VOLUME 2, ISSUE 8
MARCH 4, 2020
The Second Sunday in Lent
Genesis 12:1-4a
Psalm 121
Romans 4:1-5, 13-17
John 3:1-17
8:00AM SERVICE
Preacher: Rev. Spencer Hatcher
Celebrant: Rev. Spencer Hatcher
10:00AM SERVICE
Usher: Kim Leslie & Jane Fisher
Lector: Carol Mohan
EM: Jeni-Ann Kren
Preacher: Rev. Spencer Hatcher
Celebrant: Rev. Spencer Hatcher
FOOD BANK
2nd-4th Wednesdays @ 2:30PM

THE COTTAGE SHOP
Wednesdays 12:30PM - 4:30PM
1st-3rd Sat. @ 9:00AM-1:00PM

CHOIR REHEARSAL
Thursdays @ 6:30PM

FOOD BANK: TJ FOOD DISTRIBUTION
Sundays after 10AM Service (White Room)
LENTEN EDUCATION SERIES
WED. MAR. 4 @ 6:00PM
St. James Cathedral/Fireside Room

MEN'S GROUP BREAKFAST
SAT. MAR. 7 @ 7:30AM
Yosemite Falls Cafe

BUILDINGS AND GROUNDS MEETING
SAT. MAR. 7 @ 9:00AM
Conference Room

PRESERVATION COMMITTEE MEETING
SUN. MAR. 8 @ 11:30AM
Conference Room

In Memory of Evelyn Yancura
Evelyn Yancura died in peace on March 1, 2020. Known to us as Ev, she touched all our lives in a positive way. She was a teacher, mother, grandmother, sister, socialite, and friend. Ev joined her parents, brother, and husband in heaven. Please join us for a remembrance and celebration of her life at 3:00 pm on Saturday, March 7, at St. James Cathedral.

NEWCOMER LUNCHEON: MARCH 8
Don’t forget!! If you’ve signed up, the Newcomer Luncheon is this Sunday in the White Room following the 10:00AM service. If you’re unfamiliar with the White Room, please find a clergy member and they will lead the way!
GUEST PREACHER AND CELEBRANT
The Reverend Spencer Hatcher
St. James is excited to announce a guest preacher and celebrant for this Sunday, March 8th.

The Reverend Spencer Hatcher currently serves as the Director of Diocesan Relations and Recruitment at Church Divinity School of the Pacific (CDSP) in Berkeley, California, where she attended seminary.

Originally from Maryland, Spencer served as a parish priest and diocesan camp director for the Diocese of Maryland before packing up her pug, Mary Stuart, and returning to CDSP in August of 2018.
Our Youth Bible Study continues Wednesday, March 11th with the story of Moses!

When: Wednesday, March 11th at 6:00PM
Where: The Upper Room
What: "Moses: Called by God"
Fresno State's Production of "Carmina Burana"
An eruption of the senses in a journey through life’s indulgences, Carl Orff’s “Carmina Burana” is among the most popular pieces for classical music concertgoers. The opening, “O Fortuna,” is immediately recognizable as the backdrop to many scenes in movies, television and commercials invoking drama unparalleled by other musical numbers. During a live performance, the sheer number of people required to perform the piece adds spectacle to the musical dramaturgy — especially when executed in a small venue such as the Fresno State Concert Hall.

As the main highlight of the 2020 lineup, Fresno State Music Department faculty, students and alumni will combine forces for three performances of Carl Orff’s “Carmina Burana” at 8 p.m. March 13 and 14 and 2:30 p.m. March 15 at the Fresno State Concert Hall. Tickets are $20 general, $15 for seniors and $5 for students. All proceeds benefit the Music Student Scholarship fund. Parking is free in lots P1 and P31.

Buy tickets: March 13 | March 14 | March 15

Come out to support Cathedral parishioner Aaron Burdick!
February 28, 2020

Sisters and Brothers of The Episcopal Diocese of San Joaquin,

As we are all watching and waiting to hear more news surrounding the spread of illness, including COVID-19 or Coronavirus, we've had a number of inquiries at our office around best practices for the faith communities in which we love and care for.

I commend this resource offered by Episcopal Relief and Development, which offers several recommendations for individual and faith community-level prevention.

In summary, ERD recommends individuals follow basic disease prevention practices such as washing hands, covering your mouth when you cough, and staying home if you are feeling ill.

Liturgically, the recommendations are the following:

• Clergy should wash hands immediately before services and use hand sanitizer before distributing communion
• Regarding the chalice - intinction should be avoided. Use of the common cup with proper purificator is low-risk.
• Regarding the peace - greetings other than hugging or shaking hands are recommended, such as waving or making the peace sign

The resource is thorough. Click here to read further.

Please join our Church in praying for our community and for the world:

God of the present moment, God who in Jesus stills the storm and soothes the frantic heart; bring hope and courage to all who wait or work in uncertainty. Bring hope that you will make them the equal of whatever lies ahead. Bring them the courage to endure what cannot be avoided, for your will is health and wholeness; you are God, and we need you. (Prayer for People Critically Ill or Facing Great Uncertainty, Adapted from New Zealand Prayer Book)

Blessings

+David
EAT A PLANT BASED MEAL OR MEALS
WITH INGREDIENTS FROM LOCAL FARMS
Check out some tasty and healthy options that do not include meat! Also reduce your footprint by using ingredients from local farms. If it is local, it did not have to travel long distances and use as much energy to get to you.
HOW CAN YOU SERVE?
SUPPORT DEAN RYAN AND HIS FAMILY WITH MEALS!

