Beloved Community,
There is so much going on - It's all exciting - that I am going to skip my usual bi-weekly message in favor of sharing some of this information with all of you and extending a few invitations. As always, please email, call, or text with your questions. Or we can be really radical for this time and have an in-person conversation.
September 11th:
The program year begins on September 11th with our first ever "Second Sunday Intergenerational Worship Service." We'll talk about our patron saint, St. Stephen, and how his life and ministry is a wonderful model for us about living one's faith. We'll roll out the theme for the year:
Love God. Love God's People. Love God's Creation.
We've already got a whole lot going on that relates to this theme but it will be fun to tie it all together in a celebration.
Children's Chapel:
Children's Chapel will resume on September 18th at 9:45am. We'll be using a fun lectionary-based curriculum, Bold Transformational Faith, designed by our friends at Cross Roads and Luther Crest camps. Children kindergarten thru 4th grade will join Grace for fun and faith-filled learning using Bible stories, songs, and arts & crafts. They'll also spend some time preparing for the Second Sunday Intergenerational Worship, which might include learning to read one of the lessons, helping to write Prayers of the People, creating art to use on the altar, and ??? They will join the rest of us at the Peace.
Nursery Care:
Miss Linda will be here to have fun with the youngest children, also at 9:45. Parents/other responsible adults can choose to let the children stay in nursery for the full service or not.
Children of all ages are always welcome in church and we don't expect perfect or perfectly quiet behavior. Make the decision that is best for you and your family.
NEW!!! Youth Group:
Youth 5th grade and older are encouraged to join our new Youth Group, which will meet twice a month on the second and fourth Sundays beginning September 25th. This group will meet from 11:30 to 1:00 for lunch, faith formation activities, and fun. There will be other opportunities to get together for service projects and fun throughout the year. For those youth who would like to be Confirmed in the Episcopal Church, this is the place to begin.
Q Christian Fellowship, Guest Preacher, and Invitation:
August Laperche, who is the Program Director of our ministry partner, Q Christian Fellowship, will be guest preacher at the 10:00 service on September 18th. They will stay for conversation after the service. (Decisions about whether this is a full indoor coffee hour or a more simple outdoor coffee hour will be made closer to the date.)
You are invited to join us for A Night of Worship, Fellowship, and Prayer at Grace Church, Madison at 6:30 that evening. Information and RSVP are found here.
Sabbatical Planning Ministry:
Clergy sabbaticals, a time of renewal and refreshment, are strongly encouraged after five to seven years of ordained ministry. In January 2024, I will have been ordained a priest for 10 years. The Finance Committee, Vestry, and I have started to talk about a sabbatical in the fall of 2024 (tentatively September 1st - November 30th). One of two goals for my retreat later this month is to do the research and initial preparation for submitting a Lilly Endowment Clergy Renewal grant application at the end of this year, which is the window for funding for sabbaticals in 2024.
One of the goals of the Lilly program is to support congregational renewal, not just clergy renewal. There are a number of requirements including formation of a ministry team(s) to prepare the grant application and to oversee implementation at the parish level, should funding be received. I have spoken to a few of you about serving on this committee and would like to extend the information further. If you would like to hear about what is needed, please join me on Tuesday, September 13th at 7:30pm. I'll share the work I do on my retreat and we can draft a plan for the next steps. I would not expect this to be a big time commitment, likely a few to several meetings between now and the end of my sabbatical in 2024.
You may join the meeting on the 13th in-person or via Zoom:
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84647148232?pwd=ZmgydGdNL0l3ZTl4QXltcXdGUUUwZz09
Meeting ID: 846 4714 8232
Passcode: SSM119
Pilgrimage to the Holy Land:
You have probably heard me say that my trip to the Holy Land in 2014 changed the way I read the Scriptures and how I understand what it means to follow Jesus. To celebrate the 10th anniversary of my ordination to the priesthood and to kick off my sabbatical, I want to travel with you to Israel and Palestine. I reached out to a friend of a friend, Iyad Qumri, who happens to one of the preeminent licensed guides in the Holy Land about planning. There were two options for travel in 2024 and we settled on August 19-30, 2024. And four of you are already planning to come! I'm hoping more of you will join us. I'll be sharing the information with my colleagues in the Evelyn Underhill Region but want to give you first dibs.
I've got lots of information to share, including details from Iyad Qumri about what our pilgrimage would be and how much it would cost. Please join me at either or both of these informational meetings, which will be both in-person and via Zoom:
Meeting ID: 876 6324 6382
Passcode: SSM119
If you'd like to learn more about Iyad and Qumri Pilgrimages, you'll find information here.
Peace & Blessings,
Paula+
