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THE COLLECT
O  God, whose glory it is always to have mercy: Be gracious to all who have gone astray from your ways, and bring them again with penitent hearts and steadfast faith to embrace and hold fast the unchangeable truth of your Word, Jesus Christ your Son; who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever.  Amen.
Explorations and Renewal in Christ
This Sunday is the first session for learning more about our Episcopal Tradition, what the Church teaches and how it differs from other Traditions will be from 12:10-1:00 this Sunday in the Chapel. Our discussions will unlock the unique and life-giving qualities of a Tradition which dates back to time of the Apostles.  As previously advertised, these sessions will be for anyone who wishes to learn more and/or who might wish to be confirmed or received into the Episcopal Church or to reaffirm one's faith in the Episcopal Church. Please, come! Explore and Renew! ~  Christian+
KIDS NIGHT OUT!
An EYC Fundraiser

Join us Friday, March 2nd for a Suess themed Kids Night Out.
5:30pm-9:00pm
$10/child with a $20 max/family.
Dinner and desert will be provided.

Lift Every Voice and Sing
The Healing Racism Ministry has organized the purchase of 220 copies of Lift Every Voice and Sing , a hymnal that brings together hymns from the Episcopalian African American tradition. Singing a variety of hymns from the Episcopal tradition will bring greater diversity to St. Mark’s and enrich us all spiritually. HRM would like to have 220 copies orde red before Easter! Individualized bookplates in each hymnal purchased will indicate whether the hymnal was purchased in memory of a loved one, in thanksgiving for something, or in honor of someone. Each hymnal is $20. Throughout Lent, envelopes with an order form in them will be available. If you would like to order a hymnal, please place a check or cash and the completed form in the envelope and place it in the collection plate. If you would like to see a copy of Lift Every Voice and Sing, it is available on the Resource table in the North Transcept.
First Sunday of March
Tour Historical St. Marks: Tour St. Mark’s following the 10:30 am Eucharist. If you would like to learn more about the church’s history and architecture, meet at the main doors on the west side of the sanctuary following the postlude for a brief tour. Docent Donley Mackey will conduct the tour.
Food Pantry Donations:
  The downtown Food Pantry provides an emergency supply of food and personal care items to people in need. Our local pantry is at Westminster Presbyterian Church. This    pantry is open on Tuesday and Thursday. We encourage you to bring non-perishable food items on the first Sunday of every month to help support our neighbors in need. Not sure what to bring? Here is the Pantry’s Top 5 List of items needed most: Peanut Butter, Canned Tuna, Canned Chili, Canned Beans and Jelly
Lenten Prayer Requests

Prayer request cards are available during Lent on the Resource Tables. Please, feel free to fill-out a prayer request and place it in the basket on the Mediation Altar in the south transept. Ask God to hear your prayer and to be attentive the request which lives on at the Altar. You might decide to also light a votive candle, a living flame representing your prayer. ~   Fr. Christian+
Celebrate Black History Month 2018
The theme for this year’s celebration of Black History Month, African Americans in times of War, “suggests that contemporary conditions, past and present, give us cause for critical pause in our studies and deliberations to consider the specific and unique issues faced by African Americans in times of war.”  Please, see this link and consider ways in which you and your family might celebrate this month in dedication to the contribution of our African American sisters and brothers to society. At St. Mark’s, we continue our collaboration with St. Philip’s Episcopal Church and will share this year’s Wednesday Lenten Series in collaboration with them. This month, we will begin a campaign to purchase 225 hymnals, Lift Every Voice and Sing, a hymnal of our Tradition which incorporates many beloved hymns from the African American Tradition in worship. We have ordered a new Parish House banner for the balcony. The text remains the same, “God is love” and will be placed over the traditional colors of the African American flag, red, black and green. May God bless us as we remember and celebrate! ~  Christian+
 
