Joyful Celebrations Made in Vermont Episcopal Style

The Book of Common Prayer is truly a remarkable book.  In our church, you can easily see the spines broken at the well-worn Holy Eucharist sections.  Yet some of the most moving services for worship are rarely accessed simply because the need is so rare.  In this issue, each of the featured churches presented a unique opportunity to share one of these special moments of worship. St. Michael’s Church in Brattleboro celebrated the consecration of their new chapel.  St. John’s in Randolph celebrated a New Season of Ministry with an unusual twist.  And St. Barnabas Church in Norwich enjoyed the distinction of hosting an ordination of a priest. While the Book of Common Prayer offers a template for any kind of worship service, it is through the Spirit within a parish that makes each special occasion unique and beautiful.

St. Michael's Church, Brattleboro

St. Michael’s Church in Brattleboro, not surprisingly, has a penchant for consecrating new additions on Michaelmas, including its first gift the baptismal font as well as this most recent addition of the new chapel—The Chapel of Mary Magdalene the First Apostle.  The church itself was built in 1857 on a site several miles south of its current location. One hundred years later, the church was picked up off its foundations and moved to the corner of Putney and Bradley. It took three days to make the move, effectively cutting off all Route 5 traffic.  This was no small inconvenience in those days before the interstate! A visitor to Brattleboro may wonder at the move considering the prime location it had in town (where Keybank now stands).  But it was precisely for that reason that the move was made. The parish in Brattleboro evolved out of the community at Christ Church in Guilford. With the advent of the railway to Brattleboro in the mid 1850’s, most of the congregation migrated to the larger town and abandoned Christ Church—the oldest Episcopal church building in Vermont. (You may recall from an earlier issue that St. James, Arlington is in fact the oldest Episcopal parish in Vermont, but their church was not built until 1829, some twelve years after Christ Church.) The Webb family wanted to buy the building to move it to Shelburne to add to their museum.  But the people of Guilford mounted an effort to preserve the building and the sale fell through.  

images at St. Michael's in Brattleboro

Today, Christ Church is owned and maintained by the Christ Church Guilford Society and is used primarily for concerts and civic events.  Since the church was never deconsecrated, it is still used on occasion for Episcopal services like weddings and civil unions. Meanwhile, back in Brattleboro, with the no-sale of Christ Church and realizing the commercial value of the property upon which St. Michael’s sat, in 1953 the congregation voted to sell the land under St. Michael’s and move the church. The proceeds from that sale paid for the move and allowed for the educational part of the building to be added in 1962.

The consecration of the Chapel of Mary Magdalene, the First Apostle

2011 began a new chapter in the life of St. Michael’s parish.  Having completed a discernment process, they called the Rev. Mary Lindquist as their rector. As often happens with transitions of this nature, the parish was infused with new energy and vivacity. The buildings needed significant renovations including making it accessible with ramps and an elevator, new restroom facilities, changes in the chancel and sanctuary, among other needs. But one of the great gifts of this renovation project was the addition of the Chapel of Mary Magdalene the First Apostle. The chapel was made possible by a special gift in order to provide St. Michael’s with a space for contemplative prayer. They offer a Contemplative Worship service on Thursday early evenings and a centering prayer practice on Saturday mornings.  The Saturday Centering Prayer program offers training for newcomers to the practice. The space in the chapel, while small in area, is bright and open and simple in its furnishings. The entire outer wall is of glass to allow for natural lighting and a connection to the world outside. There is a lovely oval shaped altar simply constructed of shimmering pale wood. Votive candles are strategically placed about the room in effort to aid in the meditative atmosphere. During the celebratory consecration service (on Michaelmas weekend), the new chapel was made Holy by the Bishop and by every member of the congregation. As the congregation processed out of the church and around to the chapel entrance, the choir maintained a chant to inspire deep reverence and contemplation.  Each congregant received a taper and was encouraged to light it and say a prayer and add that prayer to all the others.  When all the prayers and candles were lit, the chapel was aglow with the golden beauty of Spiritual grace.  The service for the consecration of a chapel in the prayer book denotes a procession to the dedicated space, but it is only in the enacting that the true Spirit breathes its blessings into the endeavor.

