Volume 5, Issue 50
December 18, 2020
THIS SUNDAY: December 20, 2020
Fourth Sunday of Advent


ON-SITE CHURCH SERVICES
with COMMUNION

8:00AM
Chris Neumann (EM)*
Jeff Albao (U)
Nora Takenouchi (AG)
Muriel Jackson (DM)

9:30AM
Dileep Bal (EM)
Mary Margaret Smith (U)
Rachel Secretario (LR)
Faith Shiramizu (AG)
Mabel Antonio, Nelson Secretario (HP)
Jan Hashizume, Ron Morinishi (DM)

Live Stream
9:30AM on our home page, YouTube, or Facebook accounts
@allsaintskauai

* EM - Eucharistic Minister; U - Usher; LR - Lay Reader; AG - Altar Guild; HP - Healing Prayers; DM - Digital Ministry
UPCOMING EVENTS
ON-SITE CHURCH SERVICES WITH COMMUNION
8:00AM and 9:30AM
Memorial Hall

Aloha Hour
Every Sunday
10:45AM - 12:00PM
Tent

Monday Crew
Every Monday
8:00AM
Church Office

Sunday School
Every Sunday
9:30 - 10:00AM
Deck under the false kamani tree

Ke Akua Youth Group Meeting
Saturday, December 19th
5PM
Zoom meeting
Those who are interested in the Youth Group Zoom meeting may contact Cami at Cami@allsaintskauai.org for login information.

Christmas Decorations due
Tuesday, December 22nd

Sanctuary Entrance

ADULT FORMATION SERIES:
"The Women in Jesus' Family Tree in Matthew 1"
"Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11)"
Tuesday, December 22nd
5:00 - 6:15PM
Zoom meeting
Those who are interested in the Adult Formation Series may contact Cami at Cami@allsaintskauai.org for login information.
For the aged and infirm, for the widowed and orphans, and for the sick and the suffering, especially the Lauretta 'Ohana, the Telles 'Ohana, Renee, Donavan, Kul, and those we name silently or aloud, let us pray to the Lord. ​Lord, have mercy. 

For all who have died, especially Alfred, Kalani, those affected by the COVID-19 virus, and those we name silently or aloud, in the hope of the resurrection, and for all the departed, let us pray to the Lord. ​Lord, have mercy. Amen.
Upcoming Christmas Events
Mark Your Calendars and Celebrate!
December 24th
  • 3:30PM Keiki Service led by the Ke Akua Youth Group: Recorded video only (no in-person or livestream)
  • 5:50PM Festive Eucharist: in-person and livestreamed
  • 10:30PM Carole Prelude and Festive Eucharist: in-person and livestreamed

December 25th
  • 9:30AM Eucharist: in-person and livestreamed

The Keiki service recording and livestreaming services are available via links on the All Saints' website: allsaintskauai.org

Ke Akua Youth Group to Produce Keiki Service
Despite COVID, the Youth Group Continues to Serve
COVID has impacted, but not slowed down, the Ke Akua Youth Group. They continue to meet via Zoom for regular meetings, EAM/ACAM meetings, and compline with Fr. Jar on Oahu. They managed a socially distanced Relay for Life. They helped with the Thanksgiving Luncheon. Now they are working on producing a recorded Keiki Christmas Eve service. This will enable families to watch the service without coming to the church or being restricted to viewing it at a specific time. The video will be available on Christmas Eve on All Saints' Youtube channel and through a link on the All Saints' website. Big mahalos to our dedicated youth for all they do for our church `Ohana and the community.


We Still Need Your Help!

Altar Guild Requests Flower Donations for Christmas Decorations

Due to COVID-19 we are unable to obtain poinsettias for this year's Christmas Sanctuary decoration. In lieu of monetary donations, the Altar Guild is kindly asking for specific flower arrangement items so they may make their own. They are kindly requesting:
 
  • 50  Red Ginger Flowers
  • 50 Ferns
  • 50 Ti Leaf Bunches
  • 50 Evergreen Branches
  • 8 Potted Red Anthurium Plants 
  • 8 Glass Vase 10"h x 4" dia. 
 
