November 27, 2022

The First Sunday of Advent

Holy Eucharist

in person at

8 am, 9:15 am, and 11 am

Online at 11 am

  Vimeo link

Service Bulletin Here

Online service can be viewed on our live Vimeo feed.

An Advent Offering --

Red Hook Initiative Library

Each Advent, Grace Church identifies a worthy organization to be the recipient of our parishioners’ generosity during this holy season of giving and gratitude. This year, Grace has chosen to support the Red Hook Initiative Library with our Advent offerings.

This little library is a small but vitally important multipurpose space, particularly dedicated to being a "home for learning" for Red Hook youth.

Our goal for this critical Advent Offering is to raise $6,600 toward furniture, freight, delivery, and installation for this modest but essential project. RHi has already received donations for the design services, paint, cork wall, and carpet elements of this redesigned library.

You can donate through Realm (select "Advent Giving") or by a check made out to Grace Church, indicating “Red Hook Library” in the memo line.

For more details about this project, please contact Theresa Seabaugh at taseabaugh@gmail.com.

Thank you!

Photo by Grant Whitty on Unsplash.

Advent Organ Recitals

GRACE CHURCH BROOKLYN HEIGHTS

254 Hicks Street,  Brooklyn, New York

Tuesdays in Advent  1:00 pm – 1:30 pm

29 November 2022

Eric Birk

New York, New York

6 December 2022

Patricia Magnuson, Soprano

Paul Richard Olson, Organ

13 December 2022

Craig Whitney

Grace Church

20 December 2022

Scott Bartucca, Oboe

Paul Richard Olson, Organ

Grace Church Christmas Pageant December 11th

IT'S CHRISTMAS PAGEANT TIME! The Pageant will take place on Sunday, December 11th at the 11 am service. Though all prominent roles have been cast, there is still room for participants ages 3-14 as angels, shepherds, sheep, and villagers; sign up here.  For those involved, we have two remaining rehearsals: December 3rd, and a mandatory rehearsal with music on December 10th; each begin promptly at 9 am and end by 11 am. The 9:15 service will not take place on December 11th.

Volunteers are needed Saturday, Nov. 26 to help organize and steam costumes!  Please contact Brianna McCarty to volunteer.

A Festive Service of Lessons and Carols

Please join us for a beautiful service of lessons and carols on December 18th, 2022 at 5pm. Come hear the mellifluous voices of our gifted choir led by our Choirmaster extraordinaire and our wonderful readers as we celebrate the coming of Christ.

A reception will follow with cookies and champagne punch. If you would like to bake or bring cookies for the reception, please drop them off on Saturday, December 17th between 9am-2pm, or the morning of December 18th.

Your contributions are very much appreciated. Thank you!

North Room Chat

For those who have been looking for a little something "extra" from church on Sunday, we invite you to join us the first Sunday of each month at 10:15 am in the North Room. No need to prepare in advance. Just be open to learning something new, sharing your own life experiences, and, most importantly, growing in the Christian faith.

Join us as we discuss spirituality and Christianity in bite-sized chunks. On December 4, 2022,  the Reverend Dr. Allen F. Robinson discusses aspects of the recent Grace trip to the Holy Land.

Contact Brianna McCarty and/or Anne Silver with questions or if you'd like to lead a future chat!

Rekindling Compassionate Cooks with Opportunities to Nurture and Serve

After a hiatus during the pandemic, we are pleased to announce the return of Compassionate Cooks, a quiet yet important ministry of care for members of the congregation in need of a meal. A simple, nutritious meal is prepared and delivered to an individual or household following a hospitalization, birth of a child, or other life event. We are looking for volunteers to prepare and/or deliver fresh, homemade meals on an on-call basis as needed and as able. To join our list of volunteers and help us re-launch this special ministry, please email Sarah Steele at sarahsteelenyc@gmail.com. If you or a loved one is in need of a meal from Compassionate Cooks, please contact the Parish Office.

5 Tickets Left to See the Biblical Play “David"

Live on Stage!

Before the busyness of the holiday season, join us in a caravan to Sight & Sound Theatres, in Lancaster PA, on Saturday, December 10, to attend the 11 am show. 

