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Dear Friends-

Last week I spoke in my sermon about Joy.

This week I'll do my best to preach about Hope. In preparation, I share with you a quote from the great writer Henri Nouwen. He says, "Optimism and hope are radically different attitudes. Optimism is the expectation that things—the weather, human relationship, the economy, the political situation, and so on—will get better. Hope is trust that God will fulfill God’s promises to us in a way that leads us to true freedom. The optimist speaks about concrete changes in the future. The person of hope lives in the moment with the knowledge and trust that all of life is in good hands.” 

I look forward to seeing you on Sunday!

                                                                             --George

Christmas Memorial Flower and Music Donations

If you wish to make a seasonal donation in memory of a loved one, use this LINK and select "Flower Donation" and/or "Music Donation" options in the Realm drop down menu. Please email Emily with the name(s) of your loved one(s).

The deadline is Wednesday, December 21st if you would like the names to be published in the Christmas bulletins.

Calling all angels, Wise men & Shepherds!

Children of all ages are needed to stage this year’s Christmas Pageant. Held during the family service at 3:00 p.m. on Christmas Eve, this annual tradition has a place for all! Please reach out to Wink van Ogtrop with the names and ages of your children or grandchildren. Wink can be reached at winkvo@me.com. Rehearsal will take place at 2:15 on the day of the pageant and there will be an optional rehearsal on Sunday, December 19 following the 10:00 a.m. service. 

Greening of the Church!

Please join us for the fun and festive annual greening of the church for Christmas this Sunday, December 18th immediately following the 10AM service. We will decorate and hang wreaths in the windows, place poinsettias, and add birch logs, candles, greens, etc. to the window sills. Everyone is welcome!

2023 Stewardship Campaign

Last week, the Stewardship Committee mailed and emailed information about St. Peter’s 2023 Stewardship Campaign and followed up with a letter from the Interim Rector.  We are grateful for all those who have already responded with a pledge!  

Pledge cards are available in the Narthex or by entering a pledge electronically here:   Online Pledge Link.

Please reach out to committee members, Scott Westvold, Tom Keery, John Jacobs, and Mike Iacono if you have any questions.

People Who Have Pledged to the 2023 Stewardship Campaign

Please note, this list is alphabetical and reflects pledges

received as of December 16th, 2022.  It will be updated weekly.  

Many thanks to those who have already pledged.

Cynthia Abbott

Camille Batarekh and Ann O’Rourke

Richard and Peggy Batchelder

Deborah Boshart

Lucy and Chip Bradley

John Bulbrook and Carolyn Ellis

Becky and Dana Callow

The Campos Family

Cynthia and Steve Chapra

James Daughtry

Hansi Dean

Lance and Beverly Mason Dillaway

The Estes Family

Jean-Lamont B. Fiske

Gus Fleischmann

Dave and Julie Harmon

Aileen Harvey

Mike and Rosie Iacono

The Icke Family

Tom and Julie Jackson

The Jacobs Family

Wayne and Norva Kennard

Tom and Laura Keery

Maged and Pamela Khalil

Buzzie Knowles

Lynn Maruskin

Michael McCarthy and Eileen Fava

Margaret Randle and Jim McDaniel

The Montague Family

Cheryl Murphy

Cathy Nicholson

Anne and Steve Peacher

Ted Phillips

The Jeffrey Pierce Family

Bill and Susan Poduska

The Pratt Family

Doug and Mercer Riis

Rob and Manty Rodgers

Sarah and Ned Rossiter

Betsy Rowe

Rudy and Anne Ruggles

John and Ann Salley

Bryant and Cynthia Spencer

Jordon and Ben Tobey

Gretchen von Mering and Mark Hagen

Larry and Dawn Weber

Beth and Scott Westvold

Kathy and Skip Windsor

We joined Instagram! 

Follow us at @stpetersepiscopal_weston

If you are interested in adding to our profile, please send any pictures and/or announcements to Emily at office@stpetersweston.org

B-SPARKLE Thank you!

Thank you to all the parishioners and friends of St. Peter’s who donated to St. Stephen’s Church’s B-SPARKLE Christmas donation drive.  We were able to fill the back of an SUV with the donations in addition to giving a check for $1,125 from the Outreach Committee specifically for this effort.  Gretchen von Mering and Anne Ruggles delivered the gifts and got a tour of the facility and a heartfelt thank you from Tyler Cavanagh, the Manager of Development and Communications.  

Please know that thanks to you, many children will celebrate a Merry Christmas!

Afghan Ministry Update

Afghan Mom Pillows!

We will be selling pillows after the 10:00 am service on Sunday. We hope you’ll consider supporting our fledgling Afghan Mom’s (and Dad) sewing business. The pillows are lovely, some a little more professional than others, but all made with a lot of love. So far we have sold more than $500 worth of pillows. This money goes a long way in large families where the Dad’s are making little more than minimum wage. Assimilation to living in the United States has been very difficult, especially for the women. They are used to communal living and feel isolated and lonely here. They love to sew and being able to help support their families using that talent is very exciting for them. Consequently the pillows are multiplying like little bunnies! They make great last minute Christmas gift or perhaps a pillow to reserve your Sunday pew or you can buy a pillow which will be donated to Fresh Start Furniture Bank in Hudson.

Wishing you all a Merry Christmas!

Hansi and Karen

Though many of St. Peter's parishioners have returned to worshiping and receiving Holy Communion in person inside our church building, we know it is not yet safe for all of us to do so. We will continue to live-stream our services so that we may include as many as possible in our offerings of praise and thanksgiving to God.

If it is not yet safe for you to worship with us in person, and you would like to receive Holy Communion and/or a share a time of prayer at your home, please contact the Parish Office.

If you would like to schedule a time during the week for private prayer in the church, please contact the church office.

St. Peter's is committed to continuing to make our worship space safe and welcoming to all. We hope to have you back with us in person as soon as doing so is the right choice for you.

Do You Have a Pastoral Need?

For pastoral support or emergencies or for any other church matter, please call the church office number (781-891-3200) and press 2 or email George. We encourage you to let us know if you are in the hospital or have some other need that calls for pastoral support.

St. Peter's Episcopal Church | 320 Boston Post Road | Weston, MA 02493

www.stpetersweston.org