In this edition: Introducing Trinity Neighbors Ministry; Recap of Youth Service Week; Creation Care Ministry celebrates ‘Sun Day’; Middle School Library Project Supports Next Generation of Trinity Kids; Choir Pilgrimage Builds Community; The Travels of Flat Jesus; and Marvin Gaye Concert Promotions Receive Polly Bond Award
Signs & Wonders is a new feature telling stories about what’s been happening lately in Trinity’s Ministries. In a large, busy, and growing church like Trinity, there are always new-to-you corners of ministries and programs to explore — so catch up here and learn a bit about our recent work in the church and in the world beyond our walls.
Family of Five from Sudan Welcomed and Supported
Trinity Neighbors is a brand new ministry committed to following the Scriptural mandate to “welcome the stranger,” specifically, new immigrants, refugees, and asylum-seekers in the Boston area. In serving the stranger, we serve God and welcome the spirit of Christ in our midst.
Through prayerful discernment, practical training, and generous support from the congregation, a group of Trinity parishioners, guided by Rev. Brandon Ashcraft, has been working with the International Institute of New England to support a family of five from Sudan. In addition to the mother and father, there are three children aged 9, 7, and 3. After months of dislocation and duress, the family is making a new home of their own in the Boston area. The Trinity Neighbors team has been busy helping to find and deliver furniture and other household items, toys, books, and art supplies in order to make the family more comfortable and engaged. The team has been offering assistance with employment opportunities, English language training, health care, and other priorities. On occasion, the family and members of the ministry have cooked together and shared meals, gone to a cinema, and played in parks. The aim is to facilitate the family’s gradual self-sufficiency and to nurture friendship and neighborliness with the newcomers.
The core group of Trinity Neighbors meets regularly to address practical matters related to migration and to discern God’s call and guidance. And they are seeking ways to share this journey with the larger congregation. If you are interested in this ministry, please contact Brandon Ashcraft, Priest for Outreach, at bashcraft@trinitychurchboston.org.
Putting Faith Into Action
During the week of July 21, nine rising 6th–9th graders gathered at Trinity for our First Annual Youth Summer Service Week! Over four days, they partnered with MANNA at the Cathedral Church of Saint Paul, Capuchin Mobile Ministries, the International Institute of New England, and Emmanuel House to put their faith of “love thy neighbor” into action. Together, they made 100 sandwiches with TEEP, lovingly shopped for and filled 10 children’s backpacks, served lasagna to 50 neighbors, created 250 backpack tags, tied 300 Easter bells with ribbon, and cleaned and mulched one community garden. Each day centered on helping our neighbors, learning from the admirable traits of biblical role models, and building a community rooted in kindness, curiosity, and care for one another. It was an incredible week of service, learning, and youth living out their faith in our own backyard! We can’t wait for more youth to join us next summer for our next Youth Summer Service Week!
Many Faiths Worship Together on Boston Common
On Sun., Sept. 21, a beautiful afternoon, folks from Trinity’s Creation Care ministry joined with their neighbors in a solemn and joyful pilgrimage for Sun Day. By the hundreds they streamed down Newbury Street toward the Public Garden. Throughout the Back Bay the procession paused to pray at our sister churches—Old South, Emmanuel and Reform Temple, Arlington Street—before spilling onto the Common, past The Embrace that honors the Kings’ legacy, and up the steps of the State House. There, in the shadow of another memorial to racial justice, the 54th Regiment statue, many faiths worshipped together, in St Francis’ words:
Praised be You my Lord, with all your creatures;
especially Brother Sun, who is the day,
…and bears a likeness to You, Most High One.
The event was one of hundreds nationwide, both religious and secular, sponsored by Bill McKibben’s Third Act, Mothers Out Front, and numerous others. Locally, the newly formed Boston Interfaith Climate Alliance, led by the Rev. Rob Mark, Church of the Covenant’s dynamic minister, gathered together an array of witnesses—speakers and musicians (African drums, the Guatemalan Mercedes Escobar, lots of sunshine songs, and BABAM!—Boston Area Brigade of Musicians) with the crowd singing and praying along.
