News
Organ Scholar Updates
April 24, 2020
The St. James Music Department is excited to welcome our incoming Organ Scholar, Meg Cutting! Meg is a graduate student at the Yale Institute of Sacred Music and the School of Music, pursuing a Master of Music in Organ Performance in the studio of Martin Jean. Prior to Yale, she received a Bachelor of Music from the Eastman School of Music, where she did her undergraduate studies with Nathan J. Laube. Meg is from Salem-Keizer, Oregon, and began studying piano at the age of six. She previously studied piano and organ under the instruction of Pamela Miller. Meg has participated in various festivals, competitions, and given concerts throughout her musical career. She was a finalist in the Taylor Organ Competition in Atlanta, GA. She was also an E. Power Biggs Fellow for the 60 th National Organ History Society Convention, and subsequently assisted in the preparation of the 2018 OHS Convention in Rochester, NY. She has been featured on Michael Barone’s Pipedreams Live!, and has additionally performed in concert at Slee Hall at the University of Buffalo, at Central Synagogue in New York City, and other notable venues. She is also the two-time recipient of the Robert Carwithen Music Foundation Scholarship. Meg has developed a passionate interest in the music of twentieth-century French organ composers, such as Messiaen, Alain, Duruflé, and Tournemire. She currently serves as the Wilson Family Sacred Music Intern at the Brick Presbyterian Church in Manhattan, New York, where she works under Minister of Music Keith Tóth. We look forward to having Meg join the St. James family in August of 2020.
Our current Isaac Drewes has been appointed the Associate Director for Music and Worship at Central Lutheran Church in Minneapolis, MN, where he will work with Cantor and Music Director Mark Sedio. There, he will share in service playing, accompany the Central Choir, and direct the Choristers and bell choirs. The semi-professional adult choir is 70 voices strong with repertoire including masterworks by Bach, Haydn, Vaughn Williams and others. The chorister program is poised for development and growth. The congregation is known for its robust hymn singing in the Lutheran tradition, while at the same time embracing hymnody from many different global styles. Isaac will conclude his Gerre Hancock Fellowship year at St. James Cathedral, Chicago this June, and will begin in his new role at Central Lutheran Church in August, 2020. We thank Isaac for his incredible work and contributions to our music programs throughout his appointment at St. James.
Remote Worship for Young People
April 06, 2020
We know that the suspension of worship effects people of all ages in our congregation. In an effort to ensure that the youngest members of our cathedral family can grow their faith from home, our Director of Children's Ministry Alison Barrington has curated a collection of remote resources for your family.
For Songs & Stories and Godly Play sessions lead by Alison Barrington you can view from home, watch our Virtual Sunday School playlist on YouTube.
For children school-age and above, we recommend Faith @ Home, an online source of lectionary-based readings and reflections.
Great for all ages, Virginia Theological Seminary's site Building Faith is full of resources, including their list of Easter book recommendations.
For Pinterest users, follow Messy Church's Lent & Easter page for festive arts & crafts.
Illustrated Ministry offers a printable PDF for some soothing coloring time for children.
Cathedral Prayer List
March 31, 2020
Use this link to submit prayer requests.
Please keep the following people in your prayers:
FOR THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN COMMENDED TO THE PRAYERS OF THE CATHEDRAL COMMUNITY: KC, Sue, Cynthia, Paulette, Tabitha, Leslie Ann, Lois, Gloria, Norma, Frank, Nora, Ann, Joe, Annie, Kay, Ronald, Janice, Bob, Emily, Doris, Louis, Eve, D. Maria, Lenny, Carrol, Jordan, Carole, Paul, Kelle, Pamela, Lorraine, Jane, Don, Kay, Lexi, Nicole, James, Mary, Jesse, Delores, Heidi, Ingolf, Chris, and Pat.
THOSE WHO HAVE DIED, INCLUDING THOSE WHO PERISHED BY GUN VIOLENCE IN CHICAGO IN THE PAST WEEK: Mae, Janis, LouElla, Norbert, Frances, Jasmine, Michael, Ahmad, Lincoln, Ronald, Shanayah, Luis, Jessie, Kendrel, Lina, David, Sincere, Antiwon, Deron, Dangelo, Terron, Andrew, Angelo, Demil, and Joseph.
Let Us Pray by the Rev. Canon Lisa Hackney-James
Frequently in the Gospels, we read of Jesus retiring to a solitary place in order to pray. Especially in times of trouble, Jesus often retreats into the wilderness, or up a mountain, to be alone in order to open himself to God, to be nourished in prayer: to engage the presence of the one who sent him, his heavenly father. As followers of Christ, we, too, are meant to draw near to God in prayer, seeking connection with the one who has made us and sustains us. Along with the challenges that we currently face, social distancing may actually encourage us in our imitation of Christ in this way: it requires many of us to retire to quiet places, driving us into a social wilderness of sorts. Yet in that isolation we may find the deep silence we need to become more fully aware and welcoming of God’s presence in our lives. Whether our current environs are ones of solitude, or domestic chaos (thinking of those working from home while providing childcare), we find ourselves in times where we have plenty of people for whom we wish to pray: for our families friends and neighbors, and for ourselves.
At St. James Cathedral, we will be collecting the individual prayers of our parishioners and publishing them on the cathedral website so that our whole cathedral community can join together in lifting up the concerns of our cathedral community. Please join your fellow cathedral members in offering the names of those for whom you wish to pray, and then use the list published on our website to guide the prayers that you offer in your own time of daily prayer. Even if you have not been in the habit of solitary prayer, you can begin with the simplest form: setting your mind and heart towards God, and simply speaking the names of those on our prayer list. God will know what to do with your intentions. We may be physically set apart from one another for a time, but together we can act in solidarity with one another and pray with one resounding voice.