Since we are taking our own vehicles, the cost is cheaper than previously announced: $84.50 for adults (13+) and $39.00 for children (3-12). Scholarships are available so anyone who wants to can attend.

Please e-mail Abagail Nelson, Abagail.nelson@gmail.com or Allison Robinson, A.robinson2@verizon.net to reserve your ticket. 

Social Justice and Reconciliation Fall Reading Group

You’re invited to join the Social Justice and Reconciliation reading group. Our text is Tony Messenger’s Profit and Punishment: How America Criminalizes the Poor in the Name of Justice and is available for purchase here. You’re invited to read the text at your leisure throughout the fall. On December 11th, following the 11 am service, we’ll gather in the North Room for discussion and conversation. For more information, please email the Rev. Leandra Lambert at llambert@gracebrooklyn.org.

In-Person Bereavement Group 

January 2023 at Grace Church

Have you lost someone you love in the last year and are feeling alone and unsure about the future? Grace Church will be offering an in-person bereavement group on Tuesdays beginning January 10th, which will run for six consecutive weeks. In this group we will focus both on paying tribute to those we have lost, and building strength to turn towards the future and 'new normal.'  

This small group, capped at 8 participants, will meet from 6-7:30 pm at Grace. The group has been designed and will be led by Matilda Garrido, MS, CT. Matilda has a Master’s degree in Thanatology (the study of death, dying, and bereavement), is a David Kessler Certified Grief Educator, and has extensive experience working with the dying and bereaved. If interested, please reach out to the Rev. Erika Meyer at emeyer@gracebrooklyn.org.

Assistance for Asylum Seekers

**The most urgent needs are for men’s winter coats, socks and shoes**

With the massive influx of our migrant brothers and sisters arriving in NYC from the southern border, Grace Church has an opportunity to provide care by donating new packaged items to meet their immediate needs. You may also donate through Realm, selecting Migrant Assistance Relief. Once items are ready, please contact our Associate Rector for Social Justice & Reconciliation, the Rev. Leandra Lambert at llambert@gracebrooklyn.org for drop-off instructions.

Little Lights Sing Along at Grace Church

Grace Church Brooklyn Heights invites all Brooklyn parents with children under age 4 to come make friends while learning classic spiritual tunes like This Little Light of Mine, He's got the Whole World in His Hands, and more (including some Christmas music in December)! Jess Smith, Grace’s Youth Ministry Intern and worship music enthusiast, will lead us on guitar while parents and babies and toddlers will sing, dance, wiggle, and shake to the music. Afterwards, parents and kids are welcome to stay and chat while the kids have a small snack. We look forward to seeing you there and getting to know you!

Where:  Grace Church Brooklyn Heights in our historic

1847 Gothic Revival-style sanctuary

(Enter through the Grace Court doors)

Who: Babies and Toddlers (under age 4) and their Parents --

tell your friends and community members! 

When: Fridays, October 21st through December 16th at 10:30am (excluding Nov. 25)

Why: We aim to have fun, make friends, and build a community.

And, of course, sing and play with our babies and toddlers! 

Sign up here!  (While sign up isn't required, it is helpful to let us know you're coming)

Questions? Contact Brianna McCarty at mccarty.brianna@gmail.com or Jess Smith at jsmith@gracebrooklyn.org. 

Sunday School 

Children in grades K-5 are invited to participate in Sunday School. Classes meet immediately following the 9:15 am service in the Poplar Room (classroom 2 downstairs at the bottom of the stairs). Trained volunteers lead children in 45 minute sessions focusing on the week’s Bible readings, using the Storymakers curriculum. Please email Jess Smith, Intern for Youth Education, with any questions.

Winterfair 2023 --

Save the Date

Please save the date for our next Winterfair, which will be held on Saturday, February 4, 2023. We can't wait to welcome back this annual event to Grace Church! Further details will be shared in the near future. 

Rector's Bible Study

The Rector’s Bible Study meets on Tuesdays from 10:00-11:30 am in the McKittrick Choir Room. All are welcome to join Bible Study. We will be discussing The Universal Christ by Richard Rohr, available for purchase here. 