You may sign up on our jotform here: https://form.jotform.com/allsaintskauai/xmas-flowers-2020 or on the front page of our website.
Cleaning the Sanctuary for Christmas
Sunday, December 20th, 1PM
We thank God that the organ builders have installed our new pipe organ, the only one of its kind on island. Their last day of work is Saturday the 19th (there will come another 2-person crew in January to "voice" the pipes, but nothing will be moved around and we can still use the Sanctuary on Sundays). This means, though, that we will need to clean the Sanctuary and return the pews in their places. We can thus use as many hands as possible -- with enough people we can take care of this in a few hours. We plan on starting this Sunday the 20th from 1PM. Thanks for your kōkua!

Giving Opportunites Abound
Give, for We Have Been Given So Much
The pandemic has wreaked economic havoc on our island home. It is felt even more acutely at Christmas time. Families are struggling just to feed their families. Finding extra to buy gifts is yet more difficult. Please consider the many giving opportunities available to help our struggling island ohana. Here are a few suggestions. You can click on the organization name to go straight to their donation page.

Kaua`i's Only Pipe Organ Is Nearing Completion!
Major Milestone Achieved on Monday
Our pipe organ installation crew achieved a major milestone on Monday with the installation of the pipes (See the timelapse video below taken over the course of the workday). All of their effort up to this point was installation of the air flow system, electrical system and facade screen with louvers for volume control. Some of the bigger pipes (actually rectangular boxes) were installed earlier, but because of the tight space the 1250 pipes couldn't be installed until everything else was in place. One of our workers, Tobey, left Monday evening. The other two, Aaron and Morgan, will complete the Pipe installation and perform final checkout by the weekend. They plan on leaving Kauai on Sunday.
Mahalo Nui Loa for Feeding the Organ Crew
Many thanks to everyone who has donated lunches and dinners for the organ crew. You have enabled them to focus on the task of installing the organ. You have kept them well fed as they engage in this complicated and precise job. There are still open dates if you'd like to contribute.
Reflections from Kahu Kawika
The Cost of True Joy

John 1:6-8, 19-28
Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11
Psalm 126
1 Thessalonians 5:16-24
13 December 2020
All Saints’ Kapaa

One of the classic stories that is repeated each December is Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol.” The timeless character of Ebenezer Scrooge demonstrates the consummate selfish, self-centered, unforgiving and unloving qualities that are too often found in humankind. Our Hawaiian Pidgin word “humbug” no doubt arises from the popularity of Scrooge’s derisive expression of “bah-humbug,” which shows Scrooge’s total lack of regard, respect, or love for his fellow humans.

While this caricature of Scrooge is the one that sticks in our minds, the real story of Dicken’s “A Christmas Carol” is that of Scrooge’s ultimate repentance, characterized at first by intense self-loathing of witnessing his past mistreatment of others and subsequent self-isolation from the loving community of humanity, but then giving rise of a sense of joy that fills his heart when he takes stock and changes course, choosing instead to use his riches to bless others and to win friends through kindness. Scrooge realizes that by giving of himself to others, he ends up giving himself the best Christmas gift possible: a sense of joyful purpose in life.
As we find ourselves in this Third Sunday of the Advent Season, we encounter Bible readings that insert the theme of joy within the season of waiting and repentance. In fact, all our Advent scriptures today talk to us very clearly about repentance and rejoicing:

Isaiah 61: In our first reading, the prophet Isaiah declares, “I will joyfully exult in Adonai, who is the joy of my soul!”
Psalm 126: The Psalmist speaks for the Jewish community who have just been released from Babylonian exile and who now get to return back to their land and their homes, praising God for achieving what seemed impossible only a few years before – breaking the powerful hold of the Babylonian Empire.
1 Thessalonians 5: St. Paul echoes this exhortation with the exclamation: "Rejoice always!" His point is that joy and gratitude should characterize our prayers to God as we wait on God, who will keep all promises to us.
John 1: John the Baptizer completes his proclamation of repentance, begun in last week’s Gospel. He invites us to make a straight path to God, that we might be in a right relationship with God and with one another through repentance, that is, turning the direction of our lives around to orient them to God and to God’s grand plans to restore our world.

If all this isn’t enough, we notice in church today that our Advent color of blue has given way for one Sunday to the color of rose, or pink. Put smack-dab in the middle of our Advent Season, the color rose suggests that our season of self-introspection and taking stock should be motivated by a sense of wanting to enter into God’s full joy for us.

