Category: Glad Tidings

         Hi everyone,  it’s Jo Dykes, here, making plans to begin teaching/facilitating an adult education class on Women of the Bible, beginning September 4. ( In Estill House at 9:30am,  in case you missed last week’s Glad Tidings.)

          As I sat here, wondering how I could get you interested in coming to this class, suddenly I was visiting the marketplaces of the Middle East in ancient times. And you would not believe what I heard there!

Overheard in the marketplace. . .     “Well, everyone knows she got to be Queen by winning a beauty contest! Humph! No one will ever hear of  HER again!”     “What do you mean, she conspired with her younger son to cheat her older son out of his inheritance? What kind of woman would do that?”
     ” My husband said he heard it with his own ears:  General Barak  told her he would Not go into battle without her! I wonder what that’s all about.”
      “Do you mean she actually went right up to Moses and questioned him about the law?  And he said he didn’t know and went up on
the mountain to get an answer? Well, I never. . .!”

      ” Did you hear that Sarah was pregnant?  Why, she’s got to be a hundred if she’s a day!”

    “. . .and she poured perfume on his feet and dried them with her hair, and Judas was mad about it and said that money could have been spent on the poor, and He said. . .”
    ” I knew Laban was tricky, but that boy worked like a dog for seven years to get to marry his younger daughter, and for him to send her older, veiled sister down the aisle was just wrong.  Of course, we all know she’d been in love with him for years!”
    ” Well, you know that prophet, Elijah,  said the dogs would eat her bones.  I guess no one will ever question HIM again.”

     “Did you hear about poor Naomi? Her husband and both her sons, dead. And she’s got those two daughters-in-law, too.  I guess they’ll all have to go on Welfare.”
    “What do you mean, he saw her bathing on her rooftop and sent his servants to get her?  I mean, I know he’s the  KING, but. . .’

     “I heard she drove a tent peg right through his temple while he was asleep! Ugh! Wouldn’t poison have been a lot neater?”

            Don’t you want to meet these women?  Of course NOT the Gossipers!! I mean the GOSSIP-EES!     They sound fascinating!*
             * (And they Are!) Come to class and learn their stories.

Jo Dykes

I am so excited to be teaching/facilitating a new adult education class this fall on (selected) Women of the Bible!   Let me introduce both myself, and the class, to you. My name is Jo Dykes and I joined Church of the Nativity a little over a year before we were all quarantined by Covid, so I still, regretfully, have not met so many of you, and am really looking forward to doing so. A lifelong Presbyterian, I often visited Nativity with my son David and his family, Jill, Abby and Emmy before I moved here, and was so impressed by the friendliness and easy acceptance I felt. And of course, I loved Stephanie’s sermons.  So it was a forgone conclusion, when I moved from Martinsville, Va., that I would also become part of the Nativity family.

Always active in First Presbyterian in Martinsville, I have missed (as all of you have) the fellowship and working together for the past two years while we were on “lockdown”.  So when things started returning to normal, it seemed normal to me to volunteer to teach an adult “Sunday School” class.  Because of the recent surge of cases, the continuing emergence of variants, and the need to be ever vigilant,  I’m afraid the “new normal” is going to include living our lives the best we can: masked, sanitizing and distancing when necessary, but pushing on the best we can. So we decided to “push on” with this class. For the months of September through November, we will meet in Corlett Hall from 9:30 to 10:15 am each Sunday.  (Believe me, I know that is early!  But it seemed the best time to make the class available to members of both worship services….and won’t it be fun to see those people we don’t always see, because we meet at different times?) I will try and make it worth your time to get there, and we will be meeting the most amazing women! Wonderful women, beautiful, deceitful, kind, flawed, brave, loving, conflicted, evil, caring, intelligent, ambitious, wise, destructive, strong women. (Just like women we all know.)

I have taught this class twice before, both times at First Presbyterian in Martinsville , with a 30 year gap in between, and I am so excited to be teaching it again.  Just as reading the Bible seems to satisfy our explicit needs at every age, so reacquainting myself with these women, at different ages has changed my perceptions and views of them. And I am not alone.  I was interested to discover as I began to study the new literature, that just as society and culture has changed, so has the literature. I laughed out loud when I read that Queen Vashti, (of Esther fame), who was seen as stubborn, selfish and disrespectful, when I first met her in my teen age years, is now viewed as strong, independent and freedom loving. (Discussion, anyone?)

In the first two months we will be studying the women of the Old Testament in chronological order, following the rise of the Israelites, from Eve to Esther. And No. We can’t study all 315  women in three months. I have selected some of the most well known, as well as some you may not know,  to study. I will be including a list here in the coming weeks, and if I have left out someone you really want to know more about, I’m open to change. We will try and cover 2-3 women each week. Again, if that seems too ambitious, we will re-evaluate. In November, we will begin our study of the New Testament, and I want to skip straight to the women of Jesus’s ministry, both before his death and after it. Then we will go back to the beginning, and meet the young girl who became the mother of our Lord, Mary, the Madonna, who was with Him through His crucifixion. And that will lead us into Advent.

