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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
Contact: Elizabeth Mullen |
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OKLAHOMA TO BE HONORED AT SPECIAL SERVICE WASHINGTON – Oklahoma leaders and citizens will be celebrated at a special Jan. 22 worship service at Washington National Cathedral, with the Cherokee National Youth Choir to be highlighted. The Very Rev. Samuel T. Lloyd III, dean of Washington National Cathedral, will serve as chief celebrant and preacher. Worshipers from the Sooner State will play key roles at the service, bearing communion elements and offering up gifts to the poor. The Cherokee National Youth Choir, under the direction of Mary Kay Henderson, will perform a musical prelude to the 11 a.m. service. The choral prelude, consisting of Gospel and other sacred music, will be sung entirely in the Cherokee language. The choir, formed to promote Cherokee culture, has toured throughout the United States, including performances at Mount Rushmore, and at the White House where the singers were introduced by President Bush. Based in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, the choir draws students from the 14 counties that comprise the Cherokee nation. As part of its national ministry, Washington National Cathedral offers prayers for the people and leaders of each state annually. The cathedral honors each state with a major observance once every four years. The Oklahoma flag will be placed on the chancel steps for the service and will remain there for a week in further recognition of the state. “The National Cathedral Association invites all from Oklahoma to participate in this special day,” said Vanessa Andrews, director of the National Cathedral Association. “Since 1899, when people first gathered on the Cathedral site prior to construction, we have recognized that the strength of Washington National Cathedral is the citizens from across our nation and around the world who helped build this cathedral church and help us live into our mission as a national house of prayer for all people.” Dean Lloyd will address the congregation from the historic Canterbury Pulpit, where the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., delivered his final Sunday sermon, and from where former Missouri senator John Danforth, an Episcopal priest, gave the homily at Ronald Reagan’s state funeral in June 2004. Invited guests include Governor Brad Henry, Senators James Inhofe and Tom Coburn, other Oklahoma members of Congress and members of the Oklahoma State Society, the organization of state natives who live and work in the Washington area. After the service, docents will lead guests on a special tour of the cathedral, the sixth-largest in the world, highlighting Oklahoma references. For instance, the Coat of Arms of the Episcopal Cathedral in Oklahoma City is carved on one of the National Cathedral’s half-bosses and the Oklahoma state flag is part of the narthex floor in the west end of the Cathedral. Additionally, Cathedral master stone carver Vincent Palumbo and mason foreman Joseph Alonso played key roles in replacing the cross on top of St. Paul’s Cathedral that was damaged in the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing. Alonso drew up plans for a new cross based on fragments provided by St. Paul’s and Palumbo carved a replacement of the Celtic cross from the same Indiana Limestone that is used throughout Washington National Cathedral. “As a national house of prayer for all people, the Cathedral opens its doors to all. On January 22, we especially welcome Oklahoma citizens as we honor their contributions to our nation," Andrews said. "While Oklahoma Day will be an wonderful celebration of the state, we also pray for those Oklahomans and others affected by the recent devastating wildfires.” The National Cathedral Association (NCA) is the friends’ organization of Washington National Cathedral. It counts more than 14,000 members in every state and around the world who support the Cathedral’s missions and ministries. The Cathedral’s regional volunteer leaders in Oklahoma are Martha Griffin of Muskogee and Lurline Mabry of Okmulgee. This special service is being coordinated by community volunteers on the Oklahoma Day planning committee and other Oklahomans living in the Washington metropolitan area and across the Sooner State.
ATTN PRINT MEDIA: An account of the celebration and photos from the event will be available by Dec. 12. If you desire e-mail transmission of this account and/or photos sent as JPEG attachments please contact Elizabeth Mullen at the number above. Available on the web site are print-quality photos of Washington National Cathedral (“Photos for Print” under “News” at www.cathedral.org/cathedral). | |