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December 12, 2006
Dear Members and Friends of Holy
Apostles:
The holiday frenzy is in high gear everywhere we turn, even
in these darkest days of the year. A war that
nearly everyone now agrees was a mistake from the start
is still being pursued, with the leaders of our county
persisting in full denial of its realities. We remember
our own servicemen and servicewomen as we surely should,
but what of the vastly larger numbers of Sunnis and Shia
dead and injured? And well we should wonder if the
notion of a united Iraq is even sustainable. That
such a war could continue unabated under such
circumstances is beyond comprehension. And yet at the same time, this season of ever more
conspicuous consumption and bouncy Santa-music assault us as if there
were no fundamental disconnect. While our good earth
groans in travail as evidence of global warming and environmental catastrophe abound. No wonder there
is such a widespread sense of exhaustion and
despair.
The chaos is real, the darkness is real. But the
possibilities of hope and even joy breaking through are
also real, if only we can stop long enough to be quiet
in spite of the din all around
us, to be quiet and to listen and to discern a quite different
reality. For, as always, whether we are ready or not,
there is more to be said of that
deeper reality that we can experience only if we open ourselves to it and
prepare the way. And there is even the possibility of
hope, of affirming God’s love for our broken world even
so, even now, even in us. This is the promise that we
await.
This liturgical year is a strange one, in that it seems a week shorter
than usual, making some of us feel somehow even
short-changed. For the Fourth
and last Sunday of Advent this year falls on December 24. I invite
you to make a point of
coming on that Sunday
morning at 11a.m. as we make
our final preparations for the coming of the Christ-child. Advent IV brings us
right to the precipice and leads us up to the moment
when God in Christ breaks through again into the world,
to be born in awesome simplicity. And on that Sunday
morning our Advent
liturgy is enhanced by music with our choir under David Hurd singing
the beautiful setting of Ave Maria by Franz Biebl.
It is our last chance to prepare ourselves for the
Savior’s birth.
And then on Sunday evening, Christmas Eve, we gather
again for the celebration of the birth we have all been
waiting for, all throughout Advent, throughout the
year. Hope and possibility and redemption are once
again offered in the Christ-child whose birth we
celebrate, whose incarnation gives us the basis for
hope and sanity in the midst of the apparent madness
around us. Come at 9:30 p.m. to sing the familiar
carols, to hear the familiar story, and once again to
experience that holy birth that gives hope to our world.
You will find our full schedule of major Advent,
Christmas, and Epiphany services by
clicking here. Please come and be present for as
many of these events as you can. For the promise of new
life and hope awaits us there. Please use the enclosed
envelopes to make your Christmas thanksgiving and
memorial offerings. Your
generous offerings make possible the glorious liturgies
of this season. Because Advent is shorter by one
week this year, please note
that we must
receive your special Christmas offerings on Advent III,
December 17, in order for them to be included in our
Christmas bulletins.
May God bless us all in this holy season. See you in
Church!
Faithfully yours, 
The Reverend
William A.
Greenlaw
Rector
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