The

Gregorian

Chant

From Joan Chittister’s Illuminated Life: Monastic Wisdom for Seekers of Light

“Abba Sisoes said: ‘Seek God, and not where God lives.’ We live and breathe, grow and develop in the womb of God. And yet we seek God elsewhere—in defined places, in special ways, on mountaintops and in caves, on specific days and with special ceremonies. But the life that is full of light knows that God is not over there, God is here. And for the taking. The only question is how.”

As I read Joan Chittister’s words, I’m both comforted and confounded. It’s comforting to know that I’m absolutely surrounded…that there is nowhere that God is not. And I’m confounded, not only by the ‘how’ of ‘taking’ a life with God, but the part of that ‘how’ which involves ‘when.’ Most of our days are crammed full…if not by tasks of providing for ourselves and others, then by concerns for and caretaking of those in our lives who are sick, or small, or stubbornly stuck in bad choices. There are times I think of that womb-like time with God as the time I have set aside to pray, to journal, to seek spiritual counsel. (I also occasionally like to think of it as taking time for napping! Yippee!)

And then my Episcopal tool kit kicks in…and I remember, what Joan and the Abbas and Ammas are really talking about, which is both/and. God, Who is Love everywhere and at all times, and in all tasks, and in each choice to do love, to do justice, to restore dignity…is in my set aside times and my-busy-as-all-get-out times. When work assignments are overdue, and calls and emails haven’t been returned, God is there. When I am able to take time to retreat, to have therapy, meet with my clergy group, God is there. When I am the good Mom with plenty of time for my eleven year old, or the mediocre to barely present Mom, who is traveling, writing, and in meeting after meeting, God is there. Maybe the job insofar as spiritual growth, is not to try desperately to always ‘be on top of things’ with a perfect schedule that ALWAYS has huge amounts of time for the special times of spiritual disciplines. Maybe the job is simply to BE with God, every minute of everyday, no matter how well or how poorly that ‘to do’ list gets followed, plans work out, or ‘set aside’ time happens. God is here…always, holding our hands.

Blessings,

Mother Nikki+

A message from Stacie Court of the Capital Improvements Campaign Committee; Stacie is a co-chair of the Campaign.

Over the past five months, many of you have filled out the survey found in the Narthex. I’d like to give you the results of those surveys.

We’ve had 75 responses to the survey, ranking the various projects from 1 (low importance) to 3 (high importance). The ranking of the various items went as follows, with more points meaning the item was a higher priority.

The project with the highest number of votes was the Capital Reserve Fund, which garnered 173 points.

Next was the Playground, at 157.5 points.

Tied for third place were the Parish Hall/Admin Building Floor Replacement and the Organ Replacement, each with 138 points.

Finally, the Labyrinth came in at 96.5 points.

There were various write-ins ranging from new robes for the acolytes to connecting two of the buildings; the write-ins with the most points were related to Grounds Maintenance and totaled 15 points. If you want to know more about the voting on the write-ins, please feel free to reach out to me for more detail.

We want you to know that the Vestry is taking your responses to the survey very seriously, and is looking at the best way to fulfill your preferences. Of course, we need to have your pledged commitments to the Capital Improvements Campaign to make any of these projects happen. Since those making commitments have nearly five years to fulfill their pledges, we do not expect to start on any of the projects this year. However, if any of you feel compelled to make a large enough commitment and pay it all up front, we’ll get started as soon as your check clears!

All kidding aside (sort of), one of the things we often discuss in the Vestry meetings is how and why we all came to St. Gregory. Most of us are here because of you. You are what makes this a very special parish, and makes us want to stay. I know that is definitely true for me. When I first came to St. Gregory, we didn’t even have an interim rector yet, and things were a little crazy sometimes. But, I watched everyone come together and work as a team to keep the parish going…and it not only continued, but our parish thrived under your leadership and teamwork. I am proud to be a part of this parish, and am grateful for the opportunities I have to serve and thank you all for this beautiful, welcoming home you have built.

All of us on the Committee would like to thank you for your time and will be glad to help answer any questions you may have about the choices and the selection process. In the meantime, please feel free to read through the materials in the Campaign Brochure which can be found in the Narthex and on our parish website. In addition, there are information boards about the various projects in the Parish Hall.

