St. Bede's E-News
We hope that this weekly offering will keep you up-to-date
on the latest information from the parish
and from around the Diocese of Atlanta and wider Church.
Our e-newsletters are now being archived on our website.
at the top of the home page to find past newsletters.
The deadline for submission to the E-Newsletter each week is Wednesday at 10:00 a.m.
Please send your submissions ready to go into the newsletter,
text and images attached in an email to the Parish Administrator.
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Sunday, May 6, 2022
The Fourth Sunday of Easter
Please join us as we gather together
to worship God this Sunday!
Worship in the Nave
in English at 10 am
This Sunday during the 10 am liturgy,
we will be sending Chad forth
on his sabbatical with blessings.
His sabbatical begins on Wednesday, May 11.
We are asking everyone to “gift” Chad
with notes of encouragement and appreciation.
There will be a basket available
for cards and notes and, if you wish,
other love offering gifts
such as Amazon gift cards or restaurant gift cards.
You can also support Chad’s sabbatical
by praying for him daily.
Worship in the Nave
in Spanish at 5 pm
Mask wearing is now a personal choice
for those who are fully vaccinated
and up-to-date with any boosters available
and recommended for them.
Masks are still required
for those who are unvaccinated
or who are not up-to-date
with the boosters that are recommended for them.
(Read the full updated worship protocols through the link below.)
on
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Welcome The Rev'd Mimi Guerra
We welcome the Rev'd Irma Guerra - who goes by "Mimi" - as a new member of our pastoral team. Mimi will join us in shepherding our Spanish language ministries while she retains her job as Associate Rector at Christ Church Norcross.
Mimi is a native of Mexico who moved to the United States in 1994. She has been an educator for 30 years and was a Spanish teacher with the Douglas County Schools. Guerra earned a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish in 1989 from the University of Victoria and earned a Child Development Associate (CDA) at Kennesaw State University for Early Childhood Education in 2002. She has also completed English classes at the Cobb County Adult Education Center, completed CPE (Clinical Pastoral Education) at the Training and Counseling Center (TACC) of St. Luke's, and last summer finished seminary at CETLA (Theological Education Center for Latinos) at the Diocese of Atlanta.
As a child, Mimi aspired to be a nun, but her father encouraged her to become a teacher. However, she never gave up on her dreams of working in the church, and today, in addition to her work as a translator for Title One public schools, she devotes time to helping people build a closer relationship with God. Mimi is the proud mother of one son, Henry, who is 20 and attends West Georgia College. She loves spending time with her family and helping people in need.
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An Update from Senior Warden Molly Graves:
Answering Questions about Chad's Sabbatical
By now, I hope that everyone has heard or read about Chad’s imminent sabbatical. This Sunday, May 8, will be Chad’s last Sunday with us before beginning his sabbatical on Wednesday, May 11. He will return on Tuesday, September 20, with his first Sunday back being September 25, 2022.
We have prepared a “Frequently Asked Questions” document which we hope will answer questions you may have. If you have additional questions or concerns, please talk to me or The Rev’d Claiborne Jones, our Sabbatical Priest-In-Charge.
Molly Graves, Senior Warden
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Hallelujah!! High Tea
May 14, 2-4 p.m.
will be here very soon.
Tickets will go on sale Sunday, April 24, before and after the service for $15.00. Tickets need to be purchased before May 14.
As in the past, we are asking for donations of auction items, new or gently used, for baskets and the raffle table. Suggestions include: items for a laundry basket, tea basket, accessories bag (so far, we have a folding umbrella), shower caddy basket, coffee basket and others. Use your imagination!!
Also, we are asking for sweets and savories. If you enjoy baking please consider making cookies, brownies, candy. If you enjoy making sandwiches, please join on Saturday morning, May 14th. We will be making cucumber, egg salad, and chicken salad sandwiches. It is fun, yes, it is fun, and a great way to know other people in the church.
Looking for another way to make the High Tea a huge success and bond with others in the church, join us on Friday, May 13th to set up the tables for the tea, silent auction tables and raffle table. We will be there all day Friday.
