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+ Alleluia. Christ is Risen!
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Word from the Rector
An Outline of Eastertide: Observing the Great 50 Days
Alleluia! Christ is risen!
One of the first things that really struck me when becoming a liturgical, catholic Christian was the change in how I understood Easter. For my entire childhood and youth, Easter was a one-day feast, with some church (in uncomfortable clothes), a big meal, and various egg hunts.
Once I became an Episcopalian, I learned Easter was a 50 day season—commencing with Easter Day, but passing through several stages, each with a particular meaning, and culminating on Pentecost / Whitsunday. This new understanding of Easter was in line with the profound deepening of the significance of resurrection I was learning. Instead of an event locked in the distant past or a hoped-for future, Resurrection’s true nature as the New Life of the Kingdom of God we live in today was revealed to me—and the Great Fifty Days were an opportunity to focus on the year-round implications of Christ’s rising and our share in it through baptism.
So, now that we have entered the season here is a primer of sorts on Eastertide as it is observed in the Episcopal Church generally, and particularly at St. Timothy’s—where the Church Year is central to our way of being:
1. Easter Day: April 20
Easter Day is the ground-zero of resurrection and the true origin of the entire Christian Year. The liturgies of this day all speak of the shock and confusion Christ's rising gave to those who experienced it. While resurrection is at the center of our faith, it is so "un-natural" to a world accustomed to death's claims that it will require far more than one day to sink in. Easter Day is, for us just as for the first disciples, just the start.
2. The Octave of Easter: April 21-26
The week we are in is the "great octave" of Easter (an octave being a week-plus-a-day in the calendar when a major feast is commemorated). During this week the Eucharistic lectionary goes over all of the Resurrection accounts in detail, and the Daily Office lectionary connects Christ's resurrection with the events of Israel's Exodus from Egypt. This is the week of sustained and in-depth internalization of the Church's original experience of resurrection as found in scripture and the testimony of original witnesses.
3. The 2nd Sunday of Easter: April 27
This Sunday brings the Octave of Easter to a conclusion by telling the story of how the first Easter Octave ended--with Christ appearing to St. Thomas the Apostle a week after that apostle had missed Jesus being with the others in the Upper Room on Easter Day. On this Sunday, with its familiar story of Thomas's encounter with the risen Savior, we are shown the difference between certainty and belief, doubt and trust--vital to the entire season's message of relationship and community.
4. The Third through the Fifth Sundays of Easter: May 4 – May 18
On these Sundays various accounts of the post-resurrection appearances are read at the Eucharist, with each being connected to other readings and prayers which expand our understanding of the resurrection's implications for the world and for us as disciples. The usual Old Testament readings are replaced by passages from the Acts of the Apostles during Eastertide, giving us a picture of how a resurrection-based community lives and prays. Gradually, we begin to see how Christ's rising is not an event isolated to Him, but something having a claim on each Christian and the entire cosmos.
Stations of the Resurrection, May 7, 7 PM
On the Wednesday of the third Week of Easter a special evening service is held to walk through the entire season in one "go" -- the Stations of the Resurrection. In a way similar to the stations of the cross, this is an excellent way to learn about the whole season and connect its various parts in a meaningful unity.
The Bishop’s Visitation / Confirmations: Sunday, May 18
The Fifth Sunday of the Easter will feature our first official Sunday morning visitation from Bishop Akiyama. She will preach and preside, confirming at the 10 AM Eucharist. More details will follow, but having our Bishop with us during Eastertide is a great blessing—allowing those adults baptized at Easter to be confirmed, and those others seeking full adult membership in the Episcopal Church to receive this during this Great Feast Season.
5. The 6th Sunday of Easter: Rogation Sunday: May 25
This Sunday is the Church's "Earth Day" and connects the meaning of resurrection with the restored Creation. On this day we make the Rogation procession around the parish church's grounds, bless the community garden for another growing season, bless the rogation crosses for distribution, and ask God's protection on the churchyard as a place of sanctuary.
6. Ascension Day: May 29, 7 PM
Ascension Day is the 40th day of Easter and the feast commemorating Christ's ascension in glory to the Right Hand of God the Father. It is one of the Seven Principal Feasts of the Church Year. Our custom is to have a sung Eucharist on Ascension evening, usually with a guest preacher (details TBA). This feast brings to an end that portion of Eastertide in which Christ was physically present with the disciples. To mark this, the Paschal Candle is moved from the pavement in the nave to the step on which the altar stands. The season is changed but not yet concluded: the focus is moving from the person of Christ to the promised gift of the Paraclete.
7. From Ascension until Pentecost: The First Novena: May 30-June 7
The nine days from Christ's ascension to Pentecost were a period of concentrated prayer, awaiting God's guidance and direction (this process is still followed by Christians discerning God's will as a "novena" of prayer). It shows the centrality of prayer in discernment of God's will.