If you would like to attend via Zoom, please use the following link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/7186241850

The Rector's Discretionary Fund

As the Grace Church community continues to deal with the after-effects and continuation of the COVID-19 pandemic, we would like to ask parish members to consider making an offering to the Rector's Discretionary Fund.

With this fund, the Rector is able to help those in our community when they need it most.

If you would like to contribute to this important fund, you can do so by check or via our online payment system, Realm. If you prefer to make a donation by check, it should be made out to Grace Church with "Rector's Discretionary Fund" in the memo.

Evening Prayer

Grace Church offers Evening Worship every Tuesday - Friday at 5pm online.*

To attend Evening Prayer online, please use the following Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/7186241850 .

Parish Prayer Concerns & Thanksgivings

That, in this Advent time of anticipation and preparation, we may recognize and be thankful for all the blessings that we enjoy, and seek ways to share them with others. That we may live as children of light, and show God's love to those around us. That this precious community of faith and fellowship may worship and work together in joyful hope. That all who are busy and hurried during the holiday season may make time for Christ, be alert and watchful, always ready to welcome him wherever he reveals himself. For Joe, our president; Kathy, our governor; Eric, our mayor, and all elected officials. For the advent of peace and justice in all troubled places; may God teach the hearts of all the human family to turn swords to plowshares, and resources for war into tools for healing and development. For an end to gun violence and aggression, and especially this week, for all who were killed or injured in mass shootings around our country. That God will protect, strengthen and heal all who are targeted by bias or hate crimes; and also that God will heal the hearts of those who are consumed with animosity and destructiveness. As we give thanks for our loved ones during the holidays, may we remember to reach out in friendship to those who have been separated from their homelands and loved ones, those who have been rejected by their families, those who are estranged, and those who are alone. That God will protect all who travel this weekend, and bring them safely home. For the poor and the homeless. For all who face famine around the world, and all who are ravaged by the effects of climate change and human disruption. For all who are burdened by the cares of life, and for those who await God’s healing and blessing, especially Isabel; Margaret; Patricia; Betsey D.; Samantha & family; Michelle; Stuart; Jane E.; Susan; Alexandre; Katia; Francisquinha; Willie; Corla; Demetrios; Vivian H.; Tom K.; Cary; Stephanie; Gwen; Trey; Lenore; Marilyn; Lauren; Manjit; Ladson & Xandria; Christine; Vivian & Michael; Heidi; Linda; Judith H.; Sarah Jane; and all who are suffering with RSV and other infectious diseases. For those who care for sick or aging loved ones. For those whose names and needs are known only to God. For those who have died, especially Brooklyn Heights neighbor Bill Coleman: that they may rest from their labors in God’s loving presence. For all who were killed in the earthquake in Indonesia.  And for God’s consolation for all who mourn. God of Hope, hear our prayers.

Sunday Services

Grace Church holds in-person services at 8 am, 9:15 am, and 11 am each Sunday unless otherwise noted. All are welcome. Masks are no longer required to attend Sunday services. We have child care available for those who need it during the 9:15 am and 11 am services. 

Join us for coffee hour! Please join us for coffee and snacks after each service. 

The 11 am service will be live-streamed for anyone unable to attend in person.

If you have any questions about our worship schedule, please contact Melissa Kelly, Parish Administrator, at parishoffice@gracebrooklyn.org or (718) 624-1850 x 10.

Giving to Grace

We are happy to let you know that you can make a pledge or general offering donations by text! 

Please send a text to 73256 with the message "GraceBrooklyn". The first time, you will be prompted to provide your name and address, including your card number. If you save that information for future use, the second offering by text will be immediate. You can also make one-time pledge payments and general offering donations online here.

If you would like to set up a recurring pledge payment on Realm, please contact Melissa Kelly, parish administrator, for an invitation to join. 

In Remembrance or Gratitude...

Altar flowers are a wonderful way to express gratitude for life's blessings or to memorialize a loved one.

If you would like to contribute Altar flowers, please contact Marilyn Grant. An acknowledgment will be included in the service bulletin.

Weekday Visits to Grace

When you visit, please use the Clergy Door, which is the first door on your right in the Hicks Street courtyard. Office hours are Monday through Friday, 9 am to 5 pm. 

The church office will be closed on Monday, October 10th.