May 23, 2021 is Whitsunday – The Day of Pentecost

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Our Guidelines for Worship & Events have been updated, effective Friday, May 21, 2021

Today is the Day of Pentecost, the fiftieth day of Eastertide. The Church recalls its roots in the house of Israel as it celebrates the conclusion of a “week of weeks,” that is, the Easter Season of seven weeks.  Pentecost is a traditional day for baptisms, and in the Prayer Book tradition of the Episcopal Church Pentecost is also known as “Whitsunday” because the baptized are clothed in white garments.  The liturgical color for the day, however, is red, symbolizing the fire of the Holy Spirit.  Ordinary time, the “Season after Pentecost,” begins tomorrow.  Next Sunday, the first Sunday after Pentecost, is Trinity Sunday.

Today’s In Person Worship

  • Every Sunday at 8am the Eucharist (Rite 1) is celebrated in the Church.  The service is from the red Book of Common Prayer, beginning on page 323, and includes 2 pre-recorded hymns, and lasts about 45 minutes. Weather permitting coffee and tea are available in Garden afterwards.
  • Every Sunday at 10am the Eucharist (Rite 2) is celebrated in the Church. The service is from the red Book of Common Prayer, beginning on page 355.  See below for detailed music information.  The service lasts about an hour.  Weather permitting coffee and tea are available in Garden afterwards.
  • Please review these Guidelines before attending worship at Christ Church.

Today’s Live-Stream Worship & Sermon Archives

Sunday Offerings & Financial Donations to Christ Church

Christ Church is supported by the generosity of members and friends who donate time, talent, and money to the church to ensure that it is open, staffed, safe, and active. God has given each of us many gifts and we are called to use them to build up the church and to show the spread the love of God to our community. Click on the Donate Button for a variety of ways to support Christ Church, including one-time donations, annual pledges, and raising funds through FaceBook or Amazon.

Today’s Propers (Collect & Lections from Holy Scripture)

The Collect

Almighty God, on this day you opened the way of eternal life to every race and nation by the promised gift of your Holy Spirit: Shed abroad this gift throughout the world by the preaching of the Gospel, that it may reach to the ends of the earth; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

The First Lesson
Acts 2:1-21

When the day of Pentecost had come, the disciples were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.  Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each. Amazed and astonished, they asked, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language? Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs– in our own languages we hear them speaking about God’s deeds of power.” All were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” But others sneered and said, “They are filled with new wine.”  But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed them, “Men of Judea and all who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to what I say. Indeed, these are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only nine o’clock in the morning. No, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:

`In the last days it will be, God declares,

that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh,
and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,

and your young men shall see visions,
and your old men shall dream dreams.

Even upon my slaves, both men and women,
in those days I will pour out my Spirit;
and they shall prophesy.

And I will show portents in the heaven above
and signs on the earth below,
blood, and fire, and smoky mist.

The sun shall be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood,
before the coming of the Lord’s great and glorious day.

Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.’ ”

The Psalm

Psalm 104:25-35, 37
Benedic, anima mea

25 O Lord, how manifold are your works! *
in wisdom you have made them all;
the earth is full of your creatures.

26 Yonder is the great and wide sea
with its living things too many to number, *
creatures both small and great.

27 There move the ships,
and there is that Leviathan, *
which you have made for the sport of it.

28 All of them look to you *
to give them their food in due season.

29 You give it to them; they gather it; *
you open your hand, and they are filled with good things.

30 You hide your face, and they are terrified; *
you take away their breath,
and they die and return to their dust.

31 You send forth your Spirit, and they are created; *
and so you renew the face of the earth.

32 May the glory of the Lord endure for ever; *
may the Lord rejoice in all his works.

33 He looks at the earth and it trembles; *
he touches the mountains and they smoke.

34 I will sing to the Lord as long as I live; *
I will praise my God while I have my being.

35 May these words of mine please him; *
I will rejoice in the Lord.

37 Bless the Lord, O my soul. *
Hallelujah!

The Epistle
Romans 8:22-27

We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now; and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what is seen? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words. And God, who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.