8. The Day of Pentecost: June 8
The last day of Eastertide is Pentecost (also called Whitsunday in the English tradition). This is when the Holy Spirit was poured out upon the Church, sending it and equipping it for mission to the wider world. It is sometimes called "the birthday of the Church" and is marked by the use of red vestments and congregational attire, and by reading a portion of the Gospel that day in as many languages as possible. It completes the meaning of Easter by empowering each Christian to share personally in the power of Christ's resurrection.
* * *
Altogether, Eastertide is about an ever-expanding light and life that begins in the darkness of Easter night and ends in the blaze of Pentecost’s fire. It is this dynamic understanding of resurrection which marks ancient and biblical Christianity from static and anemic imitations. It is into this rich and energetic faith we have all been baptized. Understanding the anatomy of Easter season helps make this clearer each year.
The Great 50 Days keeps the entire Easter feast with joy, focus, and purposefulness. Celebrate the feast in body, mind, and spirit. So much depends upon us being "God's Easter people" – always and everywhere through the year.
In Christ,
Brandon+
P.S.: I believe this was the most moving and glorious Holy Week and Easter Vigil in my years as a priest. I cannot thank the many, many people who helped it come to pass enough for all the love, care, and skill put into the observance and celebration of this greatest and holiest of weeks. Bless you all! BLF+
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The Week Ahead...
Thursday, April 24:
- 7 PM: Women's Bible Study, Zoom
Friday, April 25: Saint Mark the Evangelist
- No fasting during Eastertide
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+ Sunday, April 27: Second Sunday in Easter
+ 8 AM: Holy Eucharist (said). In-person.
+ 9 AM: Adult Study
+ 9:50 AM: Godly Play and nursery open
+ 10 AM: Holy Eucharist (sung).
In-person and online.
We commence singing the joyful Anglican Chant setting of the Pascha nostrum at the Eucharist this Sunday--one of our parish's great customs.
We will be blessing the items for our Lent Outreach Project at this service.
+ Coffee Hour following the 10 AM Liturgy
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Monday, April 28:
- The parish office is closed on Monday.
Tuesday, April 29: Catherine of Siena, Mystic and Prophetic Witness 1380
Wednesday, April 30:
- 10 AM: Rite I Holy Eucharist
- 7 PM: Catechumenate
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Prayer Requests from this Parish: John Hanson, Howard Klopfenstein, Becky McCarroll, Sandy Noble, Juanita Rivera, Gail Steck, Carolyn Van Otten, Barbara Knighton, Mark McIntire, for those who labor on the remodel of our Parish Hall, Family Promise, Salem for Refugees, Mending Wings Youth Ministries, St Paul’s Episcopal Church
For the Departed: Jean Roach
For those who Mourn: Dan Roach and family
For the Newly Baptised: Miriam Custer, Alexandra Foote, Amelia Haynes and Hildy Haynes
For Those Preparing for Confirmation and Reaffirmation: Michael Grover, Benjamin Chavez, Bill Cameron, Rich Zorko, Becky McCarroll
For Those with Birthdays Next Week: Marsha Witt, Alice Simeral, Mark McIntire, Dolores Segura, Jane Brady, Joan Williamson, Michael McFetridge
In the Diocese of Oregon: St. Mary’s, Gardiner / Reedsport
In the Anglican Communion: The Church of the Province of the Indian Ocean
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+ Observing the Great 50 Days of Easter
- No fasting during this season
- Invite Fr. Brandon to bless your home
- Invite others to your home for Agape hospitality (especially, invite someone new to the parish to your home and extend the range of your hospitality)
- Keep your Easter decorations up for the full season
- Plan on attending the two special midweek Eastertide liturgies: Stations of the Resurrection (7 pm, Wednesday May 7) and the Feast of the Ascension (7 pm, Thursday May 29)
- Say the Pascha Nostrum from Morning Prayer daily (BCP p. 83)
- Begin emails to Christian friends with "Alleluia! Christ is risen!"
- Use the Easter Table grace (below) at meals
The Easter Table Grace
Blessed are you, O Lord our God; you have given us the risen Savior to be the Shepherd of your people: Lead us, by him, to springs of living waters, and feed us with the food that endures to eternal life; where with you, O Father, and with the Holy Spirit, he lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen, Alleluia!
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Thank You!
Our Holy Week, Easter services and Agape Feast were the work of many hands and too many to mention by name. We especially thank Janine Stephens and the Acolytes and Lectors; Deb Cowgill and the Altar Guild; Pamela Filbert and the Flower Committee; Jeff Swartwout, Stephen Custer, and the Choir; Steve Cowgill and the Ushers; the Agape Feast coordinators, Amy Divelbiss and Sandy Noble, and all those that worked to set up the church, serve food and clean up after the event; and everyone who worked with our parish leaders. We also thank the parishioners who colored Easter eggs, gave contributions for Easter flowers, brought food for the feast, attended the Holy Week and Easter services, and made merry at the Agape Feast!
