Ashmont at the Advent for the Ascension

The Feast of the Ascension falls on 9 May, this year.

As we usually do, the folk from All Saints will take the Red Line from Ashmont to Beacon Hill to celebrate this great feast of the year with our sister Parish, the Church of the Advent.

The procession and orchestral mass begin at 6:30 p.m. Evening Prayer is at 5:30 p.m.

The Advent is easily reached from the Charles/MGH stop on the Red Line.

Sunday within the Octave of the Ascension

The choir of St. Paul's Church,, Harvard Square, will come to Ashmont Sunday afternoon, 12 May 2013, for a 4 pm Solemn Evensong & Procession for the Sunday within the Octave of the Ascension.

Earlier this year the All Saints' Men and Boys Choir traveled to Harvard Square to sing with the St. Paul's Choir. We are happy to return the hospitality.

The music for this service is:

Responses – Philip Radcliffe
Psalm 19 – Anglican Chant: Herbert Howells
St. Paul's Service – Herbert Howells
God is gone up – Gerald Finzi
Ave maris stella – Edvard Grieg

Organ
L'Ascension – Olivier Messiaen

The organ voluntaries will be played by Dr. Jonathan Wessler, Assistant Organist at St. Paul's, Harvard Square.

Hunger in Dorchester

Many people in Dorchester go to bed hungry every night. Our parish does its small part to address this problem by contributing food to two local food pantries.

In previous months, we gave food donations to the food pantry at St. Mary's Episcopal Church in Uphams Corner and the food pantry at the Codman Square Health Center.

Please help by bringing the following items: canned goods, pasta, and peanut butter to the church by the second Sunday of each month. Items can be left in the baskets at the front entrance to the church or in the hallway at the top of the handicap ramp.

Ashmont in the News

The All Saints' Choir of Men & Boys has been in the news twice recently.

Most prominently, the Boston Herald columnist Peter Gelzinis visited Ashmont to see a rehearsal of the Boy Choir and to chat with Damone and Devin Clark. See the video here at BostonHerald.com

Read the full article here.

The Winthrop Sun Transcript, in their Thursday, 20 December 2012 edition, featured a picture of the All Saints' Men & Boys Choir singing the 11th annual Lessons and Carols at St. John the Evangelist Church, Winthrop, Massachusetts. After the jump there was three-quarters of a page of photographs of the choir, the clergy, and the reception.

Past Events

Society of Mary Annual Meeting

The Annual Mass & Meeting of the American Region of the Society of Mary took place on Friday & Saturday, 3 & 4 May 2013, at S. Stephen's Church, 114 George Street, Providence.

The Rt. Rev'd Lindsay, OGS, the Administrator of the Anglican Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham, was in the country to address this meeting.

Friday at 6 pm he presented an address on "One Faith, Two Shrine," with panelists the Rev'd Henry Bohah, Catholic Chaplain, Brown University, and the Rev'd Dr. Arnold Klukas, Professor of Ascetical & Liturgical Theology, Nashotah House, Wisconsin.

Vespers of Our Lady were served at 7 pm that evening. Bp. Irwin preached the Solemn Mass at 11 am the next day.

There was a lunch after the mass. See this link for a poster describing the event.

Walsingham Shrine Administrator to Preach

The Rt Rev'd Lindsay Urwin OGS, Administrator of the Anglican Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham preached at All Saints' on the Sixth Sunday of Easter, 5 May 2013.

This was the second visit to Ashmont in recent memory of the administrator of "England's Nazareth," for Fr. Philip North, Bp. Irwin's predecessor, has also graced the pulpit at Ashmont.

Three Tailors Plus Eight for Martin

Together with President Obama, Governor Patrick and Mayor Menino requested a moment of silence at 2:50 p.m. on Monday, 22 April 2013 for the victims of the Boston Marathon bombings a week earlier.

After a minute of silence in Peabody Square the stopped clock was restarted at 2:51.

The large bell in the All Saints' tower chime tolled three times for the death of our neighbor, the child Martin, and then it tolled eight more times, once for each year of his short life.

Please pray for the repose of Martin's soul. Pray also for strength and healing for Bill, Denise, and Jane. And, for the others who have died, and for all those affected by last week's terrible events.