The Gospel
John 15:26-27; 16:4b-15

Jesus said to his disciples, ”When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who comes from the Father, he will testify on my behalf. You also are to testify because you have been with me from the beginning.  “I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you. But now I am going to him who sent me; yet none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your hearts. Nevertheless I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will prove the world wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: about sin, because they do not believe in me; about righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will see me no longer; about judgment, because the ruler of this world has been condemned.  “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine. For this reason I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.

Today’s Music
Last Sunday’s pre-recorded anthem, which accidentally didn’t make it into the livestream or in-person service, can be heard here:
Peace I leave with you by Jeffrey Hoffman (b. 1970)

At the 8am and 10am services, the following recorded hymns and anthems will be offered by our full choir:

Hymn in Procession: “Hail this joyful day’s return”
Words: attributed to Hillary of Poitiers (4th century), translated by Robert Campbell (1814-1868), alt.
Music: SONNE DER GERECHTIGKEIT, from Bohemian Brethren, Kirchengesang (1566), harmonized by Jan Oskar Bender (1909-1994).
Music copyright © 1969 by Concordia Publishing House. All rights reserved. Licensed under OneLicense.net A-713125.
Recording, photography, and video production by Jeffrey Hoffman with assistance from Jabea Kisob.
This performance copyright © 2021 by the Parish of Christ the Redeemer (Christ Church), Pelham, New York.
All Rights Reserved.

Anthem by the choir: If ye love me by Thomas Tallis (c. 1505-1585)

If ye love me, keep my commandments.
And I will pray the Father,
and he shall give you another comforter,
that he may ‘bide with you forever;
E’en the sp’rit of truth.

— John 14:15–17, The Tyndale/Coverdale Bible (1535)

Music by Thomas Tallis (c. 1505-1585), transcribed and edited by Peter Le Huray (1930-1992).
This edition copyright © 1965 by Blandford Press, Ltd./Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. Licensed under OneLicense.net A-713125.
Recording, photography, and video production by Jeffrey Hoffman with assistance from Jabea Kisob.
This performance copyright © 2021 by the Parish of Christ the Redeemer (Christ Church), Pelham, New York.
All Rights Reserved.

Hymn in Procession: “Come down, O love divine”
Words: Bianco da Sienna (c. 1350- c. 1434), translated by Richard Frederick Littledale (1833-1890).
Music: DOWN AMPNEY, by Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958).
Music first published in The English Hymnal, 1906. Originally copyright by Oxford University Press, this work has by now entered the public domain.
Any remaining copyright is licensed under OneLicense.net A-713125.
Recording, photography, and video production by Jeffrey Hoffman with assistance from Jabea Kisob.
This performance copyright © 2021 by the Parish of Christ the Redeemer (Christ Church), Pelham, New York.
All Rights Reserved.

At the 10am Service the following music selections will be offered  live by Jeffrey Hoffman, organist and choir director, and our soloist, bass-baritone Simon Cram on Sunday morning:

At the offertory, solo: 14. Aria: “Lord God of Abraham,” from Elias (Elijah), Op. 70 by Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (1809-1847)

Draw near, all ye people, come to me!

Lord God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel,
This day let it be known that Thou art God,
And that I am Thy servant!
Lord God of Abraham!
Oh shew to all this people
That I have done these things according to Thy word.

Oh hear me, Lord, and answer me!
Lord God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel,
Oh hear me and answer me,
And shew this people that Thou art Lord God.
And let their hearts again be turned!
— text from 1 Kings 18:36-37, compiled and adapted from Luther Bibel by Julius Schubring (1839-1914), translated by William Bartholomew (1793–1867)

This work is in the public domain.

Solo during communion: Every time I feel the Spirit, traditional African-American spiritual, arranged by Henry Thacker Burleigh (1866-1949)*

Ev’ry time I feel the Spirit
moving in my heart, I will pray.
Yes, ev’ry time I feel the Spirit
moving in my heart, I will pray.

Upon the mountain when my Lord spoke,
out of his mouth came fire and smoke.
The Jordan river, chilly and cold,
It chills the body, but not the soul.
Ev’ry time I feel the Spirit, etc.

All around me looked so shin’
I asked my Lord if it all was mine.
There ain’t but one train that’s on this track,
it runs to heaven and runs right back.
Ev’ry time I feel the Spirit, etc.

