All Saints Messenger 11-9-17

I moved to a new school in sixth grade. No place makes you feel like the new kid quite like a middle school cafeteria. Lunch tray in hand, I surveyed a sea of unfamiliar faces, looking for more than an empty chair. I was looking for somebody who would be glad to see me, someone who would welcome me.

In the eucharist, we experience two closely connected truths. One is that Jesus is delighted to see us-so delighted in fact that he gives himself to us in the bread and wine. As we gather around the table, we see people of every age, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and social class. When we are brave enough to look around, we recognize that Jesus is glad that each person has shown up. And we should be glad too.

When Jesus feeds the ragtag, motley crowd that followed him, he foreshadows the eucharist and the heavenly banquet that awaits us. When Jesus draws us to him, he also draws us to each other. Thanks be to God.

MOVING FORWARD: Share a meal with a new friend this week-or with an old friend you haven't seen in a while.

PRAY for the Diocese of Twik East (Sudan)

ANNOUNCEMENTS

* Picture Directory : There are 3 copies of the new Family Picture Directory on the table in the Parish Hall. Please take a moment to proof your entry. If there are any changes, please note them in one of the copies. If you do not have a picture in the directory, you can email one to Debra and she will add it to the directory. ([email protected]) Please do not remove these directories from the Parish Hall.

* Christmas Pageant: All children who would like to be in the Christmas pageant are welcome. Practice will be on Sunday, December 17th after the 10:30 service. Questions contact Eileen Klimkowski (803-619-4053) or Judy Mullins (704-718-1522).

* The Pacesetters will gather in the Family Life Center on Tuesday December 12th at 10:30am for our Christmas Party. Ham will be provided but sides, rolls, desserts are needed. Please let Jerry Wertz ( [email protected]) know if you plan to attend and what you will provide. Guests are welcome.

* Bible Study: The Wednesday Bible Study Group is reading a new book, Zealot, The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth by Reza Aslan. If you are interested and need to order a copy of the book, contact Jerry Wertz 704-577-9699 or [email protected]. The group meets at 10 AM in the Family Life Center. We don't rush through a book and have excellent discussions during the meeting. Afterwards, we usually go to lunch together. We hope to see a lot of you there on Wednesday.

* Parish Lunch : Thanks to all who helped with the 3rd Sunday luncheon. Between the cooks and clean-up crew we had 10 helpers. We made $95.00 for Outreach from the October luncheon and $79.29 from the September luncheon. (This is after expenses were removed.) The 3rd Sunday luncheon now has a committee to prepare and cook. We can always use more help. The proceeds from the luncheon goes to Outreach. If this is something you would like to help with, please contact Jerry Wertz at [email protected].

* Needed: Monetary donations for lettuce and carrots for the Salvation Army salads on Mondays. Each week, we use up one large bag of sliced carrots and 6 heads of lettuce. Cost is about $20 a week. Donations are needed to offset this cost. Anyone willing to donate cash or a gift card to the project, please see Linda Klocker, 704-827-3901. Checks should be made out to All Saints, garden fund. Thanks for your generosity. The clients at the Salvation Army really enjoy a fresh salad. UPDATE: Our salad fund is in the black at $91.20. Thanks to the many people who continue to regularly contribute. It is much appreciated.

* Garden re-cycling of leaves and grass clippings: If you bag your leaves or grass clippings, we would like to have them for organic mulch for the garden. If you can haul them to the garden area, please do. If you have bagged leaves or grass and cannot haul them, call Charlie Jenkins at 704-739-5332 or email: [email protected]

* Zumba: Now being offered 3 days a week in the Family Life Center! $5/class

- Tuesday & Thursday at 7:15PM: Please join Dana Wolfe for a fun workout made for everyone. The class that started the dance-fitness revolution and changed the way we look at a "workout" forever. It's fun, effective and best of all? Made for everyone!

- Friday at 9AM: Taught by certified instructor Barbara Mooradian who has been teaching for 6 years. Especially suited to older adults or those with mobility issues or restrictions, Zumba Gold has all of the liveliness and fun of Zumba while being low impact and easier on the body. It can even be done while sitting!

* Adult Christian Formation: The 9:30 formation class will be learning about Islam. Our guide on this journey is professor John Esposito of Georgetown University. Please join us in The Life Center for this tour into one of the Great World Religions.

