 |
|
A Message from Rev. Paula+
|
Beloved Community,
We are doing it! We are living our faith in and through these unprecedented times. We do it together. We have each other, we have God, and, most importantly, God has us.
There is so much I could say but am aware that these newsletters are long and full of information, so I will keep this message brief. Know that I miss all of you and are so grateful that you are a part of this faith-filled community. I look forward to the time when we can gather in person for worship, fellowship, and all the other reasons we have.
Peace & Blessings,
Paula+
|
Bishop Hughes and her staff continue to lead the diocese though this time with great attention to our need for worship and pastoral care, as well as to all the details of managing a diocese of this size. They are leading by example, with diocesan staff working from home for the most part and doing a considerable amount of their work via Zoom and other social media.
All of their decisions are grounded in the "spirit" as well as the letter of the governmental directives and our shared commitment to love and care for one another as Jesus does us. This means that there can be no gathering for in-person worship.
Bishop Hughes has given permission to offer online worship with up to four people actually in the church, if each of them has a specific role and proper physical distance is maintained. This means we can worship as we did last week. For as long as we are able, Rev. Paula, Kim, Kira, and Peter will be here on Sunday mornings to lead worship in community. We wish we could invite more of you to join in this new approach to worship but have been advised to limit the number of people involved to limit the possibility of spread of infection.
This also means that there can be no meetings, gatherings for fellowship, home Communion, in-person pastoral care, or weddings. There will be no funerals in a church. There are a couple of options for use of the Burial Office at the graveside with the clergy person and one family member or at the funeral home with up to 10 people, including funeral home staff. There can be no Communion. These restrictions are in place to protect the health of other people, a need especially if the death is due to the virus. A couple of times this week, at various meetings, Bishop Hughes referred to the story of the family from NJ who attended a funeral. Seven of the family members contracted Covid-19 and three of them died as a result.
This week Bishop Hughes told us about a temporary change in the ways the diocese will communicate with the rest of us. The "Voice", the digital newsletter will be published weekly for the time being. Though not every week, it will be available as a printable download so that it may be shared with people who do not use or have access to email. We will be sending it to those in the parish we know need the news in print. If you are aware of someone who does not have access to a computer, we ask that you let us know. In the interest of managing our time and resources well, we prefer that the mailed print option be maintained for those with no other means of getting the information.
Remember that going to the Diocese of Newark's website, as well as that of The Episcopal Church are other good options. You can do that easily by clicking on the links at the bottom of this newsletter.
|
|
Behind the Scene at St. Stephen's
|
We continue to do most of the things we have done for so long, albeit in new ways. Doreen, Dave, and Rev. Paula continue to work, though as much from home as is possible. The times that we are in the office at the same time, it feels strange to keep the kind of distance that we need to keep in this time. At the same time, it is good to know that our ministries continue and that we can be a part of it.
One of the things we are no longer able to do is to host groups. The most recent directive from Governor Murphy means that the three AA groups that were meeting here are no longer doing so. Please join us in offering prayers for the people in those groups and recovery groups everywhere that this interruption in supportive services does not jeopardize their sobriety.
A Message from the Finance Committee
Last week we sent the following message:
To St. Stephen's Church Family: we're doing our best to stay connected and to walk in faith through these challenging days. While we're not together in person for worship, please remember that St. Stephen's Church still needs your financial support. Donations and 2020 pledge payments are needed to pay our staff and to maintain our dear church. We want it to stand solid, ready and clean for the day when we can again meet there together for worship and prayer. Please use tithe.ly to pay online, or mail your check to St. Stephen's Church, 119 Main Street, Millburn, NJ 07041, and thank you for your generosity and support.
This week we send a huge thank you to those of you who have been sending in their pledges. Your faithfulness warms our hearts and strengthens our hope that we will emerge from this unprecedented time strong and whole.
|
Hospitality is who we are. Now more than ever.
We have supported homeless families for over thirty years, offering a warm personal welcome along with shelter and hot meals. Protecting both guests and volunteers,
IHN is suspending its church-based housing of homeless families. Within the next two weeks, two current families are being moved to permanent housing and one will be housed in a hotel. Again to minimize risks, meals will be provided via local restaurant take outs.
While we cannot safely offer the direct hospitality central to our ministry, the needs for shelter continue. While
IHN is working to secure public funding to support, it is now reliant on financial contributions to keep this essential work going. Support for this vital ministry may be sent to The Interfaith Hospitality Network of Essex County,
46 Park St., Montclair, NJ 07042. Or online by clicking
here. Thank you.
"
For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me."
|
|
Connection and Common Worship
|
Here is some information about how we are staying connected in this time. You can find all this information and then some on our website using the "Living our Faith in a Time of Pandemic" tab on the upper left. If you'd like to hear a sermon, you will find those using the "Worship & Sermons" tab. The sermon will be uploaded by Sunday evening.
Sunday Worship
:
We will continue to gather via Zoom and Facebook Live for worship on Sunday mornings at 10:00 for Morning Prayer with Homily and Music. There are a few ways to join us:
From your computer or smartphone,
- join us on Zoom using this link;
- go to the calendar page of our website here, click on "Sunday Worship via Zoom" and use the information in the description section about how to connect.
