eGrace
Grace Episcopal Church
Hopkinsville, Kentucky
News for February 2, 2015
Brrr!

Mark Your Calendars!

 

We have planned a special Parish Evening for Sunday, February 15. Beginning at 6:00 pm, we will have our monthly Feed Your Spirit Service. If you haven't attended one of these services, here is your perfect opportunity. Come and experience our meditative worship--especially appropriate for a cold and dark winter evening.  Immediately following the service, we will have a pancake supper in All Saints (think Shrove Tuesday two days early!) and our Annual Parish Meeting.  Come and enjoy the community fellowship and conversation about plans for the year.    

Lenten Observances

 

The Church invites all of us to the observance of a holy Lent.  Ash Wednesday is February 18, and on that date we will be offering three opportunities for attending an Ash Wednesday liturgy with Holy Eucharist and Imposition of Ashes--7:00 am, 12:00 noon, and 6:00 pm.  On Friday, February 20, we will begin our Lenten Preaching Mission and Lenten lunches--a long tradition at Grace Church.  The schedule is almost complete and will be announced shortly.  All of our Sunday services during Lent will be Holy Eucharist Rite I--Penitential Order.  Hopefully we are all thinking about our personal observances of this most holy season.  What would be a meaningful way to prepare our hearts for the celebration of Easter 2015?

Vestry Update


 
After considerable deliberation and after consulting the Articles of Incorporation and By-Laws of Grace Church, the Vestry has decided to reduce the number of members of the Vestry from twelve to nine.  At the time of incorporation in 1975, Grace was a much larger church and the tradition developed to have twelve members, even though the Articles state that any number between three and twenty is acceptable.  We have many members who provide considerable leadership and service to the church who simply do not want to attend regular monthly meetings.  To make the shift, one new member will be presented to the congregation at the Annual Meeting for approval for a three-year term and one new member will be presented for a one-year term--to replace the position held by Tom Brewer. Let's see how this goes for awhile.  We can always change back if there are reasons to do so.  

The Agile Church: Spirit-Led Innovation in a Changing World


 
All church leaders are invited to attend a seminar at Christ Church Cathedral in Louisville on February 27 and 28.  The presenter is The Rev. Dwight Zscheile, an expert on church revitalization and author of People of the Way: Renewing Episcopal Identity and The Agile Church: Spirit-Led Innovation in an Uncertain Age.  The Adult Forum read People of the Way a year or so ago and found his thoughts useful and inspirational.  More information is available on the Diocese of Kentucky website or from the Rector.  

Prayer for the Church (BCP)

 

"Gracious God, we pray for your holy Catholic Church.  Fill it with all truth, in all truth with all peace.  Where it is corrupt, purify it; where it is in error, direct it; where in any thing it is amiss, reform it.  Where it is right, strengthen it; where it is in want, provide for it; where it is divided, reunite it; for the sake of Jesus Christ our Savior.  Amen."    

Dates to Remember

Wednesday, February 4--12:10 pm--Holy Eucharist with healing prayers
Wednesday, February 4--6:30 pm--Sacred Rhythms Group
Sunday, February 8--9:00 am--Adult Forum and Catechesis
Sunday, February 8--10:15 am--Holy Eucharist Rite II
Monday, February 9--4:00 pm--Kindergarten Board
Wednesday, February 11--12:10 pm--Holy Eucharist with healing prayers
Wednesday, February 11--6:30 pm--Sacred Rhythms Group
Sunday, February 15--9:00 am--Adult Forum and Catechesis
Sunday, February 15--10:15 am--Holy Eucharist Rite II
Sunday, February 15--6:00 pm--Feed Your Spirit, Pancake Supper, Annual
        Meeting
Wednesday, February 18--7:00 am, 12:00 noon, 6:00 pm--Ash Wednesday
services with Holy Eucharist and Imposition of Ashes
Friday, February 20--12:00 noon--Lenten Preaching Mission
Sunday, February 22--9:00 am--Adult Forum and Catechesis
Sunday, February 22--10:15 am--Holy Eucharist Rite I (Lent I)
Wednesday, February 25--12:10 pm--Holy Eucharist with healing prayers
Wednesday, February 25--5:30 pm--Vestry meeting
Friday, February 27--12:00 pm--Lenten Preaching Mission
Have you remembered Grace Church in your will?

We are working on starting a legacy society for Grace which will be called the George P. Giddinge Society--named for the first Rector at this church--as a step toward securing the future of our parish, especially our wonderful buildings and grounds.  All who include the church in their wills will automatically become members of this honorary group and names will be placed on a permanent plaque, probably in the narthex.  If you have already made this important decision and taken the steps necessary to insure that your wishes are carried out, please make our Treasurer, Bill Nichol, aware.  Thank you so much for your loving dedication to Grace Church, for all it has meant to so many people and for all that our ministry can continue to mean to the City of Hopkinsville.   
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