Sightings & Soundings • September 2024

FALL 2024

CENTENARY UNITED METHODIST CHURCH

A New World Coming Beyond a dying sun I saw a vision on the sea of golden sails full billowed on the wind.

And echoing above the waves a voice called after me, "God's dwelling place is with you till the end."

I see a new world coming when everyone is free!

And all shall be God's people in justice, love, and peace.

I

- Steve Engle

grew up in a theological tradition firmly grounded in advocacy for peace and justice, and the hymn that includes the above lyrics - Beyond a Dying Sun - has been something of a denominational anthem and rallying cry since its composition in 1970. And so perhaps it's no surprise that these themes of justice and peace would be at the forefront of my vision as I ponder the impact that Music & Arts at Centenary is charged to make in this city and this world. As Music & Arts again embarks on a new year, I direct our attention to our revised and revitalized mission focus: Music & Arts at Centenary strives to infuse worship with vibrancy and depth, to build faith and community via musical and artistic programming, and to develop mission-driven initiatives that break down social barriers.

Continued on the next page Indeed, we are poised to continue to build on our remarkable post-COVID momentum in meaningful and measurable ways:

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CENTENARY UNITED METHODIST CHURCH

• We recently welcomed Sam Howell as our first Music & Arts Intern, a 10-month position supported by Centenary's Cabaniss Fund.

• We have begun a search for a full-time Associate Director of Music & Organist.

• Our Community Kindermusik Collaborative (CKC) continues to grow and to fold participants into the life of our broader Music & Arts programming and congregational life. This month, CKC will expand to support our monthly Love Thy Neighbor ministry.

• Our beginning handbell offering last fall has yielded one new regular participant in our Carillonneurs.

• Our Youth Choir Collective (YCC) continues to grow, and plans this year include collaborations with the WinstonSalem Choral Academy and Winston-Salem Choral Artists.

• Our Creative Arts Experience (CAE) embarks on its second program year after an inaugural year full of successes and a regular worship presence, and our Children's Music & Arts (CMA) summer camp is thriving.

• The visual arts wing of our ministry area will offer three faith-based art classes this fall as we seek to build a community of artists.

• We will continue to strive toward building deeply meaningful and vibrant worship, and to that end, the Centenary Choir will sing Bob Chilcott's Requiem in morning worship on All Saints' Sunday, collaborate with the St. Paul UMC and other organizations during our Festival of Nine Lessons & Carols, and will present Mozart's Requiem next spring, both in worship and in concert, in collaboration with members of the Greensboro Symphony Master Chorale.

Centenary and the Child Care Resource Center of Winston-Salem are proud to jointly offer Kindermusik classes for all children, birth through age 4 (alongside their caregiver). Join us every Wednesday in the East Building for classes using award-winning Kindermusik curricula taught by licensed and experienced Kindermusik educators!

9:00 AM | Kindermusik Foundations (0- and 1-year-olds) 10:00 AM | Kindermusik Level 1 Sing & Play (for 1- and 2-year-olds) 11:00 AM | Kindermusik Level 2 Wiggle & Grow (for 2- and 3-year-olds)

Creative Arts Experience Register your child now for Centenary’s popular Creative Arts Experience (CAE)! CAE immerses young people in a wide-ranging program which includes singing, ringing, Orff, Kindermusik, visual arts, and more, all while cultivating regular worship leadership opportunities for Centenary's youngest! Sign up now via the QR code below to join us on Wednesdays this fall!

Weekly Schedule 4:30 - 5:15 Kindermusik: Ages 2 & 3

(Adult Participation Required)*

5:15 - 6:00 Church-wide Dinner 6:00 - 7:00 CAE for ages 4 & up *Ages 2 & 3 who are not available for the Wednesday night class are eligible for a Thursday night class beginning at 5:30 PM.

• And finally, our sanctuary is now an active destination and hub for various Triad arts organizations, including UNC School of the Arts, Piedmont Opera, Piedmont Wind Symphony, North Carolina Brass Band, Winston-Salem Symphony, the Winston-Salem Choral Artists, and others.