This work is in the public domain.

*This pioneering African-American classical singer, composer, and arranger studied at The National Conservatory of Music in New York City (which, sadly, closed in 1952) and broke ground in 1894 when he was hired as the baritone soloist by St. George’s Episcopal Church in Manhattan — where he served for 52 years — at a time when other Episcopal churches in New York City were closed to black worshippers. He also served Temple Emanu-El in a similar capacity from 1900-1925. Burleigh concertized in some of Europe’s great concert halls and is credited with introducing the composer Antonín Dvořák to the rich melodic tradition of the spiritual, which inspired that composer’s beloved “New World” Symphony.

Parish Prayer List

Please note that names are listed alphabetically by last name of the person being prayed for (if it is known).  We do not list last names for privacy reasons. For pastoral emergencies call or text one of the clergy: Father Matt (914.471.0260),  Deacon Katie Lawrence (914.589.1628), Deacon Chisara Alimole (914.338.5194), or call the parish office (914.738.5515) .  If you have any updates (birthdays, prayers additions, etc., please let us know.) Please submit names you wish to be included by Tuesday morning, to Marie at: marie@christchurchpelham.org.

Our prayers are asked especially for: Marion, Shane, Rosemary, Rob, Marcia, Mike, Anne, Ginny, Beverly, Barbara, Mary, Ralph, Jed, Didi, Josephine,  Sammy, Ryan, Monica, Rebecca, Janet, Amina, Alexia Grace, Alison, John, Emma, Hildy, Jason, Yen, Susan, Sue, Xandra, Sigi, Joyce, Julie, Scott, Sherrie, Michelle, James, Karen, Lisa, Laurelyn, Rob, Drue, Rob, Bill, Andrea, Sue,  Lael, M & D, Sandy,  and Katie.

We give thanks for those celebrating birthdays this week and in the coming week:  J.D. Calder (May 17), Drue Weild (May 17), Ashley Dolan (May 20), Pamela Lent (May 24) and Bill Scherer (May 28).

We give thanks for Father Matt’s 6th Anniversary at Christ Church (May 26).

And we give thanks for the 26th Anniversary of Michael Fawcett and Michael Moynihan (May 16).

We pray for those in our Armed Services especially: Joseph, Kevin, Jack, Leopold, Philip, Jake, Matthew, Robert, Philip-Jason,  Nicholas, Sam, Jack, Helen, Mitchel, Tia, Tyrese, and Terrence.

We pray that all elected and appointed officials may be led to wise decisions and right actions for the welfare and peace of the world, especially Joseph our President and Andrew our Governor.

We remember and pray for all Americans who have died from COVID-19, and we pray also for all who mourn.

We pray for those who have died.

Rest eternal grant to them, O Lord

And let light perpetual shine upon them.

May their souls and the souls of the departed, through the mercy of God,

rest in peace.  Amen

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Funeral for Betty Rodes Hoover (April 12, 1927 – February 14, 2021)

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Funeral for Betty Rodes Hoover (April 12, 1927 – February 14, 2021)

Eulogy & Homily for Betty Rodes Hoover (April 12, 1927 – February 14, 2021)

Betty Rodes Hoover – April 12,1927 – February 14, 2021

Pictures of Betty Jane Rodes as a young girl show that she had poise and flair from the very start. She was the first of two children of Elizabeth Foster and John Calvin Rodes, Jr., and was born in Philadelphia, Pa. in the spring of 1927. Her brother was born a couple of years later.

Betty’s father was a jeweler, which perhaps gave her a taste for sparkle and finery. After graduating from high school, she went straight to a local finishing school. There she learned the “social graces,” plus a whole range of other skills that would support her career and shape her life.

Still in her teens, Betty started working as a clothes model in Philadelphia and, in 1949, she married Walter F. Harriman. In 1953, she entered the “Mrs. Philadelphia” contest and won. She later divorced and, in 1956, Betty married Herbert Hoover Jr., a distant relative of our 31st president. Herbert, a department head at the National Broadcasting Company (NBC), had been a lieutenant in the US Navy and longed to live near the water. The two moved to New Rochelle and soon settled into a corner apartment overlooking Long Island Sound. The Hoovers bought a boat and joined the Huguenot Yacht Club, with its 1910 club-house — the former east-coast home of silent-film star, Lillian Gish. Betty would live in the apartment at 300 Pelham Road for the next sixty years.

