'Still Doubting' by John Granville Gregory 2010
Bangor Cathedral, North Wales, England
Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe." Thomas answered him, "My Lord and my God!" Jesus said to him, "Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe." John 20:27-29
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Celebrate Our Worship
Physically distant, but connected together online!
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Sunday Service broadcast live at 9:00 am on YouTube click here.
Rebroadcast on local TV: Channel 8 in Newburyport Tuesday at 9:00 am,
Thursday at 9:00 am, and Sunday at 10:30 am; Channel 9 in Newbury, and Channel 18 in Salisbury on Wednesday at 9:00 am. Note: On a Monday holiday the Tuesday at 9:00 am service will be the previous week.
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Let us know if you have trouble accessing the service or our YouTube channel. We can help! Call the office at 978-465-5351
For this Sunday’s Bulletin, please click HERE
If you have prayer requests, please let us know HERE
Call 1-646-558-8656 for phone access, enter the meeting ID, and press #
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Dear St. Paul's Community,
We are now in the Easter season, and I hope that you were able to join us for our Triduum services this past week. They are all available on our website here if you missed them. It was such a blessing to have so many working hard to provide the fullest expression of our Holy Week liturgies as possible, and I hope you found new ways to relate to these liturgies, new avenues for worship and prayer, and were able to celebrate Christ's cross and resurrection anew even as we were not able to gather at church. If you missed the video explanation of the meaning of the Triduum liturgies and how they bring us into the experience of Easter with Christ, you can see that here. |
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Easter is, of course, not just one day but a fifty-day celebration leading to Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit came upon the apostles and people and the life and mission of the Church began. This Sunday we will hear the story of Christ's appearance to the disciples after his resurrection, and of so-called 'doubting Thomas' who believed by reaching out and touching the wounds of Christ. And throughout the season of Eastertide, we will continue to meet the risen Christ in various ways through the gospel stories.
We are also looking at Spring weather! In the coming weeks look for news of restarting our regular Mass in the Grass services in the back labyrinth area of the churchyard. It was a great joy to celebrate Easter with many of you in the churchyard on Easter Sunday, and I look forward to seeing you again soon.
Wishing you every blessing this Eastertide,
Fr Jarred
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LEARNING, SHARING & SERVICE for OUR CHILDREN & YOUTH:
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Saturday's Online Sunday School is "A Mystery, Peace, and Blessing".
Send me an email to arrange to receive Bibles, hymnals, or craft supplies - to share your thoughts and ideas - or just to say hi! - Linda
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St Paul's Anti-Racist Awareness (SPARA) book club news:
our book club is returning in mid-April. We've finished Just Mercy, by Bryan Stevenson (the Community Read of Newburyport High School), and This Book is Anti-Racist, by Tiffany Jewell.
Your input is appreciated: what would you like to read next? Email Linda!
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Be sure to check out St. Paul's New Website!
We hope this website isn't just a place for information but a point of connection, discovery, and renewal. Have a look through our spiritual formation resources, theological teaching, ways that people can connect with us and learn more about who we are, as well as any practical information you might need. More to come. It's a work in progress (just as we are!).
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"Learning to Pray." Series - Video and discussion series
Each week Fr Jarred will release a video discussing a form of prayer - some of which we will be familiar with, and some may be less so - to help us go deeper into a life of prayer (if you lack internet access to view the videos, we can provide the script in text. Contact the office.). After watching the video and trying the form of prayer at home, you are invited to come together on Wednesdays evenings at 7 pm to discuss prayer, what we've learned, or how we've grown or been impacted by the particular practice of prayer. See all the videos in the series on our website here.
The next scheduled Learning to Pray session will be on Wednesday, April 14th at 7:00 pm. Check your email for the video and discussion link. We hope you will join us in our discussion and experience with prayer.
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We have an extra spring in our steps at Among Friends. Not only because of the Spring weather that we are enjoying but also because of the new additions to our kitchen. We are very excited as we have finally received the new kitchen appliances we were awarded by the Food infrastructure Grant through Governor Bakers office. We now have a beautiful new stove and refrigerator in our kitchen as well as additional equipment we were able to purchase. These welcomed additions will make it easier to do the work we are committed to continuing.
Among Friends continues to provide roughly 225 meals each week to our neighbors in Newburyport and surrounding communities. We are very grateful for the outpouring of financial support we have received especially from the St. Paul ‘s congregation. A year ago, we added deliveries of our meals. We stopped serving a sit down meal and changed to a take out model. We increased the number of meals served by 100%. Our food costs not only rose dramatically but the take out containers needed to distribute the meals come at a significant cost. This financial support has enabled us to not miss a beat during the transition to take out only type meals. It has truly been a blessing to have been able to continue to do our work.
