August 2019 News & Updates
|
|
August 11 - Outdoor Service and Picnic - 10:30 AM
August 18 - Beloved Community Dinner at St. Paul's - 5:00 PM
|
|
|
From The Reverend Barbara A.T. Wilson
|
Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
Last evening, along with about five hundred and more others at St. James Cathedral, I had the opportunity to listen to Presiding Bishop Michael Curry speak to some of the issues facing the Church and America in these times. Introduced by our own Bishop Jeff Lee, Bishop Curry was welcomed with a standing ovation. Bishop Curry’s talk was in conversation with Dean Dominic Barrington, after which some questions were taken from the audience. Much of what Curry said was taken from his latest book, “The Power of Love: Sermons, Reflections, and Wisdom to Uplift and Inspire,” in which he shares the full text of his sermon at the Royal Wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, along with an introduction and four of his favorite sermons on the themes of love and social justice.
Like the book, last night’s conversation was focused upon Bishop Curry’s earnest plea to God’s people to reject the “violence of the spoken word,” increasingly being used in the public arena, and to do the hard work of embracing community in our increasingly divisive world. The way to get there is through love of one another, of ourselves, and of humankind and God’s Creation. “Hard work” is my own descriptor, and it refers to the work of becoming self-aware and of staying on task with self-awareness in order to disengage from our habitual binary thinking (either/or thinking)—rather than relaxing into more generous and expansive, “both/and” thinking—allowing for “grey areas” to exist--so to heal the polarization of our culture.
A couple of other of his comments stand out for me. Bishop Curry said “somebody went to the cemetery and dug up Jim Crow again and put him back to work,” but with a much larger ambition this time, the “re-segregation of all of America”—no longer just black versus white, but now “red versus blue”—and here he asked the question of the crowd whether folks who watched Sean Hannity on television were likely to watch Rachel Maddow—which garnered a loud if rueful laugh.
He also remarked on the rallying cry of “Make America Great Again,” quoting French diplomat and political philosopher Alexis de Tocqueville who once famously said, “America is great because she is good. If America ceases to be good, America will cease to be great.” Bishop Curry is imploring us, the Episcopal branch of the Jesus Movement, to help in making America good again.
Let’s do it!
Faithfully, Barbara+
|
|
|
|
Kids Hope USA Summer Party – The mentors, prayer partners, and scholarship providers for this ministry hosted a party for the students on Saturday, July 13
th
, with food, fun, and games for all. Thanks to all who brought dishes to pass and help with welcoming kids, parents, and siblings.
We did not have a vestry meeting in July because many of the members were on vacation.
There were some alarm issues, but Susan and Rick believe they have been successfully handled.
We also had an issue with one of the parish credit cards and Pat Brown has taken care of that.
My report is short this month because I was on vacation and I’m still trying to get my strength back from the radiation treatments. Thank you for everyone’s prayers and thoughtfulness
Marv Kombrink
|
|
A report covering the finances of the summer months will be available next month. Meanwhile, please remember to fill out expense reimbursement forms (next to the name tag board) and turn them in to the Treasurer's mailbox.
Pat Brown
|
|
|
|
August Music at St. Paul's
|
Come join us in song for
the annual parish picnic.
All are welcome to sing and play!
Feel free to invite anyone!
We will have a short rehearsal on Thursday, August 8, 7:00 PM. No worries if you are not able to attend rehearsal. Just join us on Sunday morning, at the service and picnic.
Note the cool new
Song of Praise
, also known as the Gloria in the Episcopal Liturgy.
|
|
September Music at St. Paul's
|
Come join our multi-generational music program this fall!
All ages and musical abilities are welcome to sing, play an instrument, dance, recite, share in fellowship, and worship!
The St. Paul’s Choirs will start back with rehearsals on Thursday, September 5th. The Children’s Choir meets at 6:00 PM, The Adult and Youth Choir meets at 7:00 PM.