During the 1960s, Betty took a job at the Bonwit Teller department store in Manhattan. Did we mention that Betty was crazy about fashion? At Bonwit’s she modeled the latest clothes by walking through the different floors during the day and on the catwalk at the store’s fashion shows. “I modeled all over the store,” she remembered. “I changed clothes all day long.” For Betty, that was heaven.

In 1963, she began working at the Laboratory Institute of Merchandising (LIM) on E. 53rd St. in Manhattan, a school specializing in fashion and merchandising. In her 20+ years there, she helped to train thousands of students for careers in fashion. She lead courses in personal development — instruction in hairstyling, proper dress, make-up application, posture, manners and public speaking. She also taught her students how to stand: Right foot slightly ahead of the left, at a 45-degree angle.

All of this went into the more than 150 fashion shows she and her students staged over the years at the Plaza Hotel, featuring clothes borrowed from designers like Ann Klein, Valentino, and Oscar de la Renta. She also advised employees at a variety of companies, including NBC, on how to present themselves. Her business cards read: “Mrs. Betty Hoover – Social Skills and Etiquette.” Betty loved her working life. Even after she left LIM in the 1980s, she taught etiquette classes through The Charm Workshop in New Rochelle, and in her apartment, where she kept her dining room set with fine china, silver and crystal for her students.

Out for a stroll one day in 1965, Herbert stepped into Pelham’s Christ Church on a whim. The two eventually became members. “I loved it for its beauty and its pageantry,” Betty told the church’s Soundings magazine. When Herbert died in the 1980s, she became a greeter at church events and on Sunday mornings. She did this with such flair and devotion for so many years, that the minister named her “Chief Greeter for Life.”

Betty also joined the boards of the Colburn Nursing Home in New Rochelle and the historic Bartow Pell Mansion, in the Bronx. But most of all, she cherished her membership in The Manor Club. She loved decorating the club’s annual Christmas tree and helping to orchestrate its afternoon teas. Some swore Betty’s two favorite words were “tea sandwich.” At her passing, a Manor Club friend circulated an email lamenting the loss of “our own Grace Kelly, Audrey Hepburn and Jackie Kennedy.”

Betty had a strong faith in God, and a strong sense of fun. She adored men, flowers, dogs, clothes, and jewelry. She absolutely could not get by without vanilla ice cream or Prosecco. She had a gift for working all the angles, and she truly got the most out of her life.

Now, Heaven has a new greeter.

Today’s Lections from Holy Scripture

Old Testament
Lamentations 3:22-26, 31-33 Reader Terry de Marco
The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is thy faithfulness. “The LORD is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him.” The LORD is good to those who wait for him, to the soul that seeks him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD. For the Lord will not cast off for ever, but, though he cause grief, he will have compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love; for he does not willingly afflict or grieve the sons of men.

Psalm
Psalm 116 Reader: Carol Ipsen
1 I love the LORD, because he has heard the voice of my supplication, *
because he has inclined his ear to me whenever I called upon him.