[See the coverage at the Dorchester Reporter.]

Children Sing for Peace

A benefit concert entitled, "Children Sing for Peace," was held on Saturday, 27 April at 7 p.m. at Saint Mark Church, 1725 Dorchester Avenue, Dorchester, to directly benefit the Richards Family.

Participating choirs included our own All Saints' Choir of Men and Boys, the Boston City Singers, the Junior Choristers from St. Paul's, Harvard Square, and Nick Page, Song Leader of the Mystic Chorale.

Stopping the Clock in Peabody Square

Dorchester Reporter tells the story of Richards Family, the Ashmont clock winder, and the stopped clock in Peabody Square.

Visit RichardFamilyFund.org to see how you can help this devastated family in their time of grief.

Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone, Prevent the dog from barking with a juicy bone, Silence the pianos and with muffled drum Bring out the coffin, let the mourners come. Let aeroplanes circle moaning overhead Scribbling on the sky the message He Is Dead, Put crepe bows round the white necks of the public doves, Let the traffic policemen wear black cotton gloves. He was my North, my South, my East and West, My working week and my Sunday rest, My noon, my midnight, my talk, my song; I thought that love would last for ever: I was wrong. The stars are not wanted now: put out every one; Pack up the moon and dismantle the sun; Pour away the ocean and sweep up the wood. For nothing now can ever come to any good. — W. H. Auden

[A hat tip to UniversalHub for this story.]

Carl Scovel Preaches the Triduum

The Rev. Carl Scovel was our Guest Preacher for the Sacred Triduum this year. These Great Three Days celebrate the Death, Burial, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ and at Ashmont are comprised of the services of Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, the Easter Vigil, and Easter Morning.

The Rev. Scovel was born and grew up in North China where his parents were medical missionaries. They were interned by the Japanese during part of World War II. He is a graduate of the Shanghai American School, Oberlin College and Harvard Divinity School.

He has served two churches, The First Parish of Sudbury for ten years and King's Chapel in Boston for thirty-two. During that time he travelled some, preaching at various churches, frequently trying to interpret Bible passages and Christian teachings to mainstream Unitarian Universalist churches.

Rev. Scovel and his wife share a house in Jamaica Plain with their eldest and her family. A son and his family live a mile away. Their youngest and her family live in Toronto. Now retired, he continues to do some counseling and spiritual direction and occasionally teaches classes in parishes.

While studying at Harvard, Rev. Scovel and Fr. Purnell were roommates. Over the years he has graced our pulpit a number of times. We are delighted and honored to continue that tradition.

Lenten Preaching Series

Seven Last Words — Preached by the Rector

Our Lord's last sayings from the cross have held a special place in the devotion and spirituality of Christians throughout the ages. Source of countless sermons and meditations, they have even been the inspiration for musical composition. Taken from all the Gospels, these seven 'words' powerfully focus our attention on the sacrifice which Jesus is at that moment offering and the redemption which he is procuring for those who turn to him in faith.

The series began on the Sunday before Ash Wednesday, the traditional Quinquigesima.

Capital Campaign Kick-off Lunch

As many in the parish are aware, All Saints' has been challenged to raise $500,000 to support the restoration and preservation of our church buildings. This money will be matched 3-to-1 by the generous donor funding the restoration project.

The resulting $2 million will be used to create the Parish Preservation Fund, which will help pay for future capital repairs to the building. To lead the Parish through the fundraising, a Capital Campaign Committee has been formed, which is co-chaired by Bob Godfrey and Tim Van Dyck.

To kick off the Capital Campaign, the Committee is hosted a lunch directly after Mass on Sunday, 24 February 2013, in Peabody Hall. During the meal, Committee members provided a brief update on the status of the building restoration project, and explained in detail how the Capital Campaign will work.

Then, members of the Parish were asked to consider what kind of gift they would be able to make toward this important Campaign, which will help ensure a healthy future for All Saints.

Tim suggested that parishioners consider their contribution in terms of a multiple of their current annual giving to the parish: one times, two times, three times their annual pledge to the parish. Tim also urged every parishioner to contribute. It is essential that we demonstrate our donor our own commitment to the health of the parish.

