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The Future
Volume 6, Number 2, December 7, 2003


The Future

Saint Mary's was founded in 1868. At its inception it was one of a very few Episcopal parish communities that embraced the Anglo-catholic movement then beginning to sweep through the Anglican Communion. A combination of factors, most importantly its location in New York City and the construction of its present church complex, have given the parish a prominence and a mission far beyond its neighborhood.

A deep and genuine renewal of its common life began during the rectorate of my predecessor, the Reverend Canon Edgar F. Wells, rector emeritus. Father tells of how hard and bleak it was here when he arrived, how he feared he would be the priest that closed the doors of Saint Mary's. I know that fear, but not as acutely as Father did. It would be possible today to look at the financial books of Saint Mary's and call the auctioneer. It would also be faithless. The movement to renewal continues.

Saint Mary's does very well what few Christian communities do: We know how to worship liturgically, something that is rare and precious, and growing more rare and more precious all the time in the Episcopal Church. There is no more loving and generous community when someone is in need. Saint Mary's doors are indeed open to all.

Built as the parish for a residential neighborhood, then known as Longacre Square, the parish was unable ever really to recover financially from the Great Depression. Even today I occasionally meet people who long for Saint Mary's when worshippers had to watch out for falling plaster, not to mention dirt. I have heard a priest say to me he misses the gray paint. In the same way, I hear, "We can't afford that" far more than I ever hear, "Let's try to raise some money."

The Trustees have been sorting through property and financial issues since before I arrived. A year ago we were beginning to get a handle on the property and development rights actually owned by the parish - discovering that we had far, far less than previously believed. A small committee has been working very hard this summer and fall to see how our resources might be used. Of course, this is New York and nothing happens quickly. Property resources alone will not save Saint Mary's.

Growth in numbers and in giving by members are part of our future. When I became rector in 1999 there were only three ordinary Sundays that year when attendance broke 200. Most Sundays there were fewer than 150 people in church. This year to date our average attendance is 265, many Sundays we hit 300 now, and the average looks a lot better if you drop out July and August.

Saint Mary's is never going to be a church when most of its members are in the pews most Sundays. In fact, the reality is that a lot of our active and committed members may be here once a month. One of the reasons this newsletter exists is to make sure those who are not able to be here every Sunday and every feast day have a good feel for what's going on so that when they are here they feel they are a part of things.

I am beginning to believe that we need to think of ourselves and to speak of ourselves as a national church. For sometime I have found myself saying to visitors that when they return to New York I hope they will feel that they have a church home here in Times Square. Saint Mary's is going to need its property to keep it moving forward. It's going to need new members. And it's going to need committed friends throughout the wider Episcopal Church to sustain its mission.

We devote most of our limited resources to worship. I hope this will always be the case. I look forward to the arrival at the beginning of July of Matthew Mead as our curate for liturgy and education. I look forward to Father John Beddingfield to be able to devote his considerable talents to parish life development (new members!) and outreach. There are people here every Sunday looking for a new church. I hope that during 2004 the Trustees and I are able to develop a plan and to hire staff for development and stewardship. I have been working since I arrived on exploring ways to use our property. I hope that at least the possibilities may become clear during the New Year.

It is never going to be easy to be a parishioner or a priest at Saint Mary's. The common life of this parish is always going to ask more of you than any other parish would. Success is never going to be measured by wealth and numbers. But lives are changed and healed every day in this building. Refuge is given every day to people whose hearts have been broken by sin and shame. And the love and freedom bestowed on us in Christ is celebrated every day as women and men gather at God's altar to eat.

On Monday night, December 8, the Presiding Bishop and Primate of the Episcopal Church will be here to be celebrant for our patronal feast. Our preacher will be a priest of my generation from Nashotah House, the Reverend Jeffrey Lee. (I actually learned how to cense an altar by watching Father Lee!) We will be offering our very best on Monday night because Saint Mary's is a parish with a future. We are not here to die, but to rise and to live in Christ.

