Spreading God's Word, Not the Virus |
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School Days at Last!
By Liz Ryan, Director of St. Paul’s Day School
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At 8:30 am on Monday morning, after almost 5 months, the Day School came back to life! One after another darling three- or four-year-old had their temperatures taken, were signed in by their parent and danced into the school with excited little waves. Not one nervous tear was shed because they were all so happy to be at school! Equipped with sweet child-sized face masks, bright eager eyes and backpacks over their shoulders, they began this year’s adventure in Early Education. The giggles and high-pitched voices were enough to make anyone’s eyes crinkle and their mouth form a grin (albeit behind a mask.) [...]
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Daily Reflection from Bishop Peter Eaton
The Commemoration of Florence Nightingale
August 12th, 2020
Stay Home. Stop the Spread. Save Lives.
If you have to go out, wear a mask.
Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
August is a busy month in our Sanctorale – the fancy Latin name for our calendar of holy women and holy men, some of them official saints, others of them, while not officially saints, are individuals whom the Church sets before us as examples of faithful life.
Sadly, Anglicanism, unlike Roman Catholicism or Orthodoxy, has no formal process for “making saints.” We are very good about adopting the saints of others. Just a couple of days ago, for example, was the feast of Saint Herman of Alaska, a saint of the Orthodox Church, whom we have adopted into our calendar (we did not keep his feast this year as it fell on a Sunday, and our rules give the Sunday precedence over such feasts). [...]
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Bilingual Virtual Ultreya
Saturday, August 15, 2020
Registration at 12:45 PM
Function begins at 1:30 PM
Hosted via Zoom
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Dear reader,
I pray that you and your families are doing well during this pandemic. We will get through this with prayer, continued social distancing, while wearing our masks and washing our hands regularly. If we can remember to do the little things we will get through this safely.
There will be a Bilingual Virtual Ultreya this Saturday, Aug. 15, 2020 at 1:30 pm sponsored by the Secretariat.
I ask for your continued prayers during this COVID-19 pandemic, and for the ongoing struggle for racial justice in our country.
DeColores and hope to see you in church soon:
- Joe Ryan
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SACRED GROUND
A FILM-BASED DIALOGUE SERIES ON RACE AND FAITH
Registration deadline: August 24th
Dialogue begins: August 31st, 7:00pm
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I am pleased to announce that Ellen Kentner and Kristen Murtaugh have agreed to facilitate the offering of Sacred Ground, the Episcopal Church’s new film- and readings-based dialogue on race. The dialogue is grounded in our call to faith, hope and love and especially designed to help white people talk with other white people about matters of race. Ellen and Kristen invite members of St. Paul’s to join them in taking a closer look at the divisions in White America and in themselves. The small study circle (5 to 14 members) will walk through chapters in America’s history of race and racism and weave in threads of family story, economic class, and political and regional identity. The powerful curriculum includes documentary films and readings that focus on Indigenous, Black, Latino and Asian/Pacific American histories as they intersect with European American histories. [...]
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Prayer-by-Phone Ministry
“For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.”
Mt. 18:20
Several of our Lay Healing Ministers are available for prayer-by-phone. Please feel free to call if you would like to have someone pray with you and/or for you. Of course, all prayer conversations are sacred and they are kept confidential. We believe in the power of prayer, and we know that Jesus is present in a special way when two or more people gather together in His name (Mt. 18:20).
Here is the schedule for our Prayer-by-Phone ministry:
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Helen - Sunday, 4-6pm...............(561) 398-7259
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Elizabeth - Monday, 10-11am....(410) 463-8825
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Patricia - Monday 5-6pm...........(561) 703-0800
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Barta - Tuesday, 1-2pm...............(603) 781-1630
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Claudette - Wednesday, 5-6pm..(561) 541-7361
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Faith - Friday, 7-9pm..................(561) 512-4056
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“It is a Christian obligation to vote, and more than that, it is the church’s responsibility to help get souls to the polls.” - Presiding Bishop Michael Curry
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Getting souls to the polls isn’t just about casting our own vote, but about working together so we all can vote and vote faithfully. We can empower every voice in our congregations in this work.
Check out resources below for getting souls to the polls in your faith community! New resources will be added to our website, so check back often.
Included in this toolkit:
Action Steps - On COVID-19, Register, Mobilize, Communicate, Advocate Worship - Quotes, Music, Prayers [...]
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The Efficacy of Masks and Social Distancing in Reducing COVID-19 Transmission |
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Faithful Giving
Please help us to keep our mission and ministry strong. St. Paul's staff, operations, community outreach, and our missions to help the most vulnerable are dependent on Sunday offerings to keep afloat. When Sunday offerings decrease, our missions become at risk. Please support St. Paul's now by one of the options below:
Safe and secure online giving on our website - St. Paul's has a safe and secure electronic donation service available allowing you to make single donations or set up recurring donations. Click the button below to visit our donation page:
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Mail - If you prefer to send your pledge or other donation by check, please send your contribution to: St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 188 S. Swinton Avenue, Delray Beach, FL 33444.
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Zoom Coffee Hour
Sunday, August 16th, at 11:30am
Please join us for this Sunday morning coffee hour after our 10:00am virtual service!
No Zoom account needed to join:
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A snapshot of St. Paul's virtual coffee hour for August 9th |
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Be Prepared for Hurricane Season!