Andrew Sheranian at St. Paul's

On Sunday, 10 March 2013, at 3 o'clock in the afternoon, Andrew Sheranian offered an organ recital at St. Paul's Church, Harvard Square.

The program was:

Erbarm dich mein, O Herre Gott (BWV 721)
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)

Prelude and Fugue in A minor (BWV 543)
Bach

Tempore Quadragesimali (from the Tabulatura Nova)
Hymnus: "Christe, qui lux es et dies"
Samuel Scheidt (1587-1653)

Choral (from Deuxième Symphonie, Opus 20)
Louis Vierne (1870-1937)

All Saints' at St. Paul's, Harvard Square

The afternoon of the Third Sunday in Lent, 3 March 2013, at 4 o'clock, the All Saints Choir of Men & Boys joined the Men and boys of the Choir of St. Paul's Church, Harvard Square in a Vespers service at St. Paul's Church, Harvard Square.

The music was:

Super flumina Babylonis – Palestrina
Pater Noster – Stanford
Magnificat for St. Paul's Cathedral – Howells
Salvator mundi – Tallis

Last year the St. Paul's choir came to Ashmont for a special Marian Solemn Evensong & Procession. And, last year, also on the Third Sunday in Lent, All Saints' went to Harvard Square, to sing a Vespers service with the St. Paul's choir.

We are delighted to continue this Red Line tradition between our two choirs of men and boys.

Fr. Sam Keyes, Preacher and Celebrant

Our celebrant and preacher for the Third Sunday of Lent was Fr. Sam Keyes.

Fr. Keyes is a priest of the Diocese of Dallas. He has studied at Nashotah House, and is currently a graduate student at Boston College in historical theology, with particular interest in the medieval period.

Fr. Keyes covered the masses last July during the Rector's vacation. We are delighted to have welcomed him back to All Saints' again.

Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper

Despite snow banks and crowed roads, the faithful came out to support the Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper in the lower hall of the Parish House. Proceeds of the supper benefited the Choir Fund.

The Friends of the Choir prepared the meal and the trebles of the choir provided table service.

Several times during the meal the teens took a break from serving food to serenade our guests. Our nascent Ashmont acapella group borrowed a page from the Harvard Glee Club and performed "Good Old Acapella" and a rendition of Michael Jackson's "Beat It."

Peter Johnson Preaches

Peter Johnson was the guest preacher for All Saints' at the Sunday 10 a.m. mass on 3 February 2013.

Mr. Johnson is a postulant for Holy Orders in the Diocese of Connecticut. He is a graduate of Hinsdale High School in Illinois and of Yale College where he received honors in Humanities. At Yale he was chairman of the Tory Party of the Yale Political Union (Yale's debating society), president of Choose Life at Yale, and a member of the Yale Baseball Club. He is currently a second year student at the Berkeley Divinity School at Yale. He is the holder of a full merit scholarship from the Yale Institute of Sacred Music. Prior to attending Berkeley he served as administrator of Christ Church, New Haven, the great Anglo-Catholic parish in that city. He currently serves as seminarian intern at Trinity Church on the Green in New Haven. He is an ensign in the U.S. Navy and part of the Chaplain Candidate Program.

Candlemas at Ashmont

Candlemas was celebrated at All Saints' on 3 February 2013, Sunday afternoon at 4 o'clock in the afternoon, with Solemn Evensong, Procession to the Shrine of Our Lady of Dorchester, and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament.

The preacher was the Rev'd Timothy E. Schenck, Rector of St. John the Evangelist Church, Hingham.

The Presentation of Christ in the Temple, commonly called The Purification of Saint Mary the Virgin, or Candlemas, is traditionally considered the last feast of the forty day-long cycle of the Feasts of the Incarnation: Christmas, Epiphany, the Baptism, and Candlemas.

The service was sung by the Choir of All Saints' Church, Worcester, combined with the full choir of the All Saints' Ashmont Men & Boys. The choir stalls were full to overflowing: more than 60 choristers were in their place to help lead the worship for this special feast.

A reception followed in the Amelia Peabody Hall in the parish house adjacent to the church.

