 | This biography of a living person includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations .(August 2018) |
Carolyn Winfrey Gillette is a hymn writer and Presbyterian pastor. She has written over 400 hymns that are sung throughout the USA and the world. Gillette and her husband Bruce are the pastors of First Presbyterian Union Church in Owego, New York since December 2018.
Gillette's hymns can be found on thousands of website, been sung by congregations in every state of the US and in several other countries; they have been on national PBS-TV three times and the BBC-TV in the United Kingdom. Noel Paul Stookey of "Peter, Paul and Mary" made a music video with Emmy winner Pete Staman of Carolyn's hymn, "O God, Our Words Cannot Express," which was written on September 11.
Her hymns are found on the national websites of the General Board of Discipleship of The United Methodist Church, UMCOR, the Presbyterian Church (USA), American Baptist Churches, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, the Reformed Church in America, the Souper Bowl of Caring, the National Council of Churches, and Church World Service. United Methodist Bishop William Boyd Grove and Gillette were commissioned to write hymns for the inauguration services for Churches Uniting in Christ.
Gillette's book Gifts of Love: New Hymns for Today's Worship (Geneva Press, 2000) is a collection of forty-five of her hymns. Songs of Grace: Hymns for Good and Neighbor (Upper Room Books) has Her hymns are also in the new supplements for the Episcopal and Presbyterian hymnals. The United Church of Canada's hymnal supplement (2007) will include six of her hymns. The Circuit Rider, The Christian Century, The Presbyterian Outlook, Presbyterians Today, Horizons, Ideas! For Church Leaders, Church & Society, and other magazines have published her hymns. Two of her anthems were recently published by the Choristers Guild. She was commissioned to write the lead article for the special issue on "Singing Our Lives" for Baylor University's Christian Reflection journal in 2006.
Gillette and her husband Bruce have previously served as pastors in Phildelphia, Wilmington (Delaware), Pitman (New Jersey) and Sussex County (New Jersey). They wrote the ecumenical guide for the Active Parenting Now (third edition) with Mary Jane Pierce Norton of The United Methodist General Board of Discipleship as a consultant. They wrote the study/action guide for Transforming Families and the Christian Family Week worship and educational resource for the Presbyterian Church (USA).
She was born in Harrisonburg, Virginia on May 28, 1961. She grew up in a Methodist family, and her father was a graduate of Drew Seminary. She was baptized and confirmed in Methodist congregations. She graduated from United Methodist Church-related Lebanon Valley College. She and her husband Bruce are graduates for Princeton Theological Seminary. They are the parents of three children and four grandchildren.
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A doxology is a short hymn of praises to God in various forms of Christian worship, often added to the end of canticles, psalms, and hymns. The tradition derives from a similar practice in the Jewish synagogue, where some version of the Kaddish serves to terminate each section of the service.
An Act of Contrition is a Christian prayer genre that expresses sorrow for sins. It may be used in a liturgical service or be used privately, especially in connection with an examination of conscience. Special formulae for acts of contrition are in use in the Anglican, Catholic, Lutheran, Methodist and Reformed Churches.
The epiclesis refers to the invocation of one or several gods. In ancient Greek religion, the epiclesis was the epithet used as the surname given to a deity in religious contexts. The term was borrowed into the Christian tradition, where it designates the part of the Anaphora by which the priest invokes the Holy Spirit upon the Eucharistic bread and wine in some Christian churches. In most Eastern Christian traditions, the Epiclesis comes after the Anamnesis ; in the Western Rite it usually precedes. In the historic practice of the Western Christian Churches, the consecration is effected at the Words of Institution though during the rise of the Liturgical Movement, many denominatons introduced an explicit epiclesis in their liturgies.
Compline, also known as Complin, Night Prayer, or the Prayers at the End of the Day, is the final church service of the day in the Christian tradition of canonical hours, which are prayed at fixed prayer times. The English word is derived from the Latin completorium, as compline is the completion of the waking day. The word was first used in this sense about the beginning of the 6th century by St. Benedict in his Rule, in Chapters 16, 17, 18, and 42, and he even uses the verb compleo to signify compline: "Omnes ergo in unum positi compleant" ; "et exeuntes a completorio" ….
Eternal Rest or Requiem aeternam is a Western Christian prayer asking God:
Absolution is a traditional theological term for the forgiveness imparted by ordained Christian priests and experienced by Christian penitents. It is a universal feature of the historic churches of Christendom, although the theology and the practice of absolution vary between denominations.
