grace episcopal church

NEXT SUNDAY: THE DAY OF PENTECOST

Rev. Linda Packard, Presider

Rev. Dr. Gloria Hopewell, Preacher

Richard Luther, Lector

Elizabeth Ludescher, Intercessor

Robin French, Music Director

Nancy Cook, Erben Organ

Eric Kallback, Vestry Coordinator

Debbie Kallback & Charlotte Stryker,

Charlotte Stryker, Greeter

in the Land of the Holy One: the full statement is here

Steve Dowe received this e-mail from Jackie Kraus earlier this week:

Dear Friends of Bishop Joseph,

Joseph phoned this morning with the good news that he was elected Archbishop of Northern Upper Nile today. Upper Nile is one of the eight internal provinces under Archbishop & Primate Justin Badi Arama. It was also determined that he will remain Bishop of Renk, one of his criteria for being considered. The Most Rev. Joseph Garang Atem will be installed by Archbishop Badi at St. Matthew's Cathedral, Renk, on Sunday, the 16th. 

This outcome is not surprising, given that he has served as Dean of the Province for some time now, and has been in charge of the Province since the retirement of Archbishop Hilary Garang Deng at the end of 2020.

Please keep Archbishop Joseph is your prayers, continue to pray for the people of the Diocese of Renk, which is one of the few places on Earth that hasn't yet experienced an outbreak of COVID. He sends his greetings to all of you, with thanksgiving for your prayers and support.

Thanks be to God! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!

Jackie

Our Bishop-elect, Paula Clark will be consecrated on June 12! Prior to her medical emergency she was able to attend our Deanery meeting and talked about her intent to hold deanery-wide services to provide Confirmations, and receive new members to the church. By doing this, those wishing to be received or confirmed would not have to wait for her to visit their parish, which might take two or more years.

Because of this, I will be offering an Adult Inquirers Class sometime this summer (dates will be determined by the schedules of those interested in attending). We will be talking about our identity as Episcopalians, the Book of Common Prayer, a brief history of the Anglican/Episcopal church, our creeds, prayer, Baptism, Eucharist, the Trinity (don’t come looking for an explanation!), and the Jesus Movement as described by Presiding Bishop Curry. Attending does not commit you to being received. You may make that decision after you have completed the class.

This is open to anyone in the church or community, although if there is a large response, those considering reception into the Church will be given priority due to limited space (this is an in-person class). The time commitment is about eight hours. Last time, those taking the class decided to do the whole thing on one Saturday. Other options include but are not limited to two sessions of four hours, or four sessions of two hours. This will be determined by those interested in participating, again with priority to those considering reception.

If you are interested in this or would like more information, please contact Rev. Diane Luther at dm20luther@gmail.com, or call (815) 281-2301

The United Thank Offering (UTO) is a ministry of The Episcopal Church for the mission of the whole church. Through UTO, individuals are invited to embrace and deepen a personal daily spiritual discipline of gratitude, and through this effort, the whole world is joined in gratitude! Remember that every penny given to the United Thank Offering is given away to support innovative mission and ministry in The Episcopal Church. Since our official founding in 1889, UTO has awarded 5,357 grants for a total of $140,625,355.77.

$450,000 in thank offerings has already been collected in time for the first round of COVID-19 grants. The COVID-19 grants combine some historic traditions for UTO, namely sustaining previous grant winners to ensure that vital ministries continue in addition to funding innovative responses to the pandemic. There was over $700,000 applied for in grants this year. The need has been especially great because of the pandemic. To see some of the projects receiving first round grants click UTO:

If the Ascension has led us to faith in a disembodied, removed God who is watching us “from a distance”, we have missed its message. Whatever the disciples actually witnessed that day, the facts of the experience are far less important than the meaning. The Ascension offers us a number of crucial truths that, in this world of injustice and inequality, we desperately need to reclaim. First the fact that Jesus did not die, but was seen to “return” to the Godhead physically is a continuation of the story of incarnation. God does not despise the human body – rather God embraces it, inhabits it, and glorifies it! This means that the needs of the body – for food, clean water, sanitation, shelter, and loving, intimate touch – are all part of the Gospel and are included in God’s gift of salvation. Secondly, the Ascension declares that Jesus is Lord over all. This means that our ultimate allegiance must be to Christ first, and that our lives are called to be a reflection of Christ’s reign in the midst of the other forces. Finally, the Ascension always comes with the promise of the Holy Spirit’s power which tells us that God is not absent but continues to be completely immersed in the world and in the lives of human beings. The gift of the Spirit also assures us of God’s resources, inspiration, and guidance to strengthen and enable us as we seek to live as faithful followers of Christ.

Acts 1:1-11: Jesus promises the Holy Spirit to his disciples. Then he is taken up into heaven, with the assurance of the angels that he will return.

Psalm 47: A celebration of and call to praise the God who is high over all.

Ephesians 1:15-23: Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians that they may know the power of Christ who is over all and fills all.

Luke 24:44-53: Jesus reminds the disciples of how he has fulfilled the Scriptures, then he promises the Holy Spirit, blesses them and is taken up to heaven.

thumbnails and commentary from sacredise.com

Parishioners who attended Steve Barg’s series on the “doctrine of discovery” last fall will be especially interested in the virtual discussion of Robin Wall Kimmerer’s Braiding Sweetgrass on Thursday, May 20 from 3:00 to 5:00pm. This book was mentioned as a source for those who want to know more about Native American spirituality as well as environmental issues. Kimmerer is herself Native American and also a trained scientist (SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor of Environmental Biology).

Books are available at River Lights Bookstore (local vs. the evil Amazon empire!). Even if you are unable to get a copy, the discussion will be helpful in giving you a sense of the book.

WEDNESDAY MORNING STUDY GROUP 10:30am on Wednesdays

Contact Greg Serwich (gserwich@gmail.com) for a Zoom invitation.

MEDITATIVE PRAYER 9:00am on Fridays

ZOOM POETRY GROUP 2:00pm on Mondays

A Zoom Poetry meeting from Grace Church has been organized and meets online on Mondays at 2:00pm. This is not specifically a Grace ministry, but a number of Grace members and friends are part of it If you are interested, write Carol Poston at poston@sxu.edu

Wednesday Episcopal service of Holy Eucharist: The Rev Dr Gloria Hopewell, Presider; The Rev Diane Luther, Deacon; Lynn Giles, Lector and Zoom Host.

Easter 6 5/9/2021: The Rev Dr Gloria Hopewell, Presider; The Rev Diane Luther, Deacon; Donna Davis, Intercessor; Lynn Giles, Lector and Zoom Host; Robin French, Music Director.

Easter 5 5/2/2021: The Rev Dr Gloria Hopewell, Presider; The Rev Diane Luther, Deacon; Bill Foltz, Intercessor; Terri Jackman, Lector; Robin French, Music Director; Nancy Cook, Erben Organist; Lynn Giles, Zoom Host.

Lynn Giles, Senior Warden

Richard Luther, Jr. Warden

Richard Luther, Treasurer

Crystal Mason, Clerk

The Rev. Dr. Gloria Hopewell, Rector

The Rev. Dr. Gloria Hopewell, Rector

The Rev. Linda Packard, Priest Associate

The Rev. Diane Luther, Deacon

Nancy Kenney, Parish Administrator

Robin French, Music Director

Nancy Cook, Erben Organist