The preacher, Fr. Schenck has served since 2009 as the rector at the Church of St. John in Hingham. He trained at Seabury Western Theological Seminary and has served parishes in Baltimore, Maryland, and Briarcliff Manor, New York. Long time members of All Saints' may recall a bit of a connection to Ashmont: Fr. Magruder who served All Saints' as an assisting priest for several decades in his retirement had been the long-time rector of St. John the Evangelist. It is his beautiful ivory crucifix which hangs over the credence at the Ashmont high altar.

The music was:

Responses – Philip Radcliffe
Psalm 84 Anglican Chant: Charles H. H. Parry
Magnificat in C – Charles Villiers Stanford
Nunc dimittis – Gustav Holst
Lux aurumque – Eric Whitacre

Prelude and Fugue in B – Marcel Dupré

Despite the fact that the NFL persists in scheduling the Super Bowl for the Sunday afternoon closest to Candlemas, pious fans were able to get home in time for the Super Bowl XLVII kick-off. There was plenty of time to celebrate Candlemas at Ashmont and to enjoy the Super Bowl.

And it was sweet to see the Ravens win their second Superbowl, now perhaps putting to rest Baltimore memories of "Bob Irsay's Midnight Ride" to Indianapolis.

Guiseppe Gagliano Preaches

Our guest preacher for the Solemn Mass on the Third Sunday of Epiphany, 27 January 2013, was Guiseppe Gagliano.

Mr. Gagliano is a postulant for Holy Orders in the Diocese of Ontario in the Anglican Church of Canada. An honors graduate of Queen's University (where he won the Departmental Medal in Religious Studies), he is currently a third year student at the Berkeley Divinity School at Yale. He serves as the seminary's coordinator for community engagement in service. During past summers, he has been chaplain at an Anglican summer camp and lay pastoral assistant at Christ Church, Cataraqui, Ontario. He is currently the Advanced Seminary Intern at the Episcopal Church at Yale, where he officiates at services, preaches, and leads weekly Bible studies.

Harvard Glee Sings the Mass at Ashmont

The Harvard Glee Club came to Ashmont for the 10 a.m. Solemn Mass on Sunday, 27 January 2013 to join with the Ashmont Men & Boys Choir in singing Maurice Duruflé's Missa 'Cum Jubilo.'

It was our great honor and delight to welcome the Harvard men, and their director, Andrew Clark, back to Ashmont.

The collaborative relationship between the two choirs, now in its second year, continues to enliven and enrich them usic program here at All Saints.

The Third Sunday after Epiphany marks the first time in which the Harvard Glee Club sang the mass in the church in which their first official director was once Organist and Choirmaster: Archibald T. Davison was employed here at All Saints from 1906 to 1910. It was after playing and directing at Ashmont that he then went on to take a post at the Memorial Church at Harvard.

The Glee Club joined the All Saints' Choir of Men & Boys in singing a mas by French organist and composer Maurice Duruflé (1901-1986). Messe 'Cum jubilo' is scored for unison men's voices and organ. Duruflé's music is steeped in the late-romantic French school of harmony. Along with many of his contemporaries, Duruflé was heavily influenced by the revival of Gregorian chant by the monks at the abbey of Solesmes. This mass, being no exception, is based on the Gregorian chant mass of the same name (known in our 1940 Hymnal as the "Fourth Communion Service," at #719). Its sumptuous and impressionistic harmonies (along with the sonorousness of a male choir singing in unison) combine with the airborne elasticity of the plainsong to create a rich and evocative aural texture.

Due to the size of the choir, the gentlemen of the choir and the Glee Club sang the mass from the back of the church, while the boys led worship as usual from the the choir stalls.

Charles, King and Martyr

The Annual Mass of the Society of King Charles the Martyr was held at All Saints' on Saturday, 26 January 2013.

The preacher was The Rev'd John Alexander, Rector of S. Stephen's Church, Providence, Rhode Island.

The mass setting was Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Missa in C 'Spatzenmesse', sung by the full choir of Men & Boys, with voluntaries by César Franck and Henri Mulet.

The Society commemorates the martyrdom of King Charles, promotes knowledge of his life and works, and encourages a wider observation of his feast day. All Saints' has its own shrine to Charles, located next to the confessional at the west end of the church.

