2927 Dixwell Avenue
P. O. Box 185065
Hamden, CT 06518
203-248-4338
Worship through the Year
Through the changing seasons,
the church’s celebrations connect us with the cycles of nature and of our own lives,
and help us translate the story of the Bible, and of Jesus’s life, into our own story.
Advent, Christmas, Epiphany
End of November through mid-February or early March
The Church’s calendar begins in the dark of the year, with the four weeks of Advent -- the time of preparation for Christmas, when we celebrate the coming of God among us as a human baby. On January 6, the Christmas season closes with Epiphany -- the celebration of the visit of the Magi, or wise men, to the infant Jesus.
Next comes a period of 5 to 9 weeks, when we recall the early stages of Jesus’s ministry—his baptism, calling of the disciples, and preaching and healing.
Lent, Easter, Pentecost
February or March through late May or early June
Six and a half weeks before Easter, we enter the season of Lent, a time to reflect on our mortality and brokenness, to cleanse our hearts, reach out to our neighbors, and prepare ourselves to walk with Jesus the way of the Cross that leads to the overwhelming Easter joy of Christ’s victory over death.
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The Easter season lasts for seven weeks, and ends in late May or early June, with the celebration of Pentecost, marking the gift of the Holy Spirit and the “birthday of the Church.”
The Season after Pentecost, or "Ordinary Time"
Early summer through the end of November
Then, for the remainder of the year—about six months, till the beginning of the next Advent season—we delve in detail into the life and teachings of Jesus, reading through the stories of his ministry of healing love as recorded in the Gospels.
Every Sunday we also read from the Hebrew scriptures (Old Testament).
Images
Top: Adoration of the Shepherds by Georges de la Tour (1593 -1652).
Center: Resurrection by Mikhail Vrubel (1856 -1910)
Bottom: Christ Teaching by Rembrandt van Rijn (1606 -1669)
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