Advent Service for Healing and Peace

As we prepare for Christmas, we will gather for our December Service for Healing and Peace on the 3rd Wednesday in December from 7 to 7:30 p.m. in the Sanctuary. Come and share in this time of quiet music and prayers to help prepare for this holy season. You may light a candle for a loved one, and there is a time for individual prayers for healing or to pray for loved ones who are undergoing challenging times.

The Christmas season can be a joyful and lovely time, but it can be a very difficult time for those experiencing loss, grief, loneliness or sickness. This service will give a moment and place to feel the warmth of God's embrace and a time to let our hearts rest in the peace of Christ. This in itself is a healing respite from the commercialism and noise of our culture's holiday preparation.  Please set aside a little time on your calendar to join us, and invite friends and neighbors who may also find this experience to be a meaningful moment in this season.

 

Christmas Music Sunday

On the Sunday before Christmas each year, at our 10 a.m. service, our Senior Choir and Chancel Hand bell Choir offer their annual Christmas gift in a Service of Music for Christmas. The theme of the 2013 music service is "Sing Gloria."  The church will be decked out in poinsettias, given in memory and in honor of loved ones of the members of our church. Following the service, everyone is invited to gather in Fellowship Hall for a holiday Coffee Hour with delicious pastries and treats.

At our 8:30 service that morning, Rev. Haut will give a sermon based on the readings for the 3rd Sunday in Advent, there will be no sermon at the 10 a.m. service.

 

Las Posadas Celebration

Join us at our annual Las Posadas celebration!  This annual Christmas Procession along Main St. in Deep River is held on a Sunday afternoon before Christmas. The procession is led by Mary and Joseph and their donkey in the style of the 400-year-old Mexican tradition of Las Posadas.  Everyone is invited to gather in front of the Deep River Library at 1 p.m. and process down Main St. to the church, singing Christmas carols and knocking on some doors to see if we can find shelter for Mary and Joseph on their way to Bethlehem. In other years we have made stops at Main Street shops, private homes, and the local bed and breakfast. We have also marched into the Adams grocery store (not the donkey) and sung carols for the customers there, too.  As we return to the church, we will share in refreshments and the kids will be invited to participate in the festive breaking of a piñata. In case of bad weather, the event will take place the following Sunday week.  See our 'Events Calendar" for specific date and time!

 

Christmas Eve in Deep River

Christmas Eve is a special time around the world, and in Deep River celebrations often include our traditional services at the Congregational Church. These include our annual Christmas Pageant and our Candle-light Communion Service.  

The annual Christmas Pageant, held on Christmas Eve here since 1942 when it was begun by the former pastor Rev. Walter Euston, will begin at 5:30 p.m. Entitled "Thy Light Is Come," the Christmas story from the Bible is told by shepherds, wise men, angels, and the Holy Family (including a live baby Jesus) portrayed by young people of the church. The front of the church is transformed into a stable in Bethlehem as the congregation joins in singing the cast in singing familiar Christmas carols. The Pageant will be directed again by Candi Turner, who has led the Pageant for nearly 30 years.

At 11 p.m. our Christmas Candlelight Communion Service is held. Rev. Timothy Haut gives the sermon and the congregation is invited to share in Communion at the front of the church. We also sing beloved carols, and the service concludes with everyone lighting an individual candle as we sing Si-lent Night and carry our candles out into the midnight world. Please invite friends and neighbors to share in this beautiful tradition.

 

Christmas Family Service

The Sunday following Christmas, we feature our annual Christmas Season Family Service at 10 a.m. There is NO 8:30 Service on that Sunday.

This joyful celebration of the Christmas Season will include the singing of carols and a Christmas Story by Rev. Haut in place of a sermon. We also perform our annual "Good King Wenceslas" Pageant, with the parts played by members of the congregation, young and old. The Service also includes the Sacrament of Baptism.  Following the service our Christmas Sunday coffee hour includes the ever-popular Aerobic Version of the Twelve Days of Christmas. Sneakers are not required.