Tuesday 5:30pm: Qi Gong in Parish Hall

Wednesday 11am: Bible Study in Parish Hall

Wednesday 4:30pm: Children’s Choir Rehearsal 

Wednesday 5:30pm: Trinity Wednesday Potluck & Discussion 

Wednesday 7pm: 11:15am Choir Rehearsal 

Thursday 5:30pm: Contemplative Prayer 

Thursday 7:30pm: 9am Choir Rehearsal

Thrift Shop: Monday 10am-Noon, Tuesday-Saturday, 10am-1pm

Prayer List - to submit a prayer request click here.

Altar Flowers - if you would like to dedicate Altar Flowers click here.

It’s your clergy’s least favorite Sunday of the year: we’ll lose an hour of sleep on Saturday night/Sunday morning as we set our clocks an hour ahead. Don’t forget, or you’ll be late to church!

Our word of the week is Rite 1. We use Rite 1 at the 11:15am service during the season of Lent, but you might notice, if you read the entry in the Episcopal Church Glossary, that there are aspects of Rite 1, like the Summary of the Law, that we use throughout the year at our Rite 2 services.

Sunday School for Children and Adults meets on Sundays at 10:30am! The Sunday School for Adults meets in the main room in the Parish Hall. Some of you have asked for a link to the video that Fr. Todd mentioned in Sunday School last week; Rivka Levison’s interview, in Hebrew with English subtitles, about her rescue from the Holocaust is here.

Any children or youth of the parish looking for good karma or service hours are invited to help out in the Thrift Shop this Sunday, March 8th, after the 11:15 service (about 12:30pm). The Thrift Shop volunteers need to restock and would be happy to have some help moving items from the shed to the store. Less than two hours of enthusiasm and energy are needed and will be rewarded with pizza and free merchandise!

Last month, Trinity’s Young Adult group descended upon the Churchill Arms and went on to win first and second place at Pub Trivia. This month, we’re looking for a repeat performance (and even have some prize money to spend on appetizers!). If you’re a young adult, please join us. If you have a young adult in your life, please invite them! Trivia night is this coming Tuesday, March 10th at 8:30 at the Churchill Arms (649 E Bidwell St, Folsom). Please email Fr. Charlie if you have any questions.

Our own Libby Vincent has been approved for ordination in The Episcopal Church and has received a date, so mark your calendars: 11am on Saturday, June 13th, at Trinity Cathedral in Midtown Sacramento. As we get closer to the date, we’ll have more details and arrange some carpools. On this day, Libby will be ordained to the diaconate; the canons (rules) require that one be ordained a deacon for a minimum of six months, though it can be longer, before one is ordained to the priesthood, so this is the first of two ordinations for Libby. 

While we don’t want to prematurely panic, we do want to take proper precautions to minimize the spread of illnesses like the novel coronavirus. To start, it’s good for us to remember some very basic things we should be doing all the time. If you’re sick, stay home; if you would like to receive Communion, we’ll bring it to you, but do not put fellow parishioners, especially those whose immune systems are weak or compromised by another illness, at risk by coming to church. When you cough and sneeze, cough and sneeze into a disposable tissue, and if you don’t have one, use your elbow instead of the palm of your hand. Wash your hands often; wet your hands, turn off the water, lather up with soap, and rub them together for at least twenty seconds – about the length of time it takes to say the Lord’s Prayer. If you’re using hand sanitizer, you should still rub your hands together for at least twenty seconds. As a temporary precaution, we are discouraging people from shaking hands at the exchange of the peace during the liturgy; you can if you want, but understand that your neighbors might not and consider instead a wave, a peace sign, a bow of the head, or just a warm greeting and a wide smile. The clergy won’t be shaking hands at the door on the way out of church, either, at least for a while. Finally, a permanent change we’re making in this parish is that we will no longer allow intinction, which is when you dip your host wafer into the chalice of wine. Intinction is much less hygienic than drinking from the common chalice. We’re not so much worried about your fingers accidentally getting in the wine, though that is an issue, too; the real problem is that the wafer has been in the palm of your hand and so has been in contact with everything you’ve touched since the last time you washed your hands. Those of you who usually practice intinction might want to start drinking from the chalice; generally speaking, drinking from the common chalice is safe, and I worry more about what I might pick up from touching a doorknob than from sharing the chalice with y’all. Peer-reviewed studies have said, time and time again, that “no documented transmission of any infectious disease has ever been traced to the use of a common communion cup.” A few Roman Catholic dioceses have, out of an abundance of caution, this week decided to not offer the wine at all, but that is not a step we will take until instructed to do so by public health authorities. Or you might decide to take only the bread and not the wine, and that’s ok, too. As our bishop reminded us in an e-mail regarding precautions we might take, the teaching of the Church is that the full grace of the sacrament is received whether you communicate in both kinds (bread and wine) or only one. If you do choose to refrain from the wine, cross your arms over your chest and the chalice will pass by you; you will not be offered a blessing, as that is restricted to priests and isn’t needed if you have already received the bread or a blessing instead of the bread. It is polite to remain kneeling at the rail until the person to your left has had the opportunity to receive in both kinds, or if they also refrain from the wine, until the chalice has passed by them.

