The April Connection
St James Episcopal Church
Amesbury, MA
The Rev. John A. Satula
Due to concerns about Coronavirus/Covid-19,
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A message from our Rector: Holy Week and Easter Services
Dear St James Community,
To avert the spread of the Coronavirus, our Holy Week and Easter offerings will be a little different this year. However, we will still accompany Our Lord on His path to the Cross of Good Friday and the light of Resurrection on Easter Day.
Friday, April 3:
Fr. John will lead us in the final Service of the Day,
Compline
, on
Facebook
and Youtube* as we prepare our hearts and minds to begin Holy Week.
Palm Sunday, April 5:
Fr. John will read the
Passion Gospel according to Matthew
from our Sanctuary, posted to
Facebook
and YouTube*
11:15am:
The
Palm Sunday Liturgy and Holy Eucharist
Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday in Holy Week - April 6, 7, and 8:
7pm:
St James hosts live Zoom broadcasts of the
Stations of the Cross
.
Links to join will be sent - Zoom is free.
Maundy Thursday, April 9
**
The service will be offered from the monastery chapel of the Society of St John the Evangelist in Cambridge; Br. James Koester, Superior, will preach.
Good Friday, April 10:
12pm: Stations of the Cross
, from St James, via Zoom.
Link to join will be sent - Zoom is free.
The Good Friday Liturgy**
The service will be offered from the convent chapel of the
Sisters of St Margaret in Duxbury; Bishop Gayle Harris will preach.
Easter Day, April 12
**
The
Easter Day service
will be offered from the
Cathedral Church of St. Paul in Boston; Bishop Alan Gates will preach.
In the Evening
The final Service of the Day,
Compline
, from St James,
*Links to the Youtube posts will be sent out once they are posted.
**The Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter Day Liturgies, excluding Stations of the Cross and Compline, will be posted and available on the
diocesan website
on the morning of each respective Holy Day, at
www.diomass.org
.
Yours in Christ,
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Our office at 120 Main Street is physically closed
for the time being, but email and phone messages, the website, and these emails are all being attended to off-site.
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Vestry Meeting
St James' Vestry will meet virtually on April 8, at a time to be determined.
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Dear friends,
To say these are unprecedented times would be an understatement.
As we all try to figure out social distancing while maintaining important connections to family, friends, coworkers, and organizations, I am thankful for the technology that allows us to stay in relationship with one another during this time.
If you haven't already, make sure you catch our Sunday services on either
Facebook
or YouTube, and don't forget to pop in for our Zoom coffee hour on Sundays at 11am. (We'll meet again starting on April 19.) If you haven't used Zoom before, it is quite easy and I would be
happy to help
you get set up.
While we navigate these times, our building may be closed, but our church isn't, and our financial responsibilities continue. In the past year, we made great progress in closing our deficit, and giving/pledging has been a wonderful gift. We realize that at this time some may be facing medical and other bills that are causing strain. Please know that if you need to adjust your pledge, just let
Val Gates, our Treasurer
, know. We are in this together and are here for each other, spiritually and emotionally. If these times are especially financially difficult, please
reach out to Fr. John
, as he has a discretionary fund and may be able to help with personal financial responsibilities.
Please remember your continued support helps ensure our Church's financial responsibilities continue to be met. To keep up with your pledge or gift, please mail it to St James at PO Box 25, Amesbury, MA 01913, or use the link on
our website
or at the end of this newsletter. Thank you!
Friends
,
we pray that we stay safe and healthy and enjoy the gifts this time has to offer.
Please feel free to reach out
if you have any questions.
Peace,
Senior Warden
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Come to Coffee Hour
- or cocoa or OJ - virtually!
Although we cannot gather
in our Church
as a community, we can still gather as a community.
Zoom is free and the link to join will be sent out Friday of each Week.
Visit
Facebook
and watch your email for Zoom invitations.
St James is a strong and loving community, a family!
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Online Services - and More!
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COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund
The Diocese of Massachusetts has established a
COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund
to help meet emerging, urgent needs in congregations and affiliated organizations, and in support of collaborations with ecumenical, multifaith, and community partners. The fund will address critical community needs and congregational sustainability during the time of the pandemic.
The fund is now open to receive online gifts at
www.diomass.org/give-now
.
Please give as you are able.
A grant application with more guidelines will be available soon.
Episcopal City Mission is also launching a
rapid response grant fund
for grassroots organizations and Episcopal faith communities, to support staff and constituents losing income, for rent control direct action organizing, local justice efforts and other emergent needs. Learn more
here
.
