Fall is coming.
It’s time to register for our amazing Children & Youth programs.
(Good luck choosing just one.)
Sunday School. Godly Play. Youth Groups. Confirmation. Children’s Chapel. Nursery. Acolyte Training. Baptism. Growing in Faith. Boy Scouts. Choir.
There are so many amazing opportunities for fun, growth, learning, deepening your relationship with God, serving the church, healing the world, and making lifelong friends. And they all start with registration for our Children’s & Youth ministries.
The Children’s & Youth programs are one of the things that make St. James’s such a special place. Lots of energy and imagination have gone into our plans, and they deserve your--and your children’s’--attention. As you consider all the options, keep an eye out for a large mailer in your mailbox laying out all the plans we have for kids of every age.
You can also attend our kick off events here at the Church on
Sunday, September 19th from 10:15 am -11:00 am.
Have a great year!
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What’s on Summer Vacation?...And what’s not?
These groups will continue to meet during the Summer:
Brown Bag Book Club
Men’s Bible Study Breakfast
These groups will NOT continue to meet during the Summer:
Women’s Bible Wisdom Bible Study
Living Faith Bible Study
Tuesday’s Readers
Lectionary Ladies
Community Yoga - no classes during August
For more information, go to the Calendar at doers.org.
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Wednesday, August 11th
Communion in The Garden: 5:30 pm
A short communion service in the Memorial Garden.
For more information about these events, go to the Calendar at doers.org.
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This week's eChimes features
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- Prayer Service for Haiti - 9/15
- Please wear a mask
- Hosts needed for House Church
- Church in The Garden rain plan
- Youth Confirmation 2021-2022
- Welcome Sunday volunteers
- Be a part of the Video Squad
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- Come sing praises - join a choir
- Wheels Ministry needs drivers
- Easy to give with Amazon Smile
- Be paperless - St. James's app
- Subscribe to YouTube
- Remembering the deceased
- In Our Prayers this week
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Prayer Service for Haiti
Sunday, August 15 - 9:45 am
If you have been involved in one of these ministries at any time, you are especially invited to join the clergy and parishioners to lift Haiti and these ministries up in prayer.
ⴕ The Prayer Service for Haiti will be held at 9:45am (after Church in The Garden).
ⴕ If it rains, the prayer service will be in Valentine Hall - doors will be open to the outdoors for
maximum air circulation and we ask that you wear a mask.
ⴕ The Prayer service can also be seen via Zoom. Here's the Zoom link.
Meeting ID: 820 9290 2168 / Passcode: 612932
If you are unable to join the service with the Zoom link, here's how you can join via mobile.
Read Presiding Bishop Michael Curry’s letter to the Episcopal Diocese of Haiti here ( scroll down the page)
Read the latest article from Episcopal News Service on Haiti and the Episcopal Church here.
Presiding Bishop Michael Curry invites applicants for United Nations climate conference delegation. Applications are due Friday, August 20th. You can read more here.
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Please wear masks so we can continue to meet in person.
With the recent rise in Covid cases, we are now encouraging everyone to wear masks to our in-person services.
To put our request into perspective, other churches in the diocese have looked at the Covid numbers and decided to return to virtual services. Knowing how important in-person services are to this congregation, we are choosing to continue to meet in person. But, to be clear, we are strongly encouraging everyone to wear masks so we can continue to meet safely in person. It’s our way of loving, protecting and respecting our neighbors.
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Hosts Needed for
Fall House Churches
Over the past year, we learned that House Churches were a great way to foster connection and make St. James’s smaller. As a result, we’re so excited to announce that House Churches will be returning for 6-8 weeks during the months of October and November.
In an effort to adapt with the present moment, House Churches have continued to evolve, so you may notice some changes this time around. First of all, House Churches will occur at various times and locations throughout the week.
Now through the end of August, we’re inviting individuals and families to sign up to host a House Church on whatever day and time works for them. Watch this video from Blake and Hilary about hosting a House Church. You can signup to host here.
Once hosts have signed up, people will have the opportunity to sign up for the House Church that works best with their schedule during September before the House Churches begin meeting in October.
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Church in The Garden
If it’s raining at 7:00 am (or after) on Sunday morning, no 9:00 am service.
As much as we love the 9:00 am Church in The Garden, it’s no fun in the rain. So if you wake up and it’s raining at 7:00 am, we won’t hold the service that day. Of course, the 10:00 am in the sanctuary will be warm and dry--and we can’t wait to see you there.
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Youth Confirmation for 2021-2022. Registration is now Open.