I will be telling you more in the coming weeks.  I am so excited about this study and hope you, both women AND men, will plan to come to “Sunday School” this fall.

Question of the week:  There are many stories of fathers and sons in the Bible, but only two (that I can find) of Mothers and daughters. Can you
name them? (Hint:   One of them is a good big sister.  The other was the heroine of a best selling book in the 1990’s that was a “must read” for book clubs across the nation.      (Answer in next week’s Glad Tidings)

The Rev. Stephanie Yancy was ordained deacon in 2006 and to the priesthood in 2007 in the Diocese of Maryland. She is a graduate of Cornell University and of The General Seminary of the Episcopal Church. After serving churches in Maryland for several years, Stephanie moved to North Carolina in 2013 to be the interim rector at St. Luke’s in Durham when Bishop Anne Hodges-Copple left St. Luke’s to become Bishop Suffragan.

After her interim role at St. Luke’s ended Stephanie accepted a call to become vicar of St. Titus’ in 2015. She retired as rector of St. Titus’ earlier this year.

Stephanie and her husband, Spike, live in Durham. They have two adult children and a 13 year-old grandson, all of whom live in the Atlanta area. 

The Rev. Stephanie Yancy will be with Nativity during Stephanie Allen’s sabbatical. She will start on August 21.

Greetings Nativity family! I wanted to update ya’ll on something I’ve been working on for a while. In my full-time role as a VA Chaplain, much of the work I do is helping Veterans address “spiritual injury.” A spiritual injury occurs when someone no longer has access to what gives them meaning, purpose and hope in life. Spiritual Injury can be related to military trauma, church hurt, grief, a mental health concern, or a number of other reasons. Sometimes the healing journey involves learning new spiritual practices, or connecting spiritually to the lessons learned in mental health treatment. Some people cannot imagine ever returning to a religious community; there’s just been too much hurt, disillusionment, disappointment. Other people find themselves curious about different spiritual or religious traditions as a way of finding a “new normal” that involves faith.

After much prayerful discerning, I’ve decided to offer a series of “Episcopal Church Field Trips” for folks who are curious about worship in the Episcopal tradition. I wanted to let you all know about these “field trips” and invite you to come along. Whether you are a Veteran yourself, or have Service members/ Veterans close to your heart, you are welcome aboard! There’s no RSVP required, but if you’d like to give me a heads up to be on the lookout for you, please send me an email. Thanks!

• What:  “Episcopal Church Field Trips”
• Who: For Veterans/Service Members exploring spiritual community within The Episcopal Church
• When: Monthly, Fourth Sundays (June 2022 – October 2022)
• Where: Various congregations, see schedule below
• Masking: Bring a high quality mask; requirements/guidance changes
• Attire: Slacks (or nice jeans) and a polo (or button shirt) will blend in well-enough at each location
• Sponsored by: Church of the Nativity, Raleigh, NC
  • Point of Contact: Ryan Parker (Candidate for Holy Orders, Priesthood)

• 6/26/2022- St. Paul’s Episcopal Church (Cary)
  • Website: https://www.stpaulscary.org
  • Address: 221 Union St, Cary, NC 27544
  • Service time: 9:00AM
  • Debrief location after: Courtyard

• 7/24/2022- Church of the Nativity (Raleigh)
  • Website: https://old.nativityonline.org/
  • Address: 8849 Ray Rd, Raleigh, NC 27613
  • Service time: 10:30AM
  • Debrief location after: Oak Tree

• 8/28/2022- St. Ambrose (Raleigh)
  • Website: https://stambroseraleigh.org/
  • Address: 813 Darby Street, Raleigh, NC 27610
  • Service time: 10:15AM
  • Debrief location after: Labyrinth

• 9/25/2022- Church of the Good Shepherd (Raleigh)
  • Website: https://www.cgs-raleigh.org/
  • Address: 121 Hillsborough Street, Raleigh, NC 27603
  • Service time: 10:15AM
  • Debrief location after: TBD

• 10/23/2022- St. Joseph’s (Durham)
  • Website: https://stjosephsdurham.org/
  • Address: 1902 West Main St., Durham, NC 27705
  • Service time: 10:30AM
  • Debrief location after: TBD

Easter is a season of joy. In our couple relationships, we expected to find happiness, but often we have found unexpected joy. Let us look and share where we have found this unexpected joy with our chosen partners.

Below are some questions to get you started on this couple sharing:

• What has been the greatest unexpected joy in your relationship? That is what have you found in your relationship that you enjoy, but that you didn’t anticipate when you committed to each other?

• What have you learned from your partner that you would never have known?

• What goals have you worked together to see become a reality?

• What hobbies have you shared or been encouraged by your partner to develop individually that have brought you the joy of creativity?

• What responsibilities have you enjoyed turning over to your partner that you would have to shoulder by yourself if you were single?

