for our many blessings. Food and drink will be provided, and all ages are invited. ​ Join us for an evening of transformation and celebration.

This past Sunday, we gathered together for the Christ Church Annual Meeting. It was my second Annual Meeting, and of course it was a humbling experience for me. I am eternally grateful for the opportunity to serve here at Christ Church, for the health of the parish, and for the amazing ministries to which we are committed. At each Annual Meeting, we elect new lay leadership for our church. We were blessed to have Steve Alpern, Tim Beaty, Lynn Foor, Harrington Gardiner, Rose Kirby, Alfred Titus-Glover and George Toth as candidates. My sincere appreciation goes to each of the candidates who offered themselves to serve on the Vestry. Of these gifted parishioners, we elected four: Steve Alpern, Tim Beaty, Rose Kirby and Alfred Titus-Glover, all of whom serve a term of three years. The newly-elected Vestry Members and the old Vestry Members met on the following Tuesday for our first regular Vestry Meeting. During this meeting, the following were elected as officers of Christ Church: Steve Alpern - Senior Warden, Sara Kirkpatrick - Junior Warden, Ron Couch - Registrar, and Denis Read - Treasurer. The Vestry is an important body in the life of our community, and one of its primal responsibilities is to work with the Rector in advancing the mission and ministry of the church. And in order for its work to be successful, it takes a lot of collaboration, compromise, honesty, and a sincere commitment towards visioning collaboratively for the growth of the church. In a sense, the work we have ahead is more akin to sharpening an axe than cutting a tree. There’s a story of Abraham Lincoln which suggests that if you are given six hours to cut a tree, use four hours to sharpen your axe. As a faith community, we have lots of challenges in the coming year; figuratively speaking, we have lots of trees to cut. This brings me to a story about a landowner who heard about a man who could cut down trees like no one else. The landowner, seeking to have trees cut from his property, hired this man to do the job. On the first day, he reported to the landowner that he cut down fifteen trees. The second day, he reported that he cut down thirteen. The third day, he was able to cut down ten. He complained to the landowner that he wasn’t cutting down as many trees as he could. The landowner then asked him, “Do you sharpen your axe?” The man replied that he hadn’t sharpened his axe. The landowner then asked, “Well, if you do not sharpen your axe, how then can you cut down more trees? You have to sharpen your axe if you want to cut down more trees.” We do have lots of trees to cut, but as President Lincoln suggested, we have to spend more time sharpening our axes. In other words, spend more time building relationships of trust. Our challenges as a community of faith are not only about the health of our parish and the broadening of our ministries, but also about whether our parishioners are thriving in their various fields of endeavors - in their relationships, marriages, raising of their children, and in their homes. All of these need our attention, and more. And all may have to learn how to sharpen their axes... including me. I believe that our ministry to our immediate community and beyond is essential. And as a community of faith, we are keenly aware of the challenges that the 21st century model of being a church presents. However, we can meet those challenges, and actually overcome them, if we open ourselves up to sharpening our axes instead of cutting trees - building a relationship instead of spurning one. I like to think that our ministries, and especially our common life, should be like the wi-fi signal, boundless and completely invisible but ever-present. In a sense, it is similar to our understanding of God - often too silent and nonchalant, but incredibly present with us in His mercy and love. Recognizing then that the joy of ministry is about sharpening our axes, my hope is that we may be motivated to doing so for the benefit of all. ~Manny

Christ Episcopal Church's Annual Meeting will be held this autumn, on October 21st. There will be updates on our various parish ministries, as well as the election of a few new Vestry members. We will only have one service that day, and it takes place at 9:30am. A buffet breakfast will be served after the service, and is immediately followed by our meeting. Information & bios of those running for Vestry are available in the Narthex. Please also note that there are no Christian education classes on this day. We look forward to seeing you all there!

Collect of the Day: Almighty and everlasting God, in Christ you have revealed your glory among the nations: Preserve the works of your mercy, that your Church throughout the world may persevere with steadfast faith in the confession of your Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. Readings for this Sunday, the Twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost, are found here: Job 38:1-7, (34-41) Psalm 104:1-9, 25, 37b Hebrews 5:1-10 Mark 10:35-45