Please contact Loretta Vail, lvail24@gmail.com or Fran Snider, fran.snider@gmail.com, and let us know how you will help make our 12th Annual High Tea a success.
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New Look For St. Bede’s!
We are pleased to announce that St. Bede’s has awarded a contract to CMC Services Group for replacement of the exterior plywood siding and updating of our main entrance. This project is Phase 1 of a facilities Master Plan that was developed with the help of our Master Planning Committee and Randy Young of Young / Goldstein Architects. The project will replace the existing deteriorating siding with new James Hardie cement fiber siding panels around the perimeter of our buildings. New main entry additions will highlight the area and provide an attractive, fresh new look to our entryway. Provisions have also been included to accommodate a future covered walkway to the entrance.
The project plans were submitted to DeKalb County along with CMC’s application for a building permit on March 10, 2022. Our schedule is based on receiving the approved building permit by mid-April and a planned completion date of late July 2022. You will start to see some landscaping changes as well as preliminary construction setup activities including the delivery of a dumpster, Porta-Potty, and temporary fencing in the coming few weeks.
The Vestry has approved a contract amount of $84,000, plus a contingency allowance of $8,400. Much of the project will be funded from existing maintenance reserve funds and grants from the Endowment. It is our goal to raise an additional $25,000 to offset costs associated with this exciting project and avoid having to borrow the final portion. We have already received several generous donations towards the project. Your donations are welcomed and you will soon be hearing more about opportunities to contribute to this project. We should note that this is the first major capital expenditure on our facilities since the construction of our Nave 25 years ago.
We hope you will share our enthusiasm for this exciting addition to St. Bede’s! If you have questions or comments, please contact Molly Graves, Jeff Swoope or Chad Vaughn.
EXTRA...EXTRA...WORK HAS BEGUN!!!
Work began this week on the exterior siding replacement and renovation project. Building supplies were delivered and the first Hardie siding panels were installed!
Please note that we will temporarily lose the use of two parking spaces in the upper lot accommodate a construction dumpster and a portable toilet facility.
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Welcoming our Youngest Members
Back to the Building
During this time of decreased risk of Covid infection, our households with little ones are letting us know that they are ready to re-engage in person. Isn’t that exciting? Let’s welcome them with arms wide open!
Godly Play - This Sunday, May 8
At 9am this Sunday we will be welcoming children birth-5th grade, their caregivers, and all who would like to join them back to the Godly Play circle. Weather permitting, please meet near the large white cross outdoors on the Henderson Mill side of the building. We will provide the circle and blankets to sit on. In case of rain we will meet in the Mission Wing room M110 with extra ventilation and air purifier.
Prayground (a space in the Nave for households with children)
Last week we celebrated our first Sunday with the Prayground in its new location. What a joy! The Prayground is a radically hospitable place that we as a congregation have created in the Nave for the youngest amongst us. It’s the place where the young can begin to explore their own faith as they are enveloped in the midst of the assembly of the faithful. We need their gifts! And according to recent research, children are more likely to continue in their faith tradition if they are engaged in intergenerational worship.
In our Prayground space, children and their caregivers can engage in worship more fully and sustainably. Children will find developmentally appropriate, engaging quiet activities to keep their hands busy as their minds absorb the rhythms of worship action and words going on around them. As a result, their caregivers will be able to more fully engage in worship as well.
So what’s “new” in this new birth for the Prayground?
(Resurrection is not just resuscitation, after all!)
Location! As we researched the best way to welcome children, we learned that to truly engage and learn the rhythms of worship it is best to be as close as possible to the action. So we are “letting the little children come”-- to the front (please see pictures below), where they will have direct sightlines to the ambo and altar. As one worshiper at another church put it, “When the space is near the front, the children know they are part of something bigger than themselves.”
What does this mean for you?
- If you choose to utilize this tool with the children in your life, please sit near your little ones (or on the carpet with them, if you prefer!). Of course, children are not required to sit in or near the Prayground--they are welcome anywhere in the building!
