Step into Grace
Where strangers become friends
We are an Open and Affirming church. Every one of every age, race, ethnicity, culture, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, physical or mental ability, or economic status is invited to join us as together we live out the Gospel message of love, forgiveness, service, and justice. No matter where you are in your spiritual journey- you are welcome here.
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Twentieth Sunday
after Pentecost
Holy Eucharist
October 10, 10:00 AM
Sunday services
will be at Crissey Farm, both
in-person and live-streamed.
Please visit our website:
for up-to-date information and a link to the digital service booklet.
Officiant/Preacher
The Rev. Tina Rathbone
Welcome Team......Brooke/Sieber
Lector.................. ..Dindy Anderson
Intercessor.............Kathy Clausen
Altar Guild.............Layton/Kirchoff
Coffee Hour...........Brooke/Gore
Counters................Ian Booton
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ZOOM INVITATIONS
FOR GRACE CHURCH
Twentieth Sunday
after Pentecost
Holy Eucharist
October 10, at 10:00 AM
Now in person and on Zoom.
For Zoom
or call 646 558 8656
US (New York)
(Meeting ID): 177 160 858
(Password): 917937
Tuesday with the Word
October 5,
7:00 to 8:30 PM
To join the Zoom meeting
For more information please see the article below.
Centering Prayer
Thursdays, at 5:00 PM
Now in person and on ZOOM
To join the Zoom meeting,
(Meeting ID): 203 314 800
(Password): 578877
646 558 8656 US (New York)
Grace Church Men's Group
Future dates to be announced here.
Movie Nite
Thursday
October 7, at 6:30 PM
More information in the
article below.
To join this Zoom meeting,
(Meeting ID): 370 191 823
(Password): 385337
or call 646 558 8656 US
(New York)
Books and Bread,
Wednesday , October 13
Now in person at 6:30 PM
and on Zoom at 7:15 PM
To join this Zoom meeting,
(Meeting ID): 370 191 823
(Password): 385337
or call 646 558 8656
US (New York)
Third Sunday Supper
(Every Third Sunday)
October 17
Location to be announced.
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Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost |
Mark 10:17-31
As Jesus was setting out on a journey, a man ran up and knelt before him, and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; You shall not defraud; Honor your father and mother.’” He said to him, “Teacher, I have kept all these since my youth.” Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, “You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” When he heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions.
Then Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” And the disciples were perplexed at these words. But Jesus said to them again, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” They were greatly astounded and said to one another, “Then who can be saved?” Jesus looked at them and said, “For mortals it is impossible, but not for God; for God all things are possible.”
Peter began to say to him, “Look, we have left everything and followed you.” Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields, for my sake and for the sake of the good news, who will not receive a hundredfold now in this age—houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and fields with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first.”
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For the most up to date information:
please visit the
Berkshire Vaccine Collaborative website,
They will post notice of appointment openings 6-12 hours in advance. You can find answers to your vaccination questions including information about the new Johnson & Johnson vaccine on their FAQ page.
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Covid-19 vaccination
booster shots
are now available for those with certain big-risk medical conditions at Walgreens and Fairview Hospital on a walk-in basis. If you think you might have a qualifying condition, we urge you to go to one of these locations for a booster shot.
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SAVE THE DATE !
Sunday, October 24th
We will be joined by St. Paul’s and Christ Trinity
and there will be a luncheon afterwards.
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Ah, the joy! Worshipping in the heart of the fruitfulness that is Gideon’s Garden last weekend was a feast for the soul. Thank you Pennie, Annalise, Fisher and everyone at Taft Farm who gave so generously of themselves to fill the day with life and love and beauty and grace. What a blessing it was for us all. It reminds me of the words we prayed together just before people brought up their pets and other beloved creatures to the altar to be blessed:
“It is the work of all God’s people to give thanks for God’s blessings, to ask for and
lend assistance to all in need, and to stretch our hands to heal and cherish the creatures of God; this is our work….”
I believe these words are deeply true, and it saddens me that the act of blessing is relegated, too often, exclusively to ordained people. As a beloved teacher from the Jewish tradition told me in seminary years ago when I felt shy about giving him a blessing: “But Tina, isn’t it the work of all of us to bless each other in this life?!” The only answer to this question, it seems to me is, yes!
Of course the giving and receiving of blessings isn’t always easy. It can be difficult to find ways to encourage and support the life of another – let alone to allow others to encourage and support us. But every time we manage it, we grow one step closer to the fullness of life we have long been promised and are often filled as well with the kind of coursing joy that – in my experience at least - comes only from connection with the Spirit.