This also implies that there is no shortcut to true joy in the Lord. There indeed is a cost to achieving God’s joy in our lives. As the German theologian and Lutheran pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer said in his book The Cost of Discipleship, “God’s grace is free, but it is not cheap.” He ought to know – he willingly gave his life at the young age of 39 to die in a concentration camp because of his courageous opposition to his country’s leader, Adolf Hitler. Bonhoeffer further explains, “Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, Communion without confession, absolution without personal confession. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.”

And Jesus is our role model for the cost of achieving God’s true joy. The writer to the Hebrews in the New Testament asserts, “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful people, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” (Hebrews 12:2-3) The path to true, deep-down joy is not through the world’s shortcuts of self-gratifying fleeting attractions and temporary amusements, but through the lifelong cultivating of the outward giving of ourselves to God and to those around us, in the certainty that God has our backs and will complete us in ways we cannot imagine.

The Advent Season also reminds us not to skip too quickly to Christmas, despite the materialistic advertisements we see all around us. We all want to rush to the fun of Christmas, but when we do so we cheat ourselves out of the true joy that could be ours. By taking the time to fully enter into this Advent Season of waiting on the Lord, of taking stock to repent of ways we fall short before God and each other, we then discover the true selves that God intends for us to be and thus live into the true joy that could be ours.

True rejoicing comes through the cost of true repentance. Repentance and Rejoicing are certainly corner stones of the Christian faith. They are eternally yoked to each other. As Christians we are called to Repentance which means to turn away from sin and turn toward God. 

Repentance means focusing on God, instead of first on ourselves, our own needs and wants. Repentance requires that we turn away from ourselves and our sinfulness. Repentance calls us to focus on the Lord and His love for us and for those around us. 

Genuine repentance leads us to true joy. This was demonstrated recently when a man named Ken Parker was part of a Neo-Nazi group and was taking part in a hate march. It was a hot day, and Parker and his fiancé sat down suffering from heat exhaustion. That is when a woman named Deeyah Khan showed kindness to them by offering cold drinks and checking to see if they would be OK. While not immediately letting go of his prejudices, Parker nevertheless was taken aback by the kindness of this Muslim woman with darker skin. A few weeks later, Parker and his fiancé noticed in their neighborhood an African-American man having a barbecue cookout. They went over and started talking with him, noticing something holy and kind in the man as they conversed. Turns out the man was Pastor William McKinnon, pastor of All Saints Holiness Church. This was the beginning of several more conversations over the following weeks, culminating in Parker and his fiancé getting baptized by McKinnon and joining his racially-diverse church. At his baptism ceremony, Parker declared publicly, “I want to say I’m sorry. I do apologize. I know I’ve spread hate and discontent through this city immensely — probably made little kids scared to sleep in their own beds in their own neighborhoods.” The level of warmth, kindness, and joyful welcome by Khan, McKinnon, and McKinnon’s church was key in the complete turnaround of the lives of Parker and his fiancé. Rather than return hate for hate, these people demonstrated the transformative power of God’s joy – which Parker and his fiancé could only receive for themselves by taking stock of their lives and having the courage to turn them around.

Genuine repentance leads to true joy. 

All too often we are so totally self-centered and self-absorbed that we shut God out of our lives altogether. It is difficult, if not impossible, to rejoice when this is the case. Like Ebenezer Scrooge, our lives can be miserable and unfriendly when Joy and Rejoicing are absent. The absence of joy is most noticeable when the selfish, self-centered, narcissistic, sinful, and darker side of each of us dominates and pervades our thoughts and actions. When we refuse or are unwilling to acknowledge the sin in our lives and the sin around us, we will remain estranged from joy. It takes repentance to re-orient and refocus our lives on Jesus, who will lead us once again into a posture of rejoicing. 

If for some reason you are not yet in the Advent and Christmas spirit, or if you feel like Scrooge before his conversion, then be reminded as John the Baptist reminds us, the season of Advent calls us to repentance. Advent invites us to make a straight path, to turn from materialism and commercialism, hedonism and greed, infidelity and neglect, distrust and racism, laziness and selfishness, pride and envy....to turn from sin. 

Advent calls us to repent so that we might rejoice this Christmas season. And like the wolf and the lamb, the lion and the ox in today’s Old Testament lesson, we might experience Christ’s peace and wholeness through Repentance and Rejoicing. 

