silence, song and prayer

     We had the pleasure of welcoming the Himig Kabataan Cultural Society on Saturday for two concerts celebrating traditions and music from the Philipines and beyond in a day filled with joy and hope. From the very first, the choir engaged us with their rendition of "Manila", a high energy song bringing us right into present day Filipino culture. Then followed "O Canada"  and "Pambasang Awit", the  Philipine national anthem, sung by many with their hand over their heart. We were then gifted with many more songs, my favourite being one from their Vienna World Peace Choral Festival offering entitled, "Locus Iste" by Anton Bruckner which translated from the Latin means:  "This place was made by God,  A priceless sacrament,  It is without reproach." which was profoundly moving as it was being sung in my place of worship. This was followed by "Saro, Duwa, Tolo" which was a  medley of three folks songs from the Philipines which had...

     I recently attended the Youth Pop-Up Choir event at Holy Trinity. It was surprisingly fun! I say surprising because I was definitely at the upper end of the age range but it turns out that music and smiles transcend all those self-imposed limitations. Though our group was small, we were willing, and under the expert care and leadership of our Music Director Maria Golas we learned to sing two songs. The first was unknown to me  and was a Congolese folk song called "Banaha" which we learned to sing in rounds. It sounds easy but it isn't because you must keep to your own words and music without being affected by people across the room singing different words and notes. The second was "Let It Be" by Paul McCartney, which some of us learned to sing in harmony which is also not as easy as it sounds. Both were fun and challenging for different reasons but we were pretty impressed with the results and had a good time. Maria managed to fit in a few games like "...

     Lately I have noticed how inspiring and interesting the stories are of our newer parishioners and how they came to be part of the congregation at the Church of the Holy Trinity. I have heard them on Stewardship Sundays and at Parish Council meetings. I have heard them at coffee hour and when greeting on Sunday mornings. What they all have in common is that moment when someone walked through our front door and decided that they were home.      I would love to see these stories in our newsletter; they are so encouraging and instructive. They help us to welcome our new parishioners, they inspire to continue to welcome newcomers and they are indicative of what we are doing right—- sharing God’s love in a world that sorely needs it.       If you have a story to tell, please share it with us.  We would like to hear how you came to be part of our congregation and if you have a photo that you would like to share, please do! We are so h...

“And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Last night at Silent Prayer I became exceedingly aware of all the names inscribed on the walls and windows of our beautiful church. Whether they be on the bottom of the stained glass windows or on the various plaques commemorating the furnishings of Holy Trinity or the ashes that have been interred there, there are hundreds of names. These people are silent witnesses to the grace and glory of God from years ago in our very own community. There are so many people involved in the history of our church, from the achingly sad memorials to the glad givings of past parishioners. Our beautiful, jubilant Resurrection themed west-facing stained glass window includes Jesus’ words found in Matthew 28:20. I know that others like me have taken comfort in these words from Jesus’ Great Commission: "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and...