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Here is Ryan as he leads us in sign language for All Things Bright and Beautiful |
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And here are Koa and Vivi and Chelsea as they worked to decorate the tent: |
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Here is Juan Diego on Saturday, blessing the fruits of the harvest by stretching out in all directions to ensure the safety of gourds and pumpkins and flowers as we transported them from Taft to Gideon’s Garden. |
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We supply this list so you may contact members of our congregation who are at home or in a nursing facility. Please hold in your prayers and reach out as you can.
ANDREWS, Anne
659 South Egremont Road
P.O. Box 714
Great Barrington, MA 01230
BLAKELY, Rosemarie
21 Crossway, #108
Lee MA 01238
BOWENS, Marina
c/o Maryella Satinover
11908 Windward Ave.
Mar Vista, CA 90066
BREASTED, John
Fairview Commons
151 Christian Hill Road
Great Barrington MA 01230
BROOKS, Jane
165 George Street
Lee MA 01230
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FRYE, Vonnie
PineHill Assisted Living
at Kimball Farms
235 Walker St. Apt #32
Lenox, Ma. 01240
GORE, Barbara
50 Stockbridge Road
Lee MA 01238
HAIDER, Meredith
5 Fox Hollow Road
#409
Lenox, MA 01240
KEENE, Sara
The Egremont Village Inn
17 Main Street
P. O. Box 275
South Egremont, MA 01258
McCURDY, Deborah
Skilled Nursing Center
Loomis Lakeside at Reed's Landing
807 Wilbraham Road
Springfield, MA 01109
TURNER, Barbara
Fairview Commons
151 Christian Hill Road
Great Barrington, MA 01230
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Help needed for a fun and exciting ministry
Another great year of Church School is starting this fall and we are looking for a fourth person to assist with this wonderful ministry! No experience needed except for an enjoyment of children. It would involve participating in Church School during the first part of the service (rejoining the service at the peace) for two Sundays a month. If you want to try it once we would love to have you join us. Please let Dindy, Andrea, or Margaret know if you might be interested. Their contact information is in the Grace directory. Thank you.
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Sign up for
FLOWER DEDICATIONS !
There will be a sign up form
at Sunday service.
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Healing Prayers
If you would like to receive healing prayers from
The Rev. Ted Cobden, Pennie Curry, or Sue Gore,
please refer to your directory for their contact
information, or contact the Grace office.
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PRAYERS REQUESTED
Praying for each other and for the needs of the world is a vital mission of Grace Church. To add a prayer request to this list, please contact the Church Office
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GRACE
CHURCH
Please include
in your daily prayers this week:
Members of the Parish Family:
Sue Gore, Doreen Hutchinson, Anne Andrews, Pennie Curry, Mark Anderson, Stacey, Claire and Mark Thomas, Meredith Haider, Linda White, Rosemarie Blakely, Marina Bowens, John Breasted, Jane Brooks, Vonnie Frye, Barbara Gore, Sara Keene, Barbara Turner.
Others we love: Larry Cheek, John's brother; Karen La Rocque friend of Sue Gore; Rosalind Haywood, Sue Gore's mother; Deborah McCurdy.
Those who have died:
Thomas J. Fisher, father of The
Rt. Rev. Douglas Fisher; Alan Sparks, brother of Debbie Holmes; Ruth Crawford; Emily Trespas, friend of Jainee McCarroll and John Ericson; John Grammer, husband of Mary Anne; Neil Brandt, brother of Linda White; John Turner, husband of Barbara Turner; Leslie Albert, friend of Margaret Layton and Sarah Sieber.
Our world: For the people of Afghanistan, and of Haiti, who have struggled for so long under burdens seemingly too great to bear.
For all victims of violence, and for those who inflict violence on others. For people who suffer from the COVID-19 virus, those who have died and those who mourn; caregivers and those who have been affected through loss of work, income, and housing.
For all who are alone or afraid or despairing. For prisoners, unhoused people, newly arrived immigrants and all our neighbors, near and far.
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The many ministries of our local community and the Diocese of Western Massachusetts:
especially for our partners at St. Paul's, Stockbridge and the Rev. Sam Smith and the Rev. Jane Tillman; Christ Trinity, Sheffield and the Rev. Erik Karas; our Bishop, the Rt. Rev. Douglas J. Fisher; and the Mampong Babies' Home in Ghana; Church of the Reconcilliation, Webster;Canon to the Ordinary, The Rev. Dr. Richard Simpson; Union of Black Episcopalians (UBE); Open Pantry Community Services, Springfield.
The Church's wider mission:
The Church of the Province of West Africa
And we offer thanks: for all those celebrating birthdays or anniversaries this week: Rick and Sue Gore, 10/10; John Ericson and Jainee MCarroll, 10/11.
