by Patty Rooss

Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

In December, we had fun with our Zoom Christmas skit! Be sure to look at the photos on our Facebook page. We had fun singing Christmas carols and holiday songs, too! Thank you to all participants.

Thanks also to everyone who participated in our January Zoom Sunday School, especially our readers, prayer leaders, candle lighters, musicians/singers, and commenters. Here’s a link to the meeting’s slideshow. Fr. Harvey’s Children’s Sermon wondered about how it was like for Jesus growing up as the son of a carpenter, how he studied and learned so much, so that even as a boy he astounded others with his knowledge. In Sunday's Gospel reading, Jesus as a grown man applied what he learned to teach and heal people. Fr. Robert asked the Sunday School children to consider what they wanted to do when they grew up and encouraged them to listen and learn from their teachers in school. Afterwards, the children discussed some of their New Year's Resolutions and said what they wanted to be when they grew up. If you wish to hear Fr. Harvey's Children's Sermon, it begins at around 20:30 minutes into the 4 Epiphany Service 1/31/21, available here.

CYM’s next General Meeting will be on Thursday, 2/4/21 at 7 pm. Here is the Zoom link.

“Yes, Jesus loves me; the Bible tells me so.” As part of this month’s theme of loving and caring, here are more passages from the New Testament that tell us about love.

Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. (1 Corinthians 13: 4-8)

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. (John 3:16)

Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God; everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love. (1 John 4:7-8)

Do you miss Pretzel Sunday with Mr. and Mrs. Zebrowski? In previous years, Calvary Sunday School would make pretzels, known as “prayer bread,” around Ash Wednesday (which we will observe on 2/17 this year). The shape of a pretzel is meant to look like two arms crossed in prayer, reminding people to pray during Lent. It’s also a Lenten tradition in parts of Europe to give pretzels to the poor. Here is a recipe for homemade pretzels that you may want to try at home. I hope they’re as delicious as the ones made by the Zebrowskis!

Thanks to everyone who brought their redeemable beverage bottles and cans to The Millersport Recycling Bottle & Can Redemption Center at 803 Millersport Highway and crediting returns to "Calvary Episcopal Church."  Despite the pandemic, our drive raised over $340 in 2020. CYM donated $200 to Episcopal Relief and Develop’s Covid-19 Pandemic Relief and $140 to the SPCA Serving Erie County. Please continue to support our drive. It’s been suggested that we make our next donation to the Buffalo City Mission, probably near Easter.

Dear God,

Thank You that You provide for all our needs.

Thank You that we can trust You to turn the small things we give You into something big that can make a huge difference.

Help us to be generous with everything we have, just as You are so generous in giving us these things.

Amen.