Thank you, Saint Paul’s, for the meal train that made our arrival in Augusta and Saint Paul’s so much smoother. It was a great relief to know that multiple meals each week were covered. There’s a joke here about filling our plates being taken off of our plate, but I’m not sure I can make it well. So, having so much food taken care of let us focus on getting to know Saint Paul’s and settling in to life in the CSRA. And the food was all delicious. THANK YOU! Now we’ll actually get to know the grocery stores nearby.

-The Biddy Family

Dear People of Saint Paul’s,

This Sunday at 4:00 PM we’ll gather in the churchyard to bless our animal companions, in imitation and memory of Saint Francis. It is a good, fun, adorable tradition. The adorable and chaotic fun of it, though, always threatens to mask just how radical the witness of Saint Francis is. Francis’s attention to animals wasn’t really about being cute. It was a profound understanding of the doctrine of the Incarnation. God came to us in this real world, the world full of animals and elements and night and day. And that coming blessed the whole world, human and non-human.

Francis wasn’t hoping that we, hundreds of years later, would have a special Sunday when we bring our pets to church. But I think he was hoping that his contemporaries and we would gain a deeper understanding of the fulness of God’s love for the world God created. God still comes to us in our real world, with animals, sure, but also with jobs and deadlines and diagnoses and families and traffic. In short, God comes to us in a world that is a mess and which we can’t really control. God comes to us in the midst of a life that is a mess and not really under our control. This is where God comes to us because it is the only place where any one of us ever is. Liturgically, the appropriate action for the animals attending a Saint Francis inspired service is to make a mess (bring your doggie bags, please) and misbehave. And then our most appropriate action is to realize that God is coming to us in that context—messy and out of control.

I hope that in addition to whatever service you usually attend, you’ll also join us at 4:00 PM this Sunday. Bring a pet if you have one, but come even if you don’t. Because we need that radical witness to remind us that this world, this life, is where Jesus still comes to us: right in the out of control mess of your life (and mine), Jesus is there.

Eric+

“Love your neighbor” is almost universally ascribed to by different faith traditions, philosophies, and cultures. The language used may vary slightly but the moral imperative is demonstrating service, compassion, kindness, and sharing with those you are in community with and those you aren’t. It is the recognition that whether we are friends or strangers, we belong to each other.

Saint Paul’s happens to be nestled in the middle of the Ironman 70.3 Augusta race course and years ago, the outreach committee decided to embrace the event and see it as an opportunity to welcome and provide hospitality to athletes and spectators and to live out our mission to love our neighbor. This year there were concerns about how to best support our athletes and keep everyone healthy and safe during a time of high community transmission rates. We cancelled our annual pasta dinner and moved race day hospitality outdoors. Our swim gear drop and cheer station volunteer events were already outdoors.

There were moments of concern about how we could provide the same level of hospitality but an incredible team of volunteers stepped up and made it happen. Some volunteers began arriving at 4:30 am and other volunteers stayed until 5 pm. Our swim gear drop team did their jobs AND jumped over to help when assistance was needed in others. When the swim start was delayed and athletes were anxious, our volunteers packed up water and snacks and delivered refreshments to those waiting. Our cheer station volunteers spent hours cheering, passing out water, ice, and popsicles, and providing a boost of encouragement at a challenging part of the course. They did a beautiful job of figuring out what our runners needed and offering it to them.

The past year and a half has been a time filled with separation, uncertainty, conflict, and frustration. Sunday’s events were about providing hospitality and encouragement but they were also a reminder of the beautiful community we have, what we are able to accomplish when we work together, and the love we share with each other. THANK YOU, Saint Paul’s parishioners and friends of Saint Paul’s for opening your hearts, working so hard, and sharing God’s love with such abundance. ❤️🎉

Yours in Christ,

Kim Butler

The 2022 Stewardship campaign is underway. Pledge cards will be mailed Monday, October 4th, with a request for a response by Monday, November 8th.

as of 9/29/2021

Offerings received this Week $1,923.9

Operating Expenses to Date $617,839.71

Total Income Received to Date $661,491.72

Please contact the Parish Office to update our files.