* Family Promise: Family Promise is a community program that provides housing and support to families that are less fortunate. All Saints is one of the original churches that helped establish this ministry more than ten years ago. We host families in this ministry four times a year at our parish facilities with assistance from the Redeemer Lutheran Church here in Gastonia. There are many ways to support this ministry. During hosting weeks we need parishioners to greet and engage guests, to provide homework and enrichment activities for the children, to prepare and serve dinner, and to spend the night. The other way that parishioners can assist these families is to donate items that our guests need. Suggested items to donate are clothes, detergent, toothbrushes and toothpaste, small first aid kits, hair products, soap and/or body wash, suitcases (both used or new), 10, 20, and 30 gallon storage tubs w/ lids, towels and washcloths (both used or new), bed linens (both used or new), family friendly movies or videos, board games, & craft supplies. For more information, or to volunteer please contact Marc Dudley at 704-718-4044 or

[email protected].

* First Sunday of the month Coffee Hour: We need someone to set up and clean up only

for Coffee Hour on Parish Breakfast Sunday. You do not have to provide any food, just set out the food left from breakfast. Please sign up for this on the Coffee Hour sign-up sheet.

* Cooking for the Army: Our next day to cook will be Friday, December 8th. Parishioners will gather at 5PM to cook approximately 700 meals for The Salvation Army & Cornerstone Ministry. We are always in need of more hands to assist in this life-giving project since "more hands make light work." If you are interested in this ministry, please contact the church office and we will put your name on the monthly e-mail reminder.

* Youth Christian Formation: Christian Formation for our young people begins at 9:30 sharp. Our new program is an Episcopal curriculum. We have 11 dedicated teachers and three dedicated musicians who will be guiding our young people. Please bring your children and let them experience God and Jesus with others.

* Towel Ministry Coordinator : All Saints Towel Ministry funds and builds handicap ramps and does other small building projects for those in Gaston County who have a need. If you are a good organizer and understand basic building techniques All Saints could use your services as our new Towel Ministry Coordinator. You are not expected to do all the work, just take requests, assemble the teams and help out the citizens in our community who need help. If interested please speak to Fr. Gary.

* Choir Rehearsal: Sunday mornings at 9:25 am.

* Food Pantry: Please help us restock the shelves by bringing in the following items: canned meats only (chicken, ham, vienna sausages, spam, salmon, etc.). Through your generosity, we have been able to help many families and individuals.

* Preaching ROTA (rotation) at All Saints: We are blessed at All Saints to hear three different voices in preaching. Each one of our clergy; Gary, Cris and Martha, have experienced the world and see the world differently and through different lenses. Because our community is made up of different people from different experiences we need to hear different voices. At All Saints, Deacon Cris preaches on the 3rd Sunday of each month, Deacon Martha preaches on the 1st Sunday of alternate months (next time is in September) and Fr. Gary preaches the other Sundays. We hope you find the different voices fulfilling in your spiritual journey.

* Holy Land Trip: https://garyholyland2017.wordpress.com/blog/

* Parish Nurse Ministry will be taking blood pressures after the 8:00 and 10:30 services on the second Sunday of the month. Nurses interested in the parish nurse ministry please contact Cheryl Saylor, MSN.

* Cookbooks: $10 If you don't need a cookbook, but would like to help our Outreach committee reach their budget goal, consider buying a cookbook to donate to our newcomers committee. Any donated cookbooks will be included in the welcome bag we hand out to newcomers.

* Sign Up Sheets for coffee hour, altar guild and altar flowers are on the bulletin board in the Family Life Center. Coffee Hour hosting can be as simple as drinks and cookies. Coffee hour is provided to have fellowship with our parish family. Please sign up or call the church office to add your name to the list (704-864-7201).

* Salvation Army Service Schedule: Monday, November 13th - Team #4. (Carol Maiden)

* Church Financials: The Vestry wants to make sure that all parishioners are aware that the monthly financial reports are posted on the bulletin boards in The Family Life Center. If you have any concerns or questions please contact Phill Wertz or Fr. Gary. Thank You!

* Why Do You Love All Saints? Who here loves All Saints? Do you want to tell the world why you love being a part of the All Saints family? Please help us spread the word about our congregation by telling your All Saints Story. All Saints Stories will be published on our website: AllSaintsGastonia.org as well as our facebook and twitter pages. To submit your story, go to AllSaintsGastonia.org and click "All Saints Stories" under the Parish Life tab. If you can, please submit a photo with your story.

* Prayer List: Our prayer list grows rapidly. We ask all parishioners to keep the office informed so that our prayer list remains current and manageable.

* Partnership: All Saints has entered into a relationship with the YMCA's Resource Connection Gateway. This relationship enables us to help those in need more rapidly and efficiently while also addressing long-term needs versus only addressing immediate concerns. If you would like more information please see Fr. Gary.

* Salvation Army Serving: If anyone is interested in serving at the Salvation Army on Mon. nights from 5:00 to 6:00, please contact Candy Albergine at 704-868-8691 or email [email protected]. We have a couple of spots open and you will find this ministry is a true blessing to all involved. The schedule is on bulletin board in Family Life Center.

