Parish Notices for September 17, 2020 |
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The Safely Together Task Force has been hard at work thinking through how we can continue to be the body of Christ and a community of love throughout this pandemic. Our COVID-19 numbers have been high in the state of Georgia and our state continues to have the 5th highest number of new cases in the country. In light of that, we are encouraged to see numbers beginning to decline in our state and because of that, the bishop has given churches in the diocese permission to begin having gatherings outdoors of 50 people or less.
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The safety precautions required by the diocese are significant and will take some time and creativity to implement. I’m grateful to the task force for their good work on ensuring that when we gather, we do so safely. Gathering outdoors will require a reservation system to limit the number of people at an event, and also to ensure that we can perform contract tracing should someone who attended report an infection. It will also require that those who gather bring their own seating and sit only in the spaces that are marked off. Masks will be required, there will be no singing and no communion, and bathrooms will be closed except for emergencies.
It will feel very different than the worship we are used to, but guidelines are a way to make sure that when we gather, we do it safely. Online worship will continue to be the primary way we gather, even as we add other options for gathering in person. Stay tuned for opportunities to be on our campus this fall. I can’t wait to see you in person when the time is right.
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On October 4, we will celebrate the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi. St. Francis was a lover of God’s creation and on that day, we traditionally bless our animals and offer our gratitude for the joy that pets and other animals bring to our lives. We will do that in two ways this year. For our online service at 10 a.m., we invite you to send in a photo of your animal to Julie Ryder and we will include it in a collage of animals during the service and offer a blessing. Now all those bunnies and cats and snakes and gerbils and sheep that normally can’t attend our pet blessing can get their blessing during our online worship service. You can also bring your pet with you to online worship that day. Some pets (I’m talking about you, Muffin) love to make an appearance on the screen anyway while we are zooming together. Plan on bringing them that day so we can all experience the joy that pets bring.
In addition to our online blessing, that afternoon from 4 - 5 p.m. we will give you the opportunity to come to the church for a drive-through pet blessing by one of our priests. Next week we will have more details about that and an opportunity to sign up. I hope to see you and your pet that day.
Until then, I look forward to seeing you online this Sunday for worship and formation groups and each weekday at 9am for Morning Prayer!
Grace and peace,
Amy+
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You don't have to sign up for Zoom to participate. Just click the login button below to join the service. All the links below are also on our homepage. The bulletin PDF link is below if you prefer to call in or are unable to view the service Power Point presentation. |
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— SUNDAYS —
Login around 9:50 a.m. to greet one another. The service begins at 10 a.m. Remain online after to participate in Small Groups Virtual Coffee Hour.
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— OR DIAL IN —
Dial 646.558.8656
Meeting ID is 532 385 901
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— WEEKDAYS —
Login around 8:45 a.m.for Virtual Coffee Hour. The service begins at 9 a.m.
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— NOONDAY —
Wednesday Noonday Prayer at 12:30 p.m. has a private login. Email the parish office to receive the link and meeting ID.
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ADULT FORMATION - Two Offerings |
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The Prophets: From Jerusalem to Selma
Sundays at 11:15 a.m.
Theologian in Residence Evan Basset leads a class that begins with an introduction to the Old Testament prophets and the visions of justice encountered there. It will then shift to a consideration of major prophetic figures from the contemporary struggle for racial justice in America. Participants will engage Old Testament prophets such as Amos, Jonah, and Micah, as well as, Martin Luther King Jr., James Baldwin, and Rosa Parks.
Meeting ID: 532 38 5901
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In case you missed last week's class, here is a direct link to the recording. All classes are posted to Epiphany's YouTube channel.
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Modern Families
Sunday Mornings at 11:15 a.m. AND 2nd & 4th Thursdays at 8 p.m.
The Modern Families group at Epiphany will spend the fall thinking about the core practices of church life as expressed by the sacraments. Gathering around the structure put forth in Searching for Sunday by Rachel Held Evans, the group will explore what church is for, what it means for us to gather, and how church life and family life work together to form human identity.
This coming Sunday (9/20) at 11:15 a.m. the group will be discussing Evan’s first three chapters on Baptism: The church tells us we are beloved, (pp 3-22). The Thursday group will meet on (9/24) at 8 p.m. for an introductory session, entitled: “Why do we gather?”
Meeting Number: 851 6230 2412
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Age specific formation groups for youth are offered on Sundays. If your Middle or High School aged youth would like to be included in a Sunday formation group and you have not already registered to receive the Zoom link for their participation, please email our Youth Director, Matt Schramm. There is still time to join! In addition to enjoying meaningful connection with their peers, youth and their teachers will be working their way through the Journey to Adulthood (J2A( curriculum which is focused on developing and integrating faith to all areas of life.
