Holy Week and Easter Services:

Holy Week is the most action-packed and emotion-filled week in the entire liturgical year. To get the full flavor of Christ's Passion, as well as understand what this truly means for us, one really needs to experience each and every significant event of the week. And Easter, the feast of the Resurrection of Our Lord, is the most significant celebration of the Christian year. A complete schedule and description of our Holy Week services is available HERE.

Easter Flower Donations:

Easter is just a few weeks away! If you would like to make a donation to help offset the cost of the Easter lilies, you can do so by sending a check to the church with “Easter Flowers” in the memo line. Or you can go through the parish website or the Vanco app and use the Other Designated Gift category (just be sure to put Easter Flowers in the adjacent box). And if you would like to make your donation in Memory of, in Thanksgiving of, or in Honor of someone, you can call the parish office or email Kevin at info@stgregoryschurch.com with the appropriate information. Please get into dedications into the Parish Office by Tuesday, April 4 so we can get them into the Easter bulletin. Lilies will be available for pick-up after Easter. 

Calling All Party Animals: 

Do you enjoy planning events? Bringing people together for fun and fellowship? Then the Parish Life Committee needs you! We are in search of volunteers to assist with events and activities such as the children's Easter egg hunt, our annual parish picnic and our annual Christmas dinner, as well as other fun activities we are planning. If you would like to be a part of this committee, please contact Jane Alt at 562-429-1425 or email jalt1950@gmail.com. 

Long Beach MSC Homeless Project:

For people experiencing homelessness or having trouble making ends meet, a token of kindness and support can create hope. St. Gregory’s first Outreach Opportunity of the year will provide items needed by the Long Beach Multi-Service Center to support our homeless community with their daily personal needs. MSC also collects items to support their pets too. This collection project begins Sunday March 5 and completes on April 2. You can donate using an Amazon gift list or see the flyer for specifics. Amazon does NOT deliver to the MSC so bring all your donations to the Church for collection and delivery. Please see the flyer HERE for specifics.  

Lenten Programming: 

We are offering the following programs and resources for your Lenten journey:

• WEDNESDAYS IN LENT – Lenten Book Study: Mother Sharon Sheffield will be leading a Lenten book study entitled “When Did We See You?” – Theology in Modern Science Fiction and Fantasy. The program looks at passages from selected novels from the past 70 years and discuss how these works borrow from and relate to Christian theology, the Bible, and current events. Authors will include C. S. Lewis, Madeleine L’Engle, and Mercedes Lackey, among others. The class will run Wednesday nights from 6:30 to 8:00 PM, beginning March 1 and ending April 19 (we will not meet the Wednesday of Holy Week). The class will meet in person in Larkin Hall at St. Thomas of Canterbury. Please RSVP to the St. Thomas church office (stlb47@verizon.net) if you plan to attend the class so we can have sufficient materials for all attendees. 

• THURSDAYS IN LENT – Lenten Soup Supper and Stations of the Cross: On each of the Thursdays in March (30th), St. Gregory’s will host a soup supper beginning at 6:00 PM. Following supper, we will have the opportunity to explore different versions of the Stations of the Cross. Note that a different version will be presented each week for your reflective experience. Also note that we will NOT be having a Soup Supper or Stations of the Cross on Thursday, March 9th due to work being performed on our parking lot.

• FRIDAYS IN LENT – Stations of the Cross: On each of the Fridays in Lent (March 24th, and 31st), St. Thomas of Canterbury will host Stations of the Cross at 12:00 Noon.

• DAILY LENTEN DEVOTIONAL – Living Well Through Lent 2023: Practicing Compassion with All Your Heart, Soul, Strength, and Mind has daily reflections on the subject of compassion. Copies are available in the Lenten Pilgrim Bags and on the Parish Hall Information Table. If you prefer a PDF version, you can download it from the parish website HERE.

Music @ Four Special Events: 

Mark your calendars for Sunday, March 26th. Organist David York will present a concert for your enjoyment. David is a friend of St. Gregory’s and has accompanied our choir for special services in the past and he currently conducts the choir at St. George’s Episcopal Church in Laguna Hills. On Sunday, April 16th, our guest will be harpist Ellie Choate. Many of you will remember her from her previous Music @ Four presentations, and we are thrilled to have her back again. As always, a grand reception will be held in the fellowship hall following each concert. See you there!

“Could you not watch one hour with me?” 

We plan to have our usual vigil at the Altar of Repose from 9:00 PM Maundy Thursday until 10:00 AM on Good Friday in the St. Thomas sanctuary. You are invited to spend an hour (or however much time you have) in prayer and meditation, suspended in time between the arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane and the crucifixion. There is a signup sheet in the St. Thomas narthex, and you can also sign up by emailing the St. Thomas office at stlb47@verizon.net. Please sign up by April 2, so that we can adjust and publish the schedule according to how many people sign up. We need at least two people in the church at all times, for safety’s sake. If you have any questions, please email the St. Thomas office.