Lenten Wednesdays 2018
Please, join fellow parishioners and me each Wednesday in Lent from 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. Our series is a study of the book,  Holding Up Your Corner"  by the Rev. F. Willis Johnson. Our five Wednesdays together will lead us from presentations to discussions on race in our community and our nation. This Wednesday we will meet at St. Mark's. Our evening will begin with soup and bread at 6:00 p.m., and our program will begin at promptly at 6:30. Please, consider this opportunity and invitation to "Make a Holy Lent" by joining with others as we explore the need for forgiveness, reconciliation and transformation, hallmarks of the Lenten Journey.  (Books will be available tonight: $15/copy) 
~  Christian+
Lent Pilgrimage and Retreat Saturday, March 3
Please, join us for a pilgrimage to St. Gregory's Abbey (An Episcopal monastery) in Three Rivers, MI on March 3. Cars (volunteers needed) will leave St. Mark's at 8:30 a.m. and drive to the monastery. There, we will spend time seeing the monastery, praying and having one of the monks with us to talk about their life in community. Our time will also be about Lent and why this special liturgical season is so important in our spirituality as Episcopalians. Everyone will need to BYOL (bring your own lunch). We will plan on being back at St. Mark's by 5:30 p.m.  A sign-up sheet is at the Welcome Desk in the Parish House. Depending on the number of us, we will determine the number of cars needed. Please, join us for this day of discovery and prayer. If you have any questions, please, let me know.  ~ Fr. Christian
St. Philip’s Lenten Fish Fry’s
will be held on Feb 23, March 9, March 23, from 5 pm to 7 pm. St. Philip’s is on 558 Henry Ave. Pre-orders preferred but walk-in welcome. 616-656-0694. $8-$10. Please see the fliers at the Welcome Desk
GENTLE YOGA
  is offered at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church on 3 Mile between Fuller and Plainfield on Tuesday & Thursday nights from 6-7 pm. Yoga is a great practice for the mind, body, and spirit and can definitely add even more meaning to your journey through Lent. A minimum $5 donation, if possible, helps support this ministry. Jeff Brown and Angel Hayden, certified yoga instructors, teach the classes on Tuesday and Thursday, respectively. The class is accessible to anyone from beginner to the experienced yogi, though participants should be able to practice from a mat on the floor There are mats to borrow and come in clothing that is easy to move in.
Join us for Lent Madness
The format is straightforward: 32 saints are placed into a tournament-like single elimination bracket. Each pairing remains open for a set period of time and people vote for their favorite saint. 16 saints make it to the Round of the Saintly Sixteen; eight advance to the Round of Elate Eight; four make it to the Faithful Four; two to the Championship; and the winner is awarded the coveted Golden Halo. Vote daily for your favorite saint at lentmadness.org. Grab a bracket off the parish hall bulletin board.
Youth Formation:
• Oasis meets every Wednesday evening at St. Andrews. St. Andrew's is at 1025 Three Mile Rd NE, between Plainfield and Fuller. Dinner is offered beginning at 5:45 pm., and programming for all ages, youngest to adult, runs from 6:30-7:30 pm.
•As winter turns to spring, Plainsong Farm is making ready. Youth and families from GREY are invited to join with youth and families from other partner churches to get seed trays at the farm ready for the season.
•Gethsemane Watch: A Maundy Thursday Overnight: This will be an overnight event at St. Mark’s for both middle and high school youth. The evening will begin with the Maundy Thursday service for Holy Week, on March 29, and conclude the following morning. It is open to the middle and high school youth. Please RSVP by Wednesday the 28th of March. Breakfast and snacks will be included.
•April 20-22, 2018, at St. Philip’s Episcopal Church, Rochester, MI, is the time and place for Happening. Happening is a retreat weekend “for youth” “by youth” that allows young people (grades 9-12) to explore their relationships with Jesus, each other and the world. It’s lots of fun, with everything from praying to playing, from singing to sleeping.
• For more information on any of these youth activities, please contact Jeff Brown.
Life’s Little Necessities
Dégagé provides free showers and the essentials needed to get the day started. Help us support Dégagé by donating full size Shampoo and Conditioner for all ethnicities, Foot Spray (Gold Bond), Body Wash and Body Spray for both men and woman and Q-tips. Your donation, will assist in helping provide basic care items needed for the Heartside guests to be life and work ready. Please, drop off your kind donation during office hours or on Sunday. Let’s inspire hope and change lives together! Questions contact leemarissa@icloud.com
The Flu Season
is upon us and to be mindful of one another we have a large bottle of hand sanitizer at each entrance in to the Sanctuary.
Jeanine De Bique and Rebecca Pacheco in Recital
March 18 at 5pm

