 |
American Red Cross Blood Drive
Currently, a severe blood shortage is happening nationwide as the number of trauma cases, organ transplants, and elective surgeries rise. Please consider participating in our blood drive on Sunday!
|
|
|
|
Backpack Buddies
Refugee Ministries and Children's Ministries are collecting donations for our annual Backpack Buddies Drive! Please sign up to donate backpacks and school supplies to former refugee children.
|
|
|
|
|
Sacred Ground
This Sunday we will recognize the 63 saints who have participated in Sacred Ground this year. Sacred Ground is a film- and readings-based dialogue series about race, grounded in faith. Join us in the courtyard between the 9:00 a.m. and 11:15 a.m. services to speak with the participants about their experiences.
|
|
|
|
Simon is away on vacation, so please enjoy today's note from Andy Barnett, Associate Rector for Worship and Adult Formation. |
|
Dear saints,
We’ve been through a tough year, and many of us are finding a bit of rest during these summer months. Thank God for that! I’d like to take this opportunity to think theologically with you about sabbath.
Karoline Lewis curates a great website called Working Preacher and she writes, “Much of what we pay attention to… is neither meaningful nor life-giving. Burnouts and breakdowns are not always the result of exhaustion—they are symptoms of passions run dry and waning joy. The answer is not to work harder, says Jesus. The answer is to allow ourselves rest. Without rest for the weary, nothing gets done and nothing new can be dreamed. Without rest for your soul, eventually your soul will give in to the weight of the world. The world needs a church whose people are responsive, who are rested up to see forward and revitalized to have a vision.”
Along these lines, Walter Brueggeman’s fantastic book Sabbath as Resistance shows sabbath as the most counter-cultural act that the Israelites can perform in Pharaoh’s Egypt. Pharaoh wants more and more bricks for more and more economic output, breaking backs along the way. But God still calls the people to remember sabbath and keep it holy. Brueggeman believes we can take three lessons from the story:
(1) “That YHWH is not a workaholic;
(2) That YHWH is not anxious about the full functioning of creation; and
(3) That the well-being of creation does not depend on endless work.”
Fusing the Exodus story with Jesus’ good news, he concludes: “’Weariness,’ ‘being heavy-laden,’ and ‘yoke’ are all ways of speaking of the commodity society of endless productivity… But Jesus offers an alternative: “Come to me and rest!” Indeed, sabbath is a practical divestment so that neighborly engagement, rather than production and consumption, defines our lives… To cease, even for a time, the anxious striving for more bricks is to find ourselves with a “light burden” and an “easy yoke.” It is now, as then, enough to permit dancing and singing into an alternative life.”
So take a good long nap this afternoon. Find some time away from the hustle-bustle. Get out of town for a minute, if you can. Call a friend and put a work project on hold. Be blessed by relationship with your family and friends this summer. May we find rest for our souls in these coming weeks.
I thank God for the joy and privilege of serving with you at All Saints’!
Sincerely,
|
|
Worship Schedule
Week of July 11, 2021
|
|
Sunday
8:00 a.m., 11:15 a.m., and 5:30 p.m.
Indoor Worship Services
These services are intended for vaccinated people; no pre-registration and no Covid-19 protocols are required to attend.
9:00 a.m.
Indoor Worship Service with COVID-19 Protocols
This service adheres to COVID-19 precautions and requires pre-registration, masks, and distancing for those in attendance.
11:15 a.m.
Livestreamed Worship Service
4:30 p.m.
A Service of Recovery and Healing
|
|
|
|
|
Children's programming is on summer break! Stay tuned for details about Vacation Bible School in August.
|
|
|
|
|
Middle and High Schoolers |
Two more fun summer gatherings coming up! Learn more and sign up below:
|
|
|
|
|
Jesus on the Front Page
Sundays, 10:00 a.m. on Zoom
Join this ongoing discussion of the news of the day and how we are called as Christians to respond in the public arena, in our private lives, and in our prayers.
|
|
|
|
The Journey with the Rev. Karen Evans
Wednesdays, 10:00-11:00 a.m. on Zoom
The Bible is full of journeys: short, long, searching, moving, fleeing and more. Things happen on these journeys: lives are changed, new directions are found; and through it all, "the feeling remains that God is on the journey, too” -Teresa of Avila. The Journey is a Bible study exploring the biblical journeys and what they have to say about our own.