In thinking about what Christmas gifts to give and to receive, let’s take the time to give ourselves the best gift of all: The offer of God’s true joy that only comes at the cost of genuine repentance. God’s joy comes at a cost, and God’s grace is not cheap. The cost of genuine repentance leads to the treasure of true joy. Amen.
It's Never Too Late to Pledge
Bring In Your Pledges of Time, Talent, and Treasure to the Honor and Glory of God
You may still bring in your pledge cards on Sundays to place in the offertory calabash, bring them to the church office, or mail them in. Prayerfully consider what you would like to give back from the wonderful gifts given to you by a loving God.
2021 Pledge Envelopes Now Available
The boxes of pledge envelopes for 2021 will be available before and after services on the table outside Memorial Hall. If you want to pick up your envelopes at the church office during the work week, please call Cami at 808-822-4267 ext 3204 and she will hold them in the office for you. If you need to have the envelopes mailed to you, please contact Cami .
golfing

Hōkūala Kaua`i (Timbers Resort)
Gift Cards Available
Just in Time for Christmas
Our organ installers each received two gift cards from Hōkūala Kaua`i when they paid for their $150 post-arrival COVID test. All Saints’ is reimbursing them for the COVID test costs and the crew has generously donated the gift cards to All Saints’. Each envelop includes a $150 card for the golf club store (not including food and beverages) and a $75 card for free golf club rentals. We are offering each two gift card package ($225 value) for $150. Kahu Kawika (contact: rector@allsaintskauai.org) has the envelopes in his office if you are interested.
Aloha From Our Music Director
Merry Christmas and Thank You
Hank
It’s hard to believe we’ve all been living in this wonko world for almost one year! It has been extraordinarily challenging for all of us these past nine months, and it’s a testimony to our resilience and our Aloha that we’re still hanging in there, and thriving! Our music ministry has had to adapt to the pandemic by creating the All Saints’ Church Virtual Choir, as well as my virtual piano performances. I just want to thank the ASC Virtual Choir (we all agree it’s much harder than live) who have consistently shined. We will continue to express our faith tthrough our songs of praise under the COVID-19 protocol for vocal performances and await the lifting of the current restrictions. 

I can’t wait to be hands on with our new Rosales Opus 41 organ. It will be even more glorious when we can have our choir in person singing in the sanctuary. There is much to look forward to in 2021.

There are simply too many folks to thank individually for all the hard work on the organ project and Virtual Music Ministry, so just a huge “Mahalo” to the congregation, the Vestry and Kahu Kawika for all you’ve done in 2020. I wish you all a Blessed Christmas filled with light, and an amazing 2021! May God bless us all.

In joyful service, your Music Director, 

Hank


IRS Makes Giving Even Easier
The CARES Act passed in March of 2020 has changed the annual income tax deduction limits for gifts to public charities. These changes apply solely to 2020.

  1. Donors who take the standard deduction instead of itemizing their deductions may deduct up to $300 for cash contributions to operating charities.
  2. Donors who itemize their deductions have an option to elect a 100% of Adjusted Gross Income deduction limit for cash contributions made to charities.
The Act also temporarily suspends the requirements for required minimum distributions for 2020. Remember if you are 70 1/2 years old or older, you can still make a gift from your IRA or name your church as a beneficiary. You pay no income tax on the gift. Since it doesn’t count as income, it can reduce your annual income level. 

-Jan Hashizume
All Saints’ Church Treasurer
#AdventWord
A Resource for Advent
For the seventh year, #AdventWord will gather prayers via a global, online Advent calendar. Virginia Theological Seminary is offering 27 daily meditations and images during this holy season, beginning Sunday, November 29. During a year of disparate worship and communities of prayer, AdventWord offers a way to reflect and pause for the Advent season and await the birth of Christ.

Gathering a worldwide community, #AdventWord provides a daily meditation, visual image, and invites your personal reflections via social media to share your own Advent journey. Thousands have participated each year, responding to the words with photos, written responses, crafts, drawings, poems, found art, and Holy Spirit-filled posts.

“It is amazing to witness the prayers from around the world appearing on social media when Advent begins,” says AdventWord program director, Sarah Stonesifer Boylan. “I am really pleased to see that VTS has been able to continue to provide this offering consistently for four years, each time building on its success.”

