St John's Newsletter 8 May 2022

THIS WEEK AT ST JOHN'S

Dear Friends,

Welcome to worship at St John’s!

This coming Sunday, the Easter Season makes a transition from the immediacy of the accounts of the resurrected Jesus appearing to his friends. We come to Jesus’ words from the Gospel of John Chapter 10, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” It’s actually a long chapter so we read from it every year on the Fourth Sunday of Easter. In this Sunday’s portion, Jesus says, “My sheep hear my voice, I know them and they follow me.”

This is an ideal Sunday to point out the Good Shepherd window (right side at the front of the congregation’s church pews, by the ramp). Almost every church I know has a Good Shepherd window. Read about the history of this window in Barton Breen’s excellent account below. This story was shared on the St John’s Facebook page this week. Note that St John’s Facebook page is open to all viewers whether or not you have a facebook account. Take a look HERE. While you are there you will see Barton’s other stories from the history of St John’s as well as stories of the artists whose works grace our walls for Art Credo.

There’s a wonderful scavenger hunt question that works for almost any church interior. How many sheep can you find inside our church? (Note that it’s a bit of a trick question.) Portrayals of sheep in St John’s Church also reference Psalm 23 - “The Lord is my Shepherd” – one of the most beloved and well-known passages of the Bible. It is also the source of so much beautiful music. In addition to what you will hear this Sunday, the pandemic has been the impetus for us to have a wonderful collection of hymns and music.

This week’s worship video is a short introduction to Psalm 23 featuring gorgeous music, scenes of sheep, and the church interior filled with art. Think of the video as getting you in the headspace of the Good Shepherd and then come on Sunday to fully take in that God says “You will have everything you need.”

WELCOME TO SUNDAY - MAY 8, 2022 - ST JOHN THE EVANGELIST ANGLICAN CHURCH

Looking forward to seeing you this Sunday 8:00 and 10:15 a.m.

Gary+

TO REMEMBER IN PRAYER

Those On Our Hearts

Robin, Pat, and The staff, volunteers and participants in the programs of The Well.

Our Parish

Gary, Catherine, Allen, John, Gordon, Josh, Gregory, Kerry, Stephen, Steve, Michelle, Jill and all who minister at St John's.

Our Diocese

Shane, our Bishop; Anne, our Metropolitan; Linda, our Primate.

Our Community Ministries:

Anglican Day Programs: Centre 454; St Luke’s Table; The Well/La Source
Centre 105 (Cornwall)
Cornerstone Housing for Women
Ottawa Pastoral Counselling Centre
Refugee Ministry

Church of the Ascension, Ottawa and the Reverend Rhonda Waters.

Julian of Norwich, the Reverend Monique Stone and Deacon Elizabeth December.

Anglican Church of Canada (ACC)

The Rt. Rev. Susan Bell, Bishop, and the clergy and people of the Diocese of Niagara.

Evangelical Lutheran Church of Canada (ELCIC)

Bishop Sid Haugen, the people and rostered ministers of the Saskatchewan Synod.

The Anglican Communion from Aba to Zululand

Eglise Anglicane du Rwanda.

Parish Prayer Group

If you wish to have someone prayed for, please call (613) 232-4500 ext 21 or send an email to prayer-request@stjohnsottawa.ca.

JOIN US

THE FOURTH SUNDAY OF EASTER

8 MAY 2022

Acts 9:36-43; Psalm 23; Revelation 7:9-17; John 10:22-30

WHAT'S HAPPENING

ART CREDO RETURNS!

This year’s 43^rd Art Credo Exhibit and Sale will run from Saturday April 30^th to Sunday May 15^th . The Vernissage will be in the evening of Friday April 29^thfrom 7:00 to 9:00 PM. Everyone is invited to come to get a sneak peek at the artworks and perhaps chat with some of the artists. Feel free to bring a friend.

We need your help to keep the doors open during Art Credo! We are looking for volunteers who can offer three hours of time during the exhibition to act as a sitter, there is a sign-up sheet on-line at https://tinyurl.com/ycknb4rr .

Mary Ann Varley and Detlef Dransch Art Credo Co-Chairs

Lifelong Learning

Book Study on the Acts of the Apostles

Are we still in the time of the Early Church? We start from this idea as we delve into 3 stories over the month of May. Read all of Acts – but it’s long! If you don’t have time for all 28 chapters, read Chapter 8 for the first session. And watch the new video: 20 minutes of background and questions to focus our time together.

Second session Tuesday May 17, 7:30 p.m.

Connect Here

Trillium Hike

Walk with us as we check out the beautiful flowers. We’ll meet at the church and share rides to Gatineau Park. Or meet us at the Parking Lot P11. It’s a walk with some hills but they are gentle enough for all abilities. This hike also includes a brief service of communion in the woods: informal inclusive worship with bread and wine on the earth as the altar. Bring a picnic snack and plan for a pub visit in Old Chelsea afterwards for liquid fortification.

Especially let us know if you can be a driver so we have enough room for everyone to travel together.

Saturday, May 14. Meet at 10:00 a.m. at the church!

Upcoming schedule changes for

Ottawa Race Weekend

Here’s what we are planning. The 8:00 a.m. service will continue as usual. If you’re able to be with us at the church, we’ll stick around to ring the bell and cheer on the runners. And here’s the experiment: We are holding the 10:15 service at 4:15 p.m. That might be a time for future worship experiments so let’s see how it feels. With option of post-worship patio hangout time. By the way, it’s going to a music extravaganza – we actually have big plans. And remember, it’s an experiment. Experiments encourage growth and learning. Put it in your calendar!

TAKE NOTE

Our Aspirations as Parish Council in 2022/23

As a Council we will be

Purposeful
Focused on the future
Bold and innovative
Honest, trusting and respectful of each other
Inclusive of our different styles and knowledge
Both strategic and operational
Transparent with the parish

Parish council ministry members:

Kathleen Arsenault, Steve Chaplin, Stephen Giles, Rebecca Gregg, Laura Johnston, Margaret Kasurak, Mary Frances Marshall, Jill Moll, James Myles, Monica Patten, TJ Purves, Mike Scrimm, Michelle Smulders, The Reverend Gary van der Meer,

Mary Ann Varley

In order to keep with in line of our safe church practices we would like to take inventory of building keys in circulation. Please contact the church office office@stjohnsottawa.ca and indicate the keys you have by number and which ministry the key was distributed for.

PWRDF responds to ACT

Alliance appeal for Ukraine

PWRDF is supporting Ukrainians forced to flee their homes due to the Russian invasion. A grant of $20,000 has been issued to an ACT alliance appeal funding the work of ACT member, the Hungarian Interchurch AID (HIA). HIA has been working in Ukraine for more than 25 years in humanitarian and development projects. It had already shipped 28 tons of food to support those fleeing to Hungary, and their staff have been working with refugees at the Ukraine/Hungary border.

To make a donation go to pwrdf.org/give-today and click on Response in Ukraine. You may also donate by phone at 416-822-9083 or leave a voicemail toll-free at 1-866-308-7973 and PWRDF will return your call. You can mail your cheque to PWRDF, 80 Hayden, 3rd floor, Toronto, Ontario, M4Y 3G2 or give through St. John’s. Please mark Ukraine in the memo field. Thank you for your support. St John’s PWRDF Committee.