• What pleasure have you gained by your expanded family relationships?

Find a time and place to share these unexpected joys. Then express your appreciation to each other for these joys.

More questions can be found at www.bettermarriages.org

Carl and Nancy Terry

The Diocese of North Carolina has released new reopening guidelines. Under these new guidelines, the following will take effect this Sunday, March 27:

• Masks are optional during the worship service for all vaccinated people. You are welcome to keep wearing your mask, and we will still have masks available for anyone who needs or desires to take one. 
• There is no need to sign up to attend services, nor leave your contact information that morning for contact tracing purposes any longer. If there is a reported exposure to Covid, we will inform the congregation through the Glad Tidings email list, the Nativity Facebook page, and on the website.
• Since children and young people 5 years old and over may be vaccinated, masks are optional for those vaccinated, like the adults. Children under the age of 2 are not required to mask, and those 3-5 should be masked. However, we leave all masking decisions for children entirely to parents’ discretion. 
• Please note, no gathering can be completely safe. Unvaccinated people remain susceptible to contracting COVID-19. Singing can increase transmission from infected individuals. 
• If you do not feel well, please stay home, and join us online. The 10:30 service will continue to be livestreamed every Sunday and is easily accessed at www.nativityonline.org.

Should you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out to Stephanie, Sr. Warden John Oldham, or Jr. Warden Bill Sena.

Waltye Rasulala

On the afternoon of Feb. 13, the Nave at Church of Nativity was filled with the excited voices of children and a mixture of musical sounds. This was a pre-concert event of a Valentine concert by students from the North Carolina Chamber Music Institute. However, this was not just any concert, this was an event designed for those who are blind or have low vision.

As soon as the young people arrived they moved to the tables set up around the Nave with various string instruments for them to examine. This portion of the concert event was called a “Tactile Tour of Instruments”. Essentially an instrument “petting zoo”, it was an opportunity to touch, hold and even try to play the instruments they were about to hear. Excited children touched the inside of a cello that had been cut so they could feel inside of the instrument, the pegs, strings and the bow. NCCMI students served as guides, explaining to the children what they were feeling. Some of the children picked up the string instruments and tried their hand at playing. Others explored the inside of the beautiful piano with their fingers and felt the strings and keys and then listened to their fingers and felt the strings and keys and then listened to the sounds that were coming from the instrument.

Working with Arts Access, NCCMI provided audio descriptions through a special grant. All concert goers could scan a QR code on the program with their own devices. This gave them prerecorded descriptions of instruments, information about chamber music and the church space itself. In addition, special audio headsets were handed out to those with low vision or blindness to wear during the concert. A live audio describer sat at the back of the church and transmitted real time descriptions: what the musicians were wearing, what they looked like, what instruments they were playing as well as the music that was being played as the musicians hit the stage.

Since this was a Valentine’s Day concert the music was a variety of romantic music to honor the day. NCCMI Chamber groups played music from Mozart to George Gershwin to Billie Eilish. There was something for everyone!

At the end of the concert there was appreciative applause from the audience for performers and the opportunity to experience beautiful music in a whole new way. The expression of one young concert goer who was very shy about touching the instruments during the “petting zoo”, was a bright and joyous “thank you” as he skipped out of the Nave.

Thanks to our many Accessibility Committee volunteers, Arts Access partners, NCCMI musicians, Alfred Christensen (who managed the videotaping for the livestream) and especially the Church of the Nativity for helping present this day of joy and love to an audience of very special concert goers.

Note: This concert has been archived on the NCCMI YouTube Channel. It is freely available for viewing at any time.

Carl and Nancy Terry

Valentine’s Day gave us a chance to celebrate our love for each other and to spend special time together.  We need to keep that going throughout the year.  Let us spend time as a couple reflecting on the Valentine’s Day we just had and what we want to do to continue that celebration.

• What did you do to celebrate Valentine’s Day?  Was it going out to dinner?  Have a quiet dinner at home?  Was it a day or a couple of hours of just being together? Did you plan it as a special date night? 
• What made it special? Was it the gifts that you gave each other? Was it the card that said just the right things?  Was it the time spent together? Was it the physical contact of being close in body and spirit?  

It is important to have date nights, to keep that special time going.  You might take turns planning it or you could plan together.  Put the time on your calendar. 

Remember Gary Chapman’s five love languages. Remember those gifts that are often the most memorable are those that are expressed in your partner’s love language.  Whether it’s acts of service, physical touch, words of affirmation, time together, or material gifts, express your love as much as you can in their language.

For those of you who are parents, grandparents, aunts, and/or uncles, remember that you are modeling love for them. It is important for you to share with them and in front of them why you love and care for each other and them as well.

A Valentine that was a part of our celebration had a quote that we would like to share with you, “Love does not consist in gazing at each other but in looking outward together in the same direction.” Antoine de Saint-Exupery

Homework:  Have a dialogue with your partner about how you will continue to celebrate and express your love for each other.