May 18, 2022
Message from Rev. Paula
Beloved Community,

I spent this past weekend in Massachusetts celebrating Kathleen's graduation from Smith College. As I spent that time with family (We missed Sean, who is living in China), I thought a lot about the passage of time and life's transitions. Though I know and I see the teenage girl we dropped off for her first semester in August of 2018 (The weekend I accepted the call to serve here with all of you), there are ways - exciting ways - in which the young woman we celebrated this weekend is so very different. As the commencement speakers reminded us, the class of 2022 has had a college experience unlike any other. They were challenged in ways nothing in their lives had prepared them to navigate. And yet the 600 or so young women who graduated Sunday learned to adapt and persist in ways that will serve them well all of their lives.

Their experience as college students is not unlike our experience as people of faith seeking to live that faith together here at St. Stephen's. When I arrived at the end of November 2018, none of us could have anticipated what the years since would be like. I thought about that on Sunday as I listened to the Commencement Speaker, author and education Beverly Daniel Tatum. In her address she quoted a pastor friend who told her that "F-E-A-R—stands for 'False Evidence Appearing Real.'" She encouraged them to replace fear with hope. And what does HOPE stand for? She said it stands for “Having Optimism Produces Effort.”

Since March of 2020, togther we have done our best to replace fear with hope, which is a discipline you were already familiar with from your time in search for a new rector. It's a way of being, of living one's faith, that has persisted through all the trials and tribulations of the now endemic pandemic and the flood. I think we are able to do this in part because, in that way that can be so hard to articulate to others who don't share our faith, we know there is something to be hopeful about.

I though about that earlier today when I read a poem by a new-to-me poet, Christine Valters Paintner. The poem is called "Always." I share it with you now.

It is always dawn somewhere
on this forever turning earth
eyes just now opening.

It is always midday someplace,
sun at its peak,
all of life illuminated.

It is always dusk somewhere,
sweet leaving of day,
asking us to embrace the end.

It is always midnight someplace,
ten thousand dreams
erupting into the darkness.

May the dreams we have for our beloved St. Stephen's shine through the darkness to illuminate the path ahead of us.

Peace & Blessings,
Paula+
Covid Protocols for Common Worship - UPDATED
CovidActNow, the website we use to determine our Covid practices, has been updated to reflect the current CDC guidelines. As long as Essex County has a low/green level of community risk and children under age five cannot be vaccinated, these guidelines will remain in effect.

  • Congregational singing is approved with reasonable precautions.

  • We have suspended the Common Cup because of the change in our Community Risk Level to medium. We will bring it back when the risk level returns to "low."

  • The 8:00 service is back! This is a masks optional, spoken service. Rev. Paula will be masked during the Eucharistic Prayer and distribution of Communion.

  • The 10:00am service, which is our principal service will remain masks required for the time being. We will sing, which continues to be a high-risk activity indoors and unmasked. Rev. Paula will be masked except when preaching. The Vestry will review this decision periodically.

  • For small groups, masks will be optional if everyone at the table agrees.

  • We no longer take temperatures, but we continue to ask for contact tracing information.
Happening at St. Stephen's This Week...

Welcome!

It's wonderful to be with each other in church and celebrate the Holy Eucharist with congregational singing.

Live-streamed to YouTube, Facebook, and via Zoom. Bulletins are available on the St. Stephen's website. All links can be found at the bottom of the newsletter.

Zoom passcode is SSM119.

The Sunday service will also be broadcast on HTTV (Comcast TV 36 and Verizon TV 33) on Tuesday at 6am and 3pm.
Please join us for our Sixth Sunday of Easter Service
on Sunday, May 22nd at 8:00am and 10:00am.