While we were spared the full brunt of Hurricane (now Tropical Storm) Isaias this past weekend, we are reminded that we need to be prepared for hurricane season. Read more on how to protect yourself and others from the coronavirus while preparing for a storm from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) HERE and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) HERE. For complete disaster preparedness plans, visit the Florida Division of Emergency Management at:
For more preparedness info visit:
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The Episcopal Church's Response to Racist Violence
In this time of national upheaval, outrage, and fear, we are writing to share resources with you on the Church’s responses. Over the weekend, as the nation and the Church mourned the egregious death of George Floyd, Presiding Bishop Michael Curry shared this message with the Church:
“Our long-term commitment to racial justice and reconciliation is embedded in our identity as baptized followers of Jesus. We will still be doing it when the news cameras are long gone.”
The Episcopal Church’s Department of Reconciliation, Justice and Creation Care and the Office of Government Relations assembled resources to assist individuals, congregations and communities seeking to LEARN, PRAY and ACT. We hope you find these useful, and we encourage you to make your voice heard in all the ways you are able to.
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Palm Beach County Department of Housing and Economic Sustainability CARES Mortgage Assistance Program
100 Australian Avenue, 5th Floor, West Palm Beach, FL 33406
(561) 233‐3606 or (561) 233‐3600
NOTICE OF FUNDING AVAILABILITY
Palm Beach County Department of Housing and Economic Sustainability hereby announce the availability of $20,000,000 in CARES Act funding for temporary relief to homeowners for the following:
Mortgage Assistance: CARES Act funding will provide assistance to income eligible households who are delinquent in their first mortgage and escrow payments (PITI). Additionally, funding may assist with late fees, attorney’s fees, condominium and homeowners’ association payments, special assessments, and other mortgage associated costs related to COVID‐19. Maximum Award: $10,000 (Up to four‐months mortgage payments, but not to exceed $10,000) [...]
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WEDNESDAY, August 12: Florence Nightingale
Psalm 119:144
The righteousness of your decrees is everlasting; grant me understanding, that I may live.
I’ve come to understand the only surefire plan I have in my life is seeking alignment with God’s will. Sometimes it doesn’t look like I thought it would—but when I am open to guidance, I see it. When I am in alignment, I feel it. God’s will is a self-correcting process. God’s will is the ultimate decree, and free will is the greatest privilege humans suffer.
Turning my will and my life over to God gives me a chance to regift the greatest gift of all to the best gift giver I know. It lightens my load and allows me to live life more fully. It is the ultimate sacrifice, and it enables trust everlasting.
Bless and block my willful life, God. I don’t understand much, but I understand you love me. Weave my will into yours, that your efforts may be strengthened, that I may truly live. Amen.
MOVING FORWARD: What can you decide to do today? How will you invite Jesus to help you?
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Volunteering Sign Up for Food Box Offloading
Below you will find a sign-up link for any volunteer willing to help with the offloading of food boxes for distribution on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 8:30 am at Cason United Methodist Church ( 342 N Swinton Ave, Delray Beach, FL 33444 ).
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Interfaith Committee:
Shower Truck Donations Needed
In this midst of this COVID-19 pandemic, the Interfaith Committee of Delray Beach has partnered with the Delray Beach Police Department to keep their shower truck operations available to those enduring homelessness in our area.
A major aspect of this shower truck program is the distribution of clean clothing to participants afterwards, if you would like to help by way of donating these much needed pieces of clothing, please contact Caren Kilpatrick, Parish Administrator, at (561) 319-7947.
"Specifically, the shower truck needs men’s shorts or jeans sizes 32-34 desperately. We have larger sizes!"
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The Volen Center has instituted a program using their fleet of buses to deliver free lunches to seniors 60+ in Boca, Delray and Boynton. Outlined below is the program and who can be contacted. If you have any people who might benefit, please send us the names and numbers or pass along this information to them. Anyone we can help is a plus.
Lunches delivered to residences daily and 3 meals on Friday to cover the weekend.
To enroll, e-mail or call the following staff:
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Volunteering Opportunities
Dear Volunteers,
Please see the included link for a list of volunteer opportunities and agency needs. You will need to connect with the agencies directly to volunteer and/or make an item donation. If you have not completed the waiver and you do plan on volunteering, please use the link to complete the waiver https://secure.unitedwaypbc.net/inetwork/VolunteerForm
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Many local meetings have established their own Zoom meetings which can be found at the intergroup website for the particular county.
For example, here's the link for South Palm Beach County intergroup information on meeting closures and online meetings:
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VIRTUAL SERVICES DURING THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC
In response to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, we at St. Paul's Delray Beach, together with all churches in the Episcopal Diocese of Southeast Florida, have closed for public worship and all other public gatherings until further notice, per our requirement of a sustained double digit reduction in COVID-19 test positivity. This includes St. Paul's Day School until August 10th, Paul's Place after-school program, and all other ministries and scheduled events. If you have a pastoral emergency and need the services of our clergy, please contact Fr. Paul Kane (revpaul@stpaulsdelray.org or 561-921-7667)
We at St. Paul's Delray will offer a virtual morning prayer at 8:00am and a virtual evening prayer at 5:00pm (both through Facebook Live streams), Monday through Friday, and a virtual celebration of the Holy Eucharist every weekend until further notice.
Click below to view our Virtual Service for the 10th Sunday After Pentecost:
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As a church family, we will stay connected through social media, email, text messaging, our website, and other platforms. We will continue to spread the Good News of God's love while doing our part to stop the spread of the coronavirus.
I hope that you find peace and inspiration from the many resources for prayer and worship at home offered by Forward Movement (forwardmovement.org) , the Episcopal publishing house that brings us Forward Day by Day.
May God bring healing to the sick, comfort to the lonely, blessed assurance to the anxious, and hope to those in despair,
Fr. Paul+
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St. Paul's Episcopal Church
561-276-4541
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