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Worship Bulletins

Lectionary Readings

Episcopal News

Coming events

Sunday, Jan. 26

•8:00 am Holy Eucharist Rite I in the Chapel

•9:10 am Spiritual Formation Class: “Who is Jesus?”

•10:00 am Holy Eucharist Rite II

•11:20 am Annual Meeting


Monday, Jan. 27

•6:00 pm St. Anne’s meeting

•7:00 pm Choir Rehearsal


Tuesday, Jan. 28

•7:00 pm Taizé Service and Reception


Wednesday, Jan. 29

•10:00 am Healing & Reconciliation Holy Eucharist

•10:00 am Blue Bin sorting

•5:00 pm Good Grief


Thursday, Jan. 30 – 1:00 pm Quilting and Knitting Group


Saturday, Feb. 1 — Chinese New Year Celebration and Auction


Sunday, Feb. 2

•8:00 am Holy Eucharist Rite I in the Chapel

•9:10 am Spiritual Formation Class: “Who is Jesus?”

•10:00 am Holy Eucharist Rite II


For more events, visit our calendar.

Celebrate the start of the Lunar New Year with us at St. Francis. We'll have food and fun for the whole family, plus live and chance auction to benefit the mission and ministry of our St. Teresa's guild.


Saturday, February 1

6:00pm in the Parish Hall


Tickets:

$10 advance purchase

$13 at the door


To purchase tickets, contact the church office (310-375-4617) or Robin Pano (310-779-0486).

Study Series:

C.S. Lewis on Joy and Suffering and Inbetween


This discussion-based class explores C.S. Lewis's insights on joy, suffering, and the human experience. we will look at works such as, Surprised by Joy, The Problem of Pain, Mere Christianity, and other essays and talks. We will explore questions of why we suffer, what joy truly is and how we can find meaning in both. We will engage with Lewis's reflections, consider our own perspectives, and explore how joy and suffering shape our lives.


RSVP: dswestervelt@gmail.com or 310-977-3014


When: Tuesday at 7:00pm to 8:15pm

Where: Board Room

Leader: Dale Westervelt

Rector's Reflection

We have celebrated and renewed our baptismal vows the past two Sundays at St. Francis: once on the baptism of Jesus, and a week later to officially welcome four new people into our midst. Both Sundays I preached that there is no asterisk next to the vows we make to God, ourselves, and each other. We don’t say, “We will respect the dignity of every human being, except drug dealers, who are the scum of the earth…except murderers, adulterers, thieves, child abusers...” 


Respecting the dignity of every human doesn’t mean we respect the evil deeds they may have done; it means we see them first as a child of God, worthy of God’s love and grace. Love isn’t easy. But it is good—the greatest good the world will ever know. Our Lord went to his death knowing that His wouldn’t be the last death or persecution; he was supposed to be the final sacrifice, the one for all time, but He knew that it wouldn’t work out like that. He went anyway. He died knowing who we are and what we do to one another in His name. And He Forgave and Blessed us, and He loves us, seeing in us not the sum of what we’ve done, but fellow children of God.


Love is the singular most difficult thing we will ever do, but it is also the best thing we can do. Every week I begin praying on Thursday or Friday to speak the truth in love when I preach on Sunday, and by Sunday it is a constant mantra; it is the final prayer I make before turning to the congregation and saying, “I speak to you in the name of the living God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.” 


There are times when it seems impossible to speak anything in love. At those times I do my best to stay silent. And there are times when being silent is being complacent or negligent if not complicit. How do I best live out my baptismal covenant where I am now? By doing my best to respect the dignity of every human being, trusting that all of us are sacred temples wherein Christ chooses to dwell. 


For me this means not saying ugly things about other drivers or people walking against traffic, playing Disney Princess Yahtzee with Rachel instead of unloading the dishwasher, and reminding all of us that thankfully the people we see on a day-to-day basis are not murderers or drug dealers, but nonetheless are in need of God’s love and grace. 


When we view the people in our midst first as children of God, everything else about them becomes secondary; when we view ourselves first as children of God, everything else about us becomes secondary. What is more important than being a child of God, loved and redeemed through Christ’s grace? Is our name, where we are from, or what we do worth more than our inheritance to the Kingdom of God, an inheritance that we can realize here and now? We see it realized when we love one another, as we are loved: unconditionally, sacrificially, and humbly. As we say in our baptismal covenant, we can do all of this, with God’s help.

Fr. Jason's Week in Review

January 17: Rachel was home from school with a cough; took Archie to the doctor’s office for follow up booster shot; admin tasks. 


January 18: Sermon prep; day off.


January 19: Sunday services; we baptized baby James at the 8am service and siblings David, Mary and Sarah at the 10am; Jennifer and the kids stayed home from church as both kids had coughs.


January 20: Martin Luther King Day; did some chores around the house and listened to “Letter from a Birmingham Jail.” Went to urgent care late in the afternoon for what I believed to be a sinus infection, and got home well after 9 that evening.


January 21: Met with the Senior Warden; had lunch with several priests from the South Bay about sharing Lenten and Holy Week services; met briefly with Dick Briggs re: the annual meeting and other odds and ends; worked on my report for the annual meeting


January 22: Worked on annual meeting report; healing service; went to the dentist, where I found out I have fantastic dental hygiene but two abscesses that require root canals; the dentist said I have an “interesting” mouth; went back to work and wrote a lot.


January 23: Met with Senior Warden; revised rector’s report for annual meeting; wrote for the Bellringer; pastoral phone calls.

Photos: Firefighter Donations

On Friday, January 17, St. Francis added our collection of supplies for the Los Angeles Fire Department as they fight the wildfires in our area. THANK YOU to everyone who donated and helped deliver these supplies. Below are photos taken during this vital work.