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Join the Rev. Nicole Lambelet this Sunday at 9 a.m. for Children’s Chapel. We will start our first session on the Beatitudes, wondering together about the many ways Jesus and his followers worked to live their lives as a blessing to others. Join us as we sing songs, share stories, and worship God together! |
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Sunday nights from 5 - 6 p.m. (Middle School) and 6 - 7 p.m. (High School), the youth group gathers via Zoom for conversation and community building. The first section of each youth night is dedicated to discussing the past week's events and devotional material. The second section involves community games like Jackbox, Code Names, and Bible Jeopardy. All youth are welcome!
Meeting ID: 532 38 5901
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The Epiphany Book Group meets 1st Mondays at 7:30 p.m. Listed below are the selections for this Fall. Email John Yntema for the login.
October: The Soul of America by Jon Meacham
November: Born of a Crime by Trevor Noah
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Grief Pastoral Care Group |
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The Grief Pastoral Care Group meets 1st Thursdays at noon via Zoom for a healing and faith based conversation around grief and loss. Led by parishioners Megan Fraijo-Paul and Nancy Thompson, both trained psychotherapists. Anyone who has not previously met with the group should contact either Megan or Nancy.
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The Living Contemplatively Spirituality Group
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The Group meets on Thursdays at 3 p.m. over Zoom, reflecting together on the book Holy Envy: Finding God in the Faith of Others by Barbara Brown Taylor. In that book she reflects on the ways other people and traditions experience the Transcendent and what we might learn from other religious traditions that can enrich our own faith. If you would like to join the group, or would like more information, please email the Rev. Amy Dills-Moore.
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Flex & Stretch and Chair Yoga |
The Flex & Stretch class - which is the basic SilverSneakers class - meets on Zoom on Fridays and the Chair Yoga program meets on Tuesdays and Thursdays. All at 11 a.m. Email Ellen Mintzmeyer for the login.
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A collective of Georgia organizers and advocates are working to connect those in and outside of Georgia's prisons through letter writing. Epiphany members are invited to get out their pens and paper to participate in their recently launched project entitled Georgia Freedom Letters (GFL).
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As people who care about ending systems of criminalization, GFL desires to recognize and center the experiences and stories of those inside prisons and their goal is to build a pen pal system to bridge these connections. You can read more about their mission, vision, and values on their website.
If you would like to sign up to correspond with someone inside you can do so by clicking here. Now, more than ever, we cannot forget or ignore the 55,000 people who are inside Georgia's prisons.
Finally, Epiphany would like to offer the church address to anyone who is interested in becoming a pen-pal with GFL. Going forward any returned correspondences can be picked up in a cubby marked Georgia Freedom Letters outside the Epiphany office. Please contact the Rev. Nicole Lambelet if you have any questions about this project or the letter writing process. You can also contact GFL directly at georgiafreedomletters@gmail.com.
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Every Little Piece Counts |
A couple of times a week, the Yntemas get out and stretch their legs and walk over to Epiphany. They always bring a bag with them and collect trash along the way - mainly on Ponce. What a good practice on two fronts! We'd like to invite folks who live near by to do the same. Walk over to the church every week or so, filling a trash bag as you go, then when you get to the church, toss the bag in the dumpster, go greet the sheep and maybe rest a while in the memorial garden. If you need another incentive, this Saturday, September 19 just so happens to be World Clean Up Day. Click here to find out more.
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Prayers for Racial Justice |
Epiphany’s Faith and Racial Equity series kicked off last week with a virtual retreat, and will continue for the next eight weeks. We invite you to join us in praying for racial justice each week as we explore how our faith calls us to create a more equitable and just society. |
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One of the books we will read is 40 Days of Prayer for the Liberation of American Descendants of Slavery, presented by the Angela Project. The book states: “Throughout these 400 years – starting with those enslaved in America and then the American Descendants of Slavery – black people have experienced a Black Holocaust: enslavement, black codes, sharecropping, Jim Crow, lynchings, convict leasing, redlining, restrictive covenants, police brutality, subprime lending, mass incarceration, all of which have resulted in the ghettoization/impoverishment of black communities across America.”
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The JustFaith program chose the book 40 Days of Prayer by Cheri Mills in order to honor the voices of our past as we work toward a future of hope and justice. Please consider ordering the book from a black-owned bookstore, if possible, and joining us in weekly prayer. We will start with Day 1 next week and include information for the prayers in the weekly email.
