Last Night's Epiphany Service

Photos, as always, by the lovely Mona
Last night was our Epiphany service. It's a very informal service, with lots of singing, and a pageant. We also light candles for the last part of the service, singing in the candlelight; it's a lovely way to end the Christmas season. I encourage the Youth Group and Sunday School to develop their own pageants, and they have come up with some interesting ideas over the years. One year the Magi were all dressed like business men, in suits and ties. Another year the Magi were all played by young women. Last year the entire cast were dressed in the style we call Típico, traditional Panamanian outfits, and the Magi were dressed in the style we call Congo, a style from the Afro-Panameño on the Atlantic Coast. Padre is pretty loose about things and lets the groups work at their leisure, but this year Padre was a bit too laid-back (I'm a native Californian!) and didn't push the Youth Group and Sunday School to practice. It can be difficult to get everyone together since this is Summer Vacation and the kids would rather be at the beach than practice. So this year the pageant was kind of thrown together at the last minute. But it was still very nice. The Youth like to use the entire church in their dramas; they don't use the chancel, they use the entire nave as their stage! Our stars this year are: Aldolpho as Gabriel, Keisha as María, Ray as José, and Hillary as Jesús, el Santo Niño.
1. Gabriel y María
2. Gabriel y José
3. José y Jesús
4. Sandra y la Familia Santa
5. After the service: Niños con velas