Annual Acolyte Vespers

On the afternoon of 13 January 2013, five acolytes from Ashmont served with acolytes from several AME parishes at the Annual Acolyte Vespers at the Historic Charles Street African Methodist Episcopal Church on Warren Street in Roxbury.

Besides those from Charles Street, the other participating acolytes were from the Union United Methodist Church in Boston's South End and Bethel AME Church, New Haven.

The preacher was the Reverend Monique Harris, Associate Minister for Prayer Life at Charles Street AME Church.

The Ashmont acolytes, with lighted thurible, processional cross, and torches, led the entrance procession around the interior of the church.

Annual Sunday School Christmas Pageant

The All Saints' Sunday School offered its annual Christmas Pageant at the coffee hour after the Solemn Mass on 23 December, the Fourth Sunday of Advent.

Joint Concert with Boston City Singers

The boys of the All Saints' Choir presented a joint holiday concert with the Boston City Singers in the church on 18 December 2012 at 7 p.m.

The concert concluded with a community sing-along of traditional seasonal songs.

Contributions received from those in attendance went directly to the All Saints' Building Restoration Fund.

Treda Collier on Advent III

Treda C. Collier came to Ashmont to preach on 16 December 2012 the third Sunday of Advent.

Ms. Collier is a graduate of the University of Hartford and received her M.A. in Liberal Studies from Wesleyan University. She has had an extensive career in education, serving Phillip Exeter Academy, Cheshire Academy, and other independent schools in administrative posts such as Director of Admission and Assistant Dean of Students. A twenty-two year member of First Cathedral in Bloomfield, Connecticut, she is currently at Yale Divinity School and anticipating ordination to the ministry of the American Baptist Church.

Lessons & Carols at Ashmont

On the evening of the Third Sunday in Advent, 16 December 2012, at 4 p.m., the full Choir of Men and Boys will sing A Festival of Nine Lessons & Carols. This service is a part of the advent preparation for Christmas and is beloved by both the Ashmont parish family and the surrounding community. The church tends to be full each year for this service.

Begun in 1918, one month after the Armistice that brought World War I to an end, Lessons & Carols has been sung at King's College, Cambridge ever since. All Saints' follows the form of the service used at King's.

After an organ voluntary is played on the C.B. Fisk organ, the congregation stands and a single boy's voice sings out the first verse of the carol Once in royal David's city.

There follows just over an hour of lessons and carols and congregational hymns. The lessons are read from the traditional Authorized, or King James version, of the Bible. The carols sung by the choir are a mix of familiar and new. The hymns sung by the choir and congregation are the old favorites that have stood the test of time.

Together, these lessons, the carols, and the hymns proclaim the great arc of the human story from the mystery of the Fall to the greater mystery of the Incarnation of the child Jesus, sheltered in a stable shed in Bethlehem.

Plan now to make this beautiful service a continuing part of your Christmas tradition.

Seek him that maketh the seven stars – Jonathan Dove
The Lamb – John Tavener
Lo, how a rose e'er blooming – Jan Sandström
There shall a star – Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy
Lux aurumque – Eric Whitacre
What is this lovely fragrance – Healey Willan
Gaude Virgo – Josquin des Prez
In the bleak midwinter – Harold Darke
Bogoroditse devo – Sergei Rachmaninoff
Joys Seven – arr. Stephen Cleobury

Lessons & Carols in Winthrop

On Saturday, 15 December 2012, at one o'clock in the afternoon, the All Saints Choir of Men & Boys will sing the service of Lessons and Carol at the parish of St. John the Evangelist, Winthrop. The will be a delicious meal after the service for both the choir and those who attend the service. Details for the supper are forthcoming.

Contributions will be gladly accepted at the service to support the work of the Ashmont choir.

St. John the Evangelist has hosted the All Saints Choir for over a decade as annually these two parishes have joined in preparation for the Nativity of Our Lord and Savior in the prayerful offering of this service. It is a treasured favorite of the people of St. John's as much as it is for the folk at Ashmont.

All Saints' Brunch

The Hospitality Committee hosted the All Saints' Brunch during coffee hour on Sunday, November 4, 2012. It was a fund raiser to benefit our building restoration needs. We are greatly appreciative of all who came to join us for a delicious meal and the opportunity to help the parish.

