Emmanuel Episcopal Church

Celebrating the Life of Dr. George W. Dame

David Grimes and the St. Mary's Choir from Chatham Hall.

By Susan Paynter

On Saturday and Sunday, September 29 and 30, Emmanuel paid tribute to her founder, the Reverend Dr. George Washington Dame, on the bicentennial of his birth.

A reception and church tour kicked off events on Saturday morning.  Honored guests were Dame descendants who’d traveled here for observances at Emmanuel and Danville’s Church of the Epiphany.  Ruth Jones was reception hostess, Langhorne Jones tour director.

The congregation was joined by local history buffs and many from Chatham Hall for an “antique” worship service with liturgy from the 1789 Book of Common Prayer, which Dame would have used.

The Reverend James Mathieson was celebrant, Chatham Hall Rector Dr. Gary Fountain the lector.  Organist Sally Ford was joined by the 28 voices of Chatham Hall’s St. Mary’s Choir under the direction of David Grimes.

Janis and Billy Simpson produced a keepsake Sunday bulletin featuring the 1789 liturgy.

Dr. Dame reignited  the Episcopal faith in our area.  Southside residents had rejected the Anglican Communion along with British rule during the Revolutionary era.  When Dame was appointed rector of the four-county Camden Parish, he found only eight Episcopalians.

Dame brought sufficient numbers back to the faith to establish Epiphany, Emmanuel and several rural churches. He also served as a first trustee of what is now Chatham Hall.

On hand to enjoy the festivities was the Reverend Dr. John Ruef, a man who served both Chatham Hall, as chaplain from 1985 to 1993, and Emmanuel, as rector from 1992 to 2005. John also served two stints at Emmanuel as priest in charge, and his continued presence is a comfort to many.

Bicentennial of the Rev. G.W. Dame to be Celebrated by Emmanuel Church & Chatham Hall on September 30th

On Sunday, September 30, Emmanuel and Chatham Hall will celebrate, at Emmanuel, the bicentennial of the birth of the man who revived the almost-extinguished Episcopal faith in the area and served as trustee of Chatham Hall (then the Chatham Female Episcopal Institute) and as Danville and Pittsylvania County’s first superintendent of schools,

The fete honoring the Reverend Dr. G.W. Dame (1812-1895) will include Chatham Hall’s 28-voice St. Mary’s Choir, overseen by Choir Director David Grimes; as well as an “antique” service of worship from the 1789 Book of Common Prayer, used in Dame’s day.

The Reverend James Mathieson will lead the worship service.  He’ll also share his thoughts on the Rev. Dr. Dame’s contributions, as will Chatham Hall Rector Dr. Gary Fountain.

During and after the Revolution, when Southside residents rejected British rule they also turned their backs on the Church of England.  Membership in the Anglican Communion dropped to nearly zero in and around Chatham and Danville; and there it stayed until Dame came to town.

Dame, 28 in 1840, and soon-to-be an ordained Episcopal priest, arrived in Danville to head the Danville Female Academy.  He was eventually appointed as the first post-Revolution Episcopal rector of Camden Parish, comprised of Patrick, Henry, Franklin and Pittsylvania Counties.  When he arrived, he found eight Episcopalians in the parish.

Honoring Jim Mathieson on September 23rd

Please join us at our service of Holy Eucharist at 11 am and Parish Luncheon following the service on Sunday, September 23 as we honor the service of The Reverend James W. Mathieson through Emmanuel Episcopal Church.

The luncheon will include Prime Rib by Tred Hunt along with all the toppings and trimmings.

Jim has been our supply priest and spiritual advisor over the last two plus years as we searched for and called a new rector. Beginning with his service as our rector early in his ministerial career, Jim has been associated, formally or informally, with Emmanuel for about forty-five years.

Jim’s last service at Emmanuel will be September 30^th as we welcome our new rector on Sunday, October 7th.

Homily for the Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost - Becoming doers of the Word through obedience, not ritual

Deuteronomy 4:1-2, 6-9; Psalm 15; James 1:17-27; Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23

Written by Katerina K. Whitley; delivered by Mark dePaulo

Ritual is essential in life. National, religious or familial, rituals offer us the comfort of repetition and familiarity as they lend beauty to occurrences that otherwise might be considered mundane. Observe a little child who asks for the same story night after night – this is her ritual – or your own delight in keeping the Christmas rituals as you remember them from childhood.

Look at the warm smiles on the faces of parishioners when a familiar old gospel song is chosen on a Sunday, even in some of our more staid Episcopal congregations. Remember the Thanksgiving dinners and the disappointment of family members if mother or grandmother veers away from the traditional turkey to beef roast.

All of us have rituals that we remember and cherish. Some are simple habits; others are beloved and precious because they are tied to memories of love and affection from our earliest years; a few, like the Eucharist, are holy. Those that are mere habits may easily be forgotten or ignored, but those that are indeed enveloped in memories of love or sacredness are indispensable.

Our lessons today are centered around ritual, but with strings attached.

Emmanuel Calls The Reverend R Christopher Heying as Rector

After 20 years without a full-time priest and two years in search of the most fitting candidate, Emmanuel has called the Reverend R Christopher Heying to lead the parish. 

Father Heying (“Chris”) will come to us in October.  The rest of the family—wife Cindy and children Mary Grace, 13; John Luke, 10; and Patrick, 4—will follow after completing the school year.

Chris has been the rector of Saint Stephen’s in Forest, Virginia since 2004.  He has served various communities and churches in multiple ways.

Perhaps his most challenging and meaningful service was on and in the days following September 11, 2001 when, as curate at New York City’s Church of the Transfiguration, “The Little Church around the Corner,” near the World Trade Center, he tended to the emotionally, physically, mentally and spiritually shocked survivors of the September 11 attacks.

Other ways Chris has served his communities include university chaplain, mediator, and boarding school teacher and counselor.

He earned his Bachelor of Arts in English at the University of North Texas in Denton and his Master of Divinity at Nashotah House Theological Seminary near Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  He was ordained deacon and priest in 1998.

In addition to the Virginia and New York churches, Chris has served Saint Paul’s in Murfreesboro, Tennessee; and Saint Stephen’s, Wichita Falls; Saint John, Burkburnett; and Saint John’s, Forth Worth - all in Texas.

Father Heying will take up his duties at Emmanuel on October 1^st and celebrate his first Eucharist with us on Sunday, October 7^th. Read more about Father Heying in the September issue of The Pruden Parish Press

Please join us in welcoming Father Heying and his family to Chatham.

The Pruden Parish Press for September 2012 Is Now Online

The September 2012 issue of The Pruden Parish Press, a periodic newsletter containing news and information for parishioners and friends of Emmanuel, is now online. The current issue includes:

• Emmanuel Calls The Reverend R Christopher Heying as Rector,

• A New Era Begins,

• The Baptism of Walter Clement Yu,

• Around the Parish is Pictures,

• Celebrating the Life of David Cothran,

• A Unique Gift, and

• Spotlight on Sharon Taylor.

 

Click  here to read the September issue online.

Earlier issues may be viewed at The Pruden Parish Press.

To receive future issues by mail, please call or email the Parish Office.