Tuesday, June 3, 2014
New posts from the 2014 Choir Tour coming soon!
The Cathedral Choir will be heading off to England July 18, 2014, through July 28, 2014. Check back here to follow their experience this summer!
Monday, July 30, 2012
The Face of Mission
The Face of Mission
What does mission look like? If you ask me, or any member of the cathedral
choir who participated in our pilgrimage, mission looks like the face of a
woman name Sadie, who ran the Travelodge in Ely, England. Our first encounter
with Sadie came during our nightly Compline services; we had wanted to hold the
service outside, but rain forced us into the hotel lobby. As the choir's young people gathered around
to hear Scripture and pray for their loved ones back home, Sadie, barely visible
behind the counter, listened. But she wasn't listening to our funny accents,
she was listening to our prayers. And when the youth started in on the Lord's
Prayer, Sadie closed her eyes, and with tears streaming down, joined us as she
mouthed the words.
When the service ended, several of us struck up a
conversation with Sadie, asking about her town, her job, her life. Sadie's life has been one of struggle: an estranged marriage, health issues, too
many bills. That service, she told us, was the first time she had been "in
church" in 25 years! "What
happened?" I asked. "Life," she replied.
During our stay Sadie went out of her way to make us feel
as comfortable as possible. And on Saturday night, she (on her day off) brought
her son to hear our choir sing Evensong in the cathedral's Lady Chapel. Tears of pride
swelled in her eyes, tears that came from direct contact with the Spirit of
God. Those same tears were present as she joined us for Morning Prayer and saw
us off when we left from Ely for Edinburgh two days later. She had become part
of our family, our story, our church.
For all the beautiful music that the choir provided (and
believe me, it was BEAUTIFUL) many youth and adults alike pointed to Sadie and
said, "This is why we are here." Mission is about making
relationships and sharing God's love with those around us. Not only did we share that love with Sadie, but she, through her storytelling and attention to our needs, shared it with us. Our choir members offered glorious music with the cathedrals of Ely and Edinburgh, but their serenade of
Sadie prior to a 6:30 am bus ride was, for me, the highlight of the trip. It was as though every member of the choir
understood in that moment that God was present, and that this was foretaste of
the Kingdom.
We sometimes like to imagine mission on a grand scale
(building houses, repairing bridges, preaching to non-believers). But more
often than not mission happens in the unexpected relationships that we form.
None of us will forget Sadie, and her story reminds us that the face of God is
present in everyone. We need only create
the space where the music of the Spirit can be heard.
Joe Mitchell, Curate
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Reflections from our Choristers
Today and throughout the tour, I have noticed how much I have connected to God. I reached God through the people in teh congregation adn my fellow choristers. When the choir was in Ely, I saw that in each service more people showed up to hear us sing. I feel that Mr. Balling helped bring our American choir to the UK, and impacted the people and gave a good reputation to our church, our choir and our country.
-Zach Jones
Although walking through the streets of England and Scotland was a fun part of the tour; my personal favorite part was singing in Ely Cathedral. We are so blessed to have been able to sing in such a big an dbeautiful space like Ely. I loved seeing the faces of the people who were moved and touched by our music. One thing I will take away from this tour is that even if we don't realize it, we affect people every day with our music.
-Madi Fogarty
This tour has been a great experience. I feel closer to God and the people in the choir. The cathedrals were amazing. It was interesting learning about the history of the churches.
- Tyler Jackson
This trip to England and Scotland marks my final European tour as an official member of the CCC Girls Choir, and I could not have asked for a better time. The places we have seen, the friends we have made, and the beautiful music we have shared come together to form some of my most cherished memories. These past two weeks have been a blast, and I am sorry to see it end. Thank your to everyone for their prayers and support!
-Caroline Balling
My second trip to England, and first to Scotland was a wonderful experience. The time we spent in Lincoln in 2009 was fun, but I don't think I understood the meaning of what we were doing. This time around in Ely & Edinburgh, I believe that I have connected with others and with God in more ways than I ever have. This time, also, I was singing all of our repertoire in a new part, so I had a chance to really appreciate the music and in turn, connect with my fellow choir members and God. Mealtimes were another time that brought us together on this trip. It was a time where we could just sit and talk with new people about their experiences on the trip.
-Connor Dellarosa
p.s. Haggis is delicious!!
A sI look back on the past week and a half, I realize how our actions have affected others. The first time we sang in Ely Cathedral and people stopped to listen, I thought "cool". Then I really thought about how our music was possibly changing their lives. The other choristers started thinkgin of this as well and soon singing was no longer just fun, but a responsiblity to God adn the people who don't know him yet. As we were doing this, we were growing more into a collective group of people working together to have fun while changing peoples lives forever. I am so proud to be a member of this choir family and really excited to sing more in the future. God has truly touched the lives of everyone on this tour and we have been given a gift to do the same to others.