- If you are not a caregiver of children, please support the Prayground with your smiles! Caregivers are choosing to bring their little ones to Jesus--that is something to smile about! If you hear a little noise from the quiet space, consider offering a prayer of thanksgiving for the next generation learning to worship. Trust the Spirit, the children, and the caregivers to find their worship rhythm.
Nursery - Coming Soon
Even with an engaging space in the Nave, children and caregivers may need or prefer a separate place at times. We are working to staff our nursery as soon as possible to create another welcoming space for households with children from birth - 3 yrs old.
I hope we can all join in celebrating these ways in which we are intentionally beginning to welcome back children and young families. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out to me at:
asali@stbedes.org
Alyssa Sali (she/her)
Director of Children's and Family Ministries
St. Bede's Episcopal Church, Atlanta
(The pictures below demonstrate the planned configuration
for when the Prayground returns on Sunday, May 1).
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Family Ministries Micropractice
Join our households with
birth through elementary aged children
in this simple intentional practice
as we bring our learning from the lectionary
into our everyday lives.
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The Altar Guild Seeks New Members
No Experience Necessary
Are you being called to join a ministry of service at God's table? Would you like to get to know others by serving on a team that helps prepare the church for worship?
The Altar Guild is a ministry open to all members. Members work as a team and serve one weekend per month. All training is provided and grace abounds. If this sounds interesting to you, please let us know. We'd love to have you join us!
For questions or to join the Altar Guild contact:
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EPISCOPAL RELIEF & DEVELOPMENT:
A WAY TO HELP THOSE SUFFERING IN UKRAINE?
As you may know, helping families fleeing violence has been at the heart of Episcopal Relief & Development's mission from the very beginning. In fact, we were established by The Episcopal Church to assist people fleeing Europe during World War II.
Today, we are counting on our faith communities to join us in helping our extended beloved Ukrainian family in need.
Thank you in advance for your compassion, and for praying for those affected by this conflict.
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Yours faithfully,
Robert W. Radtke
President & CEO
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SCROLL DOWN TO THE BOTTOM OF E-NEWS TO READ MORE
ABOUT WHAT EPISCOPAL RELIEF & DEVELOPMENT
IS DOING TO HELP THE PEOPLE OF UKRAINE.
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Safeguarding God’s Children (SGC) is a training program for child sexual abuse awareness and prevention. The program provides participants information they need to protect the children they know and care for in their personal lives and in the ministries in which they serve.
If every adult can protect just one child, they will forever change one life. If we can all change one life, together we will make a difference in this generation of children.
WHO NEEDS TO TAKE THIS TRAINING?
All clergy whether stipendiary, non-stipendiary, or otherwise who are engaged in ministry or service to the church; all persons who teach, supervise or assist with supervising children or youth in ministries, programs or activities more often than occasionally. All paid or volunteer Church Personnel whose work regularly takes them throughout the facility or grounds; all persons who provide transportation to children or youth without other adults in the vehicle more than occasionally; all vestry members or members of similar decision making groups who have the authority to approve the creation of ministries, programs or activities for children or youth.
Upcoming in-person trainings will be offered as listed below:
Safeguarding God's People:
May 7, 2022 from 9:30 AM to 12:30 PM at St. Luke's
Zoom trainings for both formats continue and are open for registration.
If you have questions about your Safe Church training certification status, please contact the church office or check with Nina Daniel who is St. Bede's Safe Church compliance coordinator.
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FORWARD DAY BY DAY ON LINE
CLICK HERE for the daily meditations found in the Day By Day booklets
You can also find paper copies in the Connect Center in the Commons.
Forward Movement, a ministry of the Episcopal Church , grew out of the determination of the General Convention in 1934 to counter a period of anxiety, distrust, and decline in the Episcopal Church with a "forward movement" charged to "reinvigorate the life of the church and to rehabilitate its general, diocesan, and parochial work."
We are best known for the popular daily devotional Forward Day by Day, which provides daily meditations based on scripture readings appointed by the lectionary and Daily Office. Forward Day by Day is published in English, Spanish, large print, audio cassette, and Braille editions, and the daily meditation is available online.
