August 2020
Dear Children's Chapel Families,

It's been a while since we've been together and, boy!, do I miss all of you.  I hope you are doing okay, keeping safe and healthy.  I write today with a bit of news and a request for your help in planning for the fall.  Please read the next sections of this newsletter for the details.

Before you do that, I want to tell you a little bit about why we are using "Children's Chapel" when we talk about our children's program. This is more than a name change.  It reflects the reality of who we are and what we need the time the children spend together to be if we want to form them as part of a worshiping community.  Our custom of educating them during our weekly worship means they get very little church and that the church they get, the Liturgy of the Table, separates it from the Liturgy of the Word in a way that doesn't make sense or reflect the reality.  

With the new format and the continued use of a good curriculum, the children will be doing together in their space what the adults are doing in the nave.  The format of Children's Chapel reflects the first half of the worship service - the Liturgy of the Word - with prayer, Bible stories, and discussion/activities (the adults get a sermon).  They join us for the Liturgy of the Table, which means we all have a similar flow to our worship.  

Although it may not be obvious to us when the children are wiggling or squirming or look to be totally uninterested in what's happening in the service, study after study and lots of personal anecdotes agree that the formation that takes place in the context of a worship service has more of an impact than the time spent in Sunday School.  When we include them in meaningful ways and connect our worship to how we live the rest of lives, i.e. live our faith, we give them the gift of a solid foundation to a healthy, faith-inspired life in their adulthood.

Peace & Blessings,
Paula+
Some Bittersweet News
The good news: Greg Chen was accepted into medical school in North Carolina!
Not-so-good news: Greg Chen was accepted into medical school in North Carolina.

Obviously, this means he is no longer with us in NJ.   I'm sure you join me in congratulating Greg, even as we are sad that he cannot continue with us.  I, for one, am so grateful for the time he spent with us because it showed us that we have what it takes to make the changes we need to make, and that the kids can have fun while learning about God and faith and all the things we hope they learn with us.

We'll be posting for a new teacher in the next couple of weeks, hoping that we can hire someone with Greg's obvious fondness for talking to our kids about God and faith, as well as the creativity and flexibility to manage in the classroom and in virtual space.
We Need Your Help (a brief 3-5 minute survey)
Though we are small (but growing!) in the number of families with school-age children, it is so important that we continue to move in the direction we started last fall, before Covid-19 blew in and the whole world changed.  

PLEASE complete this brief survey to help us plan for Children's Chapel in the fall.  I'm sure it goes without saying that planning for the start of this program year is unlike any other planning we've had to do in the past.With so much up in the air and so much uncertainty about returning to in-person worship and other gatherings, it will be extremely helpful for us to know what you are thinking. 
Virtual Offerings

When we left in-person gatherings so abruptly in the spring, with no real sense of how long we'd be out of the building, we didn't have the time or resources to design the virtual children's program we would want to offer.  Though not specific to Children's Chapel, we are in the process of upgrading our IT and AV systems so that our virtual presence is bit more consistent and polished, and, hopefully, not as prone to the idiosyncracies of an IT system never intended to do more than power a couple of desktop computers, the phones, and our security system.

Invite Cross Roads Camp into Your Home!

Cross Roads has an active, fun online ministry, which can be found on their YouTube channel.  There are Virtual Campfires, craft and cooking videos, and their Camp Sunday Worship Service.  All of these bring a taste of camp right into your home, which is great for those of you who have been to camp, and a preview of what you have to look forward to if you haven't yet had a chance to go.  For more of the camp experience, check out their Camp Boxes.

Children's Chapel and Storytime with Rev. Paula+

Our Children's Chapel videos are on our Facebook page.  Storytime with Rev. Paula is on our YouTube page.  
Office Hours and Contact Information

Office hours are Tuesday thru Friday, 10:00 am to 1:30 pm or by appointment.
Phone: 973.376.0668  
Fax: 973.376.4002
Website: ststephensmillburn.org
Main email: [email protected]
Follow us on: Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest

Doreen Schindler, Parish Administrator can be reached at ext. 32 or

The Rev. Paula J. Toland, Rector can be reached at ext. 21 or 
She is an occasional blogger at fromthestillness.