Episcopal News Updates: 

The Diocese provides weekly email updates to help you keep informed about what’s happening all over our six-county diocese. If you want to receive the Episcopal News, visit https://diocesela.org/episcopal-news/contact/ and enter your email address in the box provided.

Earthquake Relief for Turkey and Syria:

Episcopal Relief & Development, an institution of The Episcopal Church, provides assistance and relief in disaster situations. They have established a fund to provide relief for the earthquakes in Turkey and Syria. You can make donations through the Episcopal Relief & Development website HERE.

Memorial Children's Hospital Birthday Party:

Children who find themselves in the hospital on their birthday are really brightened and grateful when the Auxiliary team gives them a birthday party with a gift. A few of our parishioners are members of the Auxiliary and are asking for donations of new unwrapped gifts for all ages. We will be collecting on the 2nd Sunday of each month. See Shirley DeMent if you have any questions.

Feed My Lambs & Food Bank Needs:

Here’s the latest news on our parish feeding programs.

Feed My Lambs has the following needs: 100 hardboiled eggs; homemade cookies

• Homemade cookies can be brought to church on any Sunday, in ziplock freezer bags, labeled "Feed My Lambs" to the kitchen.
• Wednesday, March 29 from Noon to 3:00pm you can deliver to the office: Hardboiled Eggs & Homemade Cookies.
• Thursday, March 30 until 11:00am you can deliver to the kitchen: Hardboiled Eggs & Homemade Cookies.
• Friday, March 31 from 1:00 to 3:00pm you can deliver to the kitchen: Hardboiled Eggs.
• Our Guests always need white athletic socks and belts! Which you can put in the Feed My Lambs bin outside the church on any Sunday.
• Volunteers -- We have plenty of volunteers! Thanks for all your support!!!

If you have questions about helping out with Feed My Lambs or dropping off items, contact Tamera Benedict (tlbenedict4@gmail.com, 562.301.6800)

Food Bank has the following needs:

• Volunteers -- We need volunteers to assist with the Food Bank distribution on the THIRD Wednesday of the month between 9am and 11am.

Please contact Kevin at the Parish Office (info@stgregoryschurch.com, 562.420.1311) for more information about the Food Bank.

Your continued support of our feeding ministries, through product and monetary contributions, is greatly appreciated!

Gratitude for Your Support of the Parish:

We continue to be humbled and so incredibly grateful for your generosity in supporting our parish and its ministries! While you may not be able to drop your donation in a real offering plate, there are still ways you can make sure your donation gets to the parish:

• You can mail your check to the parish office.
• Make donations through our online payment account, accessible through the parish website at http://stgregoryschurch.com/4721-2/.
• Scan the QR code found in the Sunday bulletin.

And again, THANK YOU for your continued support!

Online Parish Directory:

Our online parish directory is at https://www.instantchurchdirectory.com/. This is a secure site and can be accessed using the email address you had published in the parish directory. You can also download the "Instant Church Directory" on your smart phone. Versions are available for Android, iPhone, iPad, and Kindle.

One Body & One Spirit Annual Appeal:

The Diocese has established an ongoing campaign focused on raising funds to assist congregations, schools, affiliated institutions, and their communities who are faced with unprecedented challenges. We are invited to prayerfully consider making a donation to help others in our Diocese who may have unmet needs. More information is available at https://diocesela.org/annual-appeal/. 

Forward Day By Day:

For those who use the "Forward Day by Day" booklet for personal devotions, contact Kevin so he can know to send it to you while the office is closed. (562) 420-1311 or info@stgregoryschurch.com   

In Case of Emergency...Notify Your Priest! 

With our combined ministry program with St. Thomas of Canterbury comes additional coverage for pastoral emergencies. In the event of a hospital stay, illness, death in the family, or other pastoral emergency, please call Father Michael on his cell phone (909-373-6478) any day except Monday, his Sabbath day. Mother Sharon (562-833-3393) covers emergencies in both communities on Monday, just as Father Michael covers emergencies in both parishes on Friday, Mother Sharon’s Sabbath. And PLEASE, no excuses about not wanting to bother me. That’s why we are here – for YOU!

St. Gregory's Food Bank:

Our monthly Food Bank distribution takes place the first Wednesday of every month. This ministry helps us help our neighbors by providing a supplemental source of groceries. We CANNOT do this without your generosity. CLICK HERE for more information.

This month we served 50 people!   

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