PARISH NEWS for Wednesday, November 28, 2018
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Historic St. John's gets new roof!
When you come to church on Sunday, look at the new roof on the historic church! In spite of the wind on Tuesday, the workers were up on the steep roof taking off the old shingles and putting on the new. Many thanks to all who contributed to the facilities fund raising effort this past summer. Our goal was to raise funds to replace one HVAC unit, the water heater and the roof on the historic church. Because of your generosity and vision, we were able to accomplish all three replacements.
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- We REALLY need your help!!!
In the past few weeks, I have been approached by the heads of several of our
ministries, such as the counters, the Altar Guild, the Lay Eucharistic Ministers and the lectors, saying they need more people. Most of this work is done on Sunday morning (the Altar Guild sometimes comes in on Saturday). Each of these groups only has about four members, and because many people travel, they end up serving several times a month. We need to have more people in each ministry. Training will be provided! If you are interested in being a counter, see Marie McDermott; for LEM or lector, see Monti Zimmerman or Carol; for Altar Guild, see Marcia Evans. We all enjoy coming to worship on Sundays. But we need YOUR help to make it all happen.
Our "St John's Episcopal Church Welcomes You" sign and post that has been on the corner of Route 29 and Braddock Road was taken sometime between November 18 - 20. Someone sawed off the post at the bottom, close to the ground. If you saw anything or know anything about what might have happened, please let Carol or David Weir know.
- Our Neighbor's Child Christmas Gifts - 4 ornaments remain...
Each year, St. John's is asked to provide 15 Christmas gifts for children in need through "Our Neighbor's Child". This Sunday, the sex and age of the child will be on a paper ornament on the small Christmas tree in the breezeway. If you can help, please take a paper ornament and sign the list with your name and the number of your ornament. The
unwrapped gifts
need to be returned to the church by
Sunday, December 9
.
Please attach the paper ornament securely to the outside of the gift.
Of the 49 pledges that we received last year, 38 have returned their completed pledge cards and 3 have moved away.
If you have not yet returned your completed pledge card, please do so as soon as possible
. The Finance Committee and the Vestry are working on the 2019 budget now. Pledge cards can be put in the offering bags on Sunday or mailed to the church office (5649 Mt. Gilead Road, Centreville, VA 20120). For those who have already returned their pledge cards, many thanks!
- Sunday School Class for 2-4 year olds
Our Sunday School class for 2-4 year olds will meet
this Sunday, December 2
in Room 215 from 10:50 - 11:30 AM
and will be led by Patrick and Nickie Jones. Invite your friends and neighbors to join us. The class meets on the first Sunday of the month.
Advent, the four Sundays before Christmas, begins this Sunday, December 2. We will have easy-to-follow Advent calendars available with something specific to pray for or do each day. This free calendar and the "Journeying the Way of Love: Advent Curriculum" have been put together by the Episcopal Church as part of the "Way of Love: Practices for the Jesus-Centered Life", started by our Presiding Bishop Michael Curry and endorsed by the General Convention. The Advent curriculum will be studied on the four Sundays of Advent at 10:50 AM in Carol's office. Join us this Sunday as we take a look at "The Annunciation: Saying "Yes" to the Journey".
Virginia Theological Seminary is offering daily meditations during Advent.
Go to
www.AdventWord.org to sign up.
- What changes will we see in Advent?
The season of Advent is the four weeks before Christmas. It is a time of spiritual preparation and waiting for the birth of the Christ child. Advent marks the beginning of a new church year. We will begin "Year C" of the lectionary cycle, we will have blue hangings rather than green, we will use Rite I rather than Rite II, we will use greens on the altar rather than flowers, and we will omit the "alleluia's". Advent is a penitential season, although not "as penitential" as Lent. These changes remind us that we are in a different season of the church year and that it is a time to prepare ourselves to receive the Christ child into our midst at Christmas. "O come, O come Emmanuel!"
- Save the date for The Cleaning and Greening!
On Saturday, December 15
, we will have the "
cleaning and greening
" of the church. We will clean the historic church from top to bottom and then decorate the church for Christmas. Bring your cleaning supplies and join us from 9-12. This would be a good activity for students who need community service hours!
We could certainly use the help of some of our "younger" men and women.
- Packing and delivering Christmas baskets
Also on Saturday, December 15, we will pack Christmas baskets for the families given to us by Western Fairfax Christian Ministries, starting at 9:00 AM. We will need folks to deliver 10 baskets on Sunday, December 16, right after church. Please let Marie McDermott know if you can help. If you would like to make a donation to the Christmas basket fund, envelopes are on the back table in the church.
- We welcome another Ministry Partner!
Gamblers Anonymous now meets at St. John's on Saturdays from 2:30 - 4:30 PM in room 207/208.
About 40 bags of crushed rock will be delivered to St. John's later this week to fill in the many potholes in our parking lots. If you can help fill holes in this "pot hole ministry", please contact David Weir.
We are happy to put on the prayer list the names of parishioners, family members or friends who are sick or are in need. However, when that person has sufficiently recovered, please let us know so we can take their name off the prayer list. Unless otherwise directed, if we don't hear from the person who has put the name on the prayer list after a few months, we may take that person's name off the prayer list in order to keep the list from becoming too long. That name can always be put back on.