ALL are welcome!
Looking Ahead
PLEASE CHECK WEEKLY BECAUSE EVENTS MAY BE ADDED OR CHANGED.
MAY

MAY 18
7:30pm - Finance Committee Meeting

MAY 19
7pm - Preschool Committee Meeting

MAY 22
8am - Sunday Worship
10am - Sunday Worship
1pm - AA Meeting

MAY 23
7:30pm - MA Meeting

MAY 24
5pm - Women's Lectionary Study

MAY 29
8am - Sunday Worship
10am - Sunday Worship
11:30am - Vestry Meeting
1pm - AA Meeting

MAY 30
Memorial Day
7:30pm - MA Meeting

MAY 31
5pm - Women's Lectionary Study
JUNE

JUN 3
9am - Interfaith Bible Hour

JUN 4
8:30am-4:30pm
Gardening Day at
St. Stephen's

JUN 5
Day of Pentecost
Watts Baptism
8am - Sunday Worship
10am - Sunday Worship
11am - Coffee Hour
1pm - AA Meeting

JUN 6
7:30pm - MA Meeting

JUN 7
5pm - Women's Lectionary Study

JUN 12
8am - Sunday Worship
10am - Sunday Worship
11pm - North Jersey PRIDE Festival
1pm - AA Meeting

JUN 13
7:30pm - MA Meeting

JUN 14
5pm - Women's Lectionary Study

JUN 15
7:30pm - Finance Committee Meeting

JUN 16
7pm - Preschool Committee Meeting

JUN 19
Communion for All
8am - Sunday Worship
10am - Sunday Worship
11:30am - Vestry Meeting
1pm - AA Meeting

JUN 20
7:30pm - MA Meeting

JUN 21
5pm - Women's Lectionary Study

JUN 26
8am - Sunday Worship
10am - Sunday Worship
11:30am - Reading with the Rector
1pm - AA Meeting

JUN 27
7:30pm - MA Meeting

JUN 28
5pm - Women's Lectionary Study
JULY

JUL 1
9am - Interfaith Bible Hour

JUL 3
8am - Sunday Worship
10am - Sunday Worship
1pm - AA Meeting

JUL 4
Independence Day
7:30pm - MA Meeting

JUL 5
5pm - Women's Lectionary Study

JUL 10
8am - Sunday Worship
10am - Sunday Worship
1pm - AA Meeting

JUL 11
7:30pm - MA Meeting

JUL 12
5pm - Women's Lectionary Study

JUL 17
Communion for All
8am - Sunday Worship
10am - Sunday Worship
11:30am - Vestry Meeting
1pm - AA Meeting

JUL 18
7:30pm - MA Meeting

JUL 19
5pm - Women's Lectionary Study

JUL 20
7:30pm - Finance Committee Meeting

JUL 21
7pm - Preschool Committee Meeting

JUL 24
8am - Sunday Worship
10am - Sunday Worship
1pm - AA Meeting

JUL 25
7:30pm - MA Meeting

JUL 26
5pm - Women's Lectionary Study

JUL 31
8am - Sunday Worship
10am - Sunday Worship
1pm - AA Meeting
Other Happenings...
Join us in showing our love for this little piece of God's creation. Bring a shovel, a rake, or both, and a pair of gardening gloves. Come for the whole day or just an hour or two. We'll be spreading 12 yards of mulch to replace what Hurricane Ida washed away, and, while we're at it, beautifying our garden beds.

There may or may not be some weeding to do, too. That depends on how much we get done before then.

We may also be working on the Good News Garden. More to come about that...

Oh, yeah! We'll provide a light lunch for those who are here at that time, as well as snacks and drinks all day.
Looking for an excuse to golf?

Look no further than here. Not only will you have lots of fun, you'll be helping a wonderful ministry. And who knows? You may even have a sighting of a certain non-golfing priest who will be doing her best (though what that is has yet to be decided) to ensure that you and the other golfers have a great day.
HARMONIUM CHORAL SOCIETY
OPEN HEARTS WEEKEND
June 3rd - 5th

A weekend of music, love, and acceptance.

Harmonium Choral Society invites you to join us for an extraordinary weekend to enjoy an uplifting musical celebration and help raise funds to support our nonprofit mission to inspire and transform our community through music.

You can be a part of this exciting event by becoming a sponsor, donor or volunteer.

To learn more, click here.
NORTH JERSEY PRIDE FESTIVAL
June 12, 12:00 to 6:00pm

Memorial Park Amphitheatre
580 Valley Street
Maplewood

Join us at the festival, stop by our booth, take a giveaway or two, and help represent St. Stephen's,
The Church on Main Street where love begets love!