* All Saints Sermons online: Thanks to John Woodward, our sermons are available in audio and video on our website at: www.allsaintsgastonia.org/sermons

* Free Mulch: There are several piles of mulch in the upper parking lot that you are welcome to take. We need to free up some parking spaces in that upper lot. Please do not take the mulch by the shed as that is intended for the garden.

* Building Use Policy: Our buildings are being used more and more and scheduling conflicts are occurring. Effective immediately, all rooms/buildings will be scheduled by the Parish Administrator by the submission of a form which is available at the office and will soon be available on the web site. We appreciate your understanding realizing that this will improve our ability to serve our parishioners and ministries.

* Planned Giving: Programs for Outreach Ministries are an important part of our parish. You can ensure the continuation of these programs by setting up an endowment or including a bequest in your will. The Episcopal Foundation of Western Carolina has set up "The Living Stones Society" to provide Education and training to all clergy and parishioners about setting up a program. For more information see Fr. Gary or call the foundation at 828-225-6656.

* Ministry Opportunities: There are a variety of Ministries available at All Saints including feeding at The Salvation Army, tending the Garden, Family Promise where we take care of those without a home for a week at a time, Altar Guild, Readers, Lectors, Acolytes, Chalicers, and many more. Everyone at All Saints is encouraged to serve in some way. Please let us know what you are interested in and we will put you in touch with the ministry coordinator. You can call the office (704-864-7201), email ([email protected]) or speak to Fr. Gary.

Upcoming Schedule

November 10th: Zumba

November 12th: Discernment Committee

November 14th: Zumba

November 16th: Zumba

November 21st: Vestry

December 8th: Cooking for the Army

December 12th: Pacesetters

This Sunday's Scripture Readings

The Collect

O God, whose blessed Son came into the world that he might destroy the works of the devil and make us children of God and heirs of eternal life: Grant that, having this hope, we may purify ourselves as he is pure; that, when he comes again with power and great glory, we may be made like him in his eternal and glorious kingdom; where he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

The First Lesson: Joshua 24:1-3a, 14-25

Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem, and summoned the elders, the heads, the judges, and the officers of Israel; and they presented themselves before God. And Joshua said to all the people, "Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Long ago your ancestors-Terah and his sons Abraham and Nahor-lived beyond the Euphrates and served other gods. Then I took your father Abraham from beyond the River and led him through all the land of Canaan and made his offspring many.

"Now therefore revere the Lord, and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness; put away the gods that your ancestors served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. Now if you are unwilling to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served in the region beyond the River or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord."

Then the people answered, "Far be it from us that we should forsake the Lord to serve other gods; for it is the Lord our God who brought us and our ancestors up from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, and who did those great signs in our sight. He protected us along all the way that we went, and among all the peoples through whom we passed; and the Lord drove out before us all the peoples, the Amorites who lived in the land. Therefore we also will serve the Lord, for he is our God."

But Joshua said to the people, "You cannot serve the Lord, for he is a holy God. He is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions or your sins. If you forsake the Lord and serve foreign gods, then he will turn and do you harm, and consume you, after having done you good." And the people said to Joshua, "No, we will serve the Lord!" Then Joshua said to the people, "You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen the Lord, to serve him." And they said, "We are witnesses." He said, "Then put away the foreign gods that are among you, and incline your hearts to the Lord, the God of Israel." The people said to Joshua, "The Lord our God we will serve, and him we will obey." So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and made statutes and ordinances for them at Shechem.

Psalm 78:1-7

1 Hear my teaching, O my people; *
incline your ears to the words of my mouth.

2 I will open my mouth in a parable; *
I will declare the mysteries of ancient times.

3 That which we have heard and known,
and what our forefathers have told us, *
we will not hide from their children.

4 We will recount to generations to come
the praiseworthy deeds and the power of the Lord, *
and the wonderful works he has done.

5 He gave his decrees to Jacob
and established a law for Israel, *
which he commanded them to teach their children;

6 That the generations to come might know,
and the children yet unborn; *
that they in their turn might tell it to their children;

The Epistle: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

W e do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about those who have died, so that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have died. For this we declare to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will by no means precede those who have died. For the Lord himself, with a cry of command, with the archangel's call and with the sound of God's trumpet, will descend from heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up in the clouds together with them to meet the Lord in the air; and so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage one another with these words.

