January 4, 2023 Highlights Newsletter

January 4, 2023

YOU ARE INVITED TO AN EPIPHANY PARTY!

Join Rev. Paula and our friends from the Evelyn Underhill Region at Calvary Episcopal Church in Summit on Friday, January 6th from 6:30-8:30pm. Everyone is Welcome.

Light refreshments, drinks and activities will be provided for the whole family.

See you there!

Calvary Episcopal Church

31 Woodland Avenue

Summit, NJ

Financial Stewardship for 2023

Thank you to those who have pledged financial support of our ministries in 2023. This is a big help to the Finance Committee in building the budget.

A reminder to those who have not pledged yet: ALL of our ministries, both the visible and the behind the scenes ones, rely on your generosity in order to happen. We are at $80,216 in pledges, which is about $49,784 shy of what we need to do the things God is calling us to do. Please prayerfully consider making a pledge to support our ministries AND to express your gratitude to God for all the blessings of this life.

Happening at St. Stephen's This Week...

Please join us for Sunday Worship on January 8th at 8:00am & 10:00am for The First Sunday after the Epiphany: The Baptism of Our Lord.

ALL are welcome.

Masks are optional.

At Communion, you may receive the wine by sipping from the cup,

or you may choose Communion in one kind only (the bread).

Coffee Hour to follow the

10:00am service.

Live-streamed to YouTube, Facebook, and via Zoom. Bulletins are available on the St. Stephen's website. All links can be found at the bottom of the newsletter. Zoom passcode is SSM119.

The Sunday service will also be broadcast on HTTV (Comcast TV 36 and Verizon TV 33) on Tuesday at 6am and 3pm.

INTERFAITH BIBLE HOUR

Interfaith Bible Hour has moved to THURSDAYS!

Interfaith Bible Hour will continue gathering virtually on the first THURSDAY of the month at 9:00am with our friends from Christ Church in Short Hills and Congregation B'nai Jeshurun.

Please feel free to join us on Thursday, January 5th at 9:00am even if you haven't before. We will be reading 1 Samuel this year.

Join us via Zoom here.

The password is SSM119.

The meeting ID is 865 4375 6895.

Please email Rev. Paula at rector@ststephensmillburn.org

before 8:00am Friday morning for the pdf translation.

READING WITH THE RECTOR

Sunday, January 8th

11:30am - 1:00pm

in the common room, or via Zoom

We will be discussing:

The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison

The Bluest Eye is Toni Morrison's first novel, a book heralded for its richness of language and boldness of vision. Set in the author's girlhood hometown of Lorain Ohio, it tells the story of black, eleven-year-old Pecola Breedlove. Pecola prays for her eyes to turn blue so that she will be as beautiful as beloved as all the blond, blue-eyed children in America. In the autumn of 1941, the year the marigold in the Breedloves' garden do not bloom. Pecola's life does change—in painful, devastating ways. With its vivid evocation of the feat and loneliness at the heart of a child's yearning, and the tragedy of its fulfillment,

The Bluest Eye remains one of

Toni Morrison's most powerful, unforgettable novels—and a significant work of American fiction.

Looking Ahead

PLEASE CHECK WEEKLY BECAUSE EVENTS MAY BE ADDED OR CHANGED.

