We the people of Saint Stephen's in-the Field

Seek to know Christ, to share Christ, and to serve Christ,

recognizing his presence in all people, and reaching out in love 

to each other and to the world around us.

Worship This Sunday:

Sunday, September 15th

10:00am - Morning Prayer

BULLETIN

 St. Stephen’s has an in-person worship service every Sunday at 10am. We alternate between Morning Prayer and Holy Eucharist. We are not live-streaming Morning Prayer services at this time. All Holy Eucharist services are live streamed. Links to the bulletin and YouTube video are provided for all Holy Eucharist services.

From the Vestry

This past Saturday, a few of the gardeners made grape jelly from the grapes grown in the garden. Hopefully they will share!

The plug is now fixed! Just in time for the Octoberfest.

Canon Martha Korienek presided over the service on September 8th. She will be assisting with our transition to find a new priest.

Susan and Janet, your co-senior wardens will be in the office on Thursday morning at 10:30. We are here to help.

September 8th was also the 50th anniversary of St. Stephen’s. Canon Martha gave a special blessing for this event. We had a wonderful cake to celebrate!

We are still collecting money for Karen’s discretionary fund.

If you would like to donate toward the discretionary fund, please send a check or PayPal with a note indicating what the funds are for.

A check will be sent to Karen next week.

Saturday, October 19th:

Harvest Festival at St. Stephens

St. Stephens will be hosting an OctoberFest complete with a beer stein holding contest! Please come join us at this wonderful community event. Click here for registration and payment! Also, to participate in the beer stein holding contest, click here to register!

COFFEE HOUR SIGN-UP SHEET

Diocesan Newsletter



Read about what’s going on in the diocese! Click below to subscribe to the diocesan newsletter that is emailed every two weeks.

Help with Wildfires in Northern California

The Park Fire near Chico is threatening many parishioners in our sister diocese of Northern California. It has grown to 393,012 acres and is only 18% contained. It is the fifth-largest wildfire in California history.

Many feel called to help those who are displaced by disaster. The primary need of people who are evacuated is money, allowing them to eat, travel to safety, settle down where it is safe and comfortable, and contact loved ones. Please prayerfully consider donating to the Episcopal Diocese of Northern California Disaster Resilience Fund if you are able. 100% of your donations go to help those in need. Click HERE to donate.

Presiding Bishop Elect prioritizes

Creation Care from the start . . .

The title of the recent Episcopal News Service (ENS) article reads:

"Presiding bishop-elect to forego installation at National Cathedral; scaled-back event to be held at church’s New York headquarters."

Read the full article HERE.

A Prayer in Times of Transition . . .

Assist us, Lord, in living hopefully into the future. In the face of change, help us to set unnecessary fears aside and to recognize our potential for creative response. Help us to develop a reasonable optimism when confronted by “the new” and to guard against our own defensiveness. Be with us as we remember and celebrate former times, and keep us from unreasonable yearning for them, which takes us from the work you have set before us in our time. All this we ask in the name of your Child, our Savior, Jesus Christ.



Amen.

A prayer for peace in the Middle East

God of mercy and compassion, of grace and reconciliation, pour your power upon all your children in the Middle East: Jews, Muslims and Christians, Palestinians and Israelis. Let hatred be turned into love, fear to trust, despair to hope, oppression to freedom, occupation to liberation, that violent encounters may be replaced by loving embraces, and peace and justice could be experienced by all. Amen.

(by The Reverend Said Ailabouni Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Chicago, IL.) 

You can help . . .

If you are interested in making donations to help with the relief efforts in Israel/Palestine, here are the links that were included in Bishop Lucinda's letter:

https://j-diocese.org/wordpress/

https://realepiscopal.us3.list-manage.com/track/click?u=99ebbaf4cee8d012c9edafe60&id=d91c439a3d&e=bcc1702497

Join Education For Ministry - EfM

Please consider joining EfM! Education for Ministry (EfM) is a life-changing and unique college-level program in theological education based on small-group study and practice. Weekly seminars are designed to prepare lay persons to live out by word and deed the promises made at baptism: to love God, serve Christ, and proclaim the Gospel. EfM seminars take place online during the pandemic. 

More about EfM:https://theology.sewanee.edu/education-for-ministry/

If you are interested in joining EfM, please contact the ECR Diocesan Coordinator, Katy Dickinson: katy.dickinson@gmail.com

Wednesday Book Group

Weekly Wednesday Bible Study

 11:00am, at St. John’s 

When Bad Things Happen to Good People by Rabbi Laureate Harold Kushner

This classic treatise of trying to understand personal tragedy was published in 1981. Over 4 million copies of this book have sold, and it’s been translated into at least 12 languages! The author was born April 3, 1935, in Brooklyn, New York, and he passed away at 88 in hospice care on April 28, 2023.

Updates and opportunities!

We have space available to rent. If you know of any non-profit agencies or schools that need a space, let them know that St. Stephen’s has space. 



While it’s nice to have the flexibility to use the space ourselves, we need the income and so hope to find a new renter. 

Our church, parish hall, and our beautiful grounds, including the labyrinth are all great venues like for a variety of special events like receptions, birthday parties, quinceaneras, etc. Please encourage friends to consider St. Stephen’s as a venue for their special event!  

To reserve a space or ask question, contact the office, office@ssitf.org or click on the link on our website https://www.ssitf.org/facility-rentals. 

Spread the word and pray for St. Stephen’s!

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

All Services begin at 10:00am, unless otherwise noted.

• Sunday, September 15th, Morning Prayer
• Sunday, September 22nd, Holy Eucharist
• Sunday, September 29th, Morning Prayer
• Sunday, October 6th, Holy Eucharist
• Sunday, October 13th, Morning Prayer

Kudos:

• Our vestry for making sure that things are running smoothly.
• Andy for the work he's done recently on the grant.
• Canon Martha for presiding over this past Sunday's service.
• Trig for fixing the outdoor outlet.
• The gardeners for all they do to nurture and grow the Rainbow Garden!

NEEDING PRAYER SUPPORT?

Prayer is one of those things we often think about, might feel inadequate about, believe in but might be unsure how to proceed. How we pray is sometimes unique to each of us. The Church provides help in many ways. If you find yourself in need, of any kind (emotional, physical, spiritual, guidance, etc) consider how St. Stephen's can support you:

*   there is a prayer chain of committed pray-ers (who maintain confidentiality). 

*   tell people about your answers to prayer! and the miracles you witness, or how prayer changes YOU.

Editor's Note  

Have an announcement?

Please send any announcements or articles you want to have included, to: kristenvdm@yahoo.com, by Thursday, 10am each week. 

Kristen van der Molen