burning like matchsticks in the face of the darkness

This morning I went to church at Trinity Boston (11:15am), which is a bit of an impressive sanctuary.

Despite having read the Sunday Services page, it hadn't clicked for me that I was choosing Sermon over Eucharist.  Which would have been my choice if I had to make one, but I've come to expect Eucharist as a given at an Episcopal service, so I was a bit jarred.

The stand/kneel/sit directions were written into the program, which I prefer to the "BCP -- go!" approach I stumbled through at St. James.

After the Opening Acclamation they did the Lighting of the Advent Wreath, but with no specific mention of any weekly theme.  Boo.

I continue to not be grabbed by the music.  (The Hymnal 1982, blue)  One of the hymns reminded me in melody of "Our God, Our Help In Ages Past," though.  And one ("Savior of the nations, come!") was by Luther, which amused me.

We said/sang "Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: As it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever," three maybe four times (Invitatory, both canticles).  I prefer the "is now and ever shall be" Gloria Patri I grew up with.

They did the Apostle's Creed.  I don't like the Harrowing of Hell, "i believe in the Holy Ghost" seems a random beginning to the last section, and I like the sound of "one holy catholic and apostolic church" (versus "the holy catholic Church").  Looking back at the Nicene, though, it goes into much more detail about the Holy Spirit (and lots of other bits), which can be problematic (I'm thinking of glacierscout saying, "there really is a lot of room for a diversity of positions about what each of the creedal statements means.").  The Apostles' states belief in "the resurrection of the body" which always strikes me, and looking back at the Nicene, it has the broader, " We look for the resurrection of the dead."  sk8eeyore: in LTJ's Creed book, does he do both creeds?

Lord's Prayer was "trespasses ... For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen."

In the prayers after the Collect of the Day, the Officiant called all the leaders by their first names (George, Mitt, Deval, Tom, etc.) and prayed for leadership, soldiers, peace, etc. in a way that actually didn't make me feel very uncomfortable.

Readings:
Zephaniah 3:14-20
Isaiah 12:2-6
Second Lesson read at 6pm only, so we didn't get Philippians 4:4-17 (which always makes me think of you, of course)
Luke 3:7-18

The sermon (Rev. Michael B. Dangelo) was about expecting and expectations, and it wasn't bad, but.  Talking about Ancient Israel and the Messiah, he talked about how God offers us limitless possibilities, but that limitless possibility is really difficult to live into, so we create limits and expectations.

I went down to coffee after service, but it was just coffee, so I turned around pretty quickly.

The insert with events had at the bottom of the first page:
Statement of Affirmation
Trinity Church in the City of Boston welcomes and honors everyone. In accordance with our baptismal covenant, we affirm the inherent worth and dignity of every person. We strive to include all persons without regard to sexual orientation, race, nationality, gender, family configuration, ethnic background, economic circumstances, difference in ability, culture, or age. Our love and acceptance of each other embody our commitment to unity with God and each other in Christ.

( memething )

***

My amusement of the day: On the Red Line home from church, these two guys (probably mid-20's) were talking and one says to the other: "I was looking at this website that [air quotes] rates [/air quotes] movies, and they were giving all my favorite movies 4's and 5's -- out of 10.  So I looked up Gladiator, like: I'm gonna kick your ass if you only give Gladiator a 4 or a 5.  It only had an 8.1.  You can view results, and there were people giving it a 1.  How can you give Gladiator a 1?  Unless you're like a hippie who hates violence."

I actually have yet to see Gladiator, so I have no real opinion on it, personally.

[I pulled up Gladiator on IMDb and lo, 8.1, so I'm thinking that must be the site he was talking about.]

***

Nobody told me that Wedding Wars doesn't just have Sean Maher but has him playing a gay man whose boyfriend is played by John Stamos.  [I glossed right past the whedonesque announcement.]  I didn't see it but was informed by ranaeressea.

***

Today was less with the motivation than I had hoped for, but I realized Secret Slasha fic is due Dec. 21 and actually wrote it.  Anyone wanna beta?

I also reprogrammed my VCR now that all shows are in winter recess.  (Ari, they reran the VMars season opener, so I have all of this season so far on tape for you.)

return dates:
CSI: Jan. 4
WaT: Jan. 14
Heroes: Jan. 22
VMars: Jan. 23
HIMYM: ?

***

Frank Crowley (whose wife my high school best friend interviewed for our AP US History WWII project) died.  Funeral's on Saturday.

     Adam Baldwin // Bones // Wednesday, March 15; 9pm, FOX // 1.15 "Two Bodies in the Lab"
Adam Baldwin has some Bones to pick.  Adam will play Agent Kenton, a fellow FBI agent of David Boreanaz's character Booth on the March 15th episode of Bones called "Two Bodies in the Lab".

     Michelle Trachtenberg // House // Tuesday, April 4; 9pm, FOX // 2.16 "Safe"
Michelle Trachtenberg to guest star on April 4th episode of Fox series House.  She'll play a teenage girl who recently had a heart transplant.

     (guest) starrage liek whoa // How I Met Your Mother // Monday, May something; 8:30 pm, CBS // season finale
links: whedonesque / zap2it / tv.com

Sidenotes:

Apparently Asia Argento and Winona Ryder are in The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things.

Thoughts on NBC's pilot Heroes?

In my mail today, a postcard from The TheaterOffensive:
Christine Jorgensen Reveals
Calderwood Pavilion, April 6-29
www.bostontheatrescene.com
I actually don't see it on said website, though now I'm debating some of the other shows that have been added to the website.

Edit: found.

Christine Jorgensen Reveals
by Bradford Louryk
Directed by Josh Hecht

4/6/2006 – 4/29/2006
The Theater Offensive
Roberts Studio Theatre


"Ex-GI Turns Blonde Beauty!” In 1952, America’s first famous transsexual was a scandal, and arguably the most famous person in the world. In Christine Jorgensen Reveals, Bradford Louryk’s exquisite, tour de force performance brings to life Jorgensen’s only recorded interview. The result is a disarming and enlightening new play about personhood and the nature of humanity in which Ms. Jorgensen–displaying extraordinary intellect, charisma, poise, and grace– speaks candidly about her sensational life. Banned in Boston since 1954, Christine was ahead of her time in understanding gender identity as a social construct, and forced the world to reconsider. Nominated for a 2006 GLAAD Media Award!

Approximate Running Time: 1 hour, 15 minutes

[polymexina, I will definitely be in touch when the full Huntington Play Reading Series list is up as I definitely wanna see Voyeurs de Venus.]

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So, the following came to my fannish e-mail address, escaping the Spam filter probably because it was only sent to a few dozen people.  I recognize lots of fannish addresses on there.  So this'll be a repeat for some of you, but it's too funny not to share.

Subject: yo bro, hit me back

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would ask of Sam at the dinner table, breaking in on a conversation of
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