Tuesday, December 23, 2014

Preparing Your Heart for Christmas


December can be a very busy and stressful time.

The folks at St. John’s Episcopal Church in West Hartford are helping people experience peace and prepare their hearts for Christmas.

Recently, they held an Advent Procession of Lessons and Carols, featuring the adult and youth choirs at the church.

The choirs sang some Advent carols and presented music that helped the listener learn and understand more about the Advent season and also prepare his or her heart for Christmas.

Advent is a time of waiting in joyful hope for the birth of Jesus Christ, and this service was offered as part of our spiritual preparation for the wonder of that miracle.

At the service, the sequence of music, scripture, and hymns focused on longing for God’s kingdom to be established on Earth – and the assertion that in Christ, that day is dawning.

The service began in a darkened church, with the choir singing from afar, and then moved from darkness to light. The increased brightness symbolized the progressive revelation of Jesus Christ to the world.

If you were unable to make it to the service, please take the time to review the program and listen to the podcast as you prepare for Christmas.

As we continue to prepare for Christmas, please join St. John's Episcopal Church on Christmas Eve, when services will be held at 4 p.m. and 11 p.m.

At 4 p.m., a festal celebration of Holy Eucharist will include a sermon suitable for younger children and music by our Youth Choir. A musical prelude will begin at 3:45 p.m.

At 11 p.m., the music of the Christmas angels will be played and sung by our adult choir and instrumentalists and the people of God who gather in this place. A choral prelude will begin at 10:30 p.m.

For more information, news, notes, and events, please visit www.sjparish.net.

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