CEILIDH FOLK SERVICE - TONIGHT!

Beginning on Friday, April 19, St Gregory's will be offering a monthly Ceilidh service (pronounced kay-lee). Based on a Gaelic tradition of celebrating community and hospitality, a folk liturgy complete with live folk music and a meal will be offered in the Christian Education building at 6:30PM. Foot washing and hand anointing will also be available at these services for anyone who wants to take part. Any musicians that are interested in helping to provide the music for these services, as well as anyone with questions about the service, are encouraged to reach out to Wade McGlamery.

YOUNG DESIGNERS FASHION SHOW

Call to fellow Gregorians! On Saturday, 4/20 at 3PM, St. Gregory's will host the fashion show for the Young Designers Sewing Program. We did this last year and it was a huge success due to the generous help from our congregation. The Young Designers Sewing Program is a sewing program for girls from Gainesville Elementary School, Hillsman Middle School, and Cedar Shoals High School. The girls who participate in the program learn to sew, design patterns and fabrics in a variety of techniques, and much, much more. The program encourages leadership, life and work skills, and travel experiences. Maggie Reinberger and I are regular volunteers with this group.The girls have been working hard on their garments, and have included a number of surface design techniques such as Shibori, ice dyeing, kaleidoscope designs, and 3D printing.

The fashion show at St. Gregory will welcome the family members and friends of the girls as well as our congregation to see what the girls have made and where they are going next. Last year we had about 90 people for the show and I anticipate that we will have that many again this time. We will need volunteers to help with refreshments, setting up chairs, decorating, putting away chairs, and greeting visitors. The event is free, donations are happily accepted. If you can't make this event, they have another fashion show on 4/28 at the Athens Country Club which is the major fundraiser of the season. 

If you can help with any part of this worthy event, please contact me, Jenifer Borg or 706-614-4895. Everyone is welcome!

New sign-up sheet for the rest of 2024! We are currently seeking volunteers to work at the Athens Area Emergency FoodBank, 640 Barber St. on 3rd Mondays from 9AM-1PM. 2-3 volunteers are needed each month. A signup sheet is in the narthex.

Is there anyone that lives near The Orchard (2750 Atlanta Hwy) who would be willing to take a parishioner to and/or home from church once or twice a month? Please call or text Tammy Bowman: 706-296-8876.

Adult Sunday School

Adult Discussion Group: (Parish Hall) The Adult Spiritual Formation Sunday morning Bible Study meets at 9:15AM in the Parish Hall. We are currently discussing the Gospel of Mark led by Wayne Coppins. Please join us! 

Lectionary Class: (Library) The lectionary class meets in the Library at 9:15AM. We study the assigned readings for each Sunday. Please contact Les House at 478-733-2939 or via email if you have any questions. 

Children’s Sunday School continues for children in grades K-5/6 beginning at 9:15 with a gathering time in the Children’s Chapel located on the ground floor of the education building. We go to the upstairs classrooms at 9:30 and hold our program until roughly 10:20. It would be great if parents could drop off children and pick them up again when the group time is over. That would help keep our youngsters safer!

Children’s Chapel/Church starts with families gathering in the Sanctuary at the 10:30 service for opening announcements, music, and prayers. The children then adjourn to the Children’s Chapel for their own worship time, including their lighting candles, having a short and usually interactive lesson, saying a doxology, singing, and saying the prayers of our young people. Children return to the Sanctuary during the peace, so that they can join their families for communion. Children of all ages are welcome to attend the children’s service time.

earth stewards



recipients

of god’s great gift

our energies

must quickly shift

this fragile home

is under threat

our atmosphere

is now beset

by climate change

with great extremes

that risk an end

to all our dreams

for the safety

of creation

and each future

generation

alice mohor

Instructions for Live Streaming

• Just go to the St. Gregory the Great Episcopal Church YouTube Homepage

• Near the time for service, underneath our channel logo, you will see our video for that day, with the word ‘live’ on it. The page will look like this:

• If you don’t immediately see the video that says ‘live’, (for instance, if you opened YouTube before the service begins) keep refreshing it.  

• When you see the video square that says ‘live’, click on it. 

Welcome to worship!