St. John's Church, Randolph, VT

Such is the case with the next two special services in this essay.  St. John’s in Randolph has just completed a discernment process and call for new clergy. Most of the time, these Celebration of New Ministry services are to install a new priest or celebrate a new program.  In the case of St. John’s, there is a slight twist to this. You see, the people of St. John’s have called Deacon Susan Taylor to serve the parish.  Susan is fresh and new having just graduated from the Episcopal Divinity School with a Master’s of Divinity in May.  Eight days after her graduation, she was ordained as a transitional deacon (transitioning into the priesthood). Her zest for combining her artistic talents with spirituality attracted the attention of the parish in Randolph.  They recognized that Susan’s creativity combined with her firmly grounded relationship with Christ offers the parish an inspired outlook for their future together.  With the Celebration of a New Ministry service, the congregation and the deacon have demonstrated that they will see this transition out together.  In December, Susan will be ordained a priest and St. John’s will have a new rector.

images at St. John's, Randolph

The community at St. John’s has strong connections with the greater Randolph community.  For the past two years, the Diocese of Vermont has held its Ministry Expo in the spring at St. John’s in Randolph because of the good relationship they have with their neighbors.  Certainly, there is not enough room at St. John’s itself for all the workshops and number of participants.  But because they have solid community ties, they are able to add venues from both Bethany Church and Dubois and King.  St. John’s also participates in the Randolph Ecumenical Emergency Council on Housing.  REECH was the special recipient of the offering taken during the New Season of Ministry service in September. As the name suggests, REECH addresses emergency shelter issues in the area, but the organization is also connected with the Randolph Area Food Shelf.  As part of an ecumenical relief effort, REECH and RAFS are both outreach endeavors to which St. John’s has ties.

St. Barnabas Church, Norwich, VT

St. Barnabas Church in Norwich recently hosted another kind of special celebratory worship service when Todd McKee was ordained as a priest. One typically thinks of a cathedral or large church as the venue for such a service.  

the reception of Rev. Todd McKee's ordination

But a small church like St. Barnabas brings a rich flavor to the service that can only come through an intimate relationship with the candidate.  St. Barnabas received Todd’s service during his time as a transitional deacon and both parties benefited from the relationship, which is evidence by the choice of St. Barnabas as the venue for the ordination. The ordination of a priest is one of the more spiritually all-inclusive services in the Book of Common Prayer. It is the gathered people that wills the individual to be ordained, and the gathered people who accept the responsibility of upholding the ordinand in his ministry. It’s a powerful moment.  Equally powerful is the moment when the ordinand accepts the roles and responsibilities of a priest.  In a small, local church, this is particularly poignant because these are the people, these hardworking ordinary folk who struggle with day-to-day reconciliation with God, with whom the new priest will minister.

images at St. Barnabas, Norwich

And St. Barnabas is that kind of small, local church that struggles to survive, yet hungers for a deeper relationship with Christ.  Yet this small congregation presses on regardless of its struggles—whatever they might be.  The mindset is not unexpected—that they shall not be defeated by challenges and difficulties.  As long as there is a congregation, they will continue in God’s work for them.  It’s very admirable.  And the results are apparent.  They have a small solar array in their backyard that has not only cut their energy costs, but expresses their understanding that good stewardship and care of God’s creation means using resources appropriately as with renewable energy sources. They have a community garden planted beneath that solar garden that provides locally grown produce for the church and the community food shelf.  They reach out to others in the way that they can, and the struggles of life do not impede their progress.  Spirituality and its myriad expressions are also important in their work as God’s children. In exploring other ways of meditating and being in relationship with God, the congregation at St. Barnabas discovered the significance of the labyrinth. So they built one in the side yard of the church. Anyone can visit at any time to walk the labyrinth and benefit from its meditative and restorative powers.

A book like our church’s prayer book is a wonder of structured worship.  But the true marvel comes in the style of implementing each service. Each congregation offers its own interpretation and gives its own color and flavor to the event.  And in the Diocese of Vermont, these special kinds of services have a wealth of spiritual truth!