For more info, click here.
READING WITH THE RECTOR

Sunday, June 26
11:30am - 1:00pm

We will meet in the Common Room,
or you may join via Zoom.
Next month we will be discussing:

The Book of Essie, Meghan Maclean Weir

Esther Ann Hicks--Essie--is the youngest child on Six for Hicks, a reality television phenomenon. She's grown up in the spotlight, both idolized and despised for her family's fire-and-brimstone brand of faith. When Essie's mother, Celia, discovers that Essie is pregnant, she arranges an emergency meeting with the show's producers: Do they sneak Essie out of the country for an abortion? Do they pass the child off as Celia's? Or do they try to arrange a marriage--and a ratings-blockbuster wedding? Meanwhile, Essie is quietly pairing herself up with Roarke Richards, a senior at her school with a secret of his own to protect. As the newly formed couple attempt to sell their fabricated love story to the media--through exclusive interviews with an infamously conservative reporter named Liberty Bell--Essie finds she has questions of her own: What was the real reason for her older sister leaving home? Who can she trust with the truth about her family? And how much is she willing to sacrifice to win her own freedom?
AA/MA MEETINGS

Weekly AA meetings:

Sunday at 1:00pm
Contact: Rob H. (516) 860-9062

For more information about
Alcohol Anonymous, click here.

Weekly MA meeting:

Monday at 7:30pm
Contact: Max T. (212) 203-2542
Contact: Deana L. (908) 499-8997

MA meetings are presented in a rotating format -- Step, Speaker, Story from Life with Hope, Topic.

For more information about
Marijuana Anonymous, click here.
Faithful Outreach
FAMILY PROMISE OF ESSEX COUNTY

Family Promise is seeking volunteers for a new stabilization initiative – Circles Essex. FPE has partnered with Circles USA to launch Circles Essex, the first chapter of the organization in New Jersey. Circles USA offers a unique relationship-focused strategy based on over twenty years of research that engages the entire community to move from a focus on the management of poverty to a collaborative ownership of the solution. Circles Essex’s mission is to reduce poverty throughout Essex County and to remove barriers that keep people in poverty. We will do this by building bridges of friendship across income lines and community that support individuals and families on their journey out of poverty; from surviving to thriving. Many who are experiencing poverty are hardworking and motivated so when a circle of support forms around them, advice is offered, contacts are shared, and the fears that keep people in poverty begin to disappear. 

There are various volunteer opportunities available to support Circles participants (short term/long term). Visit https://www.fpessexnj.org/circles-essex/ to learn more about the Circles Essex program and the various ways you can be a part of building community to end poverty in Essex County or contact Melissa Perales, Circles Coordinator, at melissa@fpessexnj.org.
APOSTLES' HOUSE
Apostles' House is devoted to providing comprehensive social services to homeless women with children and families at risk of homelessness in Newark and
Essex County.

Apostles' House is in need of canned goods and non-perishable food items.

A collection bin is located outside
the Narthex doors in the parking lot. Donations can be dropped off at any time.
If you would like to make a monetary donation to Apostles' House, please click here.
NORTH PORCH
North Porch provides emergency aid, in the form of baby supplies, to mothers and infants in northern New Jersey, to help them stabilize and improve the quality of their lives.

North Porch URGENTLY needs:

  • Enfamil Infant Formula 12.5 oz containers (yellow label)
  • Baby wipes
  • Diapers size 4, 5, and 6
  • Jars of baby food – all ages – fruit, veggie and 1st foods

A collection bin is located outside
the Narthex doors in the parking lot. Donations can be dropped off at any time.
If you would like to make a monetary donation to North Porch, please click here.
From Bishop Hughes & The Episcopal Church
 
Sometimes we get so caught up with our own needs being met at church that we forget that we're part of something bigger, says Bishop Hughes. And when we gather like we did at Convention this past Saturday, we remember that we are part of something bigger: God's work.

NEW: The VOICE Online Link - 5/11/22

DIOCESAN E-NEWSLETTERS
Sign up to get e-newsletters and important announcements directly from diocesan headquarters. Find out more and subscribe here.
TRINITY RETREAT CENTER

Trinity Retreat Center is an Episcopal mission of Trinity Church Wall Street. The Retreat Center offers in-person and online retreats and is open to everyone, regardless of denomination or faith.

Memorial Day Weekend Rest & Renewal In-Person Retreat
May 27–30, 2022

“Come away and rest awhile,” Jesus said to his disciples when they were exhausted and overwhelmed by the pace of work and ministry. This weekend offers a lightly structured time to retreat from daily obligations and engage a deepening awareness of our relationships—with ourselves, those around us, the divine, and all of creation. Finding peace and joy at the center is what this weekend is all about, through silence, nature, shared meals, common worship, guided meditation, and lots of time to be.

