I want to begin by thanking everyone for the wonderful St. Mark’s Day mass and dinner. The acolytes and choir did a fine job, and the post-mass dinner was delicious. Thanks are also due to our worship guilds for their work behind the scenes. Everyone showed such dedication, and I am grateful.

As I write this I am finishing various tasks before taking vacation and study time. I will not be with you again until the middle of May, but you remain in capable hands due to our guest clergy and parish volunteers. This Sunday we welcome Father Christopher Golding. Father Chris is well known at St. Mark’s due to his family attending here a few years back; he and his family are currently living on Maui where he is the chaplain at Seabury Hall. He will be the celebrant and preacher for both masses this Sunday. As it is the first Sunday of May, solemn mass ends with the May crowning.

Speaking of the May crowning, May is traditionally understood to be Mary’s month. For the five Sundays of May, the holy rosary will be recited in the church at 10:00 am before the Solemn Mass. The rosary continues to be a popular devotion at St. Mark’s, and if you have never prayed the Rosary before, I encourage to come and try it out. You do not need prayer beads to pray the rosary, although they certainly help. Rosary guides have been placed on the table at the entrance of the church.

On Sunday, May 8, in place of the masses, Morning Prayer will be read at 8:30 am, and Sung Matins will be offered at 10:30 am. May 8 is also the Feast of Dame Julian of Norwich, and Dr. Michael Ida who is an Oblate of the Order of Julian of Norwich, will lead worship. We were unable to secure a priest for this Sunday, but nonetheless, the choir, worship guilds, and acolytes are highly capable of providing wonderful worship on this day. This Sunday will be entirely lead by the laity, and we are fortunate to have such a gifted group of worship leaders. If you are unfamiliar with Morning Prayer, do not worry, as everything shall be presented clearly in the worship leaflets for your participation and prayer.

Evensong will also be completely lay lead on Sundays, May 1 and 8. Our postulant for holy orders, Erin Richardson Severin, in partnership with our musicians, Mike Dupre and Steven Richardson Severin, will lead the 5:30 pm service on these Sundays. Rather than offering Benediction after Evensong, a time of prayer and meditation before the Blessed Sacrament will follow. Each week the 5:30 pm service benefits from a competent core of acolytes, and I feel blessed that they will not need me for these two Sundays.

In addition to the above, I want to give an update regarding our ministry to children. As you know, our nursery caregiver, Nani Lipps, moved to the mainland earlier this year. As well, the number of children in our Sunday school has been increasing. We were pleasantly surprised by the crop of children we had on Easter Day for the egg hunt, story time, and activities, and thankfully we were properly staffed to welcome the visiting families with children. With the help of Erin Richardson Severin, and our senior warden, Michel Reavis, we have deepened the connection with our preschool, using multiple staff for childcare and Sunday school teaching. It is working out extremely well, and my hope is to introduce these new leaders of our children’s ministry to the parish when I return later in May. Related to our children’s ministry, our preschool worship services continue on Wednesday mornings. Due to the growth of the preschool, we have added an additional children’s service, offering a total of three weekly worship services for the preschool children. We still have not intentionally invited preschool families to Sunday worship, for we need to do further work developing our children’s ministry. Greater growth can easily be possible.

Finally, as I reflect on the past two weeks, I am reminded of our beautiful worship for Holy Week, Easter, and Saint Mark’s Day. Please join me in taking the time to give thanks for our blessings at St. Mark’s. Our worship is only possible due to the many hours of service from so many different volunteers. I am grateful for everyone’s dedication for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ and his Church.

Blessings,
Father Paul Lillie+