Emmanuel Episcopal Church Announces Holiday Services

The following is an announcement from Emmanuel Episcopal Church:

Emmanuel Episcopal Church, located adjacent to the Veterans’ Memorial Common at the corner of Main and Bryant Street, welcomes the Christmas season and the religious observance of Christ’s nativity with several special services to which the greater Wakefield community is invited. 

On Monday, December 24, Emmanuel celebrates Christmas Eve with a Festival Choral Eucharist at 5:00 p.m., with music beginning at 4:45 p.m.  Emmanuel's Rector, the Reverend Matthew P. Cadwell, will officiate and offer a Christmas sermon.  The parish musicians, under the leadership of Michael Salvatore, have been preparing for a grand Christmas Eve service for the past several weeks. 

This year’s musical selections for Christmas Eve will have a German flavor, with the Emmanuel Parish Choir and guest instrumentalists performing A German Christmas arranged by Margaret Tucker and In Ducli Jubilo by Dietrich Buxtehude.  The choir will also sing the beloved “Hallelujah Chorus” from G. F. Handel’s Messiah.  The carol singing for choir and congregation begins at 4:45.  Local violinist and teacher, Dr. Caroline Lieber of Wakefield Music, will play selections along with several of Emmanuel's youth and other guests, all on strings. The children will be invited to arrange the crèche during the offertory as the congregation sings Gustav Holst's “In the Bleak Midwinter,” and following Holy Communion the congregation will pause to sing “Silent Night” by candlelight.   The service concludes with the joyous carol, “Joy to the World!”

On Christmas morning, Tuesday, December 25, Emmanuel will offer a single Christmas Day service of Holy Communion at 9:00 a.m. using the majestic language of the Book of Common Prayer.  This service is reflective in tone and provides a quieter balance to the hectic Christmas season.  Many favorite Christmas carols will be sung and the Reverend Cadwell will offer a Christmas morning meditation. 

Sunday, December 30, the church will hold a single 9:00 a.m. service of Christmas Matins, with Harry Walton, seminarian from the Episcopal Divinity School in Cambridge, officiating.  The service includes Christmas readings, carols and a sermon by parishioner David Sullivan.  Matins (also known as Morning Prayer) is a beloved service in the Anglican/Episcopal tradition dating back to the English Reformation, which the parish is pleased to offer again this year on the First Sunday after Christmas.

Emmanuel is a diverse and inclusive community to which longtime members, newcomers and visitors from all backgrounds are always welcome. The church is handicapped accessible.  

For more information contact the church office at 781-245-1374 or visit the church website at www.emmanuelwakefield.org.