We have hosted brunches in the past, but this one was set up differently. Rather than served sit-down style, this brunch was served buffet style, with two identical serving lines. There was a large variety of wonderful foods prepared by our committee members, including a huge dessert table. Mimosas, bloody Marys, assorted juices, sodas, and sparkling water with a twist were available at the beverage table.

The All Saints Brunch is just one of several occasions during the year when the parish lays out a groaning table for its guests and members. This brunch was a very special event and if you missed it, please keep an eye on this space for when we announce the Candlemas Evensong and Benediction. There is usually a big reception after that Sunday evening service

Choral Evensong at All Saints',Worcester

The Ashmont Choir of of Men & Boys traveled again this year to All Saints' Church in Worcester to sing a service of Choral Evensong with their choir on the afternoon of Sunday, 4 November 2012.

Our choirs complement each other and it is always a pleasure to worship in All Saints' grand space.

The souls of the righteous – Geraint Lewis
Responses – Phillip Radcliffe
Psalm 96 – Anglican Chant by Charles Villiers Stanford
The Second Service –Kenneth Leighton
The Beatitudes – Arvo Pärt

Guild of All Souls at All Saints'

The Guild of All Souls gathered at Ashmont for its annual requiem mass on Saturday, 10 November 2012. A light lunch in Peabody Hall followed the solemn mass. This service was both the annual gathering of guild members and the opportunity for the parish family to remember the faithful departed at a solemn requiem.

Following the lunch, the well-known recitalist David Enslow played a recital.

The Guild of All Souls, founded in England in 1873, is a Prayer Guild within the worldwide Anglican Communion, which seeks to promote the Church's teaching in regard to the Faithful Departed through Intercessory prayer for the Dying and for the Repose of the Souls of the Departed; encouraging Christian customs at burials, especially the offering of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, and promoting two great doctrines of the Christian Creed: The Communion of Saints and The Resurrection from the Dead.

Service Music
Requiem in Eb, opus 84 – Josef Gabriel Rheinberger
Selig sind die Toten – Heinrich Schütz
Organ
Adagio (Sonata XV) – Josef Gabriel Rheinberger
Phantasie (Sonata XV) – Josef Gabriel Rheinberger

The parish also celebrated All Souls on the day, Friday, 2 November 2012, at two low mass requiems at 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.

David Enlow Recital, 10 November 2012

The Guild of All Souls sponsored an organ recital by David Enlow on Ashmont's C.B. Fisk, Opus 103, Centennial Organ after its annual requiem, 10 November 2012 at 1:30 p.m.

Mr. Enlow, Organist and Choirmaster at the Church of the Resurrection in New York City and a well known recitalist played works by Bach, Mozart, C.P.E. Bach, Widor, and Vierne.

Bishop of Peshawar Stranded in New Haven

We were disappointed that our guest preacher for All Saints was unable to be with us. The recent hurricane Sandy made travel impossible for him. We hope to welcome Bp. Rumalshah to Ashmont another time.

The Rt. Rev'd Mano Rumalshah is retired Anglican Bishop of Peshawar in the Church of Pakistan. Bishop Rumalshah is currently teaching at Berkley Divinity School at Yale, having been bishop of his diocese from 1994 to 2009. For part of that time he was also the General Secretary of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel. Following a curacy in Karachi, he has served several English parishes in Leeds and Southhall as well as being Education Secretary for the British Council of Churches. He has also taught English at St. Edward's College in Pakistan. With his rich and varied experience, Bishop Rumalshah is someone who not only has a global perspective on the faith, but has the added credibility of having lived that faith as part of a small persecuted Christian minority.

Our All Saints' Day Solemn Mass with Procession was at 7 p.m. on Thursday, 1 November 2012.

Service Music
Communion Service in a – Harold Darke
Psalm 149 – Anglican Chant by John Barnard
The Beatitudes – Arvo Pärt
Organ
Choral in E – César Franck
Litanies – Jehan Alain

Fr. Godderz Installed as SSC Master

At the annual Synod of the Society of the Holy Cross Fr. Godderz was installed as the Master of the Province of the Americas. The Synod and Installation were held at Grace and St. Peter's Parish in Baltimore, Wednesday, 19 September 2012,

The SSC (as it is commonly known, from its Latin initials) is the oldest catholic society in the Anglican Communion. It was founded in London in 1855 by a small group of Anglo-Catholic priests led by Father Charles Lowder. At a time when the Catholic Revival in the Church of England was threatened by persecution and misunderstanding, these priests came together for support, mutual prayer, and encouragement.