Spiritual Formation: Who is Jesus?

Each Sunday, Dec. 1 to Mar. 30 at 9:10 AM | St. Francis Library


Have you ever wondered about Jesus? Are you questioning and inquiring, curious, or perhaps, doubtful of Jesus and what he is saying? Ever wonder what Jesus may really be saying to us? Where did Jesus come from?


Inquirers, seekers, those wondering about baptism or confirmation, and those seeking a deeper connection to something beyond ourselves: all are invited to conversations about Jesus on Sundays between services in the St. Francis Library.


Conversations will be based on our Sunday readings and we will meet Sundays at 9:10-ish to 9:45am. We will begin on the first Sunday of Advent and continue through the Sunday before Holy Week.


Please contact me, Deacon Celeste, at 310-913-1069 or email at cstump@thecanterbury.org. to RSVP or to answer any questions. I look for to speaking and meeting with you.

Peace, Deacon Celeste

Get Involved at St. Francis

Good Grief Loss Support Group: Alternating Wednesday mornings (11 am to noon) and evenings (5 pm to 6 pm) in the St. Francis Library. For people suffering loss of any kind including death, divorce, loss of health due to an illness or accident, etc.


Men’s Corner: Monthly for dinner at Corner Bakery. Contact Ed Hinz (kn6jn@yahoo.com).


Nurture Group meets on the first Wednesday of the month to have a simple dinner and discuss a spiritual topic in a non-judgmental and open way. Next meeting is December 4 at 6 p.m. at the home of Blair Hinz. Please contact Susan Egan if you wish to attend.


Quilting and Knitting Group: Thursdays at 1 pm in the Board Room. Contact: Anna Eakins (annatkozaki@gmail.com).


SAGES (Senior Adult Group of Episcopalians): Group outings, social gatherings, guest speakers, and more. Contact: Kristina Pela (krab3@yahoo.com).


St. Anne’s Guild: Meets on the 4th Monday of Sept-June at 6pm. Join us for fellowship, plan church events (like the Rummage Sale and Antiques Show), potluck dinners, and our Christmas charity event! Contact Anna Eakins.


St. Teresa’s Guild: Meet a few times a year to raise money for charities that support women and children through dues and our famous Chinese New Year event. Contact: Robin Pano.


Friars: Meets as needed to cook meals for Parish events (e.g. Lenten Suppers). Contact: Dick Briggs.


Yoga: All Levels Hatha Yoga for Strength and Mobility: Mondays, 11 am to 12:30 pm. All Levels Gentle Yoga for Vital Mobility and Balance: Wednesdays, 9am to 10:30 am. Contact: Jill Lynch (jillfenskelynch@gmail.com).


Download our 2024 Get Connected booklet (PDF) for a list of all our ministries and small groups.

Flowers for the altar

Consider making a donation of altar flowers in honor of a special occasion or in memory

of someone you love. (The suggested donation is $50.) Contact Gina McQueen in the church office at 310-375-4617 or gina.mcqueen@stfrancispalosverdes.org.

Call for Photos

Each week we change the photo in the header of this weekly email newsletter. But we need more up-to-date photos... Get your photo featured! You can submit your photos of the St. Francis campus, events, and people to us at social@stfrancispalosverdes.org for consideration. We'll even run your name as a photo credit. So get snapping—we can't wait to see what you create!

Liturgy and Worship 


Sundays at 8:00 am

Holy Eucharist Rite I with hymns in the Chapel.


Sundays at 10:00 am

Holy Eucharist Rite II with choir and music in the main church.


Wednesdays at 10:00 am

Healing & Reconciliation Holy Eucharist Rite II with hymns in the Chapel.


Taizé: Last Tuesday of the month at 7:00 pm

A meditative service of music and prayer in the Chapel. (No communion.)


For other worship services and parish events, visit our calendar.

Livestream Worship and Sermons Online


We livestream Sunday 10am worship on Facebook and YouTube. You can view past sermons or entire livestreams on our YouTube channel.

Nursery School and Sunday School


Sunday school for children in kindergarten through fifth grade will be held in the Parish Hall from 9:50 am to 10:40 am (ish ... the kids typically come in at the Peace). There is a nursery for children 6 months to 5 years old.


Contact: Kristina Pelá

Pastoral Care


In need of prayer? Send prayer requests to Fr. Jason.


Contact Kristina Pelá to arrange for a Lay Eucharistic Minister to safely bring you communion.

Parish Directory


Our directory is available online. If you need the password, contact Gina McQueen in person in the church office. For security reasons, we don't share the parish directory via email or phone call.

Calendar of Events


All of our worship services, events, and small groups are listed on our church calendar.

Communications

and Notices


Please send all notices you wish to be included in the enews or bulletins to Father Jason and Wayne Hastings.

Coffee Hour

Ministry


To volunteer to help one week after the 10am worship service, see the sign-up sheet at Sunday coffee hour.

Yoga with Jill


A spiritual mind and body practice led by Jill Lynch in the St. Francis Parish Hall.


Mondays 11:00-12:30 pm – Level 1/2 Hatha for Strength and Mobility


Wednesdays 9:00-10:30 am – Level 1 Gentle Yoga for Vital Mobility and Balance

Contact us

Phone: 310-375-4617


The Rev. Jason Shelby, Rector: 310-594-7984

The Rev. Celeste Stump, Deacon, Chaplain at The Canterbury: 310-265-5146

Mark Bennett, Director of Music: 617-217-1601

David Knight, Organist: 310-375-4617

Elaine Mistele, Business Manager: 310-594-8268

Gina McQueen, Receptionist and Office Administrator, (310) 375 4617

Joel Miranda, Sexton

Wayne Hastings, Communications: 901-219-6564


Church Office hours are:

Monday through Thursday

9:00 am to 3:00 pm