In Christianity, Holy Wednesday commemorates the Bargain of Judas as a clandestine spy among the disciples. It is also called Spy Wednesday, or Good Wednesday, and Great and Holy Wednesday.
Eucharistic theology is a branch of Christian theology which treats doctrines concerning the Holy Eucharist, also commonly known as the Lord's Supper. It exists exclusively in Christianity and related religions, as others generally do not contain a Eucharistic ceremony.
A grace is a short prayer or thankful phrase said before or after eating. The term most commonly refers to Christian traditions. Some traditions hold that grace and thanksgiving imparts a blessing which sanctifies the meal. In English, reciting such a prayer is sometimes referred to as "saying grace". The term comes from the Ecclesiastical Latin phrase gratiarum actio, "act of thanks." Theologically, the act of saying grace is derived from the Bible, in which Jesus and Saint Paul pray before meals. The practice reflects the belief that humans should thank God who is the origin of everything.
A Christian child's prayer is Christian prayer recited primarily by children that is typically short, rhyming, or has a memorable tune. It is usually said before bedtime, to give thanks for a meal, or as a nursery rhyme. Many of these prayers are either quotes from the Bible, or set traditional texts.
The Improperia are a series of antiphons and responses, expressing the remonstrance of Jesus Christ with his people. Also known as the Reproaches, they are sung In the Catholic liturgy as part of the observance of the Passion, usually on the afternoon of Good Friday. In the Byzantine Rite, they are found in various hymns of Good Friday and Holy Saturday. The Improperia appear in the Pontificale of Prudentius (846–61) and gradually came into use throughout Europe in the eleventh and twelfth centuries, finally being incorporated into the Roman Ordo in the fourteenth century.
The Sinner's prayer is an evangelical Christian term referring to any prayer of repentance, prayed by individuals who feel convinced of the presence of sin in their lives and have the desire to form or renew a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ. It is a popular prayer in evangelical circles. It is not intended as liturgical like a creed or a confiteor said or chanted within the Catholic Mass, but rather, is intended to be an act of initial conversion to Christianity; at the same time, it is roughly analogous to the Catholic Act of Contrition, though the theology behind each is markedly different, due to the intrinsically different views of salvation between Catholicism and Protestantism. While some Christians see reciting the sinner's prayer as the moment defining one's salvation, others see it as a beginning step of one's lifelong faith journey.
The Prayer of Humble Access is the name traditionally given to a prayer contained in many Anglican, Methodist, Presbyterian, and other Christian eucharistic liturgies. Its origins lie in the healing the centurion's servant as recounted in two of the Gospels. It is comparable to the Domine, non sum dignus long used in the Catholic Mass; it is used by the personal ordinariates established for former Anglican groups reconciled to the Catholic Church.
The Divine Service is a title given to the Eucharistic liturgy as used in the various Lutheran churches. It has its roots in the Pre-Tridentine Mass as revised by Martin Luther in his Formula missae of 1523 and his Deutsche Messe of 1526. It was further developed through the Kirchenordnungen of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries that followed in Luther's tradition.
Jaroslav Vajda was an American hymnist.
Thanksgiving after Communion is a spiritual practice among Christians who believe in the Real Presence of Jesus Christ in the Communion bread, maintaining themselves in prayer for some time to thank God and especially listening in their hearts for guidance from their Divine guest. This practice was and is highly recommended by saints, theologians, and Doctors of the Church.
Good Friday Prayer can refer to any of the prayers prayed by Christians on Good Friday, the Friday before Easter, or to all such prayers collectively.
The Rātana Church is a Christian denomination of New Zealand Māori people based on the teachings and principles of the faith healer and prophet Tahupōtiki Wiremu Rātana. On 8 November 1918, Rātana received a divine revelation from the Holy Spirit which commanded him to unite the Māori people in worship of the One True God, Jehovah. On 5 July 1925, the Rātana Established Church of New Zealand was formally established and registered with the Registrar-General of New Zealand.
The Eucharist in the Lutheran Church refers to the liturgical commemoration of the Last Supper. Lutherans believe in the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, affirming the doctrine of sacramental union, "in which the body and blood of Christ are truly and substantially present, offered, and received with the bread and wine."
Spiritual communion is a Christian practice of desiring union with Jesus Christ in the Eucharist. It is used as a preparation for Mass and by individuals who cannot receive holy communion.