Stephen Gerth


PRAYER LIST . . . Your prayers are asked for Heidi, Robert, Gloria, Jason, Harold, Billie, Matthew, Virginia, Bart, Margaret, Marion, Hugh, Rick, Mary Angela, religious, and Charles, priest, and for the members of our Armed Forces on active duty, especially Ned, Timothy, Patrick, Kevin, Christopher, Andrew, Joseph, Marc, Timothy, David, and Colin . . . GRANT THEM PEACE . . . December 7: 1966 Eloise Cole Janke, 1993 Lily S. M Latham; December 11: 1962 Carol Elizabeth M. Irwin Hollister; December 12: 1961 Jeanette Bolton, 1962 Martha R. Townroe.

AROUND THE PARISH . . . Christian Formation continues at Saint Mary's and will meet on December 10th. "Mary Magdalene in Art History" is led by Joan Baldridge. The class meets after Mass from 7:00 PM to 8:30 PM in Saint Benedict's Study . . . On Saturday, December 6, because of the Quiet Day taking place during the morning, confessions will only be heard from 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM . . . Members and friends of the Saint Vincent's Guild of altar servers are reminded that brass cleaning and candle-trimming will take place on Saturday, December 13 beginning at 10:00 AM . . . Thanks to all who donated toys, clothes and other items for AIDS Action International's Saint Nicholas Celebration on December 3 . . . Enormous thanks go to Patricia Rheinhold and Eloise Hoffman for painting and renovating the women's restroom. In addition to paint and tile, they also donated and installed a new ceiling fan and light . . . Attendance last Sunday: 282.

NOTES ON MUSIC . . . This week at the Sung Mass, played by associate organist Robert McDermitt, the prelude is Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland, BWV 659 by J. S. Bach and the postlude is Allegro maestoso e vivace from Sonata No. 2 in C Minor, Op. 65 by Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847) . . . This week at the Solemn Mass, the prelude is Prélude from Symphonie I, Op. 13 by Charles-Marie Widor (1844-1937) and the postlude is Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland, BWV 660 by Bach. The setting of the Mass ordinary is Missa super 'Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland' by Johann Caspar Ferdinand Fischer (c. 1670-1746). This setting is based upon a well-known German chorale for Advent, which is itself derived from the plainsong hymn 55 in our Hymnal, our Postcommunion hymn on Sunday. The motet at Communion is Prope est Dominus by Jacob Regnart (c. 1540-1599) . . . We continue our series of organ recitals before Evensong. Mrs. Marie-Daniele Mercier will play works of Bach and Dupré . . . On Monday, December 8, the organ recital at 5:30 is played by Robert McCormick and will include music of Widor, Bach, and Dupré's setting of Ave maris stella, sung in alternation with the choir. The setting of the Mass ordinary is Messe Solennelle by Jean Langlais (1907-1991), a magnificent piece written for choir and two organs. Many French churches had (and still have) two organs - the grand orgue in the gallery, and the orgue de choeur in the chancel. Obviously, our church is not arranged in that way and we have only one organ, but the alternation between full choir and crashing full organ still produces an electrifying effect. The anthem at Communion is Ave Maria by Franz Liszt (1811-1886), a calm and beautiful piece that is a dramatic contrast to some of the composer's better-known works. The postlude is Marche Pontificale from Symphonie I, Op. 13 by Widor, a piece which seems fitting for this Solemn Pontifical Mass celebrated by the Presiding Bishop!

This week

The Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Monday, December 8

Procession & Solemn Pontifical Mass 6:00 PM
Music: Messe Solennelle, Langlais
The Most Reverend Frank T. Griswold
The Presiding Bishop & Primate of the Episcopal Church, Celebrant
The Reverend Jeffrey Lee, Preacher

The Calendar of the Week
Sunday The First Sunday of Advent  
Monday Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception  
Tuesday Advent Weekday  
Wednesday Advent Weekday (Translation of the Holy House of Loreto)  
Thursday Advent Weekday  
Friday Advent Weekday      Abstinence  
Saturday Lucy, virgin & martyr  

Last Published: December 11, 2003 6:27 PM
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