Last year, instead of purchasing requested gifts, Tom and Jerry came up with a 'pandemic punt,' asking for $25 Walmart gift cards instead of goods. This change turned out to be a big hit with the folks in the home, so we're planning on doing the same thing this year. Next time you venture into Walmart, pick up a gift card or two and either bring them to church; Tom will have a basket in the Narthex for them, or you can slip them into the alms-bag as it makes the rounds or drop them off at church if you're in the neighborhood. All cards should be at the church no later than Sunday, December 19.

Grace's youth group is collaborating with the St Peter’s Church youth group to do a clean up of trash along the banks of the Tennessee River this Sunday afternoon. It’ll last from 1:30 to 5 p.m.. If you have a teen who might like to come, be in touch with David Burman at dburman@saygrace.net, and he’ll share the sign up sheet.

Wherever the River Goes continues this Sunday, exploring concerns about water and Christians as environmental stewards. The group will meet at 9:30am in the undercroft, using a new curriculum called "Wherever the River Goes," developed by a Care of Creation grant from the Episcopal Church. All are welcome to join!

Lectionary Class -- This class, which looks at and discusses the lectionary prescribed for each Sunday, has resumed after a pandemic-induced hiatus. The group has moved its meeting to the Barth Room since the weather has cooled; bring your mask! The class is facilitated by David Stanislawski.

Both the 8 a.m. and 10:45 a.m. services are currently being held in the Nave. Please stop by the courtyard on your way in to assure it you still love it; it may feel lonely after so many weeks of hosting weekly gatherings!

Though the numbers in Chattanooga are improving, we are still firmly in the era of COVID and thus a need for caution, so we are asking that all who attend either service wear masks. The 10:45 a.m. service will be streamed online for those who are unable to attend. You can access the service at Grace's Facebook page , and you can find the bulletin for that service HERE.

Even though vaccinations are not 100% effective against virus transmission, they still remain our best option for reducing illness and death. These vaccines are safe, accessible, and comprehensively tested. Regions where high numbers of individuals are vaccinated are seeing far fewer COVID-related hospitalizations and deaths. It is the best way we have to show love for our neighbors right now, and loving our neighbors is our gospel mandate. If you are eligible to receive a COVID vaccination, but have not yet done so, please do so as an act of community care. Raising the vaccination rates in Hamilton County is essential to the health of all in our community, and essential to our common life at Grace.

If you have questions or concerns about worship practices, please feel free to contact April (aberends@saygrace.net) or Senior Warden, Andy Belcher (belcherandrewr@gmail.com).

Next Sunday (November 21) brings one of Grace’s most enduring pre-holiday activities—the Annual Parish meeting. While we long to be feasting together in the Undercroft once again, in order to reduce the potential for virus transmission over the Thanksgiving holiday, this year’s meeting will be held at 4:00 p.m. via Zoom. We encourage you to enjoy the snack and beverage of your choice while we hear about ministries and finance, offer gratitude to departing Vestry members and elect new ones. To join the meeting, visit www.zoom.us and enter meeting ID 867 3018 9752.

Before you sink deep into the recipe box and the pile of groceries that will eventually become Thanksgiving dinner, take advantage of an opportunity for undistracted worship with your fellow Grace folks on Tuesday evening, November 23, at 6:00 p.m. Calm your soul with scripture, music, and some last moments without demands from recalcitrant turkeys, tearful onions, and gravy that Will Not Thicken. Just you, your Grace community, and God -- and a lot to be grateful for in spite of the convoluted trip around the sun known as 2021.

In normal years, we've had a soup supper following the service, but we will forgo that this year for the sake of not creating an extra hazard of possible exposures just before numerous interactions with family and friends for the holiday. We fervently hope that this time next year we will be badgering you to make pots of soup and loaves of bread to share!

HERE : https://us04web.zoom.us/j/780772724

& the password is: compline 

The need in our community continues to be great. We are in particular need of volunteers for our food distributions on the Wednesdays before Thanksgiving and Christmas. If you feel called to support this ministry by volunteering your time or donating money or food, or if you just want to find out more about the food pantry, please go to our website at www.brainerdfoodpantry.com. You can also follow us on Facebook at Brainerd Community Food Pantry.

Bishop Brian Cole invites everyone to a special offering from our diocesan task force on becoming beloved community. On Thursday, November 18th at 6:00 PM, we will view together a documentary entitled Awake: A Dream from Standing Rock. This documentary profiles the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe of North Dakota as they recently resisted a US Government effort to build a pipeline across their native land. In the month of November, as Thanksgiving approaches, this is often a time that we reflect on the history of indigenous people in North America. This documentary is a chance to hear from them, to hear their story now. Realizing, it’s not simply a historic story, but it’s a story of this moment, of this moment in our country. So this will be a chance for us to gather by Zoom to watch this documentary and to reflect briefly afterwards on its impact on us and how it might continue to shape our work as proclaiming good news as God’s beloved community. You can register for the event HERE or paste this URL into your browser: https://www.dioet.org/blog/reconciling-thought-screening-of-awake/

Wow... Christmas programs! In-person music! John 3:9!

Metropolitan Bells will present its usually-annual Christmas program on three different days at three different locations:

Thursday, December 9: First United Methodist Church in Cleveland (3425 N. Ocoee St.) 7:30 p.m.

Tuesday, December 14, Brainerd Baptist Church (300 Brookfield Avenue), 7:30 p.m.

Thursday, December 16, Christ United Methodist Church (8645 E. Brainerd Rd.), 7:30 p.m.

In the Anglican Cycle of Prayer: The Anglican Church of Australia. The Anglican Communion has adopted a cycle of prayer called "From Aba to Zululand," praying its way alphabetically through its members on a daily basis between January 1, 2021 and September 2023. The newsletter and, in the future, the printed bulletin, will include the prayers for Sunday; if you would like to see the daily prayer requests, you can find them at ACoP.