If you are able to support our Dean and his family while he is in recovering from his illness, we have opportunities for you! Erin, Ryan’s wife, has said that to have meals provided will be very much appreciated – not just for them, but also for the family members who are supporting them. If this is something you would like to do, we have two options for you: 

Send a gift certificate from GrubHub to eringreggnewmanmd@gmail.com. This will allow them to order meals from their favorite restaurants. 

Prepare a home-cooked dinner for them, and deliver to their home. Details at Meal Train website to sign up for a specific date/dates.

And, as always, please keep Ryan, Erin, and Lexie in your prayers. If you have any questions, email Deacon Nancy . 

Thank you!
Deacon Nancy
The Food Bank is Moving to Its Permanent Location BUT your help is needed to make this happen!
Last Sunday, the St. James Episcopal Cathedral Chapter approved the construction budget to move the Food Bank to a permanent location on campus, in the west wing of the former school building. While the chapter has approved expending some budgetary funds, we need your help to cover all expenses. 
 
Fortunately, an anonymous donor has agreed to provide a matching grant of up to $10,000 for donations from members of our congregations towards this Food Bank move and renovation.  
 
Won’t you help the Food Bank continue and improve its ministry to the 175 families who benefit from this program three times each month? We will be inviting the congregation to give to the project specifically at the next “Quarterly Food Bank Free-Will Offering” beginning on Sunday, March 1 and continuing for the entire month of March. Your contribution will then be doubled through the matching gift. 
 
Please make your check payable to St. James Cathedral and write in the notation section “Food Bank Construction.” Let’s match this. If we are able to raise sufficient funds, the Food Bank will be into the new location within the next two months. Thank you!
St. James will be hosting a five-part “deep dive” Scripture study on the Lenten Gospel lessons. The classes are on Wednesdays through Lent, and started on March 4th . Co-facilitated by the Deacons, each week, the class will look ahead to the upcoming Gospel reading for Sunday. Each session will explore in-depth the Gospel reading and its overall connection to the themes of Lent. Each week has a tangible activity with it as well, and will allow us to discuss the text even further.

Wednesdays will begin at 6:00PM with Taize in the Cathedral. Followed by a light dinner being served in the Fireside room, and the forum will conclude no later 8:30PM.
FOOD BANK NEEDS PEANUT BUTTER!
This Sunday bring peanut butter, both creamy and chunky, to church and help your Food Bank provide much needed food to the Cathedral Community.
Shrove Tuesday Pancake Dinner
BIBLE STUDY- THE BOOK OF REVELATION
The mid-week Bible Study has returned. The study is led by Emily Niblick and meets weekly on the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays, 10:00AM to 11:00AM, in the Fireside Room.
LENTEN EDUCATION SERIES
Wednesdays through Lent and started on March 4th St. James will be offering a Lenten Education Series. Taize begins at 6:00PM in the Cathedral, dinner and forum to follow in the Fireside Room.
MEN'S GROUP
The next breakfast gathering is scheduled for Saturday, March 7th, 7:30AM at Yosemite Falls Cafe (across from the Cathedral).
BUILDINGS AND GROUNDS COMMITTEE
The next meeting will be Saturday, March 7th, at 9:00AM in the Conference Room.
PRESERVATION COMMITTEE
The next meeting will be Sunday, March 8th, at 11:30AM in the Conference Room.
At the the 57th session of the World Council of Churches (WCC) Commission of Churches on International Affairs in Brisbane, Australia, Bishop Philip Huggins thoughtfully summed up why this year is a crucial one for the planet.
Five years ago, The Episcopal Church, in balancing its budget, initiated a shift away from a policy of “asking” in favor of “expecting” its dioceses to share in its operating expenses. All churches and dioceses are “one in the body of Christ,” then-Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori said in January 2015, and “we must seek to receive and to share.”
In the Rev. Jay Sidebotham’s hand-drawn world, “safe church” isn’t a training. It’s a parish encircled by a thick, crenellated concrete wall, which itself is surrounded by a moat filled with toothy beasts. The church’s “Welcome” sign isn’t visible to visitors who approach the outermost layer of defense, a ring of razor wire.
The Episcopal Church has suspended official travel to a half-dozen Asian and European countries, and its dioceses and congregations are urging Episcopalians to take precautions to prevent the spread of infection as concern mounts over the growing number of global coronavirus cases.
While many Episcopal churches have tried adapting the centuries-old tradition of Ash Wednesday to modern life by offering Ashes to Go on the streets of their communities, the Rev. Richard Burden is trying something different this year. He’s inviting people to come into his church and have their own Ash Wednesday experience – on their own time and at their own pace.
If you have any feedback, comments, or questions for the Midweek Missive Editors, please email us . Submissions to the Midweek Missive are welcomed and must be submitted to midweek@stjamesfresno.org by Tuesday at noon.