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The 2022 Annual Pledge Campaign
for St. Bede's
THANK YOU, THANK YOU,
THANK YOU!
Thank you to all who have already
prayerfully considered and returned
your 2022 pledge of financial support to St. Bede's.
As of April 17, we have received pledges
from eighty-seven folks/families totaling $421,000.
If you have not already made a financial pledge
to support St. Bede's for 2022,
we would love to hear from you.
We hope that you will prayerfully consider
your pledge to St. Bede's
and return your pledge card
or use the link below to pledge online.
If your pledge packet never arrived in the mail,
please call or email the church office
and we will get one sent out to you as soon as possible.
Thank You!
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Gathering Going Forward
Guidance for the Parish
GET VACCINATED - AND BOOSTED!
(as you are eligible and able)
The Gathering Going Forward Group continues to encourage all eligible St. Bede’s parishioners to get vaccinated and keep up-to-date with 3rd doses (for the immunocompromised) and boosters - which have now been authorized for all adults. We would love to be a parish that models Christ’s call to love our neighbors and the most vulnerable among us by being a community that is as fully vaccinated as it can be.
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Healing Our Racism
Book Discussion Group
Monday, May 23.
Meeting Time:
4th Monday of each month at 2:00 pm
on ZOOM
A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry
"Never before, the entire history of the American theater, has so much of the truth of black people's lives been seen on the stage," observed James Baldwin shortly before A Raisin in the Sun opened on Broadway in 1959.
Indeed Lorraine Hansberry's award-winning drama about the hopes and aspirations of a struggling, working-class family living on the South Side of Chicago connected profoundly with the psyche of black America—and changed American theater forever. The play's title comes from a line in Langston Hughes's poem "Harlem," which warns that a dream deferred might "dry up/like a raisin in the sun."
Please join Muriel Diguette and other members/friends of St. Bede's to discuss current books pertaining to the issues of racism and white privilege.
We will meet the 4th Monday of each month at 2:00 pm.
If you want to go ahead and order books for future discussions:
Race Matters by Cornell West
Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
Slavery By Another Name by Douglas Blackmon
The Church Cracked Open by Stephanie Spellers
The Book Group will be on recess for the months of June and July.
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Mostly Mysteries Book Group
May 23 at 7pm on Zoom
Meeting Time:
4th Monday of each month at 7:00 pm on ZOOM
The Mostly Mysteries Book Group is continuing to meet on Zoom. If you would like to take part, please contact Connie Coralli and she will send you the link.
The May selection is
The Maid
by Nita Prose
Molly Gray is not like everyone else. She struggles with social skills and misreads the intentions of others. Her gran used to interpret the world for her, codifying it into simple rules that Molly could live by.
Since Gran died a few months ago, twenty-five-year-old Molly has been navigating life’s complexities all by herself. No matter—she throws herself with gusto into her work as a hotel maid. Her unique character, along with her obsessive love of cleaning and proper etiquette, make her an ideal fit for the job. She delights in donning her crisp uniform each morning, stocking her cart with miniature soaps and bottles, and returning guest rooms at the Regency Grand Hotel to a state of perfection.
But Molly’s orderly life is upended the day she enters the suite of the infamous and wealthy Charles Black, only to find it in a state of disarray and Mr. Black himself dead in his bed. Before she knows what’s happening, Molly’s unusual demeanor has the police targeting her as their lead suspect. She quickly finds herself caught in a web of deception, one she has no idea how to untangle. Fortunately for Molly, friends she never knew she had unite with her in a search for clues to what really happened to Mr. Black—but will they be able to find the real killer before it’s too late?
A Clue-like, locked-room mystery and a heartwarming journey of the spirit, The Maid explores what it means to be the same as everyone else and yet entirely different—and reveals that all mysteries can be solved through connection to the human heart.