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A note from Fr. John - EMAIL SCAM:
I unfortunately have an impersonator! If you receive an e-mail from
reverend.john.satula@gmail.com
, please do not respond, it is not me. (This latest hoax asks for a favor and a response to the e-mail.) Do not respond. Again, that email is not from Fr. John, so please just delete it.
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Birthday greetings
to: Joan Augusta, Josh Miller, Robin Bondar, Hayley Crane, Lucas Tonani, Matthew George, Cliff Entrican, Gerald Conrad, Linda Davis Siess
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On March 25, at noon, we joined with Christians world-wide to pray the Lord's Prayer.
Pope Francis initiated the call,
praying, “may the Lord listen to the united prayer of all of His disciples who are preparing themselves to celebrate the victory of the Risen Christ”.
We invite you to continue this practice.
Offer the Lord's Prayer, or others, or join in
Noonday Prayer (BCP p.103)
. As a parishioner noted, if you happen to live in Amesbury, the famous noon whistle can serve as your call to prayer each day!
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Fingers crossed for our
mission trip, July 19-25, 2020!
We hope to be serving the needy through
The Church of the Pilgrims
in Washington, DC.
Missioners, we'll keep in touch.
And we'll be working on exciting details for fabulous fundraising
!
Everyone, we're looking for items, cash, and other prizes for our Calendar Raffle.
Other great fundraisers are in the works. Got a great idea or eager to help? Please contact Robin or
email the office
; thanks!
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Thank you to our organist and choirmaster, William Harris, for two lunchtime
Lenten Organ Recitals
, 20 minutes of beautifully meditative music, on March 5 and 12.
Choir practice is suspended for now, but we look forward to making music for the glory of God, gathered together as a Church family, soon.
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Craft Table for our Holiday Fair
During this time of social distancing, we give thanks for our computers, telephones, and our hobbies!
Pat McBride and Kimberly Potts have been busy brainstorming ideas for the Holiday Fair in November. They are looking for good quality craft items.
Do you have a hobby that you love to do?
Would you donate 3 or 4 items for our craft table?
We would love to have homemade items on our table, such as jewelry, candles, or soap. Last year we had requests for adult mittens, rice/corn bags, and baby sweater sets. If you (or anyone you know) might make these items and are willing to donate them to our Fair, please let Kim or Pat know.
Crafting items needed:
Mason jars, glass yogurt jars (all sizes)
Wine corks
Embroidery floss
Round black ceramic magnets .75 in or 19mm (52 for $9.99 at Michael's)
Chenille Yarn – wide (all colors)
Cash donations to the craft table are welcome (all receipts will be saved)
Thank you for all you do for our Church and to make our Holiday Fair a huge success.
God Bless Us All!
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The Adventure Group:
all are welcome!
We are enjoying nature these days.
Please, keep physically distant.
All events are subject to change.
April 8, Wednesday
: Camp Kent, Amesbury, 2-4pm
If you have questions or suggestions, or want to confirm an event, please reach out to Karen at 603-382-7044, or Arthur at 978-918-3232.
We look forward to the future events!
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Women on the Journey
is hosted by Kimberly Potts.
Our meetings are cancelled for now.
Our April meeting, featuring Women in the Bible, is cancelled - instead, please enjoy this essay from Mary Ann Getty, PhD: "Forgotten Women of the Bible" -
click here
to read.
For questions or comments, call Kim at 978-397-8233 (please leave a message) or
click here
to send an email.
Blessings!
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Christian Education at St James: Wonder, Love, Service!
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Cherub Chapel
will return as soon as possible! In the meantime, check out our newest weekly newsletter, "Online Sunday School!"
(March 22)
(March 29)
for family activities.
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GODLY PLAY is on hiatus for the time being.
"I wonder. . . !"
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St James' Youth
meet twice a month for classes led by Linda Davis Siess and Ron Jones.
Our March 6 class focused on John 3:16 (did you see their sign, with that verse, out on the sidewalk?). Youth also brainstormed
"Ten Best Ways for a Holy Lent"
- here's their poster, in our Parish Hall.
We're adaptable!
On March 21, we met virtually, to take a deeper dive into the lessons of Lent.
You can, too!
Take a look -
click here!
Next class, April 3.
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St James is a strong and loving community
that welcomes, encourages and empowers all
to grow in Christ and to do God's work in the world.
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