Holy Week, the week before Easter, is the most important week of the Christian year.  Participating in the services of Holy Week, takes us through the emotional highs and lows that Jesus and his disciples experienced during the last week of his life and prepares us to enter fully into the joy of the Resurrection on Easter Day.

Holy Week starts with The Sunday of the Passion or Palm Sunday.  Palm Sunday takes us through the whole trajectory of Holy Week in one service.  We start with joy by processing around the church with palm branches to mark Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem.  Then we move quickly to the reading of the Passion Gospel, which ends with Jesus arrest, trial, and death.

The name Maundy Thursday comes from the Latin words mandatum novum from John 13:34, and means, a new commandment: “I give you a new commandment,” Jesus says, “that you love one another.”  The primary focus of the Maundy Thursday service is the Lord’s institution of the Holy Eucharist at the Last Supper.  A second traditional feature of the Maundy Thursday service is the washing of feet.  This humble act of service, again, in imitation of Christ’s actions at the Last Supper, is done in obedience to the new commandment.  The final action of the Maundy Thursday service is the stripping of the altar, in which every movable item is removed from the chancel of the church and the cross is veiled in black.  While the altar is being stripped the choir chants Psalm 22 with the refrain “They divide my garments among them; they cast lots for my clothing.”  Some of the Sacrament consecrated at this service is set aside and reserved in the chapel on the Altar of Repose.  The altar is decorated with flowers and candles and is meant to symbolize Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane.  Parishioners may sign up to keep vigil at the Altar of Repose in response to Jesus’ question to his disciples, “’Could you not watch with me one hour?’”  Before beginning the vigil at the Altar of Repose, the congregation at the Maundy Thursday Eucharist is invited to the Guild Room for a lamb supper and a brief service of Compline.

The solemn ending of the Maundy Thursday service is a preparation for Good Friday, the day commemorating Jesus’ crucifixion.  At 4:00 p.m. we have a service for children and families in the chapel.  The chapel chairs are removed and we sit in a circle on pillows while we hear one of the Godly Play stories called the Faces of Easter.  We celebrate the Good Friday liturgy 7:30 p.m.  The Holy Eucharist is not celebrated on Good Friday, so we distribute Communion that has been reserved on the Altar of Repose from Maundy Thursday.  The Good Friday liturgy features the chanting of the Solemn Collects and the veneration of the Cross.

The Sunday of the Resurrection or Easter Day is the principal feast of the Church.  We will celebrate Jesus’ Resurrection with two festival celebrations of the Holy Eucharist at 8:00 a.m. and 10:00.  The 10:00 a.m. Eucharist will feature the Christ Church choir, the Godly Play choir, a brass group, and flowering the cross, representing the way in which the cross of death has become for us the means of life.  Remember also, that at Easter you may wish to give your pocket cross to the person you’ve been praying for during Lent, and you may wish to invite them to join you at church.

Fr. Chuck

City Harvest is looking for chefs, nutritionists, nurses, and helpers for 12 cooking demos and 12 health screenings for the next three months; however, it is not necessary to sign on for all 12 demos if you’d like to participate.

The second meeting of the new Vestry of Christ Church New Brighton took place on March 14, 2011. The following are highlights of issues that were discussed at that time:

• The Plant & Equipment Committee has indicated certain necessary Rectory repairs, such as work on a bathroom, a kitchen radiator, and the cellar door. These will be referred to a contractor for price quotations. Fire exit designations are needed in the church and Parish House.
• The Education Committee reports that the Journey to Adulthood group from the Church of the Mediator, Allentown, Pennsylvania, will be visiting Christ Church New Brighton on the weekend of March 18-20. They will stay at our church and will take part in various local social service activities.
• The Fund-Raising Committee reported receiving approximately $3500 from the recent very successful Wine Tasting, Pancake Supper, and Irish Brunch.
• Christ Church Community Outreach noted that volunteers are needed for all events, especially for Distribution Day, when the Easter food baskets are made available to needy families and individuals.
• The possibility of engaging the Episcopal Church Foundation or Ruotolo Associates to assist with a capital campaign was discussed.
• Christ Church New Brighton will take a $200 full-page advertisement, paid for by Vestry members’ contributions, in the journal of the May 12 Project Hospitality Spring Luncheon, when our church will be honored for its homeless shelter.
• The membership of the Plant & Equipment Committee for 2011 was given the necessary Vestry approval, and Vestry members’ committee assignments were made.
• A thank-you note from Father Howell was received for the bonus that was approved at the Vestry meeting of Dec. 13, 2010.
• There will be an Inter-Parish Council Lenten Service at St. John’s Episcopal Church (Bay Street) on April 10 at 4:00 p.m. This will include healing, prayer, meditation, and anointing.