Also new this year to #AdventWord offerings include a podcast for each day, voiced by Virginia Theological Seminary community members. The short daily podcasts provide another access point to absorb the lectionary-inspired writings by 27 different authors. Find it by searching AdventWord on your preferred podcast platform.

The prompts for this week's 2020 #AdventWord are:
December 18 - Bless
December 19 - Turn
December 20 - Rejoice
December 21 - Mystery
December 22 - Wisdom
December 23 - Holy
December 24 - Proclaim
The #AdventWord Images and meditations can be experienced through AdventWord.org, direct daily emails, as well as on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, and ASL videos via YouTube. Meditations will also be available in English, Spanish and Haitian Creole via email and on www.adventword.org. Listen and subscribe to the AdventWord daily podcast on most major podcast hosting sites.

Published by the Office of Formation of The Episcopal Church, 815 Second Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10017
© 2020 The Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America. All rights reserved.
Third Week of Advent: Journeying with Community

December 20, 2020
As we come closer to the joy and promise of the Incarnation, we invite you to continue journeying the Way of Love. Consider this week which of the seven practices captured your imagination this Advent. Which challenged you or brought the most joy? Where did you find blessings or cross boundaries? Where is God calling you to witness to salvation being birthed into the world today?
Sunday, December 20

WORSHIP
Linger before leaving worship today. Ask God to prepare and send you on a journey into the world to witness to God’s love.

Monday, December 21

GO
Go out into your neighborhood today. Where do you see God at work? What attributes of God’s love are visible? Ask God to show you how you can celebrate and join in that love.

Tuesday, December 22

LEARN
Read Luke 2:8-10. When has God surprised you? Share with a friend.

Wednesday, December 23

PRAY
Set aside a time today to pray for others. Include three minutes of intentional silence, asking God to speak to you.
Thursday, December 24

BLESS
If you are gathering with others today, take turns naming a way the person on your right or left has blessed you.

Friday, December 25

TURN
Read Luke 1-2. Give thanks for the birth of the Christ-child. Pray that you may follow Christ Jesus on his Way of Love with your whole heart, mind, body, and spirit
For more Advent resources related to the Way of Love, visit episcopalchurch.org/wayoflove. There, you’ll find links to the full Advent curriculum Journeying the Way of Love, as well as Living the Way of Love in Community, a nine-session curriculum for use anytime.

Published by the Office of Formation of The Episcopal Church, 815 Second Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10017
© 2020 The Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America. All rights reserved.


Magnificat
The Magnificat is the biblical recital of Mary's visit to her relative Elizabeth when Mary was pregnant with Jesus and Elizabeth was pregnant with John the Baptist. It is attributed to Mary in the Lucan narrative, but a minority of ancient authorities attributed it to Elizabeth. The term is from the opening words of the passage in the Latin Vulgate, Magnificat anima mea Dominum ("My soul magnifies the Lord"). The Magnificat strongly resembles and may have been modeled after the Song of Hannah (1 Sm 2:1-10), which is quite similar in its structure and themes. Both songs emphasize God's holiness and power, God's option for the poor and judgment on the rich, the fulfillment of God's promises, and the redemption of God's people.

The Magnificat is the traditional canticle of vespers. It was the only canticle for use after the first lesson of Evensong in the 1549 BCP. It was not used in the 1789 American BCP, but it was restored in the 1892 BCP. The 1928 BCP allowed its use as the only canticle at Evening Prayer when one lesson was read. The 1979 BCP permits use of the Magnificat at both Morning Prayer and Evening Prayer. It appears as Canticles 3 and 15 in the BCP, and it is printed in both the Rite 1 and Rite 2 forms for Evening Prayer. It may also be used at the Act of Thanksgiving in the Thanksgiving for the Birth or Adoption of a Child (BCP, pp. 441-442).

