* Fourth Sunday of Advent
Dec. 20
* Advent Adult Formation
Dec. 23 @ 5:15pm
*St. Alban's Virtual Pageant!
Thursday, December 24th
at the 4:00pm Family Service
*Caring for the
Caregiver Group
Mondays @ 9am
To learn more about this upcoming opportunity, please contact Liz Davy.
*St. Alban's Cares
Thursdays @ 9:30am
30-minute Zoom Coffee Chat.
*Notice of Our Annual Parish Meeting
January 31, 2021 at 11:00 am
via Zoom
We will review the past year and elect officers, vestry members and delegates to our annual diocesan convention. Please plan to attend.
Those of you with leadership responsibilities, please prepare a report for the congregation of past activities. Questions? Please contact Mother Lynn by email or by phone (207) 799-4014, ext 204
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Holy Experiment this Sunday @ 10:30am!
We'll wrap up the IV Sunday
of Advent with a "Dipping into Scripture" Cooking Lesson!
We'll bake shepherd's crooks and angel's wings and
together read a Dip Script
that represents key parts
of the story.
Look for the link in Sunday's Invitation to Worship e-mail.
Pageant Families!
Many thanks for your excellent video and filming skills!
Producer Extraordinaire Jen Tarling is busy editing your creative submissions!
Make sure to tune into the 4:00pm Family Service on Christmas Eve
for the world premiere!
Christmas Sidewalk Chalk Walk Cancelled
Friends:
Wet sidewalks and chalk aren't the best medium for artwork.
Due to the first real snow of the season, this weekend's Christmas Sidewalk Chalk Walk event is cancelled.
(It's a great idea, though. Perhaps we'll resurrect something similar for
Holy Week!)
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Join others for a conversation based on the Rev. Fleming Rutledge's "Suffering and Hope" series found in her book, Advent: The Once and Future Coming of Jesus Christ. We will meet on Zoom from 5:15 - 6:15 pm the four Wednesdays in Advent.
Middle School and High School Formation
Rite 13: Grades 7th-8th
Rite 13 is the name of the formation program for youth in Grades 7 and 8. This year Rite 13 will be offered through at home formation opportunities and online through Maine Diocesan Youth, which meets the third Monday evening of each month from 7-8:30 pm for a time to Play, Pray, and Connect. From time to time, we may gather in person for a special event. The Rev. Holly Hoffmann is the staff member coordinating this program with the support of Jason and Amber Burks.
High School Youth Group:
Grades 9-12
Our gatherings for high schoolers make space for getting to know one another and to explore our faith through times of fun and games, fellowship and conversation, and prayer. We will gather online with the Maine Diocesan Youth the third Monday evening of each month from 7-8:30 pm, and we will gather online or in person for special events at other times each month. The Rev. Holly Hoffmann is the staff member leading this program with the support of Randi Hogan.
If you would like to learn about upcoming Rite 13 or High School Youth events and offerings, please contact the Rev. Holly Hoffmann.
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Priscilla and Elise continue to flower the church during the pandemic. Thank you! |
Music of the Week
O Holy Night
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Service of the Week
Missed a Service on Zoom?
Follow us by "subscribing" to
St. Alban's YouTube Channel.
It's FREE!
If you missed any services check out our You Tube Channel HERE.
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December 20, 2020
The Fourth Sunday of Advent
Find Sunday's readings HERE.
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If you would like a name spoken aloud during our Sunday worship prayers for healing and hope, please put your prayer request in the St. Alban's Prayer Box by emailing us.
Our intercessors at worship will pray your prayer request aloud.
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The St. Alban's Vestry has commissioned a committee charged with providing guidance during the COVID-19 pandemic.
We will keep you posted as we make progress, and please reach out to any of us with concerns and suggestions (email us).
Bill Bell, Debbie Fisher, the Rev. Holly Hoffmann, Marybeth Nolt, Chris Pezzullo, Joel Pierce, Maryann Sedlack, Red Sullivan, the Rev. Lynn Carter-Edmands
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Getting connected to your community.
An email was sent with your invitation to Realm, and thank you for taking a few moments to create an account for Realm. If you have questions, please contact Linda at finances@stalbansmaine.org.
For anyone who has forgotten their password, please use this link, and then click on "Forgot your password?"
