August 11, Ninth Sunday after Pentecost

The Holy Eucharist, 8 a.m., Rite I
The Holy Eucharist, 10 a.m., Rite II
Fr. John A. Thorpe, officiating

Child Care 9:45 a.m.
The Collect:
Grant to us, Lord, we pray, the spirit to think and do always those things that are right, that we, who cannot exist without you, may by you be enabled to live according to your will; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. A men.

This week’s lessons: Genesis 15:1-6; Psalm 33:12-15, 22; Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16;
Luke 12:32-40

Epistle
Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. Indeed, by faith our ancestors received approval. By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was made from things that are not visible. Hebrews 11:1-3
The Gospel | Luke 12:32-40

Jesus said to his disciples, "Do not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions, and give alms. Make purses for yourselves that do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
"Be dressed for action and have your lamps lit; be like those who are waiting for their master to return from the wedding banquet, so that they may open the door for him as soon as he comes and knocks. Blessed are those slaves whom the master finds alert when he comes; truly I tell you, he will fasten his belt and have them sit down to eat, and he will come and serve them. If he comes during the middle of the night, or near dawn, and finds them so, blessed are those slaves.

"But know this: if the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour."
Schedule for the week of August 11

Tuesday, 10:00 a.m., St. Julian of Norwich Prayer Group
Tuesday, 11:30 a.m., Charlie’s Lunch Bunch, Sugo’s
Wednesday, 7:00 p.m., Vestry Meeting

Note: Bishop Martins will be with us on Sunday, August 18.
Welcome to The Rev. John Thorpe, Officiating Priest!
| Officiating August 11, 25, and October 6, 2019 through Epiphany 2020

Fr. John Thorpe will be officiating at St. Andrew's services this fall (August 11 and 25; October through January 6) as we continue the search for a rector. Fr. Thorpe is a graduate student at St. Louis University, completing his studies for a Doctorate in Divinity, majoring in Christian Antiquity.

He grew up in Oklahoma as a self-proclaimed “Protestant mutt,” becoming an Episcopalian in his teenage years through St. Augustine’s, Tempe, Arizona, and Church of the Good Shepherd in Sapulpa, Oklahoma. He attended Oral Roberts University for his baccalaureate degree, earning one degree in music composition and another in theological/historical studies in 2002. In 2005, he completed his master's degree in divinity at the Yale Divinity School.

He and his wife, Beth, were married in 2001 and have three children. He served as seminarian intern at St. Peter’s, Milford, and was ordained to the priesthood through the Diocese of Albany by the Rt. Rev. David Bena in 2005. He served as curate and associate rector at St. Peter’s Church in downtown Albany under the Rev. Paul Hartt and became the rector of St. Stephen’s Church in Newton, Iowa, in 2008.

In 2014, he moved south to become the Chaplain at St. John’s Episcopal School in Dallas, where he taught religion and Latin to middle schoolers and preached daily to 450 students from kindergarten to eighth grade. He moved to St. Louis in August 2019 to attend St. Louis University.

We look forward to welcoming Fr. Thorpe this coming Sunday.
August Book Fair Soars!

Friday night Book Fair sales set a new record for this August at $2,394.25. Saturday’s record sales, $1,795.36, brought the total to $4,189.61—FOR AUGUST! It's unheard of! We have reached the $4,000 mark before, but never in August where $4,000 is approximately $1,000 over normal sales.

In addition, we deposited another check from our on-line sales dealer which means we have had a total of $589.01 in on-line sales since May and a total of $12,869.48 for the year.

Special moment of the August sale: A young father came to the sale with four young children who all stood proudly in front of the cashier with their chosen books. That's when their dad found out we don't take credit cards. He was just beginning to tell his children they'd have to put the books back when the man next to him said, "Let me get the books for the kids." And he did, and all of us in the cash office were very happy...and so were the kids. 

Also satisfying -- customer after customer told us "Thank you" for providing this service to the community.

Thank you to everyone who worked the sale, came as customers, donated books, or volunteered in other ways, especially my husband, Mike. We both get credit, but Mike does by FAR, the lion's share of the work! –Cindy Reinhardt
School Supplies, Canned Goods Help Kids and Families in Need

Thanks to all who brought in school supplies during our August collection. It took four people to carry in our school supplies and food. We were also able to help a family with needed school items and Target cards. A special thanks to Kay Werner for alerting us to the wonderful Lands’ End backpack sale.