The Hymnal 1982 has a variety of settings for the Magnificat (S 242-S 247), including Plainsong, Tonus Peregrinus, adapted by Bruce E. Ford (S 242) and the setting Cathedral of the Isles by Betty Carr Pulkingham (S 247). The hymn text "Tell out, my soul" by Timothy Dudley-Smith (Hymns 437-438) is based on the Song of Mary.

https://episcopalchurch.org/library/glossary/magnificat

FROM THE EPISCOPAL CAFÉ
Heart, Hearth and Home

December 17, 2020

Leslie Scoopmire
“Purify our conscience, Almighty God, by your daily visitation, that your Son Jesus Christ, at his coming, may find in us a mansion prepared for himself; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.”  –Collect for the 4th Sunday of Advent



It’s now been over eight months since the parishes in our diocese and in large part across the Episcopal Church and other denominations have been closed to in-person worship. For many people, this has been a loss too great to be borne. Some parishioners have slipped away to worship in churches that chose to overlook requests to limit in-person gatherings. But our readings for this coming Sunday challenge us from the opening words of worship to consider that God’s dwelling place has never been limited to walls human hands have made. It’s almost as if the lectionary is speaking directly to us this year and offering us solace, encouragement, and hope as we continue to privilege the well-being of others over our deepest longings to be within our beautiful sacred buildings. 

Our collect for this Sunday pairs beautifully with the first reading we will hear from 2nd Samuel chapter seven, and with our gospel reading from the first chapter of Luke. The collect challenges us to see ourselves as a temple and home for Jesus, a challenge that goes deeper than the old saying, “your body is a temple.” In the season as we anticipate the incarnation of God in Christ, when we look forward to love taking on human flesh and hallowing it, we sometimes forget what the incarnation implies about our own beloved-ness, of the imprint of God that we bear at the center of our beings. Our reading from Samuel reminds us that God never asked for us to build walls and palaces in tribute to God. Walls, indeed, can be used to bottle something up within, or to exclude that which is without. Walls can be used to restrict, to conceal, to make mysterious that which should be openly and freely celebrated.

And certainly, before David’s big idea of building a palace for God — a temple David’s son Solomon built — God had lived in the center of the people, had literally tabernacled among them and stood in solidarity with them. This did not make God common or commonplace, but instead called the people to mindfulness of the presence of God always among them.

Gabriel’s annunciation to Mary that we hear in this Sunday’s Luke reading represents a reversal and upheaval of the human attempts to place walls and roofs over the living presence of God. Mary herself, Theotokos, or “God bearer,” with her bold, considered assent to be the handmaiden of God in God’s ongoing work of salvation, becomes, in her slim, strong body, the last container for God that will ever be required. Her willingness to carry and nurture the Lord of Life beneath her beating heart for nine months, and to care for the Incarnate one through his earthly pilgrimage among us as brother, teacher, and Lord is in itself a promise and a challenge to us today. 

I’ve often marveled that the heart is often described as being set ablaze by love. Add a single letter, and “heart” becomes “hearth,” radiating warmth and light into the most steadfast darkness. Mary carries Jesus within her heart, a heart that blazes with the strength of her faith like the hearth that warms a home, and Jesus asks us all to do the same. Like Mary, our hearts can blaze with joy if we assent to Christ living at the very center of our being. In coming to dwell among us as one of us, Christ shows us the perfection of humanity if we choose union with God in our thought, word, and deed.

This Christmas, after so much loss and anxiety, are we not being called to welcome Jesus into every aspect of our lives, to bear Christ out into the world, instead of locking him behind red doors? How can we make ourselves similarly into a fitting habitation for God?

The Rev. Leslie Scoopmire is a writer, musician, and a priest in the Diocese of Missouri. She is rector of St. Martin’s Episcopal Church in Ellisville, MO. She posts daily prayers, meditations, and sermons at her blog Abiding In Hope, and collects spiritual writings and images at Poems, Psalms, and Prayers.
National Cathedral Tolls Bell 300 Times as United States Passes 300,000 COVID-19 Deaths

By David Paulsen

Posted Dec 15, 2020
The Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., is the seat of the presiding bishop of The Episcopal Church. Photo: Episcopal News Service

[Episcopal News Service] Washington National Cathedral on Dec. 15 tolled its bell 300 times, once for every 1,000 people who have died from COVID-19 in the United States, as another grim milestone in the pandemic coincided this week with the promise of hope offered by a vaccine.

American deaths have now topped 300,000, and over 16 million cases have been reported in the United States. Worldwide cases have passed 71 million, including 1.6 million deaths, according to the World Health Organization.

“The climbing death toll from this pandemic seems disturbingly routine. How awful that is,” National Cathedral Dean Randy Hollerith said in a written statement.