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Our annual United Thank Offering (UTO) was delayed in the spring due to the church building closing, but we still would the parish to contribute to this ministry of The Episcopal Church. |
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In lieu of distributing the coin boxes this year during the pandemic, we are asking that everyone to please make a single donation either online or via check to Epiphany. Please be sure to notate that it is for UTO. 100% of what is collected this year will be given away to support Episcopal ministries directly responding to the COVID-19 pandemic and economic downturn. Ingathering will be Sunday, September 20.
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The Buildings and Grounds Committee is hoping one of our members might have or have access to a small 3" or 4" brush chipper. Volunteers have been removing the Chinese privet, wisteria, honeysuckle, cherry laurel, and other invasive plants with the sheep helping get rid of the green portion, but we need to find an efficient way to chip up the brush. If you can help, email John Yntema.
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Pastoral Emergencies: Please call the church at 404.373.8338 and leave a message for Amy (ext. 14) or Nicole (16). They will receive a message alert and call you back.
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Staff: While the church building is closed, the parish staff is working from home and checking email and voicemail messages regularly.
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The Parish Directory is accessible online through the Member Login link at the top of epiphany.org and through the ChurchLife app for registered members. Click here to login or to register.
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Building Sign-In Required: The building is closed to in-person worship and meetings, however, if you need to enter the church building for any reason, please sign in and out using the logbook at the entrance.
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Have you or another parishioner you know done a good deed for the parish? Do you know someone who has received recognition for a personal achievement? Let us know!
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Kristin Phillips has won the Society for Economic Anthropology's Book Prize for the best book in economic anthropology published over the last 3 years. She shares the honor with Kathleen Millar of the University of British Columbia. Her book, An Ethnography of Hunger was published in 2018.
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DIOCESAN NEWS & TRAININGS |
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Imagine Church is a monthly series offering a renewed approach to online worship through music, visual art, and spoken word. It takes place on the 4th Sunday of the month at 7 p.m. Watch on Facebook or the Imagine Church Watch page.
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Click here to find the latest postings from our bishop including:
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For Faith, Bishop Wright's weekly email devotional
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For People, Bishop Wright's podcast.
Click here to subscribe to Connecting, the Dioceses' monthly newsletter featuring diocesan-wide news, events, announcements, and inspiration.
Click here to see all the news and stories from around the Diocese.
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Required Trainings for Staff & Lay Leadership
If you are not sure of your training status, contact the parish office.
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Dismantling Racism is offered by the Absalom Jones Center for Racial Healing, and runs from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. Click here for dates and to register.
Safeguarding Training: The New Inclusion Module OR the Healthy Boundaries and Preventing Abuse Module via Zoom is required for people who need re-certification for either Safeguarding God's Children or Safeguarding God's People as well as people who have never had either training. Click here for dates and to register.
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- Names of our friends and family remain on the list for four weeks.
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The Anniversary & Birthday List for the month can be found here.
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Send prayer requests to the parish office.
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For members who are bidding our prayers: Susan & Rob Ashmore, Sally Brockington, Rob Godsall, Henry Laird, Sandy Land, Claire & Logan Shults, Stephanie Thompson, Tom & Robin Hairston, Tom Mundy, Terri Lawrence, Sara Kathryn Wierweille
For friends and family: Bill & Carolyn Allen, parents of Jewel Allen; Isabel, granddaughter of Mike & Beth Towers; Tim Rose, friend of Terri Lawrence; Millie Kim & family and Wes Leonard, friends of Ellen Mintzmyer; Will Lloyd, nephew of Brenda Lloyd; Jean Wrenn Roach, cousin of Amanda Styles; Cholly Minton, friend of Nancy Thompson; Sandy Montesinos, mother of Cristina Montesinos; May Kertscher, mother of Doug Kertscher
For those who have died: Roberta Gunn, sister of Rob Ashmore
For those celebrating anniversaries for the week of 9/20-26: John Yntema & Katharine Hilliard-Yntema, Laurel & Patrick Hanna, Jerry & Nancy Kinnane
For those celebrating birthdays for the week of 9/20-26: Max Creighton, Eric Olson, Susan Scott, Oliver Dyer, Wyatt Smith, Kim Boswell, Stacey Stevens, Ruthie Stewart, Shirley Sugden, Adam Woodlief, John Bayne, Ian Cobb, Rick Montgomery, Eliot Codman, Katherine Stoner
For members who desire our continuing prayers: Jackie Boles, Arlen Gray, Ron Hutcheson, Rod MacLeod, Chris Miller, Tom Mundy, June Sparks
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The weekly parish notices are published Friday mornings at 7 a.m.
The submission deadline is Wednesdays at 5 p.m.
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