-Abbie Paris
-Zach Jones
Although walking through the streets of England and Scotland was a fun part of the tour; my personal favorite part was singing in Ely Cathedral. We are so blessed to have been able to sing in such a big an dbeautiful space like Ely. I loved seeing the faces of the people who were moved and touched by our music. One thing I will take away from this tour is that even if we don't realize it, we affect people every day with our music.
-Madi Fogarty
This tour has been a great experience. I feel closer to God and the people in the choir. The cathedrals were amazing. It was interesting learning about the history of the churches.
- Tyler Jackson
This trip to England and Scotland marks my final European tour as an official member of the CCC Girls Choir, and I could not have asked for a better time. The places we have seen, the friends we have made, and the beautiful music we have shared come together to form some of my most cherished memories. These past two weeks have been a blast, and I am sorry to see it end. Thank your to everyone for their prayers and support!
-Caroline Balling
My second trip to England, and first to Scotland was a wonderful experience. The time we spent in Lincoln in 2009 was fun, but I don't think I understood the meaning of what we were doing. This time around in Ely & Edinburgh, I believe that I have connected with others and with God in more ways than I ever have. This time, also, I was singing all of our repertoire in a new part, so I had a chance to really appreciate the music and in turn, connect with my fellow choir members and God. Mealtimes were another time that brought us together on this trip. It was a time where we could just sit and talk with new people about their experiences on the trip.
-Connor Dellarosa
p.s. Haggis is delicious!!
A sI look back on the past week and a half, I realize how our actions have affected others. The first time we sang in Ely Cathedral and people stopped to listen, I thought "cool". Then I really thought about how our music was possibly changing their lives. The other choristers started thinkgin of this as well and soon singing was no longer just fun, but a responsiblity to God adn the people who don't know him yet. As we were doing this, we were growing more into a collective group of people working together to have fun while changing peoples lives forever. I am so proud to be a member of this choir family and really excited to sing more in the future. God has truly touched the lives of everyone on this tour and we have been given a gift to do the same to others.
-Abbie Paris
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Little Ambassadors
From Peggy Sullinger, chaperone and grand parent
To all in Lexington
Greetings from Scotland. I wanted to write a bit about my young group of girls. the youngest in our huge family. We always break up in groups around lunch time and eat and walk around the city. Maybe because our girls are young we have many people stopping to talk to them. Many of the people stop us to talk and ask about the children. where are we singing, where are we from, can they stop in to hear them sing and when will they be back ? One gentleman ask them about their music and the girls we eager to talk to him about it. the man was so surprised at their knowledge of music. I have had one invitation for the choir to come to New Zealand. A older couple came up to talk to me and said they had been to the church three nights in a row to hear the choir! The invitation was sincere. As we have traveled from town to town and church this choir has been amazing . The message of God and music go hand in hand with us and the response has been amazing.
We are like little ambassadors traveling throughout a beautiful country and it's amazing how the world responds.
Peggy Sullinger
To all in Lexington
Greetings from Scotland. I wanted to write a bit about my young group of girls. the youngest in our huge family. We always break up in groups around lunch time and eat and walk around the city. Maybe because our girls are young we have many people stopping to talk to them. Many of the people stop us to talk and ask about the children. where are we singing, where are we from, can they stop in to hear them sing and when will they be back ? One gentleman ask them about their music and the girls we eager to talk to him about it. the man was so surprised at their knowledge of music. I have had one invitation for the choir to come to New Zealand. A older couple came up to talk to me and said they had been to the church three nights in a row to hear the choir! The invitation was sincere. As we have traveled from town to town and church this choir has been amazing . The message of God and music go hand in hand with us and the response has been amazing.
We are like little ambassadors traveling throughout a beautiful country and it's amazing how the world responds.
Peggy Sullinger
Sunday, July 22, 2012
Inside Ely
From the West Door
The Nave Ceiling
Looking up at the crossing, the "Lantern". most of us got to climb to the top and walk on the roof near the top stain glass. 
The Organ Facade- the organist sits underneath this-there are many many more pipes! 
This leads into the Lady Chapel
From the high altar facing West
This modern sculpture is at the west entrance. Most of us walked right by it the first time, as your eye is drawn into the cathedral. However, after having it pointed out and it's symbolism explained, I had to look everytime! The is called the "way of the cross". It is darker at the bottom and lighter on top because we have darkness and light in our journey here on earth. It is winding, because our path contains twists and turns. If you look carefully, you will see what looks like a blemish on the left side of the cross, it is a figure of person on their journey.Now, if you look, the vertical section of the cross is a 1, the first curves form a 2, then the last curves form a 3- representing the Trinity. There is a labryinth on the floor underneath this, inviting all to walk the path to God.
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