JANUARY

JAN 5

9am - Interfaith Bible Hour

JAN 8

8am - Sunday Worship

10am - Second Sunday Intergenerational Worship

11:30am - Reading with the Rector

11:30am - Youth Group

1pm - AA Meeting

JAN 9

7:30pm - MA Meeting

JAN 10

7pm - Monthly Women's Lectionary Discussion

JAN 15

8am - Sunday Worship

10am - Sunday Worship

11:30am - Vestry Meeting

1pm - AA Meeting

JAN 16

7:30pm - MA Meeting

JAN 18

7:30pm - Finance Committee Meeting

JAN 19

7pm - Preschool Committee Meeting

JAN 22

8am - Sunday Worship

10am - Sunday Worship

11:30am - Youth Group

1pm - AA Meeting

JAN 23

7:30pm - MA Meeting

JAN 29

8am - Sunday Worship

10am - Sunday Worship

1pm - AA Meeting

JAN 30

7:30pm - MA Meeting

FEBRUARY

FEB 2

9am - Interfaith Bible Hour

FEB 3 & 4

149th Annual Diocesan Convention

FEB 5

8am - Sunday Worship

10am - Second Sunday

1pm - AA Meeting

FEB 6

7:30pm - MA Meeting

FEB 12

8am - Sunday Worship

10am - Sunday Worship Intergenerational Worship

11:30am - Reading with the Rector

11:30am - Youth Group

1pm - AA Meeting

FEB 13

7:30pm - MA Meeting

FEB 14

7pm - Monthly Women's Lectionary Discussion

FEB 15

7:30pm - Finance Committee Meeting

FEB 16

7pm - Preschool Committee Meeting

FEB 19

8am - Sunday Worship

10am - Sunday Worship

11:30am - Vestry Meeting

1pm - AA Meeting

FEB 20

7:30pm - MA Meeting

FEB 26

8am - Sunday Worship

10am - Sunday Worship

11:30am - Youth Group

1pm - AA Meeting

FEB 27

7:30pm - MA Meeting

MARCH

MAR 2

9am - Interfaith Bible Hour

MAR 5

8am - Sunday Worship

10am - Sunday Worship & Annual Meeting

1pm - AA Meeting

MAR 6

7:30pm - MA Meeting

MAR 12

8am - Sunday Worship

10am - Sunday Worship Intergenerational Worship

11:30am - Reading with the Rector

11:30am - Youth Group

1pm - AA Meeting

MAR 13

7:30pm - MA Meeting

MAR 14

7pm - Monthly Women's Lectionary Discussion

MAR 15

7:30pm - Finance Committee Meeting

MAR 16

7pm - Preschool Committee Meeting

MAR 19

8am - Sunday Worship

10am - Sunday Worship

11:30am - Vestry Meeting

1pm - AA Meeting

MAR 20

7:30pm - MA Meeting

MAR 26

8am - Sunday Worship

10am - Sunday Worship

11:30am - Youth Group

1pm - AA Meeting

MAR 27

7:30pm - MA Meeting

PARISH OFFICE HOURS

Tuesday through Friday

9:00am to 5:00pm

Other Happenings...

MONTHLY WOMEN'S LECTIONARY DISCUSSION

We are using the new lectionary, A Women's Lectionary for the Whole Church by renowned Hebrew scholar and womanist theologian, Dr. Wilda Gafney this Sunday.

We will meet every month, on the second Tuesday from 7:00-8:00pm.

Our next meeting will be on Tuesday, January 10 at 7pm (in-person and via Zoom).

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84131953178?pwd=RkNMUWEyaXJQTjFoY0ZRbUxLd0hmUT09

Meeting ID: 841 3195 3178

Passcode: SSM119

You are invited to a complimentary lunch & learn: "Learn What Preplanning a Funeral is All About" on Wednesday, January 18 at 11:30am at the Bradley-Braviak Funeral Home located at 49 Whippany Rd in Whippany.

Presented by special guest speaker and Certified Preplanning Consultant, Jill A. Lazar. Discover why the gift of preplanning can be one of the greatest gifts you leave for your family. All guests will receive resource materials, and more!

Seating is limited! RSVP by January 17 by clicking here.

For more information, call (973) 635-2428 ext. 140.

From Bishop Hughes & The Episcopal Church

THE BISHOP'S VLOG

NEW: Christmas is about unconditional love - 12/25/22

Cherishing the gift of relationships - 12/7/22

The Voice Online Link - 12/21/22

DIOCESAN E-NEWSLETTERS

Sign up to receive important news, events and seasonal meditations from the Diocese of Newark. Find out more and subscribe here.

Resources

In this time of Crisis, there are resources that can help if you or someone you know needs assistance. Please contact NJ Mental Health Cares for free helpline telephone counseling or assistance. Call 866-202-4357.

TTY: 1-877-294-4356.

E-mail: help@njmentalhealthcares.org

Other resources are:

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline

1-800-273-8255

Crisis Text Line, 741741

NJ Hope Line (suicide prevention)

855-654-6735

A/MA MEETINGS

Weekly AA meetings:

Sunday at 1:00pm

Contact: Rob H. (516) 860-9062

For more information about Alcohol Anonymous, click here.

Weekly MA meeting:

Monday at 7:30pm

Contact: Max T. (212) 203-2542

Contact: Deana L. (908) 499-8997

MA meetings are presented in a rotating format:

Step - Speaker - Story from Life with Hope - Topic

For more information about Marijuana Anonymous, click here.

Prayer List

Please keep the following St. Stephen's family

members and friends in your prayers...

Peggy Thompson

Donna Riggi

The Blanchard Family

The McManus Family

Bernard & Nathan

Lucille B.

Jack Moreno

Joseph G.

Jane Rossiter

Mike Losito

Evan D. & Family

Donna Stadler Hostetler

Ed Roman

Emma Simonich

Inge Bass Mills

Jessica Rana

Cathy Zimmerman

Juliet Tranberg

Lind Hostetler

Mary Ruth Stone

Nancy Landers

Anne Grenda

Eugene Foley

Evie Larson

Sandra Swan

Cherie Donze

Ron Gadbois

Linda Clark

The Roberson Family

Darla Shaw

Linda Moran

Roger Riedel

If you would like to add someone to our prayer list, please email us at church@ststephensmillburn.org, or call (973) 376-0688 Ext. 32.

Anyone for whom we are praying will be on our prayer list for six weeks. If prayers are still needed beyond that time period, please let us know. Thank you.

Sunday Lectionary

First Sunday after the Epiphany

The Baptism of Our Lord

January 8, 2023

We are using the new lectionary,

Wilda Gafney's A Women's Lectionary for the Whole Church, Year A.

Our bulletins are available here.

Giving with Tithe.ly

TITHE.LY

Giving with Tithe.ly is easy with options for recurring donations or one-time use for when you are away or not able to be in church (like all of us now due to COVID restrictions).

You can access Tithe.ly via their website or their app on your smart phone. Be sure to search for the correct account - "St. Stephen's Church Millburn." Once you have accessed the account page with our address, you will be instructed to follow the prompts.

Office Notes

Due to COVID restrictions, only teachers and staff are allowed to be in the building during school hours. If you need to visit the parish office/building for any reason, please contact us for an appointment. Thank you.