Serenade is pleased to present the Duo Moderno, featuring Brad Repp, violin, and Nathan Brandwein, piano. Their concert will take place on Sunday, Sunday, April 17th at 3:00 p.m.., in Christ Church New Brighton, 76 Franklin Avenue. A meet-the-artist reception follows the concert. All spaces are handicapped accessible. The concert is free to the public.

An exciting and varied program will include works by Mozart, Debussy, Paganini, Fritz Kreisler, Massenet, Prokofiev and Gershwin. It will also include the New York premiere of Fantasies on Themes from Puccini’s "La Rondine" and "La Fanciulla del West," arranged by the artists. 

Duo Moderno has appeared throughout Italy and in the United States. This concert is their New York debut.

For information please call 718-273-3668 or visit Serenade’s website at www.SerenadeConcerts.org.

Last month we were saddened by the passing of our long-time friend and parishioner, Esther Reed.

Many of us remember Esther as the quiet and gentle lady who faithfully attended the 10 a.m. services on Sunday morning with her husband, Colin. However, as many of us discovered during her memorial service, there were many significant moments that shaped the life of this wonderful woman.

Esther was born in Bluffton, Ohio on May 4, 1927 and graduated from Bluffton College in 1950. She earned a Masters in Religion in 1956, jointly conferred by Columbia University and the Union Theological Seminary in Manhattan and was certified as a clinical counselor by the Postgraduate Center for Mental Health in 1982. She was awarded a Master of Divinity degree by the New York Theological Seminary in 1986 and was subsequently commissioned as a Mennonite Pastoral Counselor by the First Mennonite Church of Bluffton, Ohio.

Prior to her career as a pastoral counselor, she worked as a teacher on an Indian Reservation from 1946-47, in an English girl’s school from 1952-53, at the Kingswood School near Detroit from 1955-57, and at Friends Academy on Long Island from 1957-59.

Esther was a founder of the Interfaith Counseling Center of Staten Island,  and she served as a pastoral counselor at the center from 1985 until her retirement. The center was affiliated with the Blanton-Peale Counseling Centers, a network serving the larger New York metropolitan region.

Esther and Colin were married on July 21, 1956 at St. Pancras Church, London. They first lived in Brooklyn Heights upon their return to the United States, and moved to Staten Island in the early 1960s.

The Richmond Interparish Council (IPC) will be hosting a service of Healing and Mediation on Sunday, April 10 at 4 p.m. at St. John’s Episcopal Church on Bay Street.

The afternoon will offer participants the opportunity for mediation, prayer, and anointing guided by the combined choirs and instrumentalists of four of our Staten Island parishes.

The evening will conclude with supper and fellowship in Eccleston Hall, located directly behind the church building.

April Birthdays
1 – Matthew Ambroggi; Greer Gerney; 4 – Irene Kruiten-Eppinger; 10 – Michael Devlin; 15 – Owen Modzelewski; 17 – Siaber Zayzay, Crystal Bernard; 18 – Celestine Zayzay; 23 – David Seeley; 24 – Julia Dwikat, David Wood, Daniel Wood; 26 – Mary Boody, Gabrielle Lamarche; 29 – Sharon Gardner; 30 – Nancy Sherman

April Anniversaries
1 – Eugene & Gytha Darconte; 6 – Hal & Linda Reiersen;
12 – John & Carol Brown; 25 – Laura & Henry Kennedy

Here is the schedule for Holy Week and Easter services at Christ Church. We hope you’ll be able to take part in each of these services.