There are now over a thousand priests and bishops throughout the world who belong to the SSC. The Province of the Americas is the second largest of the four provinces with some two hundred brothers. While most are in the United States, members range from Canada through Central America, Peru, and the Carribean Islands.

SSC is not a devotional guild, but takes its stance upon a shared vision of "a disciplined priestly life fashioned after a definite spiritual rule." Its goal is the sanctification of priests' lives. Member of the Society can be recognized by the small gold lapel cross that they generally wear. On it is inscribed the motto of the Society—in hoc signo vinces—in this sign, conquer!

This is actually the second time that a priest from All Saints' has been called to lead the work of the SSC in this region. Fr. Titus Oates, twelfth rector, held the position of Provincial Vicar (as it was then called), even presiding over the meeting at which Fr. Godderz was elected to membership in the Society. This is a particular honor for All Saints', for no other church in this province can claim such a distinction.

Doc Davison, 'a Native Dorchesterite'

Douglass Shand Tucci's 1975 Centennial History of All Saints' Ashmont is an intricately written trove of facts about the first hundred years of the parish.

While perusing it recently, your editors came across further evidence of the important link between fine organs and excellent musicians at Ashmont.

In 1902 the parish paid to install a distinguished chancel organ behind handsome new casework designed by Ralph Adams Cram. The organ was built by the Hutchings-Votey Company, who had just recently built the organ for Boston's new Symphony Hall.

On page 37, Tucci goes on to tell that, "The new organ, by the way, soon enough yielded a new organist and choirmaster, for in 1906, [the rector, Charles] Whittemore appointed to that post Dr. Archibald Davison, a native Dorchesterite who had earned both his bachelor's and graduate degrees at Harvard, and whose musicianship was such that he went on to become one of the most distinguished American musicians of his time in the field of choral music as the Director of the Harvard Glee Club and Radcliffe Chorus. Davison was himself twice soloist with Koussevitksy, and M.A. DeWolfe Howe, the historian of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, credited Davison with having created in his glee club virtually an 'unexampled creation,' without which Koussevitsky's choral repertoire 'could scarcely have been achieved.'"

The photograph of Archibald Davison is from the Dorchester Historical Society's Dorchester Illustration of the Day no. 1747. An appreciation of Davison, written immediately after his death in 1961, can be seen in the Harvard Crimson's archives.

Parish Potluck BBQ

Sunday, 16 September 2012, following the Solemn Mass, the parish enjoyed its autumn potluck barbecue with plenty of food and fellowship. The All Saints' fall program kicked off that Sunday with the start of the Church School and the first Sunday of the Choir Term.

All Saints' Bells Rang Out on Charter Day

An Ashmont bellringer mounted the steps up the All Saints' tower to its ringing chamber on Friday, 7 September, to join three other Dorchester parishes to commemorate Charter Day.

Together with First Baptist Church of Dorchester, First Parish Church in Dorchester, and St. Mark Parish, the chime sounded for one minute at 4:30 pm to commemorate historic naming on 7 September 1630, of the three towns of Dorchester, Boston, & Watertown.

As Thomas O'Connor, former professor of history at Boston College tells it, in his short history of Boston, Bibles, Brahmins, and Bosses:

Church bells also rang out in downtown Boston and in Watertown for this 382nd anniversary.

Check out The Partnership of the Historic Bostons for information on the event.

Feast of the Assumption

Whether you call it the Feast of St. Mary the Virgin, the Falling Asleep, the Dormition, or the Koimesis, you can be sure that the Feast of the Assumption is always marked with great enthusiasm at Ashmont .

This year was no different. On Wednesday, 15 August 2012, at 7 o'clock in the evening, we began our celebration with a candle-lit procession while we sang the Lourdes Hymn. At the station at the Shrine of Our Lady of Dorchester the entire congregation gathered around to sing the Regina Coeli. We then returned to the high altar for the solemn mass singing 'Ye who own the faith of Jesus.' We concluded our observance with a festive reception.