At this time, the Sacramento County Department of Public Health is saying that “while this is considered a serious public health threat, the risk to the public in Sacramento County remains low,” and we should keep calm and practice those basic practices I mentioned above: stay home if you’re sick, cover yourself when you cough or sneeze but not with your hands, and wash your hands properly, wash your hands properly, wash your hands properly! ~ Todd+

Beginning this Sunday in the Parish Hall, you can sponsor an Easter basket for children in need who are served by Twin Lakes Food Bank. You can sponsor one child’s basket, filled with treats, toys, and some things they really need, for only $15. There will be a table set up in the Parish Hall, or you can put your donation in the offering plate as it is passed on Sunday – just make sure to write Easter Basket on the front of the envelope if you’re giving cash, or on the memo line of the check.

Our annual First Miracle event is scheduled for Saturday, March 28th, from 6pm-8:30pm (doors open at 5:30 for pre-event socializing!). This year, the First Miracle will feature wines and food from “Down Under.” Tickets are $50, and the proceeds from ticket sales and the auction will be used for Australian fire relief efforts. You can buy a ticket in the Parish Hall on Sunday mornings, or e-mail Janice Freeberg to reserve a ticket. We’re also looking for donations for the silent and live auctions – e-mail Janice if you would like to donate something. Thanks! 

Join us on Wednesday evenings for a potluck supper (5:30pm-6pm) and a discussion group (6pm-7pm)! The nursery will be open for childcare, including activities for older children. For the potluck, bring whatever you want to share, and if you can’t make it to the potluck, just come for the group discussion. Right now, we’re reading Benyamin Cohen’s book My Jesus Year: A Rabbi’s Son Wanders the Bible Belt in Search of His Own Faith, his memoir of rediscovering his Judaism, and the good faith of other people, while attending Christian churches for a year. You can find it on Amazon here, or order it from your local independent bookseller! For Wednesday the 11th, read chapter eight, about his first visit to an Episcopal church!

Lent is a season in which many people make a special focus on enhancing their relationship with God. To help families and individuals explore this at home, stop by the Children’s Chapel this Sunday and grab a "Lent in a Bag” – we have a few extra from last Sunday and we would love for you to have one. Though they’re great to use with kids, and they are in the Children’s Chapel, they’re great for adults, too, so don’t feel like you can’t get one because you don’t have kids at home! These kits contain 6 small items, along with reflections and scripture readings, to be used as symbols to focus meditations and conversations during the season of Lent. You might pick one night of the week and at dinner invite those around your table to pick one of the symbols as a starting place for conversation with the whole group, including children. Individuals can also choose a symbol daily or weekly for their own personal reflections as they make their way through Lent. 

If you would like to make a donation towards the altar flowers for Easter Sunday, use the online form here and select Sunday, April 12th. You can dedicate the flowers for any reason, but Easter is a particularly appropriate day to donate altar flowers in memory of loved ones who have died, and in thanksgiving for loved ones who were recently born or baptized. The suggested donation is $50, but please don’t let that stop you from making a dedication; if you don’t have it, give whatever you can.

While summer seems far off, it’s the time of year to begin registering for summer camp! Many of the children and youth from Trinity spend a week or two at one of the local Episcopal summer camps, in Tahoe, wine country, or the redwoods. 

Most Trinitarians attend Camp Galilee, the camp set right on the eastern shores of Lake Tahoe. Mikayla Knuth, Fr. Charlie’s wife, serves as the camp’s priest and program director. You can read more about Camp Galilee and its programs here.

The two other camps are operated by the Episcopal Diocese of California, but take children and youth from our diocese as well. St. Dorothy’s Rest is nestled in the redwoods near Occidental, while Bishop’s Ranch is just outside Healdsburg and offers the BREAD camp for children and youth.

Our older youth (finishing grades 7-12 in 2020) may be interested in attending the diocesan pilgrimage program, Pathways. This year’s pilgrimage will be to Butte County, where pilgrims will explore matters of social and ecological justice while visiting the local congregations and communities supporting those who have suffered in the wake of the Camp Fire. Young adults are also welcome to apply as adult chaperones. Read more about this opportunity here.

Camp is expensive, but well worth it! Children can get more spiritual formation in one week than they can in an entire year of Sunday School. Fr. Todd is able to offer financial assistance and does not want the cost of camp to prevent any children from attending. If you have any questions or concerns (or just want to let us know where your kids are registered), please contact Fr. Todd or F r. Charlie.

Attention teenagers and young adults: Camp Galilee, the Episcopal camp set on eastern shore of Lake Tahoe, is currently looking for camp counselors and residential staff to help facilitate a meaningful and adventurous summer program for youth between the ages of 8 and 16. This is a great way to spend a couple of weeks (or a whole summer!) playing in nature’s beauty.  

Counselors bunk with campers and lead adventure groups with two others. They must be 16 and will receive a stipend for a week of counselor training and 1 to 2 weeks at camp. As the name implies, residential staff live at the camp all summer long, providing support to counselors and leading activities like worship, improvisational theater, rock climbing/kayaking, and arts and crafts. All resident staff need to be 18 or older with a high school diploma.  

For more information about Camp Galilee, talk to Father Charlie or click here.

Trinity Episcopal Church

 801 Figueroa Street

Folsom, CA 95630

(916) 985-2495 ~ www.trinityfolsom.org