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Join us for
Centering Prayer
now in person and on ZOOM
every Thursday
5:00 - 6:00
Encouraging a practice of silence and stillness we focus on practices of Centering Prayer and Lectio Divina using scripture, art and music. All are welcome.
To join the Zoom meeting
Meeting ID: 203 314 800
Password: 578877
Dial by your location
+1 646 558 8656 US (New York)
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
To find your local number:
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WHAT ARE YOU
GRATEFUL FOR?
In this time of fear and anxiety, it can be easy to miss the daily blessings that are right in front of us. Being grateful is not just for good times. Being grateful is even more important when fear sets a place at your table and heartbreak seems to be in your every breath. Because by being grateful we become aware of all the ways God is working in us. Being grateful is a part of our healing and our deliverance. Being grateful is where our best selves reside.
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CELEBRATION OF ST. FRANCIS & GIDEON'S GARDEN
In honor of St. Francis and the bounty of harvest, Sunday service was a joyous celebration! The community of Grace plus friends and animals came together in love to give thanks for creation. Fisher Riiska gave the opening welcome to the gathered congregation, and Annalise Clausen gave the sermon. Juan Diego brought the newest bunny to be blessed and sold gourds to benefit the rescue animals at Taft Farms. Koa and Vivi Hutchison sang a song to open the service honoring our connection to creation. We were blessed with a beautiful overcast sky, comfortable temperatures and a sneaking peak of sun as well. There was a bicycle marathon that rode by the service we got to bless as they pedaled past!
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Fall at Gideon's
We are cleaning up the field from the growing season, taking stock of what grew well and where. We still have tomatoes to clean up along with all the others crops that are still producing. We have butternut squash, sweet peppers, jalapeños and beans to harvest. And our final crop of bush and pole beans are flowering and producing small beans.
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Thank you all for coming to attend in person at Gideon's Garden this very special Sunday. I received loving and supportive feedback from many people. I am so grateful for the young people who came to serve in the garden this year, especially Mathew Bilotta and Fisher Riiska who offered so much of their time to make this garden thrive this year.
Stay tuned for a final report on the garden as we close our harvest season within the next few weeks.
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Mission Matters
News from the
Episcopal Diocese
of Western Massachusetts
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Help New Orleans through the Episcopal
Relief and Development's Hurricane Fund
Hurricane Ida made landfall on Sunday, August 29 — on the 16th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina — as a dangerous Category 4 hurricane with winds of 150 mph.
Episcopal Relief & Development’s US Disaster Program team was in touch with partners over the weekend and began holding daily coordination calls with impacted dioceses on Monday morning.
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Support the Resettlement of Refugees
Episcopal Migration Ministries, the refugee resettlement and migration ministry of The Episcopal Church, is currently working in partnership with the U.S. government to assist Afghan SIVs and other arrivals with resettlement and direct services through a network of 12 affiliates across the U.S.
DFMS-Protestant Episcopal Church US
P.O. Box 958983
St. Louis, MO 63195-8983
(Include Episcopal Migration Ministries and Afghan SIV’s in the memo line.)
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Interfaith Vigil to Mourn Increase in Gun Deaths and Share Hope for Ending Gun Violence
To: Ending Gun Violence, Social Justice, Parochial Clergy, Non-Parochial Clergy, Parish Admins, Wardens
From: The Social Justice Commission
Re: Witness of Prayer at Smith and Wesson, Inc.
Join us at as we mourn together the losses of increased gun violence. Stand with us as we hold gun manufacturers in two states accountable for putting profits ahead of people.
Friday, October 15th @ 4:30 p.m.
2100 Roosevelt Ave, Springfield
Across the street from
Smith and Wesson global headquarters
Sponsored by Pioneer Valley Project, The Episcopal Diocese of Western Massachusetts, B-Peace for Jorge and The Episcopal Church in Connecticut, be part of a simultaneous witness of prayer and solidarity that includes three dioceses, local partners, survivors of gun violence, municipal leaders and voices of faith.
Boston @ 4:30 PM: St. Paul Cathedral
West Hartford @ 4:30 PM: TBD
Springfield @4:30 PM: Smith and Wesson, Inc.
*Clergy: orange stoles
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SHINE YOUR LIGHT
Thank you for giving generously to support the ministry of Grace. You may continue to mail your contributions to Grace Church, P.O. Box 114, Great Barrington, MA 01230. As we begin to gather in person, you may bring your contribution to our services on Sunday, once again.
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It costs about $1500 a year to support a baby. The Diocese's goal is for one congregation
to support one child for a year.
To donate to support babies at the Mampong Babies Home in Ghana please send a check to Grace Church, PO Box 114, Great Barrington, MA 01230.