 -Mary Bohn
Priestly Poetry
A number of readers enjoyed Henry Tudor’s The Great Kumphoozle of Whak, a piece of humorous political satire applicable to our own time. But just as multi-layered as Tudor’s personality is his poetry. In striking contrast to Kumphoozle, his De Profundis (“Out of the Depths”) is a poetic exploration of his spiritual life and perceptions. Although he apparently was well-regarded as a poet in early 20 th century St. Louis, his poetry would probably be panned today.

Here are a couple of verses from De Profundis:
  • “Dread not the pathway of the tomb,
  • But look across it–look not down!
  • Beyond there gleams the golden crown,
  • Within is nought but shade and gloom.
  • “Dread not the parting of the ways!
  • Souls that the love of God unites
  • Shall shine with close and kindred lights,
  • In azure skies–thro’ endless days.”

It’s not half-bad in an old-fashioned, florid sort of way, and conveys an appealing message of hope. But a gifted teenager living in St. Louis at the time of its publication could conceivably have read Tudor’s poetry and thought, “I can do better than that!” Thus, our mystery priest may have helped to launch Thomas Stearns Eliot’s illustrious career (shamelessly wild speculation)! 

In the unlikely event that you’d like to read more of Tudor’s poetry, you can get the complete 100 page volume as a free EBook on Google, although you might find it overpriced. Tudor entitled the volume The Ghost of Kisheneff: and Other Poems. Kisheneff was the site of a 1903 Russian pogrom which outraged him, as his poem of that title reflects. The volume was also republished in 2017 in something called the “Forgotten Books” series, which has been described as a “publishing scam” that offers “nothing… worth paying for.” Sounds like old Henry’s kind of business!

 -Jim Weingartner
Announcements

Bishop Daniel Martins Visits St. Andrew’s August 18
The Right-Reverent Daniel Martins, Eleventh Bishop of Springfield makes his annual visit to St. Andrew’s on Sunday, August 18. Bishop Martins will preach and officiate at both services and join parishioners at Coffee Hour following the 10 a.m. service.

Cardinals Baseball Tickets, Festivities;
Relay for Life Shirts, Coming Events
Sunday, August 25 is the Relay for Life Day at the Ballpark! If you ordered Cardinals tickets and have not picked them up yet, please contact Elizabeth Donald at elizabethdonald@yahoo.com as soon as possible. The game begins at 1:15 p.m., and the special events begin at 9 a.m. with current and former players signing autographs, dugout tours, field parade, free ice cream, the family pavilion and more.

If you want a St. Andrew’s Relay for Life shirt, it must be ordered by August 16 to arrive in time for the game. The shirts are $20 for a unisex design; $2 upcharge for women’s cut with cap sleeves or tank top. (Click here for additional information from E. Donald.)

Book Fairs in the Park
St. Andrew's has been invited two participate in two new book sales off-site this fall. We will be at the Edwardsville Public Library's Book Fair on September 7 at City Park and we will participate in Living History Days: A Chautauqua Event at Edwardsville City Park on September 21. Both of these will be small sales under a pop-up tent with only three tables of books. We will also be providing books for the St. Andrew's Relay for Life team at Leclaire Parkfest on October 20. -Cindy Reinhardt

Book Club Resumes in September
Book Club will resume, Monday, September 16. Our book selection is Educated: A Memoir by Tara Westover. Come and join in the discussion. –Pat Rudloff

Coffee Hour Has Hosts through Mid-October
Thanks to a wonderful response from our parishioners, Coffee Hour dates are filled through Sunday October 13. Also, Sunday, December 15 is spoken for. To reserve any date after October 13 except December 15, please contact Pat by phone at 656-6781 or email her at silverlining6@charter.net . She will add your name to the list on the bulletin board outside Pearson Hall to let everyone know which dates have been taken. Thanks.
-Pat Rudloff
The St. Andrew's Week-End Update , a weekly emailed newsletter, is designed to keep parishioners up to date on church activities. Please send news items to Editors Marianne Cavanaugh and Jane Weingartner by 11 a.m. on Tuesday to have them appear in the following Friday's newsletter.