Parish News- May 24, 2009
Altar Flowers for May 24, 2009 – The altar vases are from the wedding of Kris & Ginger Litman-Koon given in memory of their grandparents: Charles Smaagaard, Austin & Claudine Litman and Warren Koon & Laura Koon Jenkins.
Bach’s Cantata #172: Composition Description by Brian Robins. Bach’s appointment as organist to the ducal court at Weimar in 1708 made no formal demands on him to compose cantatas; during his early years there he produced only a few occasional works. Following his promotion to concertmaster in the spring of 1714, he was required to compose and perform one cantata each month. Cantata No. 172 (“Ring out, ye songs), for Whit Sunday (the feast of Pentecost) was the third of these works, first performed in the ducal chapel on May 20, 1714. Although Bach composed three other cantatas for Pentecost (Nos. 59, 74 and 34), BMV 172 seems to have been a particular favorite of the composer’s, being revived and revised by him several times after he took up his cantorship in Leipzig.
In keeping with the festive spirit of the day, the cantata opens with a brilliantly joyous four-part chorus with trumpets and timpani. A short bass recitative – the only one in the cantata – leads to a da capo aria in which the bass asks the Holy Spirit to “enter into us.” The powerful plea is supported by three obligato trumpets; Bach takes this trinity symbolism a step further by writing the vocal part mainly in intervals of a third. Here, gently flowing strings create a mood of tranquility, “wafting the soul” on the breath of the Holy Spirit. The following duet for soprano and alto takes the form of a dialogue between the impatient Soul and the Holy Spirit. It employs the kind of neo-erotic language often used in duets, its “purified happiness” (as described by Albert Schweitzer) counterpointed by an ornamented version of Martin Luther’s chorale “Veni creator Spiritus,” heard first on the oboe, later on the organ. The cantata concludes with a strophe from Philip Nicolai’s beautiful chorale “Wie schon leuchetet der Morgenstern.”
The Afternoon Tea Boutique is OPEN between services today, 9:30-10:50 in the Education Wing. All proceeds benefit the programs of our Outreach Learning Center.
Remember: May 31st there will be one service at 10:00 am.
All Church Confirmation Celebration, Pentecost Party and Farewell Reception for Pastor Jim Blalock. The congre-gation is invited to gather in the Auditorium on May 31 following 10:00AM Worship.
Pentecost Readers needed: The Pentecost service on May 31st at 10 am will include foreign language readers for the lesson from Acts. If you can read in a foreign language (you don't have to speak it fluently), we'd love to have your participation in the service. We have many translations including Greek, Italian, German, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, Latvian, Swedish, Norwegian, Vietnamese, Polish, Hungarian, Tagalog, Turkish, Finnish, Dutch, Korean, Chinese, and Indonesian. Please call Sandy Yohman if you are interested in participating.
If you desire prayer for any reason, our Prayer Partners will receive you in the Chapel after you have communed.
All adults 55 & over are invited to join the XYZs (Older Adults) on a day trip on Wednesday, June 17 to Blackville & Aiken, SC. A sign up sheet with full information is on the XYZ Board across from the auditorium. Payment is due by Friday, May 29th.
The Fair Trade table will be available in the Education hallway today, May 24, and June 7 (between services) before closing for the summer. See Jean Ballentine if you have questions.
VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL Registration is in the Education Hallway. Come experience Discovery Canyon: Exploring the Wonder of the Word! Invite your friends and neighbors for the week of June 21-25. There is something for everyone at this exciting VBS! Preschool children age 3 through children entering 5th grade will receive a VBS music CD when they register. Youth and adults can sign up now to help. Please contact Mottie Wieters.
Items needed for VBS Discovery Canyon decorating by June 7: Variety of sizes of packing boxes, old baskets, dried flowers, Native American looking blankets, old camping gear, burlap, scraps of wood to be made into old street signs, anything resembling tumbleweed, cacti, and grasses. Please put items on the table in the Education Hallway and be sure to put your name on items you want returned. Please contact Courtney Prickett about donations and decorating
Child Protection All volunteers (including youth) for VBS need to complete required paperwork to comply with the policy. Forms are available in the Education hallway. Adults only must also complete the Stewards of Children training. The training is available online! Once you begin the online program, you have two weeks to complete it. To sign up for the Stewards of Children online training, please contact Debarah Harbuck, Parish Secretary, (723-1611 ext. 16) to get St. Matthew’s Log in ID and password. To visit the website go to www.darkness2light.org for a wealth of information.
Shepherd Ministry
The purpose of the St. Matthew’s Shepherd Ministry is to create, maintain and sustain loving and caring relationships within the life of our church family. We need your help in updating names, addresses and phone numbers of members. Please inform the church office if any contact information has changed. If anyone in the congregation has not been contacted by their Shepherd, please call the Shepherd Leader, Janelle Othersen.
