MASS SCHEDULE – WEEK XXV.13 TRINITY (November 17, 2013)
18, St. Hilda of Whitby, Abbess, 680 A.D.
19, Feria
20, Feria
21, Presentation of the BVM
22, Feria
+ Hilda (known in her own century as “Hild”) was the grandniece of King Edwin of Northumbria, a kingdom of the Angles. She was born in 614 and baptized in 627 when the king and his household became Christians. In 647 she decided to become a nun, and under the direction of Aidan she established several monasteries. Her last foundation was at Whitby. It was a double house: a community of men and another of women, with the chapel in between, and Hilda as the governor of both; and it was a great center of English learning, one which produced five bishops (during Hilda’s lifetime??). Here a stable boy, Caedmon, was moved to compose religious poems in the Anglo-Saxon tongue, most of them metrical paraphrases of narratives from Genesis and the Gospels. The Celtic peoples of Britain had heard the Gospel well before 300 Ad, but in the 400’s and 500’s a massive invasion of Germanic peoples (Angles, Jutes, and Saxons) forced the native Celts out of what is now England and into Wales, Ireland, and Scotland. Since the invaders were pagans, thus Rome and other churches on the continent of Europe sent missionaries to them in the north and west by the Celts, and in the south and east. Roman and Celtic traditions differed, not in doctrine, but on such questions as the proper way of calculating the date of Easter, and the proper style of haircut and dress for a monk. It was, in particular, highly desirable that Christians, at least in the same area, should celebrate Easter at the same time; and it became clear that the English Church would have to choose between the old Celtic customs which it had inherited from before 300, and the customs of continental Europe and in particular of Rome that missionaries from there had brought with them. In 664 the Synod of Whitby met at that monastery to consider the matter, and it was decided to follow Roman usage. Hilda herself greatly preferred the Celtic customs in which she had been reared, but once the decision had been made she used her moderating influence in favor of its peaceful acceptance. Her influence was considerable; kings and commoners alike came to her for advice. She was urgent in promoting the study of the Scriptures and the thorough education of the clergy. She died 17 November 680.
+ WEDNESDAY SCHOOL AND AGAPE THIS WEEK! Our next class is this Wednesday, November 20 at 5:45 p.m. Classes begin at 6:30 and run till 7:15 p.m. We will have classes for all age groups and our schedule will be published next Sunday. Please call Jackie Jamison if you are interested in volunteering with the children’s classes since classroom assistants are needed!
+ All Saints Men’s Group meets Tuesday November 19, 7:00 a.m. in the undercroft.
+ The Monday morning Bible study will not meet today, November 18 but it will resume November 25. For further information about the Monday morning Bible Study please contact Priscilla King, 540-456-6458 – kingplk@gmail.com.
+ Daily Mass is celebrated at 12:15 p.m. You and your family members are all remembered by name at the Altar of God every week. Please take an All Saints parish prayer list home with you & remember your fellow parishioners in your prayers!
+ All Saints parishioner may obtain a Mass card from the Church office. A Mass card is a greeting card given to someone to inform him or her that a deceased loved one or friend was remembered and prayed for at a weekly Mass. It is a specifically Christian way to express one’s love. Call Julie McDermott at the Church office (434-979-2842) and she will help you fill out the form. The celebrant will sign the card and we will mail it from the Church to the family of the loved one.