The clergy and Youth Ministry are honored and excited to walk with youth through your confirmation preparation process. At. St. James’s we like to think of Confirmation as “base camp” on your spiritual journey. It’s neither your point of origin, nor your destination, but a place to rest, grow, and be equipped for your spiritual journey.
Registration for our youth confirmation process is now open for the 2021-2022 program year. Students beginning in 9th grade are eligible to participate accompanied by at least one parent. If 9th grade doesn’t feel like a good fit, you’re welcome to come back any time later in high school.
Visit the Youth Confirmation page of the church website for detailed information about confirmation and to register online. Registration will close on September 27.
For more information about Youth Confirmation at St. James’s, please contact our director of youth ministry Mary Beth Abplanalp (mbabplanalp@doers.org)
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Put Sunday, September 12th on your “Can’t Miss” list. It’s Welcome Sunday here at St. James’s and we’ll be celebrating the kick-off of the program year with a big celebration on Birch Street (between the Sanctuary and Michaux House) between the 9 am and 11:15 am services.
It’s another chance to celebrate being back together and looking forward to all the excitement that’s planned for the upcoming year.
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The Video Squad.
Where the cool kids hang out on Sundays.
Our online services have continued to be valuable and popular with our parish. And as we move into the Fall, we’ll begin to livestream the services from the chapel rather than record services earlier in the week. That’s where you come in!
We’re seeking committed individuals to join our Video Squad. You’ll get to work with our brand new cameras and state-of-the-art editing equipment to bring St. James’s into the homes--and onto the computers and phones--of St. James’s parishioners everywhere. We’ll train you and even give you easy-to-follow editing instructions.
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Your body and soul want you
to join a choir!
“Is anyone among you suffering? Then he must pray. Is anyone cheerful? He is to sing praises.” (James 5:13)
According to science, our patron Saint James was on to something. Group singing takes something incredibly intimate, a sound that begins inside you, then shares it with a roomful of people and it comes back as something even more thrilling: harmony.
The result is a perfect tranquilizer, the kind that both soothes your nerves and elevates your spirits, and even reduces feelings of depression and loneliness. A very recent study even attempts to make the case that “music evolved as a tool of social living,” and that the pleasure that comes from singing together is our evolutionary reward for coming together cooperatively.
So, you see, your body wants you to join a St. James’s choir. Get started by calling Mark or Virginia Whitmire at 355-1779, ext. 323 (Mark) or ext. 324 (Virginia), for more information.
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Wheels Ministry Volunteers Needed
Now that St. James's is back to having in-person worship, our clergy members are eager to restart our Wheels Ministry program and they need your help.
The Wheels Ministry, it is a lay-led program where volunteers provide transportation each Sunday morning to Westminster Canterbury residents who attend the 11:15 a.m. worship service. (If we are able to recruit drivers before the end of the summer, we may attempt to start this program with our 10:00 a.m. summer service instead of waiting for the fall service schedule.)
Volunteers will work on a rotation and will be expected to drive to Westminster Canterbury, pick up the Westminster Canterbury van and transport approximately 6-8 WC residents to and from the service.
We are looking for several drivers, as well as a leader to handle recruitment and the driver schedule. If you are interested in volunteering and/or leading the team, please contact Mary Brown at mbrown@doers.org.
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Support St. James’s without it costing you a penny.
There’s an easy way to support St. James’s while you’re doing something else. When you're shopping on Amazon (which is probably often these days) go to smile.amazon.com, instead. Once you’re there, designate St. James’s as the program you’re supporting, then a percentage of every purchase you make on Amazon Smile will go the church. Easy-peezy.
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Want to be paperless? Checkout the St. James’s App.
Want an easy way to watch the Sunday service on your phone? There’s an App for that. Want to read the eChimes, view the calendar or watch past sermons on your tablet? There’s an App for those things too. The St. James’s App has been updated and it’s ready to make your life easier. You can see the bulletins for the services, refer to the book of common prayer, even make a pledge. Click on your preferred button to download our app.
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Why Subscribe?
What you'll get:
Easy access to video recordings of recent sermons, services, musical performances, bible studies and more.
What St. James's gets:
Free access to enhanced video capabilities that includes live streaming and more.
Subscribing is easy.
Go to the St. James’s Episcopal Church Richmond page on YouTube.com - find the red "subscribe button" and instantly be one of the 99 who gets us to the finish line.
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We commend Mitzi Welton to God's love.
If you would like information on how to reach out to the loved ones of the deceased, please do not hesitate to contact the church offices.
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Click here to see the names of those we're remembering in our prayers this week.
We do our best to keep this list current, but if you want your name added or removed, please contact Mary Brown or call her at 804-355-1779, ext. 313.
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St. James’s Episcopal Church | DOERS.ORG | (804) 355-1779
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