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TUESDAY BIBLE STUDY
October 5, at 7:00 PM on Zoom
in collaboration with Christ Trinity, Sheffield & St Paul’s
One of the good things to come out of this past year was our three congregations coming together for a time of study and support each week. Something well worth continuing, pandemic or not! So after a summer off, it is good to be back!
Join us beginning September 28th at 7 p.m. via Zoom as we look at Gregory Boyle S.J.’s best selling book, Tattoos on the Heart.
For twenty years, Gregory Boyle has run Homeboy Industries, a gang-intervention program located in the Boyle Heights neighborhood of Los Angeles, the gang capital of the world. In Tattoos on the Heart, he distills his experience working in the ghetto into a breathtaking series of parables inspired by faith.
For our second meeting, please read chapter two and three. For each of the three following weeks we’ll discuss two chapters per week. This zoom link will be good for all four remaining weeks of this series.
October 5, at 7:00 PM
For Zoom,
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Kids of all ages: Please join us for Sunday school on September 12, 2021. We will meet during the first part of the service and then re-join the service at the Peace. |
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Becoming Beloved Community
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Drumming, traditional Native American songs, speeches, and a procession culminating in a ceremonial blessing of the Housatonic River will mark the local observance of Indigenous Peoples’ Day in Great Barrington on Monday, Oct. 11, 2021.
The event will begin at the Gazebo behind Town Hall at 11 a.m. with Aaron Athey, the Master of Ceremonies for powwows in the Berkshires, playing his drum and singing traditional songs.
- Speakers will include Shawn Stevens, tribal member of the Stockbridge-Munsee Band of the Mohican nation
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In the new documentary “My Name Is Pauli Murray,” filmmakers Betsy West and Julie Cohen paint a picture of an unsung trailblazer who remains relatively unknown despite her lasting influence on American society. Episcopalians know her as the first African American woman to be ordained a priest and as a pioneer in the struggles for racial and gender equality.
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Grace Church worships and gardens on the traditional land of the Mohican people. |
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COLLECT
God, who envelops and comforts the whole world in their hands.
We pray that we rise to the challenge of upturning and overturning the balance of our traditional world views,
So that we may do for others what God is doing for us
AMEN
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Attend our Men's Group
Next meeting date to be announced here.
For more information
contact George Raymond
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MOVIE NITE
Join us for a discussion of
CODA
CODA, an acronym for children of Deaf adults, tells the story of the Rossi family, who live in Gloucester, Massachusetts. Ruby is the only hearing person in her family and at the age of 17, she wakes up at three in the morning to help her father, and older brother
as a deckhand on the family fishing boat.
But she wants to be a singer....
on October 7, at 6:30 PM
Watch at your leisure then join us on Zoom
(Meeting ID): 370 191 823 (Password): 385337
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BOOKS AND BREAD
Join us on Wednesday, October 13,
in person at 6:30 PM for appetizers
on Zoom at 7:15 PM
for fellowship,and a lively book discussion.
All are welcome!
The Stranger in the Woods
by Michael Finkel
George Raymond will lead our discussion
To join this Zoom meeting at 7:15 PM
(Meeting ID): 370 191 823
(Password): 385337
or call 646 558 8656 US (New York)
- Participants should contact the Hosts (the Kirchoff's) if they plan to attend but have not signed up at Grace Church (Crissey Farm Welcome Desk)
- If you are a "regular" and are not planning to attend, please let the Host know.
- Discussion begins at 7:00 pm regardless of whether it's a Dinner gathering or an A&D gathering.
- Dinner-Appetizers, wine, soft drinks, main dish, side dishes, dessert, decaf and tea. One main dish serves 8 people.
- The Host is responsible for planning the meal. Participants are encouraged to make offerings in consultation with the Host.
- Please sign up to bring appetizers or dessert items.
Meeting is over promptly at 8:30 PM. For more information email Peter.
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THIRD SUNDAY SUPPER
Join us for lively conversation
and fellowship on
Sunday, October 17
when we will meet at 6 PM
Location to be announced here.
Separate checks/All are welcome
For more information contact
George Raymond. His contact information is in the Grace directory.
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GRACE CHURCH
An Episcopal Community in the Southern Berkshires
67 State Road/P.O. Box 114, Great Barrington, MA 01230
Parish Administrator: Ms. Jean Chapin
and by phone 413-644-0022.
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The Rev. Tina Rathbone
Rector
413-644-0022
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Ms. Annalise Clausen, Director of Farming for Gideon's Garden
413-644-0022
gideonsgarden at graceberkshires.org
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Mr. Ryan LaBoy,
Grace Church Music Director
413-644-0022
RLaboy at graceberkshires.org
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Tuesday's Child Editor Monique Kirchoff
Associate Editor Kathy Clausen
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