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 The Wedding of Charles Deister and Alexandra Foote will take place at St Timothy’s Episcopal Church on
Saturday, May 3rd at 11 AM. |
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 Lent Outreach Project
This has been a very successful outreach project with many items having been donated, as well as substantial monetary donations. Thank you to all who donated and helped bless families in our area during times of crisis. We will be blessing the items collected for Family Promise at the 10 AM service this Sunday, April 27th. Please bring all items for donation to the church by Sunday.
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Stations of the Resurrection
Wednesday, May 7th, 7 PM
This unique service, offered only once this season in conjunction with the Catechumenate, retraces the events of the Great 50 Days of Eastertide, showing the motion and energy of Resurrection – both as found in Holy Scripture and in the life of the Church. All are invited!
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Diocesan Renewal Gathering
Join us for a day of worship, learning, reflection, and renewal! All are welcome at this special event that will bring together clergy and laity from across the diocese for a time of connection and spiritual growth. The Rev. Dr.
Miguel A. De La Torre, Professor of Social Ethics and Latinx Studies at the lliff School of Theology will speak. A Gift Basket Raffle will benefit Latino Ministries. Lunch will be provided, along with many opportunities for fellowship.
Event Details:
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From Your Parish Librarian
Mary (or sometimes, Molly) Brant was born into a Protestant family in what is generally accepted as 1736, in the Mohawk Valley which is between the Adirondacks and the Catskills Mountains, in the British colony of New York. Her family was the sachem (“chief”) ruling class of the Mohawk Nation which was part of the Iroquois Confederacy of Six Nations.
Mary’s beloved stepfather (an Iroquois of Dutch ancestry) called her “Molly” and raised her in an Anglican home and sent her to a Church of England mission school.
It is the Librarian’s observation (so do with that as you find fit) that her Mohawk people called her “Mary” and her English husband and European friends and acquaintances called her “Molly.” Plaques, statues and an elementary school in Ontario mention her as “Molly,” and American historians and Iroquois treaties she signed refer to her as “Mary.”
Canadian history calls her “Molly” and commends her for protecting Canada from American invasion—current events are the fourth [1775, 1812, 1864—which was all talk still the threat was real, 2025] attempted annexation of Canada by America—while American history calls her “Mary” and salutes her leadership in the Iroquois Federation with no mention of any invasion. Canadian history records her devout Anglican faith and her founding of St George Cathedral, Kingston, Ontario, while American history records her devout Episcopal faith and her founding of an Episcopal Church.
Molly married Irishman Sir William Johnson, the first Superintendent of Indian Affairs of the Northern British Colonies, and the only colonist to be knighted. Sir William and Lady Johnson entertained distinguished English, Native American and colonial guests. They had nine children—one died in infancy and one died during the Revolutionary War.
During the American Revolution, Mary was an influential leader among the Iroquois and is credited with keeping four of the six Iroquois tribes loyal to Britain.
Yep, this week’s last Saint was a British loyalist in what started out as an armed protest, then progressed into a civil war, and then developed into the American Revolution.
The War left our signers of the Declaration of Independence displaced of their lands and possessions, as was Mary and her children—twice. Once during the War by the Continental Army and again after the war by citizens of the newly-formed United States.
When choosing an ally, Iroquois wisdom deems alliance with the more powerful contender. During the French and Indian Wars, Britain proved the more powerful. Colonial America’s diplomacy with American Indians was brutal, making it an easy decision to side with the English before and during the Revolutionary War. Mary’s role was to pass valuable information to the English about the placement and movement of Continental troops, and to supply the English with arms and ammunition.
Mary died on April 16, 1796, at 60 years old, in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Kingston is located on the Canadian side of Lake Ontario, it was Canada’s first capital for three years before it was moved to Ottawa and it was founded by Molly and her children and her younger brother Joseph, who was just as active in Canadian history but not as influential, together with 54 loyalists from the New York colony.
A lifelong-Anglican, Molly regularly attended services at the church she helped found, St George’s, the oldest Anglican parish in Ontario, where she “sat in an honorable place among the English.”
The British Crown granted her land, a pension and free education for her children for her wartime service and loyalty. August 25 is designated “Molly Brant Commemoration Day” in Canada.
One of the many plaques honoring Molly reads: “A Mohawk woman of great diplomatic skill, Molly Brant exerted an extraordinary influence on the powerful Iroquois Confederacy… Brant’s tireless efforts helped preserve Canada from American conquest.”
—Bonnie Bonham—Parish Librarian—
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An Easter Blessings
Now may the God of peace, who brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, make you complete in everything good so that you may do his will, working among us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory for ever and ever. Amen.
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