To learn more & register, click here.
Cross Roads Camp & Diocesan Youth Ministries
OPENING DAY AT CROSS ROADS

Saturday, May 21
9:00am - 3:00pm

This fun work-day event is open to youth, families, and congregations. Come and volunteer for the day to help get camp ready for the summer season! The day will include begin at 9 am with a light breakfast followed by projects for all skill levels, a lunch, and a closing outdoor worship. It is a great opportunity for high-school students looking for volunteer hours, families looking to give back while spending quality time together, or congregations to help support Cross Roads.

Rev. Paula and Ron Toland will be there.
Pease come out to support of Cross Roads and represent St. Stephen's!

More information can be found here.
CROSS ROADS CAMP & RETREAT CENTER

Cross Roads Camp and Retreat Center is a welcoming and inclusive community providing life changing and sacred adventures for renewal, growth, and joy.

Check out all the fun and interesting year-round programs for children, adults and families here.

For employment opportunities at Cross Roads, click here.
POP UP YOUTH MINISTRY

Pop Up is a welcoming ministry of the Diocese of Newark bringing together youth for fun activities, community, and faith formation. All youth grades 6-12 are encouraged
to join the monthly events.

Follow popupym on Instagram and Facebook.
Resources During Covid
There are many, many resources available to parishes and individuals to help sustain our faith practices during this unprecedented time.



In this time of Crisis, there are resources that can help if you or someone you know needs assistance. Please contact NJ Mental Health Cares for free helpline telephone counseling or assistance. Call 866-202-4357.
TTY: 1-877-294-4356.
E-mail: help@njmentalhealthcares.org

Other resources are:
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline
1-800-273-8255
Crisis Text Line, 741741
NJ Hope Line (suicide prevention) 
855-654-6735
Prayer List
Please keep the following St. Stephen's family
members and friends in your prayers...
Peggy Thompson
Donna Riggi
The Blanchard Family
The McManus Family
Bernard & Nathan
Lucille B.
Jack Moreno
Joseph G.
Jane Rossiter
Ningyu Liu & Family
Mike Losito
Evan D. & Family
Donna Stadler Hostetler
Liliane Khouri
Drew
Shirley
Theresa Scharff
Virginia Whatley
Lance Hochmuth
Nicole Salvetti
Marianne Jacobs & Family
Ed Roman
Emma Simonich
Scott Landers
Inge Bass Mills
Agi Lowe
Ruth Dorn
Joan Shuss
Shane Tate
If you would like to add someone to our prayer list, please email us at church@ststephensmillburn.org, or call (973) 376-0688 Ext. 32.

Anyone for whom we are praying will be on our prayer list for six weeks. If prayers are still needed beyond that time period, please let us know. Thank you.
Sunday Lectionary
May 22, 2022
Sixth Sunday of Easter


If you'd like to read the full lectionary for the week, you may do so here.
Giving with Tithe.ly
TITHE.LY
Giving with Tithe.ly is easy with options for recurring donations or one-time use for when you are away or not able to be in church (like all of us now due to COVID restrictions).

You can access Tithe.ly via their website or their app on your smart phone. Be sure to search for the correct account - "St. Stephen's Church Millburn." Once you have accessed the account page with our address, you will be instructed to follow the prompts.
Office Notes
Due to COVID restrictions, only teachers and staff are allowed to be in the building during school hours. If you need to visit the parish office/building for any reason, please contact us for an appointment. Thank you.
Important Links
Zoom Links
Links for Sunday Worship Live-Stream & Social Media
Website Links
Other Social Media Links
St. Stephen's Episcopal Church
119 Main Street, Millburn, NJ 07041
Church

Parish Administrator, Maria T. Card
973.376.0688, Ext. 32
church@ststephensmillburn.org

Rector, The Rev. Paula J. Toland
973.376.0688, Ext. 21
rector@ststephensmillburn.org

Fax: 973.376.4002
Website: ststephensmillburn.org

Preschool

Director: Nancy Siracusa
Phone: 973.376.3534, Ext. 20
Email: sspsmillburn@gmail.com