Recognized as an artist of "dramatic presence and versatility" (Washington Post) Trinidadian soprano Jeanne De Bique  possesses "genuine star quality, a voice of exceptional beauty" (New York Amsterdam News). She recently thrilled Grand Rapids audiences with her exquisite performances as soprano soloist in the Brahm's Requiem and the Grand Rapids Bach Festival with the Grand Rapids Symphony. 
Kaufman Institute: Interfaith Understanding Affinity Groups: As part of my work with the Interfaith Institute, please consider attending one or more of the groups which are or will be meeting. A handout is available at the Resource Tables with the amazing listing of Affinity Groups.  We are all invited and encouraged to participate in these opportunities for interfaith dialogue and formation. For more information, please, see the handout and/or contact me. Thanks.  ~ Fr. Christian+ 
Keeping a Holy Lent
The Lenten devotional, a collaboration between St. Marks, Bethlehem Lutheran, St. Andrews and the First United Methodist church has arrived and is available for you on the resource tables. Thank you to Anne Armour who worked so hard to edit and publish as well as those who wrote these wonderful and meaningful meditations.
Sustaining St. Mark’s Ministry in 2018

Thanks to all sustain our ministry together at St. Mark’s with pledges and offerings. We have pledged $425,550 toward our common life in 2018.  Last week, we received $12,388 contributions in  
                                         pledges and offerings.  

                                 R eceived YTD                      Needed                    Difference
YTD Contributions:         $ 139,780                        $  85,564                    $ 54,216
A reminder that we gratefully received pledges at any time throughout the year. (Pledge cards and envelopes are available on the resource table in the church, which can be given as cash, check, or direct deposit.) Want more details about the Parish’s giving or finances? Please email questions to Finance Manager, Pam Stevenson pams@stmarksgr.org or our Treasurer, Sharon Buursma sbuursma@msn.com .
 
Join us on Sundays for
Faith Formation
9:15am—
Childcare (Nursery, lower level) available for infants - kindergarten
Children's Choir Rehearsal (upstairs children's chapel) for 1st-6th graders. No audition, all are welcome.
We Make the Road by Walking (upstairs Youth Room) for High School - Adult. Overview of the whole Bible, organized around the traditional church year.
Devotional Book Group (Canterbury Room, main floor) for adults. Exploring faith and spiritual practices.


10:30am—
Childcare (Nursery, lower level) available for infants - 2 years
Preschool/kindergarten (Activity Center, lower level) chapel and formation for ages 2 through kindergarten.
Elementary (Main classroom, upstairs) chapel and formation for 1st through 4th grades.
Middle (Youth Room, upstairs) formation for 5th through 8th grades.
Assisting Worship This Sunday


A copy of the Assisting Minister Schedule, through January, is now available at the Parish Office Coordinators desk. If you are unable to serve in the role listed, or if the above information is incorrect, please contact the coordinator of your ministry (listed below), or the office. Also, if you feel called to any of these ministries, you are encouraged to speak to the coordinator or Father Christian. 

MC/Chalicer/Healing Minister:  Father Christian Brocato or Margaret Stretton
Crucifer/Acolyte:  Mark Lee
Greeter/Welcome Minister:  Brenda Holland
Usher:  Tom Burr
Altar Guild:  Margaret Stretton
Lector:  Margaret Stretton
Social Hour: Laura Kozminski
The names of those in need of prayer will remain on this list for two months, and then will be removed. If after that time, you wish to continue having them held in prayer, please contact the Church Office . 
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  St. Mark's Episcopal Church
134 N. Division Avenue
Grand Rapids, MI 49503
Office#: 616-456-1684