The Gospel: Matthew 25:1-13

J esus said, "Then the kingdom of heaven will be like this. Ten bridesmaids took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. When the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them; but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. As the bridegroom was delayed, all of them became drowsy and slept. But at midnight there was a shout, 'Look! Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.' Then all those bridesmaids got up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.' But the wise replied, 'No! there will not be enough for you and for us; you had better go to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.' And while they went to buy it, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went with him into the wedding banquet; and the door was shut. Later the other bridesmaids came also, saying, 'Lord, lord, open to us.' But he replied, 'Truly I tell you, I do not know you.' Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour."

Saint Day / Feast of the Week

Samuel Seabury
First American Bishop, 1796

Samuel Seabury, the first Bishop of the Episcopal Church, was born
in Groton, Connecticut, November 30, 1729. After ordination in
England in 1753, he was assigned, as a missionary of the Society for
the Propagation of the Gospel, to Christ Church, New Brunswick,
New Jersey. In 1757, he became rector of Grace Church, Jamaica,
Long Island, and in 1766 rector of St. Peter's, Westchester County.
During the American Revolution, he remained loyal to the British
crown, and served as a chaplain in the British army.

After the Revolution, a secret meeting of Connecticut clergymen in
Woodbury, on March 25, 1783, named Seabury or the Rev. Jeremiah
Leaming, whichever would be able or willing, to seek episcopal
consecration in England. Leaming declined; Seabury accepted, and
sailed for England.

After a year of negotiation, Seabury found it impossible to obtain
episcopal orders from the Church of England because, as an American
citizen, he could not swear allegiance to the crown. He then turned
to the Non-juring bishops of the Episcopal Church in Scotland. On
November 14, 1784, in Aberdeen, he was consecrated by the Bishop
and the Bishop Coadjutor of Aberdeen and the Bishop of Ross and
Caithness, in the presence of a number of the clergy and laity.

On his return home, Seabury was recognized as Bishop of Connecticut
in Convocation on August 3, 1785, at Middletown. With Bishop
William White, he was active in the organization of the Episcopal
Church at the General Convention of 1789. With the support of
William Smith of Maryland, William Smith of Rhode Island, William
White of Pennsylvania, and Samuel Parker of Boston, Seabury kept his
promise, made in a concordat with the Scottish bishops, to persuade
the American Church to adopt the Scottish form for the celebration of
the Holy Eucharist.

In 1790 Seabury became responsible for episcopal oversight of the
churches in Rhode Island; and at the General Convention of 1792 he
participated in the first consecration of a bishop on American soil, that
of John Claggett of Maryland. Seabury died on February 25, 1796,
and is buried beneath St. James' Church, New London.

November 10th - Art Saile

November 16th - Anita Ware

November 19th - Steve Bostian

November 20th - Jim Martin

November 23rd - Hayden Kish

November 23rd - Linda Boyd

November 26th - Mary Neil

November 28th - Candy Albergine

November 28th - Dennis Bolin

November 29th - Alex Haymaker

December 1st - Henry Baird

December 9th - Laurie Stewart

December 10th - Tony Fugate

December 13th - Glenda Carpenter

December 15th - Emily Solis

December 18th - Diane King

December 19th - Judy Cheek

December 21st - Linda Klocker

December 23rd - Christine Borner

December 25th - Barbara Mooradian

December 26th - Noelle Martin

December 30th - Helene Goulet

Please let the office know if we have missed your birthday!

MINISTRY SCHEDULE

2017	November 12	November 19
CHALICE/LECTOR 8:00 AM	Lee Wells	Susan Maxon
CHALICE 10:30 AM	Jim & Flo McCarthy	David McDowell Adam Nygren
LECTOR	David McDowell	Casey Allison
ACOLYTES	Sydney Wertz Emory Borner Zoe Tilly	Cheryl Richard Noelle Martin Sophie Martin
GREETER/USHER 8:00 AM	David Klocker	Kelly Morris
GREETERS/USHERS 10:30 AM	George Sowersby Pam Hart	Allison & Lee Wells
ALTAR GUILD	Cathy Webster	Allison Wells
BREAD	November Cheryl Saylor	December Allison Wells
ALTAR FLOWERS	Kish	Kelly Morris
COFFEE HOUR	Helene Goulet	Parish Lunch
MORNINGSIDE 10:30 AM	William Graham Eileen Klimkowski	Pete Laine Judy Mullins
SOUND TECH	Terry Eckard	Marc Dudley
LAY EUCHARISTIC VISITORS	David McDowell Adam Nygren	William & Priscilla Graham
YOUTH FORMATION	Jerry Wertz Judy Mullins	Deb Alzner Christine Borner
VPOD 8:00 10:30	Lee Wells Lee Wells	Jerry Wertz Adam Nygren

Blessings & Peace,

Fr. Gary+

phone: 704-864-7201

e-mail: [email protected]

web site:
www.allsaintsgastonia.org

Fr. Gary's blog:
http://thevenite.blogspot.com

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