“The Christian faith teaches that each person is a beloved child of God, and that my well-being is deeply connected to your well-being. We are not lone individuals free from responsibility; rather, we are dependent upon one another for our very lives and commanded to love our neighbors as ourselves.”
The cathedral, located in the nation’s capital, tolls its 12-ton bell for every funeral held there, and it tolled the bell 200 times on Sept. 20 after COVID-19 deaths in the United States reached 200,000.

The first shipments of a vaccine developed by Pfizer were distributed nationwide early this week, with front-line health care workers receiving some of the first vaccinations. Another vaccine developed by Moderna is expected to receive federal emergency authorization this week. The initial round of vaccinations has been cheered around the country, though it still could be months before doses are distributed widely enough to establish herd immunity and curb the virus.

In the meantime, public health experts are warning that winter could bring another alarming rise in COVID-19 cases and deaths. They have urged Americans to limit travel and personal contact, including around the holidays, while continuing to wear masks and keep a safe distance from others when venturing out in public. Some dioceses, meanwhile, have suspended in-person worship through Advent and Christmas.

“There are simple things we can do … to show our mutual respect and concern for one another,” Hollerith said. “Yes, we are tired from the confines and struggles of this pandemic, and yes, it’s been a long nine months. But now, more than ever, we have to protect each other because there has been far too much death. A vaccine is coming and we will get through these difficult days, but we will only succeed if we do it together.”

– David Paulsen is an editor and reporter for Episcopal News Service. He can be reached at dpaulsen@episcopalchurch.org.
Tongan Royal Family helps with Prayer Book Translation

By Julanne Clarke-Morris

Posted Dec 10, 2020
[Anglican Taonga] The new version of the Tongan Eucharistic liturgy in “A New Zealand Prayer Book He Karakia Mihinare o Aotearoa” published in 2020 has taken a journey from rewriting to revising to double-checking with royalty on its way to finding its current form.

The Tongan liturgy in this year’s new prayer book was translated through the efforts of eight translators: the Diocese of Polynesia’s translations coordinator, the Rev. Sione Uluilakepa, along with Viliami Folau, Kensington Fifita and retired priest the Rev. Epalahame Vea, with help from the late Rev. Viliami Tohi, Archdeacon Pau Likiliki, Daniel Koloamatangi and Lionel Tu’inukuafe.

IN BRIEF . . .

These news briefs were featured in previous issues of "The Epistle"

Please submit your story ideas to the Epistle Staff at news@allsaintskauai.org.
HALE HO`OMALU ACCEPTING DONATIONS
There is an on-going need for travel sized toiletries and canned goods so these items will be accepted every week. As always, monetary donations are gratefully accepted. Leave them in the red wagon outside the sanctuary.

ZONTA OF KAUAI FOUNDATION CHRISTMAS FUND is accepting donations for Christmas 2020. To donate, click here: Zonta Christmas Donation.

KUPUNA SHOPPING ASSISTANCE MINISTRY
Any of our All Saints' kupuna who need assistance with grocery shopping can contact Carolyn Morinishi at church@allsaintskauai.org to set up a delivery.

ALL SAINTS' VIRTUAL SWAP MEET
If any ministry has an unmet need, reach out to put it in the All Saints' Virtual Swap Meet and it will be published in the Epistle. Contact Bill Caldwell at news@allsaintskauai.org.

PASTORAL CARE CONTACT INFORMATION
Whenever you have a need for support, please call (650) 691-8104 and leave a voice mail. The system will immediately forward the information to the Pastoral Care Committee who will respond to each request. If you prefer, you may send an electronic pastoral care request via email to pastoralcare@allsaintskauai.org.

PRAYER CHAIN MINISTRY
Individuals who want to participate in the Prayer Chain Ministry must re-enroll to continue receiving the email communications. To re-enroll, please visit the newly established Pastoral Care web page or contact the Church Office at (808) 822-4267.

SUBMITTING A PRAYER REQUEST
Prayer requests will now be submitted online or by contacting the Church Office at (808) 822-4267.

PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE
Names can be added to the Prayers of the People petitions by using the Prayer Chain Request form or by contacting the Church Office at (808) 822-4267. Names will remain in the Prayers of the People for a maximum of four Sundays before a name must be resubmitted.