We're excited by the prospect of having you join us in becoming regular users of St. Alban's Realm site. We look forward to what Realm enables us to do in 2020 and beyond.
Note: Emails from Realm may go to your spam folder so be sure to mark
notifications@onrealm.org
as a safe email.
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Redeemable cans and bottles put in these green Clynk! bags benefit the Youth Pilgrimage.
Thank you for your continued support.
You can pick up Clynk! bags in the box beside the doors to the church from the Oakhurst parking lot of St. Alban's. (They are no longer in the shed.)
After filling your CLYNK bag and tying it tight, please hold on to it for 3 days before you drop it off at any CLYNK drop location.
Please take your bags to Hannaford, as usual, and do not leave them in this shed for the church to transport.
For more information click HERE.
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With the parish office closed for the time being, and until we get the all-clear from the Bishop's Office, please contact us via email or by phone. The phone system should be transferring calls to the parish staff; if it does not please let us know! We've been having some challenges with the phones lately and we hope we've got them worked out. We want to stay in touch!
Sign up for our Weekly E-News HERE
Sign up for the Daily Cup (M-F)
Sign up for the weekly Invitation to Worship (to receive the bulletins and links to Zoom/YouTube)
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From the Transition Priest-in-Charge |
Christmas is just one week away! We will celebrate the Feast of the Holy Nativity at the following services, all via Zoom.
Christmas Eve:
- 4:00 pm Family Christmas with our Nativity Pageant.
- 6:00 pm Celtic Eventide Christmas.
- 9:00 pm Celebration of the Holy Eucharist with the distribution of Holy Communion following the service.
Christmas Day:
- 10:00 am Celebration of the Holy Eucharist with distribution of Holy Communion following the service.
“Drive-up” reception of Holy Communion: Pandemic precautions prevent us from gathering inside for worship, so we ask you to plan to join one another via Zoom for the Holy Eucharist at 9:00 pm Christmas Eve and/or at 10:00 am Christmas Day, and then get in your car and come to the church to receive Holy Communion. The clergy will be out front on the church porch for about 30 – 45 minutes following these two services for you to drive by and receive Holy Communion from your car.
Given our limitations we wanted to gather in some way – even if it’s in our cars – to share in Holy Communion. Please enter the parking lot by way of Mitchell onto to Oakhurst, turning right into the parking lot, and form a line to drive by the front porch. Plan to exit onto Oakhurst and turn right onto Shore Road. We want to avoid any excessive traffic build-up. Some of our ushers will be there to direct you.
We will be wearing masks and ask you to do so as well. Folks in each vehicle will receive Holy Communion in one kind, provided for in a small cup that you will share with others in your car. When giving Communion to others, please use the words, “the Body of Christ, the Bread of Heaven”, as we would if we were gathering at the altar rail.
The entire staff at St. Alban’s wish you a blessed Christmas and a joy-filled New Year. This year we have taken the opportunity to be creative in ways we could not have imagined. We are grateful for the support of the family and friends of St. Alban’s and for all those who have given of their time as well as their talent and treasure to help with the ministry this past year. We look forward to seeing what the Holy Spirit might want to do with us in the coming year!
Be of good cheer. God brings light and love and hope through the gift of Jesus: God with us!
With every blessing,
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(The Rev.) Lynn Carter-Edmands,
Transition Priest-in-Charge
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Staying Safe Faithfully
Produced by the Maine Council of Churches featuring Bishop Brown.
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Flowering the Church for Christmas |
This Christmas Eve, the altar at St. Alban's will again be decorated with poinsettias, given to the glory of God and in memory of those we have lost, in honor of those still with us, or in thanksgiving of blessings received. Since we will not be using as many poinsettias this year, any funds received over what is needed for the flowers will be sent to one of the outreach ministries of Greater Portland we currently support.
You are invited to contribute to the flowering of the church by mailing a check to St. Alban's (please note in the memo line that it is for Christmas Flowers); or you can donate online at HERE. Please email the name(s) you wish to acknowledge to parishadmin@stalbansmaine.org and let us know if it is "in memory of, in honor of, or what or whom it is in thanksgiving for" so that we can include it in the Christmas Eve bulletins. Checks should be mailed to 885 Shore Road, Cape Elizabeth, ME 04107. Please include how you, as the donor, would like to be acknowledged as well. The deadline for submission of names is Monday, December 21st. |
Worship with us this Sunday |
We are a gathering people!