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- Val and John Tucker for providing bibles for each pew in the church.
- David Weir, David Daniel Weir and John Tucker for filling in pot holes in the parking lot.
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Please send an email to the office if you did not receive a pledge card yet: SJECCentreville@aol.com, or let Carol know. The cards may be mailed back to St. John's, or put in the collection this Sunday.
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If you already placed an order for one of the Historic Centreville afghans/throws featuring St. John's, they have arrived! They are ready to be picked up in the office. Please see Carol. (If you didn't already order and pay for one, there are a few extras available to sell. The price is $50.)
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We can prepare our hearts & minds by reading ahead
for the Sunday Service lessons.
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The First Sunday of Advent
December 2, 2018
9:30 AM
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The First Reading: Jeremiah 33:14-16
The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, revealed in Jesus Christ, keeps his promises.
The Psalm: 25:1-9
The Second Reading: 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13
Not only is there power in prayer, there is power in sharing our prayers for one another, to encourage and strengthen each other in faith.
The Gospel: Luke 21:25-36
Signs may abound, but our concern is not for discerning signs or portents, but for living faithfully in the steps and light of the Lord.
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THE ADULT LECTIONARY FORUM
MEETS EACH SUNDAY IN THE LIBRARY, FOLLOWING THE SERVICE
FROM 10:50 - 11:50 AM
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CHILD CARE IS PROVIDED IN THE NURSERY
(Rm. 205)
During the Service
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JOINT SUNDAY SCHOOL: 10:30 - 11:30 AM
Each week, St. John's children join with three of our Ministry Partners:
Fairfax Chinese Christian Church, Wellspring UCC & Grace Baptist Church
Room 207/208
St. John's Sunday School
class for ages 2-4, Room 215
Meets the first Sunday of each month from 10:50 - 11:30
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Thanksgiving Message from The Rt. Rev. Susan Goff
Thanksgiving 2018
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
The first Thanksgiving celebrations, both in Massachusetts and in Virginia, were set in the context of change and transition. The lives of the early settlers of this continent, and the lives of the native people they encountered, were uncertain in a rapidly changing territory. Yet, those men and women paused to give thanks to God for the abundance of gifts that they received from God, from the land and from each other.
Our Thanksgiving celebrations this year will be set in our own context of change and transition. As a Diocese, we have entered into an interim time between the resignation and retirement of Bishop Shannon Johnston and the election of our next Bishop Diocesan. As a nation, we find ourselves in the territory of loss due to floods and fires and the ongoing epidemic of gun violence, and in the territory of many broken relationships between those of the dominant culture and those of other cultures. As individuals, we experience personal transitions of many kinds in this rapidly changing world. Yet we, like our ancestors, will pause to give thanks to God for the abundance of gifts that we receive from God, from the land and from each other.
As we gather in worship and around community tables in the coming week, be assured that I give thanks for you and for our common life. I give thanks for the trust you have placed in me as ecclesiastical authority. And I give thanks for the mission and ministry to which God has called us, together, in the name of Jesus.
Add your voice and your prayers of thanksgiving to those of your congregation, your community, and our wider Church so that God will be honored and praised. Pray for our Diocese, for one another, for our nation and for our world so that God's love will be multiplied and God's desire for this earth will be done.
Faithfully yours,
Susan E. Goff
Bishop Suffragan and
Ecclesiastical Authority
The Collect for Thanksgiving
Almighty and gracious Father, we give you thanks for the fruits of the earth in their season and for the labors of those who harvest them. Make us, we pray, faithful stewards of your great bounty, for the provision of our necessities and the relief of all who are in need, to the glory of your Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
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VOLUNTEERING AT ST. JOHN'S
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Sign Up Here
to be an altar server
*,
or to donate flowers for a Sunday service, or to bring refreshments for Coffee Hour after the service.
*
(if you're not an altar server, and would like to be a Lay Eucharistic Minister (LEM), a Lector, or a Crucifer, please see Carol).
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WESTERN FAIRFAX
CHRISTIAN MINISTRIES
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"We know that food can be one of the most expensive items on a household budget list. Our hope is that in allowing our clients to visit once per month they will save enough money to pay for other expenses such as rent or utility bills."
I
tems are collected weekly in the baskets at the front door of St. John's Church. For food list:
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Reminder
Every Wednesday evening, we have a service of Holy Eucharist and healing at 6:00 PM. The service is about 30 minutes. It is a perfect alternative for those who cannot come to church on Sunday mornings, as well as a good spiritual boost in the middle of the week. Come join us!
Respect
Following Jesus informs how we view people and ourselves. Rather than restricting people and taking offense, following Jesus invites respecting people, supporting and encouraging their development.
-Br. Luke Ditewig
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My email address is stjohnscvpriest@gmail.com,
and the office number is 703-803-7500.
May our ministry together spread God's love to all whom we encounter.
-
Carol
The Rev. Carol Hancock, Rector
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ST. JOHN'S EPISCOPAL CHURCH | 5649 MT. GILEAD RD. , CENTREVILLE, VA | 703-803-7500
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Please note:
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