Rockville Centre residents give thanks and praise

The pews of Holy Trinity Lutheran Church were filled on a recent rain soaked Tuesday night, Nov. 22, as three new spiritual leaders, from the United Church of Rockville Centre, the Church of the Ascension and St. Mark’s United Methodist Church, joined members of Rockville Centre’s Interfaith Clergy Association to celebrate the village’s annual Thanksgiving Interfaith Service, an annual pre-holiday tradition in its 61st year.

After a musical introduction that included “A Thanksgiving Prelude,” followed by a rendition of the processional hymn “We Gather Together,” Rev. Jeffrey Laustsen welcomed visitors to Holy Trinity to “celebrate and give thanks as people of faith.”

Deacon Meg Fielding from Holy Trinity next led the congregation in a responsive reading and Msgr. William Koenig of St. Agnes Cathedral delivered the invocation, referring to blessings in abundance and the thanks we give for “the gifts we seldom notice and the bounty we take for granted.”

“For the Fruit of All Creation,” performed by a quartet comprised of parishioners from Holy Trinity, St. Agnes and The Church of the Ascension, was followed by another responsive reading, “Lighting a Candle of Hope,” led by Rev. Peter Dennebaum, of the United Church.

“Eternal God of all peoples and races,” he read, “may all your children learn to live together in peace and friendship. Let the day come when oppression, discrimination, bullying, and prejudice will be forgotten, and all the world filled with Your spirit.”

Rabbi Marc Gruber of Central Synagogue of Nassau County next read “A Call to Repentance,” asking forgiveness for ingratitude and asking God to “give us the will and the strength to improve ourselves and repair the brokenness of our world.”

Following the “Offertory” anthem, performed by the Holy Trinity Choir, Cantor Rachel Kohlbrenner of Central Synagogue led the second responsive reading from Isaiah 58:6-11, “This, says the Lord ... if you bestow your bread on the hungry and satisfy the afflicted; Then light shall rise for you in the darkness, and the gloom shall become for you like midday; The creator will renew your strength, and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring who water never fails.”

Kohlbrenner next led and performed the anthem “Modim Anachnu Lach,” as a soloist, backed by choirs from Holy Trinity and Central Synagogue. Following the third reading from Joel 2:21-27, by Rabbi Howard Diamond of Temple B’Nai Sholom-Beth David, Rev. Robert Herrick from the Church of the Ascension delivered the Thanksgiving Address.

Speaking without notes, Herrick recited a history of Thanksgiving, with humorous observations, starting from the Puritans’ landing at Plymouth Rock. “There was a great deal to be thankful for because it didn’t start well in the old country” he said, as his story led to the meaning of the holiday’s current celebration in Rockville Centre.

Herrick described it as a chance, among other things, for grandchildren and grandparents to get along very well. “Old hands teach new hands,” he said, and “when they grow they can carry on the traditions of Thanksgiving.”

The holiday, he said, is “a chance when we in our country can learn to live together and thank God … every occasion is a chance to give thanks for all God has done for us, to walk with righteousness and give thanks for his blessings.”

After an offering that was to be donated to the Interfaith Nutrition Network in Hempstead (along with canned and non-perishable food items that were also collected that evening) Rev. Robert Grimm of St. Mark’s led the unison reading that said in part: “Oh God, open our eyes to see new vistas; grant us courage, strength, and wisdom to bring meaning, joy and healing to the members of our community. As we strive together for the betterment of our society, may we do so with integrity that leads to wholeness and love that brings joy to others. “

The service ended with a recessional hymn, “We Plow the Fields and Scatter,” before everyone was invited to enjoy the spirit of community and thanksgiving over refreshments in a downstairs wing of the church. The same Rockville Centre clergy members are scheduled to engage in a forum this coming Thursday, Dec. 1, at 7:30 p.m. at the Church of the Ascension, 71 North Village Ave. to discuss the teachings of their religious traditions as they pertain to current issues of economic justice.