If you are interested in receiving the Zoom link, please email Connie Coralli
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St. Bede's Prayer List
Prayers have been requested for:
Ixia Barasorda, cousin of Nora Cruz-Diaz
Hector Laguna, friend of Nora Cruz-Diaz
Jack Hill and his mother Lanni Hill, family of Larry Bing
Clifton Lewis, Dixie Snider’s brother-in-law
Hilda Bell
Ginny Askins, friend of Muriel Diguette
Steve Means, nephew of Larry Bing
Treshaun Bates, friend of the Cannon Family
Joan Davis
Jai Haithco, son of Robin Brown-Haithco
Joy Sims, daughter of Nina Daniel
Jack Raymer & Ginnie Ferrell
Myles Metcalf, nephew of Susan Reef
Carmen Graciaa, friend of Laura Martin
Jim Poulos, husband of Carol Kemker
Helen Abraham
Mac Thigpen
Fay Key
Lisa Maloof, daughter in law of Anita Maloof
Kevin Maloof, son of Anita Maloof
Bill Edgar, father of Beth Cannon
Rosalene Larson, mother-in-law of Michael Daniel
Aree Bancroft
Laura Ribas
Jane Wiggins
Willie Diaz
Maggie Williams
Mary Rodriguez
Hollis Pickett
Margie Klein, mother of Jody Klein
Lynn Edgar, mother of Beth Cannon
Nancy Waring
Andy Matia, friend of Ann Foote
Jim Ohl
Frances Bowen
Sydney Lund
Ann Foote
Cameron Maddox
For those who have died:
Laura Deck, friend of Suzanne Shapiro
Charles Baumgartner, cousin of Nina Daniel
We give thanks for those celebrating birthdays this week:
5/8: Katie Doolittle
5/8: Jovanna Martinez
5/8: Julisa Rodriguez
5/10: Muriel Diguette
5/10: Mariela Lopez
5/10: Juan Ambrocio
5/11: Kelcie Sellers
5/11: Emily Mendez
5/11: Ian Ortega
5/12: Beth Schupbach
5/12: Soledad Paromo
5/12: Andrew Callaway
5/14: Robert Townes
5/14: Victoria Esquivel
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Your Amazon purchases can support St. Bede's
through Amazon Smile
If you shop on Amazon, consider accessing Amazon through
and designating St. Bede's as your charitable beneficiary.
To find St. Bede's in the beneficiary list,
you must search for "St Bedes Episcopal Church"
(without the apostrophe)
and choose the one located in Atlanta.
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From around the Diocese
and the wider Church...
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Pathways
the magazine of the Diocese of Atlanta
The new Pathways is now available online! Through original photography, articles, and interviews, Pathways shares inspiring stories from Middle and North Georgia — examples of spiritual growth.
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Bishop Wright's Weekly Podcast
Did you know that Bishop Rob Wright has a weekly podcast? You can take a spiritual "deep dive" each week with Bishop Wright and his special guests and grow deeper in faith and understanding as you listen and learn.
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Support the Cathedral Book Store.
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Friend in Christ,
As violence escalates in Ukraine, over one million people have already fled the country — and the borders are flooded with many more people desperate to leave.
Almost all of them are women and children who have had to seek safety on their own, leaving their husbands, fathers, brothers and sons behind.
As this crisis continues to evolve, we are working with Anglican agencies and our other partners to provide humanitarian assistance, and urgently ask for your help.
Your emergency gift today will support our immediate response, providing cash, blankets, hygiene supplies and other needs as this crisis unfolds.
Our faith networks are currently on the ground in the border areas of Poland, Hungary and Romania, and we will continue to coordinate with them in order to help those who have been displaced. Specifically, our partner ACT Alliance is helping families on the Hungarian border, and our Anglican partners are mobilizing both an immediate and long-term response in Poland, Romania and Hungary.
Yours faithfully,
Robert W. Radtke
President & CEO
Episcopal Relief & Development
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Several St. Bede's regulars subscribe to-and like! - these e-publications. To stay up to date on activities throughout the Diocese of Atlanta, sign up for the e-newsletter, Connecting.
You can also sign up to receive For Faith, which is a weekly devotional podcast from Bishop Rob Wright sent by email on Fridays. To sign up for either or both, click here
Quick Links
To schedule events, please contact our
Muriel Diguette
For the weekly lectionary readings visit:
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