Celebrating 20 years of awe, silence, and radical welcome
On the first Sunday in February 2006, St. Stephen’s Church held its inaugural Celtic-inspired worship service, recasting ancient and traditional Christian worship in a mold of radical hospitality, beauty, and contemplative authenticity. On Sunday, February 1, on the 20th anniversary, we gave thanks for what this service has contributed to the life and people of St. Stephen’s.
Some of the events originally planned for the weekend had to be postponed because of the remaining effects of a winter storm.
Westina Matthews’ visit will now take place April 18 and 19.
Retreat with Westina Matthews | Saturday, April 18, 12:30-4:30 p.m.
Simple Presence: contemplative living for contemporary life
We’ll gather in Palmer Hall Chapel for this special retreat exploring contemplative living in the context of contemporary life. In a noisy world and anxious time, how are we to live faithfully, now? This half-day retreat will feature holy listening and discernment that nourishes body, mind, and heart through prayer, reflection, laughter, movement and music. The retreat is crafted for St. Stephen’s and led by Westina Matthews, a highly-sought speaker, teacher, author, and spiritual director. Come and rest in peace, be awakened in joy, and listen for the simple presence of God in our midst. RSVP here.
Preaching and Sunday Forum | Sunday morning, April 19
Westina Matthews will preach at the 9 and 11:15 a.m. worship services on Sunday, February 1. In the Sunday Forum she will share a teaching in conversation with the Rev. John Jenkins at the Sunday Forum about contemplative practice in contemporary life.
Love letters to the Celtic service: a new video
People were invited to write a “love letter” or note expressing what this special liturgy of contemplative worship means to you. Many of the letters were excerpted in a new video about the service. You can watch the video at the top of this page, or follow this link.
Music by Michael Simpson
The music for the February 1 Celtic service was selected by current associate director of music Diana Chou and former associate director of music Michael Simpson. Diana plays regularly for this service, and Michael was a key figure in establishing the sound that makes this service distinctive; his influence on this service continues to this day. With gratitude we welcomed Michael back to St. Stephen’s Church to share in playing piano. The service encompassed many pieces and composers with a long history at the service, as well as some more newly-introduced compositional voices that have joined the service’s continually expanding musical “canon” and soundscape in recent years. Michael and Diana chose some of their very favorite pieces from their combined years of playing at St. Stephen’s, and they were joined by flutist Sue DeJesus, who has played for the Celtic service since its earliest days here, and longtime Celtic cantor Abby Outlaw. The second candle-lighting piece was a setting of the traditional Irish tune, “The lark in the clear air,” composed by Joseph Martin especially for our Celtic community and dedicated to the music ministry of St. Stephen’s. Michael also composed new service music in honor of this weekend’s 20th anniversary celebration, and we premiered his new Sanctus and Lamb of God settings and will sing them over the next few weeks, as well as at regular intervals in the future.
You can watch a video of the February 1 service here. The order of service is here.
The Rev. Gary Jones
While we were not able to unveil the portrait of the Rev. Gary Jones, our eighth rector who brought the Celtic service to St. Stephen’s, as we had originally planned, it will be on display before and after services on Sunday, February 22.