|
|
|
|
Conversations and Compline
Sunday, July 25, 7:00-8:30 p.m., Kennedy Courtyard and the chapel (rain location: Ellis Hall)
Come for conversation, stay for Compline. Saints 18 years and older gather together on the fourth Sunday of the month to pair up for some interactive, rotational conversations and fun. Whether you're eager to get reacquainted or seeking a fresh way to lean into a faith community, you are welcome to share in this experience. The evening concludes with music and prayer to send us into the week refreshed and encouraged by connections God is revealing among us.
|
|
Service and Social Justice |
|
|
Have Fun in the Sun with Refugee Ministries Swimming Buddies
Join former refugee families an afternoon of fun at a parishioner’s pool or lake house. We invite volunteers to sign up to provide water supervision at the following dates and times:
- July 17 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at a parishioner’s pool in Sandy Springs
- August 7 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at a parishioner’s pool in Sandy Springs
- August 21 from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at a parishioner’s lake house in Jackson, GA
|
|
|
|
|
Donate Children's Clothing, Books, Socks, and Shoes to Threads
Threads is planning to open again in mid-August! We are now inviting donations of new or gently used children’s clothing; a donation barrel is located in the upper level of the parking garage behind the security booth. We are in the process of painting the shop, so please do not put any donations in the shop or any other place on the campus at this time.
Current needs: children's books, short-sleeved shirts for boys and girls (sizes 5-14), new children's sneakers, new socks for boys and girls (size medium). Please remember: Threads does not accept used shoes, socks, or underwear.
Stay tuned for new volunteers hours!
|
|
|
|
|
Create Greeting Cards with Midtown Assistance Center (MAC)
MAC invites volunteers to create greeting cards for their clients. Right now, their office remains closed to the public due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so they’re helping clients by mailing gift cards. The gift cards are placed inside greeting cards with handwritten notes that add a personal touch; several clients have said how much those notes mean to them. MAC sends out about 10-15 cards each weekday, so they could really use our help in writing cards!
To participate, you can buy greeting cards in bulk from a retailer or make them yourself. Please write a kind message inside, include an inspirational quote, or both. Sign them with your first name or something like “your friend at MAC.” Please mail the cards to MAC at: 30 Porter Place, Atlanta, GA 30308, or, if you live in town, you can arrange a porch pick up with Ciara Castenell, Partnerships Director.
|
|
|
|
|
Provide a Meal for the Men of Covenant Community
Consider bringing dinner to the men of Covenant Community on a Monday night sometime soon. Please contact Barbara Blender to help coordinate.
|
|
|
|
"Giving is what we do best. It is in the air into which we were born. It is the action that was designed into us before our birth." —E. Peterson
Make a generous gift or pledge payment today. Thank you.
Text to give: text allsaintsatlanta to 73256
Coming to church in person? Bring checks and cash to the baskets in the narthex.
|
|
July 26: Church Directory and Giving Upgrade
In a few short weeks, we're excited to launch our new platform for online giving, directory, and event registration. The platform is called Realm.
On July 26, you will receive an email that invites you to sign up and update your information for the directory, event registration, and online giving.
Please note: If you had already signed up for recurring payments on our previous platform (Access All Saints'), that information and those payments have carried over.
If you have not signed up for recurring payments and would like to make a pledge payment or gift between now and July 26, please use this secure form until we launch Realm.
|
|
Together Again! Save the Date for our Annual Parish Weekend at Kanuga!
Friday, October 1 through Sunday, October 3
Kanuga Conference Center in Hendersonville, North Carolina
Make sure to mark your calendars for our Annual Parish Weekend at Kanuga. After a year away, we’re thrilled to be able to gather together for a fun-filled weekend in the beauty of God’s creation. Paper registration forms are available at the Parish Life table on Sundays and online registration will be available beginning July 26.
Serve at Kanuga
Would you like to volunteer during our Annual Parish Weekend? We would love your help! As we look forward to our time together, the planning committee invites volunteers to serve both before and during this special weekend. If you are interested in helping, please contact Jill Gossett, Director of Parish Life, at jgossett@allsaintsatlanta.org.
|
|
Upcoming Baptism Dates
We are looking forward to offering baptisms during our worship services again! Upcoming dates this fall: Sunday, September 5 and Sunday, October 10, 2021 at the 11:15 a.m. service.
|
|
Please Donate Flower Memorials and Thanksgivings
We welcome your support of our Flower Guild, whose work is offered to the glory of God. We invite your gifts in loving memory of those who have died, and in celebration of God's blessings in your life.
The suggested donation is $150 and multiple flower memorials may be printed in bulletins to accommodate our parishioners’ generosity.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
