“This is the bread that came down from heaven." John 6: 51-58
Weekly parish news and Sunday service information
Fr. Ben Hankinson, Rector
Celebrant for all services.

In light of recent CDC updates, we strongly encourage everyone, including those who are fully vaccinated, to wear masks when attending church. We pray that through compassionate fidelity to the common good, we will see the present surge subside.

The Almighty Lord, who is a strong tower to all who put their trust in him, to whom all things in heaven, on earth, and under the earth bow and obey: Be now and evermore our defense, and make us know and feel that the only Name under heaven given for health and salvation is the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

August 8, Eleventh Sunday After Pentecost
Holy Eucharist | Rite I, 8 a.m. | Rite II 10 a.m. (Sung)

In-person attendance for up to 75 worshippers | Masks required.
Facebook Live at 10 a.m.
Coffee hour on the church lawn following the 10 a.m. service.
Readings for Sunday, August 15

  • Lesson - Proverbs 9:1-6
  • Psalm 34:9-14
  • Epistle - Ephesians 5:15-20
  • Gospel - John 6:51-58

Gospel text: Jesus said, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” So Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life, and I will raise them up on the last day; for my flesh is true food and my blood is true drink.

Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them. Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever eats me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like that which your ancestors ate, and they died. But the one who eats this bread will live forever.”
Make Your Offering!
Mail: Send your check to St. Andrew's Treasurer, at 406 Hillsboro Avenue, Edwardsville 62025.
The Week of August 15
  • Evening Prayer, 5:30 p.m., Sunday, via Facebook Live
  • St. Mary the Virgin, Holy Eucharist, Monday, 5:30 p.m.
  • Evening Prayer, 5:30 p.m., Wednesday, via Facebook Live
  • Study class #3 with Fr. Ben, Wednesday, Aug. 18, 6 p.m.
  • Vestry meeting, Thursday, 6:30 p.m. in Pearson Hall.

Looking Ahead
  • Study class with Fr. Ben, continues Wednesday, Aug. 25, 6 p.m.
  • Church School and Choir return Sunday, September 5, 10 a.m.
  • Parish Picnic at Township Park, Sunday, September 19, after church



Blessing of the School Year
 
Are you or is someone in your family a student or teacher, whether from pre-K all the way to postgraduates? If so, then we invite you to bring your backpacks, book bags, briefcases, etc. with you to church on Sunday as we bless you, them, and the semesters ahead.
 
The school year is a busy time, and as we get started, we pause to celebrate God's gifts to us with respect to who we are and what we have. We give him thanks and pray that we may use all of his gifts to his honor and glory as we ask God to be with us from the beginning so that we may continue to know him in the middle and through till the end.
 
In the blessing of that which is ordinary for the work of God, we are reminded of the Incarnation, wherein the Son of God came among us as one of us. The Word of God took human flesh to dwell with us, and we recall how something like the cross can be transformed by God into the most beautiful symbol of mercy, hope, grace, faith, and love.
 
This Sunday we bless our things, our time, and our labors to the purposes of God in the school year ahead. In these blessings, as in our regular return to the Lord and our worship of him, we find God renewing his creation, sanctifying the time in our lives, and ever drawing us near to himself even as he first drew near to us in Jesus Christ our Lord.
 
Coffee Hour: Alfresco
 
In an effort to provide ongoing times of fellowship while being cognizant of the present circumstances, we are opting to move coffee hour back outside for a time, weather permitting. We encourage bringing a lawn chair from home because while you’re welcome to use one of the church’s, the indoor ones aren’t great on the grass and our outdoor ones are limited. Food and drinks may continue to be set up in Pearson Hall for ease of prep and cleanup.
 
So, join us for coffee hour al fresco following the 10 a.m. service this Sunday. We hope to see you out on the lawn!
Back to School Blessings (See above.)
Bring your backpack, book bag, or briefcase to church this Sunday to receive a blessing as the new year begins. We will remember our children and teachers in our prayers and ask that they experience a fulfilling year.
Episcopal News Service
Dioceses Call for Masks, Vaccinations,
Amid COVID-19 surges

[August 11] Episcopal dioceses and congregations are responding to the recent surge in COVID-19 cases across the United States, especially in Southern states with low vaccination rates, by implementing new face mask requirements at worship services and promoting vaccination campaigns.

In Louisiana, one of the states hit hardest by the coronavirus’ fast-spreading delta variant, the New Orleans-based Diocese of Louisiana started requiring worshippers to wear masks this week, partly in response to the indoor mask mandate reinstated by the governor. The state is now averaging more than 5,500 new COVID-19 cases a day, which is more than at any other time during the pandemic, according to data tracked by the New York Times.

“I have heard and read where some individuals have raised their objections to wearing masks indoors. This is disheartening,” Louisiana Bishop Morris Thompson said in an Aug. 4 message to the diocese. “The primary reason for wearing masks is to protect others. Choosing not to wear masks speaks to the absence of love for our neighbor.”

Florida is another state seeing a record number of new cases, now averaging 20,000 a day. As in Louisiana, Florida’s surge is overwhelming hospitals and driving up the number of fatalities. As of Aug. 10, an average of 141 Floridians were dying from COVID-19 each day, a number that has risen exponentially this week.

“We are in a COVID apocalypse right now,” a hospital official in Fairhope, Alabama, recently told Central Gulf Coast, Bishop Russell Kendrick, according to Kendrick’s Aug. 10 message to the diocese, which encompasses the southern half of Alabama and the western end of the Florida Panhandle.

Click here to continue.
Join Fr. Ben for the Wednesday Study Class!
  • Class starts at 6 p.m., following Evening Prayer.
  • Attend in person or via Zoom.
  • Information from class #2 is available on Facebook now.
  • An audio recording of the second class is also available.
  • Links to catch up or join this week's class are below.
St. Andrew's Communications
Communications Coordinator and Newsletter Editor-in-Chief, Marian Smithson
Newsletter Editor, Jane Weingartner | Newsletter Editor, Marianne Cavanaugh