With December come festivities and all of the coziness and sparkles of the season. At Westside we greet the holidays and their many celebrations with services and events that mark the meaning in each. We come together through the end of December to honor passages of time and our rituals we hold each year.
This Sunday, the 16th, our Choir Director, Anne Scott, and the choir will lead a celebration of song with a musical journey through the history of holiday carols. Also this Sunday we hold our annual Hanging of the Greens Holiday Party. It coincides with our 3rd Sunday potluck. There will be food, games, holiday crafts, tree and church decorating, and a visit from Santa!
The service on the 23rd is a celebration of light, our annual Solstice Spiral. This will be our third year observing yule through the spiral walk, and it is already a beloved tradition. Each year we welcome members of the congregation to walk to the center of the spiral to light a candle and bring its radiance, our own inner light, out into the community. Originally a children’s ceremony, we share the magic with all ages.
Our Christmas Eve service on the 24th is a celebration of Christmas. At 7:30 we will gather to observe the wonder of hope and promise at this meaningful time of year. This candlelight service is a joyful, heartfelt, and reverent observation of new possibilities, of the hopes and dreams born at this time of year.
On the 31, our service is a celebration of the New Year, with the ritual of Janus. Founding member Bill Calhoun brought this tradition to Westside many years ago. In fact, it was the first service Chris Edkins ever attended here. How many years ago was that now, Chris? This year, Chris will lead the service and carry on this much loved occasion of our worship year.
Join us for this season of holidays. Share the beauty of family and friends, of our congregation and all we hold dear. May you know you have a place to call home for your spiritual journey and that you are always welcome here no matter where you are on that journey. Happiest of Holidays!