The mass setting was Missa Misericordias Domini by Josef Gabriel Rheinberger sung by the full Choir of Men & Boys. The anthem was Ave maris stella by Eleanor Daley and the psalm was by Edgar Day.

We we were privileged to have The Reverend Daphne B. Noyes, Deacon, as our preacher.

The Feast of the Assumption is one of the feasts of the year we share with our sister parish, The Church of the Advent. We were not disappointed as the pews were filled with many familiar faces from the Advent. We were equally pleased to see many priests and folk from other parishes in the diocese.

For the Ascension and Michaelmas, All Saints takes the Red Line from Ashmont to the Advent. For Candlemas and the Assumption, the Advent returns the favor by traveling to Ashmont.

Ashmont Boys in Lennoxville & Montréal

Check out pics from the 2012 Montréal Boys' Choir Course!

Sunday evening, on the 5th August, the 2012 Class of the Montréal Boys' Choir Course sang an evening Choral Eucharist at Christ Church Cathedral, Montréal to cap the annual, week-long choir camp.

The Bishop of Montréal, the Right Rev'd Barry B. Clarke presided. The Rev'd Edmund Pickup, Jr, preached. This final service of this year's choir course was broadcast live on Radio Ville-Marie.

Our well-placed informant from within the camp was totally right:  the Josef Rheinberger Mass and Gerald Finzi's 'Lo, the full final sacrifice' were both terrific!

The anthem at communion was Richard Dering's Ave verum corpus. The prelude was Ralph Vaughan William's 'Lord, enthroned in heavenly splendour (Bryn Calfaria).'

The postlude was new music written by the course director, Malcolm Archer, "A Festival Toccata." First performed in November on the new organ at St. John's, Boxmoor, the choir course members were privileged to hear the North American premier in Lennoxville and again in Montreal.

Ten of our choirboys attended the choir course this year, a program of the Royal School of Church Music, held at Bishop's College School in Next year we hope to send even more

Boys come from Boston, Massachusetts, Albany, DeWitt, Garden City, and Rye, New York, Lexington, Kentucky, Greenwich, Connecticut, Arlington, Franklin, and Williamsburg, Virginia, Elk River and St. Paul, Minnesota, Montréal and Saint-Lambert, Québec, Verona, Wisconsin, and Salem, Oregon.

The full choir of Men and Boys will begin the 2012/13 choral term on Sunday, 16 September.

If you know of a musically-inclined boy entering the 3rd to 5th grade, please contact the Choirmaster, Andrew Sheranian.

Summer 2012 at Ashmont

God does not take the summer off. Neither should we. Our place is in church, at weekday masses as we are able, and Sunday by Sunday from love and by obligation. Boston traffic is very light on a summer Sunday morning. All Saints' has a parking lot and there is plenty of on-street parking behind the church on Lombard Street.

All Saints' is easy to get to, about a thirty-minute ride from the city center on the MBTA Red Line to the brand new Ashmont Station.

The round of services at Ashmont during the summer varies very little from the rest of the year. The occasional weekday mass may not be celebrated on account of clergy vacations. The usual Solemn Mass may be replaced by a Sung Mass with incense on several Sundays of July and August. But, the Sunday masses at eight and ten o'clock are always celebrated.

As the Choir of Men and Boys has a well-deserved respite after its service during the academic term, the congregation sings the ordinary of the mass (Kyrie, Gloria, Sanctus, Benedictus & Agnus Dei) to Healey Willan's 1928 setting, the Second Communion Service in the Hymnal 1940 (710-713).

Members of the parish set out a nice coffee hour after the ten o'clock Sunday mass throughout the year. There are always coffee, tea, juice, and a variety of finger food. If you are looking for a more substantial meal after the coffee hour, you will find a pair well-reviewed restaurants within a three-minute walk of the church (Ashmont Grill and Tavolo), plus a nice coffee shop (Flatblack), and the excellent Johnny's Pizza, where the choir boys gorge before the occasional solemn evensong.

Whether you are a parishioner or a visitor to Boston, please join us and make your place in church.

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