On December 20th
we will gather together online.
Subscribers will receive an Invitation to Worship email with the bulletins and the live links for our worship services on Sunday morning. You can subscribe HERE.
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9:30 am: Morning Worship via Zoom from the Book of Common Prayer; the Rev. Lynn Carter-Edmands, Officiant; the Rev. Holly Hoffmann, Preacher; Joel Pierce, Music Director.
If you are a reader or intercessor, please arrive at 9:00 am.
- 10:30 am: Holy Experiment via Zoom.
- 5:30 pm: Celtic Eventide via Zoom led by the Rev. Lynn Carter-Edmands; the Rev. Holly Hoffman, preacher; and Joel Pierce, Music Director. Celtic Eventide meeting to follow.
- An extended instrumental prelude will begin at 5:20 pm.
- Consider creating a sacred space with a candle to light during the candle lighting in the service.
- An opportunity for conversation follows the service.
If you are a reader or intercessor, please arrive at 5:00 pm.
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PLEASE Note: No more waiting! We have removed the "waiting room" from our Zoom Worship meetings so you will be admitted into worship immediately upon joining the meeting. To protect us all from being "Zoom bombed," we no longer publish the links in anything that goes on our website (including this newsletter). Instead, ask that you subscribe to the Invitation to Worship newsletters that go out each Sunday morning with the links. You can subscribe HERE.
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St. Elizabeth's Essentials Pantry Update |
Each Monday morning I stop by the church to check the bins for St. Elizabeth’s Pantry and they continue to be filled with generous donations from YOU! Thank you all so much for continuing to think of our neighbors in need!
We will continue to provide our "grab and go" bags of toilet paper, soap, and personal care items outside the Lower Hall of the Cathedral each TUESDAY morning. Diapers are handed out the first TUESDAY of the month. We are now collecting BABY WIPES to offer with each bundle so please consider picking up a few packages to add to our bins. Thank you!
OTHER NEEDS
We still appreciate personal care items (see our Amazon wishlist for items of greatest need). We are still in need of soft household goods such as sheets/towels/blankets (please label the bed linens with their size). HANDWARMERS and TOE WARMERS would be greatly appreciated for our dedicated volunteers who now work outside to serve our neighbors.
All these items can be put in the bins located outside St. Alban's on the pathway from the large parking lot to the amphitheater.
For more information please contact Liz Cutler and look at our NEW website.
Peace and health to all,
St. Alban's Representative to St. Elizabeth's Essential Pantry
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Subscribe to the NEW (as of fall 2020) St. Alban's YouTube channel. You will find all of our worship videos there, and we are working on livestreaming our services there as well. If you subscribe you can be notified when we go live, or when new content is posted. |
This year St. Alban's will once again be partnering with the Root Cellar in Portland to help provide families with gifts for the holiday season.
Due to Covid-19, it will work differently, like so many things.
If you are interested in sponsoring a child, you have three options, all coordinated directly through the Root Cellar, which allows everyone to get involved in whatever way is comfortable and to get the gifts as soon as possible to the families.
1. The Root Cellar can send you an individual child's wish list from Amazon. When you purchase from this list, the gifts will automatically be sent to The Root Cellar in Portland. Contact Christine for your Amazon Wish List link!
3. Drop Off your gifts at the Root Cellar's office! Contact Christine at the Root Cellar to learn more what gifts are needed, shop for the items, and drop them by the Root Cellar.
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The life and work of St. Alban's is only made possible because of your generous gifts of time, talent and treasure. Thank you for everything that you do to support St. Alban's. If you have not yet fulfilled your 2020 pledge, we are encouraging you to do so at this time. If you are unable to fulfill your pledge this year, or if you aren't sure if you have a pledge balance, please contact our Stewardship Chairs, Joan Hankinson and Philip Hamilton, at Stewardship Committee.
Thank you!
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During these times of gathering via Zoom, we've been unable to pass the plate, one of the Episcopal traditions that helps to sustain St. Alban's and all that we do. We are offering an alternative to our in-person plate. If you would like to "put something in the plate," please consider Text Giving.
Text Giving is simple, fast and secure. It is offered by Realm, our membership and donation software.
You can give easily and securely from anywhere, anytime. Simply text "4stalbans" and your donation amount to 73256 and follow the prompts.
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