Each of these initiatives and successes is critical to the threefold focus of Music & Arts at Centenary: worship, community, and mission. Each of these represents and embodies the work of a whole village of staff, volunteers, and supporters who believe deeply in our mission and the work that lies before us.

Return to the lyrics that opened this article. While that vision of justice, love, and peace may at first seem an other-worldly objective, the vision is actually of a reimagined here and now, a new world coming among us, God's dwelling place with us.

We work to infuse worship, build community, and break down barriers not because of some far-removed notion, but because heaven is breaking onto the scene here, because the distance between this world and the next is quite simply an illusion, because the kingdom of God is at hand.

May it be so.

- Jonathan Emmons, Director of Music Ministries 2

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CENTENARY UNITED METHODIST CHURCH

C H I L C O T T

REQUIEM A L L S A I N T S ’ S U N D AY AT C E N T E N A RY Join us in worship at 11:00 AM on November 3 as we observe All Saints’ Day with a service featuring Bob Chilcott’s Requiem, a multi-movement work for chorus, soloists, and chamber orchestra.

VISUAL ARTS THROUGH FAITH FALL 2024 ART CLASSES

with Dr. Stephen Martin, Music & Arts Chairperson • The Sights And Sounds Of Grace: An Artistic Response To Hymnody

• Every Wednesday from 9/18 to 10/23, 6:00 - 7:00 PM (part of Nourish) • Take part in this mixed-media class which will include beginning art instruction as participants explore the beauty of hymns and how they can inspire visual art. This will be a great opportunity for both beginners and advanced artists. Register via the QR code.

• Faith and Artistry: Seeking the Sacred in Creative Expression • 2 Tracks Offered • Every Monday from 10/7 to 11/18, 7:00 - 9:00 PM • Every Thursday from 10/10 to 11/21, 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM • Join us for a painting and drawing class for all levels of artistic interest. Participants

will discover the opportunity to utilize their artistic representations in relation to the church year and the rich tradition of the Christian faith. Register via the QR code.

T HE W EARY W ORLD R EJOICES A l l T h i n g s B r i g h t ADVENT WITH MUSIC & ARTS

Holiday Bells, a Benefit Concert w i t h t h e P i e d m o n t W i n d Sy m p h o n y Tu e s d a y, D e c e m b e r 3 ✦ 7 : 3 0 P M ✦ S a n c t u a r y

C h i l d re n’s C h o i r s i n Wo r s h i p Su n d a y, D e c e m b e r 8 ✦ 1 1 : 0 0 A M ✦ S a n c t u a r y

& Beautiful:

A Neighborhood Showcase NOVEMBER 10 - JANUARY 5 ATRIUM & 4 1/2 ST. GALLERIES

Have your art featured on the walls of Centenary! Consider contributing a piece to the annual Neighborhood Showcase. Contact Virginia Sheffield for submission details.

Festival of Nine Lessons & Carols Su n d a y, D e c e m b e r 1 5 ✦ 5 : 0 0 P M ✦ S a n c t u a r y

A Christmas Collaboration a t St . P a u l U n i t e d M e t h o d i s t C h u rc h S u n d a y, D e c e m b e r 2 2 ✦ 6 : 0 0 P M

C h r i s t m a s Eve Wo r s h i p Tuesday, December 24 ✦ 11:00 PM ✦ Sanctuary 3

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CENTENARY UNITED METHODIST CHURCH

S U M M E R

2 0 2 4

E E I T AT C E N T E N A RY TICKETED PERFORMANCES BY PARTNER ARTS ORGANIZATIONS

UNCSA Symphony Orchestra Saturday, September 14 ✤ 7:30 PM

Brass & Pipes

North Carolina Brass Band

Sunday, September 29 ✤ 3:00 PM

Joan of Arc: The Trial at Rouen Piedmont Opera

Friday, October 25 ✤ 7:30 PM Sunday, October 27 ✤ 3:00 PM

Premieres!

Piedmont Wind Symphony

Saturday, November 9 ✤ 7:30 PM

Sounds of the Season

Winston-Salem Choral Academy

Saturday, December 7 ✤ 3:00 PM *Free Admission

Check each organization’s website for more information about these performances and how to purchase tickets.