| a weekly e-newsletter from Saint Martin's Church |
April 5, 2018
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This Week
at
St. Martin's
Rite I Worship
8:00 a.m.
Choir Rehearsal
9:00 a.m.
Sunday School
9:30 a.m.
Rite II Worship with Music
10:00 a.m.
Confirmation Gathering
4:30 p.m.
Tuesday
Worship Planning Meeting
5:30 p.m.
Wednesday
Staff Meeting
10:00 a.m.
Holy Eucharist
12:15 p.m.
Bible Study at
St. Martin's
7:00 p.m.
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Greeting
Easter Peace & Blessings!
Photo credit: Sherrill Rowland, Property Manager
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Thank you for your generous offerings on Good Friday. We will send $216.00 to the Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society in support of the ongoing ministry carried out throughout the Province of Jerusalem and the Middle East.
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Each week children and youth of all ages gather in the large Sunday School room at 9:30 a.m. to pray, read the bible, and be creative!
From Christmas to Easter the focus was on the New Testament, from Christ's birth to baptism to Holy Week with the Crucifixion. Then on Easter we unrolled the "Alleluia" banner, relived the discovery of the empty tomb and celebrated Christ's resurrection. The Easter Egg Hunt after the 10am service was both joyful and gave us another chance to think about the empty tomb (represented by the empty eggs... that were quickly opened and enjoyed.) Thanks to the Bortners for hosting a very festive coffee hour out on the lawn.
Starting April 8, Sunday School will again begin at 9:30 a.m. in the large Sunday School downstairs at the end of the hall. All children from preschool through 5th grade are invited to join Ms. Deb and her youth assistants as we go back to revisit parts of the Old Testament. In particular for the next two weeks we will be reading the Exodus story, reenacting the passages related to the plagues (we have plague masks:-), and journeying with Moses from Egypt to the Promised Land. This is bound to be a lively adventure, and very importantly it is also preparation for the Holy Communion Experience that we are having on April 17 at 6 p.m. We encourage all children to join us, and as we discuss new stories we will begin new Lego interpretations (midrash).
The nursery will also be open this Sunday, starting at 9:30 a.m.
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Join members of Christ Church, Ithan, and St. Martin's as we continue to explore the parallel Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. This week we will meet at St. Martin's on Wednesday at 7 p.m. The discussion will be held in the large Sunday School room at the end of the first floor hall. Newcomers are welcome--each Wednesday night session stands alone as we compare the same story told by each of the different Gospel writers. This approach provides us with a fresh perspective on the stories of Jesus' life, ministry, and teaching. Copies of the book "Records of the Life of Jesus" are available for purchase or to borrow from St. Martin's. We'd love to have your voice in our spirited and spiritual conversation. In the future we will be having some of these shared Bible Studies at each of the two churches so watch the weekly newsletters to verify the location.
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Lenten Outreach Soup Cook
 Our Lenten soup program has ended as we made our final delivery of homemade soups to The Great Valley Food Cupboard. Over the past seven weeks we delivered 123 quarts of a mouthwatering variety of soups including chicken noodle, beef barley, split pea, broccoli cheddar, vegetable, tomato rice, cabbage, lentil and mushroom barley to name a few! Thanks so much again to our faithful soup cooks - Pattie Booker, Robin Cummings, Pam Faber, Carisa Gring, Carlie Hutton, Gale Muir, Helen Myers, Lara, Josh & Brynn Penny, Bev Reinhardt, Sarah Rittenhouse, Sherrill Rowland, Abby Thomas, Susan Underwood and Kathy Wynn. The people at the food cupboard are so touched by this ministry and are truly grateful that someone would take the time to make something homemade for them.
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Holy Communion Experience
Ages 5 & above - April 17th, 6:00 p.m.
 Many Christian churches offer a Eucharist education opportunity. This is designed to help children and youth more fully understand Communion, the Liturgy of the Table, as part of weekly worship. These Communion programs go by many names. Some use the title Early Communion Class, Solemn Communion Experience, or others in the Roman and Lutheran churches may call it First Holy Communion. At St. Martin's we are offering this type of program for children age 5 and older...including families and adults. We are calling it a "Holy Communion Experience."
The evening will include participating in a Passover meal, linking that to the Last Supper, and finishing with an instructed Eucharist. We will gather on April 17 at 6:00 p.m. Barry and Abby Thomas are planning the evening with Ms. Deb. The Holy Communion Experience will be for children and youth as well as adults. More details will follow, but if you are interested in participating please RSVP to Deb ([email protected]) because we need a definite head count in order to provide enough food. We hope you help spread the word to families who may not see The Cloak, so they know about this formation event.