You will be muted when you enter. We ask that you stay muted so that we minimize background noise.
From you phone (you'll be able hear us but won't be able to see us),
- dial in by phone 1-646-876-9923 and entering 606362582 when prompted.
On Facebook,
Computer but not on Facebook: No worries. You'll find us
here.
You'll find the bulletin on the St. Stephen's Facebook page in the "Menu" section on the left. It's an idiosyncrasy of Facebook that .pdf files all post as menus. Feel free to download and print it in advance.
Holy Week and Easter:
We are continuing to plan our Holy Week and Easter services, recognizing that it is unlikely that we will be able to gather together. It is too soon to say exactly what these will look like, though our commitment is to offer as much of our customary as we are able using the technologies and resources available to us.
Remember that not all of what happens in church has to happen only in church, though certainly there are some sacramental observances that are supposed to be officiated by a priest, such as (non-emergency) baptism and consecration of the Eucharist. If you have a favorite custom, let's talk about how it can be adjusted to your personal, in-home observance. What's most important - actually the reason for any of our liturgies - is that we find ourselves closer to God, connected to Jesus in new or deeper ways.
Christian Formation:
Our next session of
Reading with the Rector
is March 29th at 11:30. We'll be discussing
Falling Upwards
by Richard Rohr.
Join us in one of the following ways:
- using this link;
- going to the calendar page of the website here, clicking on "Reading with the Rector via Zoom" and using the information in the description about how to join the discussion;
- dialing in by phone to 1-646-876-9923 and entering 133985198 when prompted (you'll be able to hear us but won't be able to see us).
If you have a computer with no camera or microphone, please sign into the meeting via the link AND dial in by phone. You'll see and hear us and we'll be able to hear you.
Saturday School
We'll be offering "Saturday School" as a way to keep in touch with our children, reminding them that we miss them and want to connect with them, too. Each Saturday morning we will post a video with a lesson about one of the stories in the next day's lectionary.
Daily Common Prayer
Each day, at 8:30 am and 7:45 pm, Rev. Paula will use Facebook Live to offer prayer and some reflection. This will be from a variety of sources and will take various shapes, sometimes feeling more liturgical, sometimes more poetic. If you have thoughts about what you'd like this to be, please let her know. If you miss the prayer live, you can view it on our Facebook page.
Bakery Bible Hour:
Bakery Bible Hour will be offered from 9:00 - 10:00 am on April 3rd via Zoom.
Join us in one of these ways:
- using this link;
- going to the calendar page of the website here, clicking on "Bakery Bible Hour" and using the information in the description about how to join the discussion;
- dialing in by phone to 1-646-876-9923 and entering 721 456 892 when prompted (you'll be able to hear us but won't be able to see us).
If you have a computer with no camera or microphone, please sign into the meeting via the link AND dial in by phone. You'll see and hear us and we'll be able to hear you.
|
|
Resources from the Diocese and Beyond
|
There are many, many resources available to parishes and individuals to help sustain our faith practices during this unprecedented time. This is by no means a complete list, though it does cover many areas of need.
The Diocese of Newark has a page dedicated to pastoral messages, informational updates and directives, and resources for use by parishes and people of faith. You'll find it here.
The Episcopal Church, nationally and internationally, has information on its website, including pastoral messages from Presiding Bishop Michael B. Curry. You'll find it here.
The National Cathedral livestreams worship and hosts podcasts, all of which can be accessed here.
The Church Publishing Group has made available a free downloadable copy of The Book of Common Prayer. This is a wonderful way to encourage both a personal prayer discipline and as a support to online worship in which the liturgy is from the BCP.
Church Publishing has also made available until April 15th a wonderful children's book about Compline, Candle Walk by Karin Holsinger Sherman. If you listened to Rev. Paula's very first Facebook Live event the evening of March 20th, you heard her read this story. You'l find these and other resources on the company's website or here, an Episcopal News Service link.
Now might be the right time to sign up for a daily, weekly, or monthly devotion. A couple of our favorites are:
- The Society of St. John the Evangelist. The brothers offer wisdom in many ways so please do explore their website.
- The Center for Action and Contemplation, home of Richard Rohr. As with SSJE, this is a rich offering of resources so it is best to explore the website.
|
|
Links to the Wider Church
|
 |
|
The Episcopal Diocese of Newark
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Giving with Tithe.ly is easy, with options for one-time or recurring donations. We encourage you to consider it at all times, but especially when you are away for any reason, like all of us now with the restrictions due to coronavirus.
There are two ways to do it: thru
tithe.ly.com
or the
tithe.ly
app on your smart phone. You'll want to search for St. Stephen's Church Millburn. Be sure to have the correct punctuation. You'll know you're there when you see: St. Stephen's Church Millburn and the address. Once you're at the church's page, follow the prompts.
|
|
Office Hours and Contact Information
|
|
Office hours: Until we are through this public health emergency, there are NO office hours. Please call Rev. Paula to arrange for pastoral care or if you have any reason to come to the office. She'll work with you to figure out a safe way to manage this.
Website: ststephensmillburn.org
Doreen Schindler, Parish Administrator
can be reached at ext. 32 or
The Rev. Paula J. Toland, Rector can be reached at ext. 21 or
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