Sunday, April 17 – Palm Sunday
7:30 a.m. – Morning Prayer
8 a.m. – Holy Eucharist and Distribution of
Palms
10 a.m. – Holy Eucharist and Palm Procession

Thursday, April 21 – Maundy Thursday
7:30 p.m.  - Holy Eucharist with Foot Washing and Stripping of the Altar, followed by a Lamb Supper, Compline and Vigil at the Altar of Repose

Friday, April 22 – Good Friday
4 p.m. – Liturgy for Children and Families
7:30 p.m. – Good Friday Liturgy and Holy Communion from Reserved Sacrament

Sunday, April 24 – Easter Day
7:30 a.m. – Morning Prayer
8 a.m. – Holy Eucharist
10 a.m. – Festive Choral Holy Eucharist and Reception immediately following the service
11:30 a.m. – Easter Egg Hunt

Don’t forget to mark your calendar for the third annual “Christ Church Day with the Staten Island Yankees” which is scheduled to take place this year on Sunday, June 26. We’ve reserved seats on the first base side of the field, out of the sun, for $18 each (the same price as last year).

This is wonderful afternoon of fun, fellowship and baseball – complete with all the hot dogs, soda, and other “stadium foods” that you can eat!

Last month, members of the Christ Church Journey to Adulthood group welcomed members of the Journey to Adulthood group from the Church of the Mediator, Allentown, PA. Members of our group came to the church after school on Friday and cleaned the gym, basement kitchenette, bathrooms, and showers which our visitors would be using. Our guests arrived later that evening.

There will be a reception immediately following the 10 a.m. service on Easter Sunday.   

The Board of Directors of Project Hospitality has chosen Christ Church to receive the Sophie Matthews Memorial Award for Volunteer Services. The award recognizes Christ Church’s commitment to providing life-saving shelter to homeless men. For over ten years Project Hospitality has operated a shelter in our gymnasium, which houses 12-15 homeless men almost every night of the year.

The award will be presented at Project Hospitality’s Spring Luncheon which takes place on Thursday, May 12, 11:30 a.m. at the Hilton Garden Inn on Staten Island. Tickets are $65 per person, and a portion of the ticket price can be considered as a charitable donation.

Christ Church will be preparing 250 holiday basket dinners for needy families and individuals on Staten Island. We will assemble and distribute the baskets during the week of April 10.

One of the loveliest Easter traditions at Christ Church is the Flowering of the Cross, which takes place during the 10 a.m. service on Easter morning. Both parents and children take a moment to reflect on the Christ’s resurrection by placing a flower in the special cross that sits at the foot of the steps to the Sanctuary.

The Christ Church Youth Group meets every other week, usually on the second and fourth Fridays of each month, at 7:00 p.m.  The Youth Group engages in service projects, fellowship, study, and fun activities.  The youth group is open to all Rite 13 and Journey to Adulthood (middle school and high school) students and their friends.

Sunday, 4/10 – 4 p.m.

1. Lenten Service of Music & Healing

Saturday, 5/14 – 10 a.m.

1. Second Saturday Feeding Ministry at Trinity Lutheran, SI

Friday, 5/27 – 7 p.m.  – TBA

After two straight weeks of a Sunday morning with NO snow or ice we are officially declaring that it’s spring at Christ Church!

Christ Church has been buzzing with many successful and enjoyable fund raising events lately. Our “nation-themed” Sunday brunches have been a huge success and we’re anxiously looking forward to the Italian and British Sunday Brunches scheduled for later this year.

Congratulations to Daniel Lettiere, son of Nancy and Nick Lettiere, who was awarded the Kuhn Music Award from Worcester Polytechnic Institute, where he is a senior. This prestigious award is given to a member of the male Glee Club for their significant contributions to the organization. Daniel currently serves as president and fundraising chairman.

And congratulations to David Reiersen, son of Linda and Hal Reiersen, and his lovely bride, Christie Booker. David and Christie were married in a lovely outdoor ceremony on a plantation in Baton Rouge, Louisiana on March 19.

Blessings upon those who were confirmed and received into the Episcopal Church during Bishop Sisk’s visit to Christ Church on March 6:  Christopher James (our confirmand), and Lawrence Modzelewski, Jane Sharif and Dorothy Sipp.

Condolences to Colin Reed and his family on the passing of his wife, Esther, last month. Esther was a faithful member of Christ Church for many years and she will be missed.

The Scholarship Committee is now accepting applications for camp and college scholarships.  Scholarships are open to active members of Christ Church.

To apply for a camp scholarship, parents should write a brief letter to the committee with a copy of the camp application, the cost, and the duration of the camping session.

To apply for a scholarship for the first year of college or other accredited post-secondary education, the student should write a brief letter to the committee stating school they will be attending and describing their involvement with Christ Church.

Applications and questions may be submitted to Sheila Hewitt, committee chairperson, or Fr. Chuck.