Many of our volunteers were able to receive their first COVID vaccines when food service and pantry workers became eligible on March 22. We have been able to continue to serve our meals throughout this past year due to the flexibility of our volunteers and their willingness to step in when people needed to quarantine or needed a substitute for any reason. Our volunteers have been so generous with their time and talents and it is such a blessing to work with such committed people with unbelievably positive attitudes during this most stressful of times.
We are planning our volunteer schedules for May, June, July, and August. We could use a few more hands to help with delivery of our meals and/or to volunteer in the kitchen helping to package up meals to distribute. Delivery volunteers spend about an hour on average twice a month. You would need to arrive at the church at 5:00 on Mondays or 11:00 on Tuesday or Fridays. Kitchen volunteers help approximately 4 hours once or twice a month. Please call me at 508-397-8873 if you would like to help.
Thanks for your continuing support
Bonnie Schultz/ Managing Director
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Pastoral Care Team
If you know someone who would appreciate a phone call during this pandemic or needs services, please call St. Paul’s Office to let the Pastoral Team know. We will happily add their name to the list of people we call regularly and reach out to them.
Nancy Jukins/Chairperson
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Voucher Program
Please let us know if you or anyone you know are in need of help with food, medications, medical expenses and other needs. Call the office at 978-465-5351. All calls are confidential. Deb Hay/Administrator
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Prayer List
If you have would like to add someone to our ongoing Sunday worship prayer list, please email the office at stpauls@stpauls-nbpt.org or call 978-465-5351.
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We Welcome Your Pledges
Pledges can be paid by mail, on our new website at stpaulsnewburyport.org/give, or QR code. Don't forget donations can be paid tax-free directly from your IRA account as a Qualified Charitable Donation. Thank you in advance. |
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Last week we mentioned Saint John of the Cross, the inspiration for Salvador Dali's painting 'Christ of Saint John of the Cross', our Easter art at the top of the newsletter. John of the Cross, born Juan de Yepes y Álvarez (June 24, 1542 – Dec. 14, 1591), is venerated as a Saint. He was a Spanish Roman Catholic priest, mystic, and a Carmelite friar, a mystic of converso origin, a descendent of Jews who converted to Catholicism in Spain or Portugal. He is a major figure of the Counter-Reformation in Spain. You can read about his life here and here
John of the Cross is known especially for his writings. He is considered one of the foremost poets of the Spanish language. He was mentored by and corresponded with the older Carmelite, Teresa of Ávila. Both his poetry and his studies on the development of the soul are considered the summit of mystical Spanish literature and among the greatest works of all Spanish literature. He was canonized by Pope Benedict XIII in 1726. In 1926 he was declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope Pius XI and is commonly known as the "Mystical Doctor."
"Dark Night of the Soul" is considered one of the most famous Spanish poems. It narrates the journey of the soul to the mystical union with God.
Dark Night of the Soul
One dark night,
fired with love’s urgent longings
— ah, the sheer grace! —
I went out unseen,
my house being now all stilled.
In darkness, and secure,
by the secret ladder, disguised,
— ah, the sheer grace! —
in darkness and concealment,
my house being now all stilled.
On that glad night,
in secret, for no one saw me,
nor did I look at anything,
with no other light or guide
than the one that burned in my heart.
This guided me
more surely than the light of noon
to where he was awaiting me
— him I knew so well —
there in a place where no one appeared.
O guiding night!
O night more lovely than the dawn!
O night that has united
the Lover with his beloved,
transforming the beloved in her Lover.
Upon my flowering breast
which I kept wholly for him alone,
there he lay sleeping,
and I caressing him
there in a breeze from the fanning cedars.
When the breeze blew from the turret,
as I parted his hair,
it wounded my neck
with its gentle hand,
suspending all my senses.
I abandoned and forgot myself,
laying my face on my Beloved;
all things ceased; I went out from myself,
leaving my cares
forgotten among the lilies.
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We hope you enjoy reading our weekly newsletter which covers the current news of our parish life. If you have questions or news you would like us to include, contact Administrator Deb Hay at 978-465-5351 or stpauls@stpauls-nbpt.org.
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St. Paul's Episcopal Church | 166 High Street
Newburyport, Massachusetts 01950 | 978-465-5351
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