On April 22 (the Sunday following the Holy Communion Experience) will be a second opportunity for learning more about the Eucharist during the worship service. There will be places in the front of the worship space for those who participated on Tuesday--as well as families where they would like for the children to be close and see more about what is done to prepare and serve Communion. This event is celebratory and we look forward to everyone growing closer to Christ in this Easter season, by understanding more about the Eucharist as part of our faith journey.
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Corks & Cards
 One way we can live into our Baptismal Covenant is by being of service to others. Please collect your corks and the fronts of greeting cards, then deposit them in the baskets at St. Martin's. We are supporting the efforts of one of the youth at Christ Church, Ithan, as he raises money for the Southern Poverty Law Center. Their mission is to seek justice for the most vulnerable people in society.
Beginning later this year, Jay Harper and other volunteers will be meeting monthly between their Sunday worship services to create gift tags from the used greeting cards. They will package these tags to sell next fall. They will also be packaging and selling the corks on the Internet next fall to crafters who like to use them for Christmas craft projects. These used corks really add up!
All proceeds from the project will go to the Southern Poverty Law Center and other Social Justice initiatives. Jay and members of his team will visit St. Martin's later this spring to give a brief presentation on the project. Then in the fall, the youth of St. Martin's will be invited to join volunteers at Christ Church to work on the project, so thank you for helping with this new collaboration and stay tuned!
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At the Easter Vigil St. Martin's celebrated the baptism of Benjamin Alunkal. As we repeated the familiar words of the Baptismal Covenant, it led us to the question, what is next? How do we live into those promises? The suggested prayer this week is a reading of the Covenant (BCP p. 304-305). Challenge yourself to think about what each promise means to you right here and now.
According to one bishop*, "The vocation to discipleship and apostleship is given to us in baptism. In baptism, we are joined to our creator God in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus and sent out into the world in the power of the Holy Spirit to participate in God's mission. Dying to our old self in the waters of baptism and rising to new life in Jesus, we own anew our calling as followers of Jesus - disciples of Jesus in a new age. Sealed with the Holy Spirit and marked as Christ's own forever, we're sent into the world as missionaries - apostles of the mission of God." With the rising of Christ from the dead, our pilgrim's journey is now taking us in new directions.
*Ian T. Douglas, Bishop of Connecticut
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Upcoming Events
Confirmation Gatherings
Sunday, 4/8, 4:30 p.m.
Read Chapter 8 in My Faith, My Life, and bring Outreach Project forms
Sunday, 4/22, 4:30 p.m.
Outreach Project and selecting scripture passage for end of year.
Worship Planning Meeting
Tuesday, 4/10, 5:30 p.m.
Staff Meeting
Wednesday, 4/11, 10 a.m.
Vestry Meeting
Monday, 4/16, 7 p.m.
Holy Communion Experience
Tuesday, 4/17, 6 p.m.
For ages 5 through adult in the Gurley Room and worship space. Dinner included. Please RSVP to Deb Parker ([email protected])
Bible & Beer
Thursday, 4/19, 7 p.m. at Pietro's Pizza, Radnor
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Read and Ponder
this Week's Scriptures
The scripture readings for this Sunday are:
Acts 4:32-35
Psalm 133
1 John 1:1-2:2
John 20:19-31
The Collect
Almighty and everlasting God, who in the Paschal mystery established the new covenant of reconciliation: Grant that all who have been reborn into the fellowship of Christ's Body may show forth in their lives what they profess by their faith; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Acts 4:32-35
Now the whole group of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one claimed private ownership of any possessions, but everything they owned was held in common. With great power the apostles gave their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. There was not a needy person among them, for as many as owned lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold. They laid it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need.
The Response
Psalm 133
1 Oh, how good and pleasant it is, when brethren live together in unity!
2 It is like fine oil upon the head that runs down upon the beard,
3 Upon the beard of Aaron, and runs down upon the collar of his robe.
4 It is like the dew of Hermon that falls upon the hills of Zion.
5 For there the Lord has ordained the blessing: life for evermore.
1 John 1:1-2:2
We declare to you what was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the word of life-- this life was revealed, and we have seen it and testify to it, and declare to you the eternal life that was with the Father and was revealed to us-- we declare to you what we have seen and heard so that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. We are writing these things so that our joy may be complete. This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light and in him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him while we are walking in darkness, we lie and do not do what is true; but if we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and he is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.
The Gospel
John 20:19-31
When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you." After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you." When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained." But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord." But he said to them, "Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe." A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you." Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe." Thomas answered him, "My Lord and my God!" Jesus said to him, "Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe." Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.
Optional parts of the readings are set off in square brackets.
The Bible texts of the Old Testament, Epistle and Gospel lessons are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Church of Christ in the USA, and used by permission.
The Collects, Psalms and Canticles are from the Book of Common Prayer, 1979.
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| Saint Martin's Episcopal Church of Radnor
400 King of Prussia Road
Radnor, PA 19087 (610) 688-4830 |
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