The choirs will join worship services beginning Sunday, September 8, 2019, 10:30 AM.
|
|
|
|
|
Outdoor Service and Picnic - August 11th
|
On Sunday, August 11th, we will set up for the 10:30 AM service on the front lawn! Backpack blessings will be offered. For the picnic afterward, burgers and brats and will be cooked and dishes to pass will be assembled. A bouncy house for children will be in place, and bocce ball and other games will be available.
Singers and musicians will have a practice on Thursday night, August 8th at 7:00 PM.There is a sign up sheet in Parish Hall for help and for food. Check with Maureen Gerrity if you have questions.
|
|
|
|
|
|
The rain stopped, the sun blazed. Our gardeners came out in the early mornings to harvest kale, collards, beets, turnips, zucchini, beans, basil, parsley, and thyme. Tomatoes will be coming in soon and adobo peppers have been planted. Produce is gratefully received at New Hope and Bethlehem Lutheran food pantries.
The front garden beds have been planted with flowers that get bigger every week. Thanks to Mary Short who faithfully watered during the dry spells and heat.
The gardeners usually gather early on Monday or Tuesday mornings - all are welcome to dig in! Check with Mother Heidi for the schedule.
|
|
 |
The
Book Club
will finish the study of Deitrich Bonhoeffer's book
Life Together
on Saturday,
August 10th
at 1:30 PM, meeting at Donna de Oliveira's house, 1413 Reserve Lane in DeKalb.
|
|
|
|
The next
Movie Night
will feature Disney's "Frozen". We'll gather at 6 PM on Friday,
August 23rd
in the Parish Hall. Drinks and pizza provided.
|
|
|
|
|
|
St. Paul’s has the reputation of being good at fellowship and hospitality. We have many programs in place that justify this reputation. Our Sunday coffee hours, monthly fellowship dinners, movie nights, Grace Place dinners, and educational programs are just a few examples of how we celebrate our relationships with each other and guests. Parishioners step up and sign up to help with both annual and special events throughout the year. Over the years, many parishioners (too many to name!) have held roles both in front of and behind the scenes to ensure the success of these events.
Jennie Cummings and Peg Newby have agreed to be co-leaders of our Fellowship & Hospitality Team. This means they will make sure information is available on what events are coming up and what’s needed for them. This usually involves setup, food, and cleanup, but can vary by the event. They will also encourage parishioners to sign up to spearhead events. Each annual or special event needs a volunteer to organize and coordinate the work. Please look at the sign-up sheets and volunteer as possible. Remember – being the organizer/coordinator does not mean doing all the work yourself, it means asking others to help. Sign-up and coordination of ongoing events already in place (like coffee hour and monthly fellowship dinners) will continue as in the past. If you’d like more info on either of those events, please let Jennie or Peg know.
Thank you for your continued support of the fellowship and hospitality at St. Paul’s.
|
|
|
Donations for the Salvation Army Food Pantry for July were 54 food items, 232 diapers, for a year to date total of 5097 items. Food Pantry Collection Sunday will be August 11th, but you can bring items throughout the month.
|
|
|
|
The Rector's Discretionary Fund collection is the first Sunday of the month, August 4th.
|
|
|
|
Activities & Events
8/04 8:00 AM and 10:30 AM Services
8/08 7:00 PM Choir Practice for picnic
8/11 8:00 AM and 10:30 AM Services
Outdoor Service at 10:30 AM
Picnic after 10:30 AM Service
8/18 8:00 AM and 10:30 AM Services
12:15 PM Vestry Meeting
5:00 PM Beloved Community Dinner
8/22 6:30 AM Kiwanis Club Breakfast
8/25 8:00 AM and 10:30 AM Services
8/27 6:00 PM DeKalb Tenants Meeting
8/30 6:00 PM Movie Night
Save the Date:
9/8 Sunday School Resumes
10/6 Pet Blessing
|
|
|
|
|
August Birthdays and Anniversaries
|
August Birthdays
8/19 Barbara Wilson+
8/31 Ellen Kilday
August Anniversaries
8/3 Rick/Freyja Johns
8/15 Steve/Jane DeGolier
8/25 Roy/Nanette Mason
8/30 Brad/Rebecca Smith
Heidi Haverkamp/
Adam Frieberg
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