We need your help in making a Saint Matthew’s “Bible Chain” TODAY! Have you completed reading or listening to any books of the Bible since last September? If so, we want to write your name on a strip of paper for each book of the Bible that you have completed. The Books of the Bible strips of paper are provided in the Education Hallway. When completed, place the strips in the basket and we’ll connect them together or connect them to the chain yourself. We want to take our “Bible Chain” to the SC Synod Assembly this week where we will connect all of our Coastal Conference congregations’ chains together and show them to the Assembly! That chain should be long enough to go all around the assembly hall and will be a visible way of getting our synod involved! In fact, Bishop Yoos is encouraging us to do this as a model and “pilot program” that other conferences can follow!
DISCIPLESHIP OPPORTUNITES
Today will be
the last Sunday School classes for this semester. Please
note that some of the classes will change locations .
Toddler
& Preschool Classes ~Room 102
Kindergarten – High School ~ Walking Towards
Pentecost Event ~ Room 209
That the World May Know - Charles Schantz -
Auditorium
LUTHEROAD DAY CAMP COMES TO MARTIN LUTHER CHURCH.
Camp is coming to Martin Luther Church
June 28 – July 3, 2009. For more information and registration forms are available at St. Matthew’s VBS display in the Education Hallway or they may be obtained at the MLLC church office or by calling 843 795-4855.
CONFIRMATION - May 31, 10AM
The following youth will affirm
their baptism on May 31
Carter Stephen Ainsworth
Hannah Maire Geils * Strachan Small Hagood
Bailey Henry Kirkland * Katharina Elisabeth Koch
Elizabeth Claire Mappus * Jules Dickson Mappus, Jr.
John Alden Murden, Jr. *Jaclyn Nicole Speer
To
Tanzania with Love… a dinner to honor our friends in
Tanzania... Tickets available TODAY!
On Sunday, June 14,
Saint Matthew’s members and friends will gather at 6:30PM
for an elegant evening of dining, entertainment, and
in-formation as we raise funds to send
To Tanzania with Love for the Clinic in Magoye. Dinner
prepared by Hamby Catering and served by the youth. Tickets
are $30 for adults and $5 for children. Children will have
their own menu and program in Room 101 with our nursery
workers. Tickets are available between services today and
June 7 and after worship on May 31 in the Courtyard. To
purchase your tickets during the week, call Cindy Greenwood
723-1611 Ext 26.
Seating is limited and all tickets must be purchased by
June 7.
Help us fill the “Clinic Wall” in the Auditorium with
bandaids by June 14! We’ll add a bandaid with your name
and/or name of a loved one for a donation of any amount.
Offering envelopes are available in the Narthex and
Education Hallway. All donations will be listed in the
program at the dinner and in the bulletin on June 21.
Those Serving in Worship on Sunday, May 24, 2009
Preacher/Celebrant: Pastor
Blalock
Organist/Director of Music: Doug Ludlum
Reader 8:30 am: Pat Aysse
Reader 11:00 am: Joan Drews
Welcome Tent 8:30 am: Gretchen Aysse
Welcome Tent 11:00 am: Bonnie Seabright
Prayer Partners 8:30 am: Rudy Matzner
Prayer Partners 11:00 am: Rob Byrd
Oblation Bearers 8:30 am: TBA
Oblation Bearers 11:00 am: Carlton & Donna Poulnot
Acolytes 8:30 am: Ryan Miller
Strachan Hagood
Acolytes 11:00 am: Nathan
Saunders
Katharina Koch
THE WEEK AT A GLANCE
Sunday, May 24 – Seventh Sunday of Easter
8:30 am Holy Communion/Bach
Celebration
9:45 am Walking Toward Pentecost
9:45 am Adult Sunday School
11:00 am Holy Communion/Bach Celebration
12:30 pm Afternoon Tea
5:00 pm Wedding
Monday, May 25
Church Office Closed
12:00 pm Afternoon Tea
5:00 pm Intermezzo
Tuesday, May 26
8:30 am Men’s Work Crew
12:00 pm Afternoon Tea
2:00 pm Staff Meeting
7:00 pm Westminster Choir
Wednesday, May 27
9:00 am Messenger Mailing
12:00 pm Afternoon Tea
Thursday, May 28
SC
Synod Assembly
Newberry College
12:00 pm Afternoon Tea
Friday, May 29
SC
Synod Assembly
12:00 pm Afternoon Tea
Saturday, May 30
SC
Synod Assembly
11:00 am Women’s AA
12:00 pm Afternoon Tea
12:00 pm Decatur Presbyterian Choir
5:00 pm Intermezzo