Brief as it was, that celebration overflowed with hope and love and resolve. The Very Rev. Amy McCreath, Dean of St Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral, entoned St Francis’ Canticle of the Sun:
Praised be You, my Lord through Sister Mother Earth
who sustains us and governs us and who produces
varied fruits with colored flowers and herbs.
Others prayed Pope Francis’ words:
O God, of the poor,
help us to rescue the abandoned and forgotten of this earth, so precious in your eyes.
Bring healing to our lives, that we may protect the world and not prey on it,
that we may sow beauty and not destruction.
Perhaps the most powerful exhortation came from the Rev. Mariama White-Hammond, New Roots African Methodist Episcopal Church, Dorchester: “There are trees in this space, who have stood here longer than many of us have lived, that can testify we have seen hard times before. And in the midst of it all the sun has continued to shine. I come to remind you on this Sun Day that with God’s grace we can and we will stand strong, as long as we stand together.”
Standing strong, Roger Tepe, Jake Shannin, John Lin, and John Olson carried Trinity’s banner, which Mary Sherman had crafted lovingly ahead of this meticulously planned event. It was a rare convergence of “days”—eve of the Equinox, the New Year of Rosh Hashanah, the mid-point of what Anglicans and many worldwide call the Season of Creation, that culminates in the Feast of St Francis (Oct 4).
We left uplifted by Rev. Mark’s benediction:
Peace be with you/ Sun be with you/ Wind be with you/ Power be with you
To learn more about the Creation Care Ministry, visit our Outreach & Justice page.
On Mon., Oct. 13, Creation Care will join in the Sacred Journey to Deer Island with other congregations from around the diocese. Click here for more information.
Check It Out on the Second Floor of the Parish House
The Sunday School class of Middle Schoolers worked throughout the year to create a Trinity version of a “Little Free Library” for younger children. Their mini-Trinity, complete with towers and stained glass and an angel gracing the top, sits in Tapestry Hall outside the nursery room, offering children and their families a chance to share favorite titles.
Travel and Worship Together Builds Community
This summer, more than 60 members of the Trinity Choir—choristers, choir adults, and staff—traveled together to England for our triennial pilgrimage as choir-in-residence. At the heart of our journey was the privilege of leading worship at Canterbury Cathedral and St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. Singing daily Evensong and Sunday services in these sacred spaces, where generations have lifted their prayers, was humbling and inspiring.
What made the trip most meaningful, though, was the community we built along the way. From shared meals and day trips to lively scavenger hunts and a spirited “House Cup” competition, we found joy not only in the music we sang, but in the time spent with one another. Our group, spanning ages 10 to 70+, was divided into houses and earned points for teamwork, punctuality, and even small acts of kindness; reminders of how play and fellowship knit us together in lasting ways.
In Canterbury, we were warmly welcomed into a centuries-old tradition of pilgrimage; at St. Paul’s, we sang beneath Wren’s great dome, a place that has long embodied hope and resilience for the city of London. Through it all, we carried with us the prayers of our Trinity family at home.
This pilgrimage was a gift of many hands and hearts—the dedication of Trinity’s music staff, the energy and commitment of our youth leadership, the guidance of our Pilgrimage planning committee, and the steady support of parents, friends, and family. From behind-the-scenes logistics to words of encouragement and daily prayers, their generosity created the space for our community to flourish in music, worship, and fellowship.
We return with grateful hearts—for your encouragement and support, for the beauty we encountered, and for the joy of this community that continues to grow in love, worship, and service.
Flat Jesus Visits New England and Beyond
Trinity members were invited to take Flat Jesus with them on their vacations, trips and adventures near and far from Boston! Check out the photos here:
The Polly Bond Awards recognize excellence in Episcopal communications across a variety of categories each year. In January, 2025, the ‘What’s Going On/Motown for Peace’ promotions from spring of 2024 were submitted as an entry in the Graphic Design category, and in May, 2025, that submission was awarded an Honorable Mention. You can check out the submission PDF here, and you can check out the fine work of all of the 2025 winners here.