2 The cords of death entangled me; the grip of the grave took hold of me; *
I came to grief and sorrow.

3 Then I called upon the Name of the LORD: *
“O LORD, I pray you, save my life.”

4 Gracious is the LORD and righteous; *
our God is full of compassion.

5 The LORD watches over the innocent; *
I was brought very low, and he helped me.

6 Turn again to your rest, O my soul. *
for the LORD has treated you well.

7 For you have rescued my life from death, *
my eyes from tears, and my feet from stumbling.

8 I will walk in the presence of the LORD *
in the land of the living.

9 I believed, even when I said,”I have been brought very low.” *
In my distress I said, “No one can be trusted.”

10 How shall I repay the LORD *
for all the good things he has done for me?

11 I will lift up the cup of salvation *
and call upon the Name of the LORD.

12 I will fulfill my vows to the LORD *
in the presence of all his people.

13 Precious in the sight of the LORD *
is the death of his servants.

14 O LORD, I am your servant; *
I am your servant and the child of your handmaid;
you have freed me from my bonds.

15 I will offer you the sacrifice of thanksgiving *
and call upon the Name of the LORD.

16 I will fulfill my vows to the LORD *
in the presence of all his people,

17 In the courts of the LORD’S house, *
in the midst of you, O Jerusalem.
Hallelujah!

Epistle
Revelation 21:2-7 Reader: Brenda di Padova
I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband; and I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling of God is with men. He will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself will be with them; he will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain any more, for the former things have passed away.” And he who sat upon the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” Also he said, “Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.” And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the fountain of the water of life without payment. He who conquers shall have this heritage, and I will be his God and he shall be my son.”

Gospel
John 14:1-6
Jesus said, “Let not your hearts be troubled; believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And when I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. And you know the way where I am going.” Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going; how can we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but by me.”

Today’s Music
The following pre-recorded musical selections will be offered by our full choir:

Hymn: “Amazing Grace”
Words: John Newton (1725-1807), alt.; last verse, John Rees (19th cent.)
Music: NEW BRITAIN, from Virginia Harmony, 1831; adapt. att. Edwin Othello Excell (1851-1921); Public Domain.
First, fourth and fifth verses harmonized and arranged by Jeffrey Hoffman (b. 1970), copyright © 2020. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
Second and third verse harmonization by Eric Routley (1917-1982). Copyright © 1985 Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. All rights reserved. Used by permission from the publisher.
This presentation copyright © 2020 by the Parish of Christ the Redeemer (Christ Church), Pelham, New York. All rights reserved.

Hymn: “How Great Thou Art”
Words: Stuart K. Hine (1899-1989), translated from a Swedish poem by Carl Boberg (1859-1940), additional lyrics by Stuart K. Hine.
Music: O STORE GUD, Swedish folk melody, adapt. Stuart K. Hine (1899-1989)
Text and music © 1949, 1953 The Stuart Hine Trust CIO.
All rights in the USA its territories and possessions, except print rights, administered by Capitol CMG Publishing. USA, North and Central American print rights and all Canadian and South American rights administered by Hope Publishing Company. All other North and Central American rights administered by the Stuart Hine Trust CIO. Rest of the world rights administered by Integrity Music Europe. Licensed under OneLicense.net A-713125. Used with permission.
Last verse harmonization and descant by Jeffrey Hoffman. Copyright © 2021. Used with permission.
Sung by soprano Tonna Miller-Valles, mezzo-soprano Jann Degnan, tenors Jeffrey Hoffman & Douglas Purcell, and bass-baritone Simon Cram;
with members of the Christ Church parish choir Jeff Bodenmann, Curtis Chase, Mboti (Missy) Kisob, Barbara Nelson, and Margaret Young. With special thanks to virtual congregation participants Noah Agerberg, Simon Agerberg, Chisara Alimole, Ozichi Alimole, Claire Allen, Angela Barone, Allison Bodenmann, Sandy Dunn, Jean Gruener, Diane Hayduk, Carol Ipsen, James Kenworthy, Marie Main, Arianna Mable, Madison Mable, Liam Mead, Matthew Hoxsie Mead, Nicolas Mead, Walter Roberts, Tom Salvatore, Sarabeth Weeks, and Bruce Weis. Jeffrey Hoffman, organist & director of music, recordist and producer.
Recorded in loving memory of Mary Lesher Paul (1920-2010).
This presentation copyright © 2021 by the Parish of Christ the Redeemer (Christ Church), Pelham, New York. All rights reserved.

Before the service begins, the organist will play the following selections in prelude: Chorale-Preludes on “Ich ruf’ zu dir, Herr Jesu Christ” (“I cry to thee, Lord Jesus Christ”), BWV 639, “Sheep may safely graze,” BWV 208, and “Christ lag in Todesbanden” (“Christ Jesus lay in Death’s strong bands”), BWV 625 by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750).

During communion, the organist will offer an Improvisation on the hymn tune “On Eagle’s Wings” by Michael Joncas (b. 1951).

The organ voluntary following the dismissal will be an Improvisation on the song “Unforgettable”by Irving Gordon (1915-1996).

Jeffrey Hoffman is the organist for today’s liturgy.