May 29, 2014

 This coming Sunday, the Seventh Sunday of Easter and the Sunday after Ascension Day, we will have ONE service only at 9 am. The Coffee Hour will be hosted by the Vestry. We hope you will join us for worship and fellowship.

Readings for this coming Sunday: Acts 1:6-14, Psalm 68:1-10, 33-36, 1 Peter 4:12-14, 5:6-11, John 17:1-11.

Join us this week on June 4^th for First Wednesdays: Simple soup & salad supper, with reading and conversation. We meet at 5:30 in the Prince Room and close with a brief eucharist, such that we are out by 7 o’clock. Speak to Heidi if you’d like to read or provide food. This is an open monthly gathering, continuing a form that we began during Lent.

Bearcamp School’s Taste of the Valley Food Festival, on Sunday, June 8, 2014 at the new Hobbs Tavern…
We already have 20 people signed up, so we have reserved two tables, but there’s room for more! Our reservations are for the 6 PM seating. Ticket price for our tables: $10 to $20 per person – you decide, based on your ability to pay. (The price per table of ten is $150.)
Enjoy a buffet of delicious appetizers, soups, breads, entrees and desserts from the region's best restaurants, cafes, as well as offerings from local community organizations.  Cash bar. Talk to or email Heidi or Deb in the office soon if you’re interested. Come be Saint Andrew’s as a visible witness in the wider community … and have a great meal and a fun time supporting a truly important local pre-school and child-care center!
 

 MARK YOUR CALENDAR! You won’t want to miss Our Second Annual All-Parish Picnic at White Lake State Park beginning at 10:30 on Sunday, June 22. Once again we have reserved the Pavilion, providing accessible, protected outdoor space to celebrate the Eucharist, enjoy burgers, hotdogs, swimming, and the joyful pleasure of each other’s company. Further detail will forthcoming.
 

 

Sammie Wakefield continues her mission trip with Eleanore’s Project, fitting mobility-impaired children with wheel chairs. She is keeping us posted through daily reports on the Parish Hall bulletin board and you can follow her here: http://www.eleanoresproject.org/blog/blog/ Please keep those children, their parents, Sammie, Tamara, and their team in your prayers.

The Community Food Pantry continues to encourage a new approach to non-food donations. Help stock the shelves with these necessary items that are not covered by Food Stamps. Thanks.  June 1^st: Paper towels. June 8^th: Shampoo/Conditioner.

A Tamworth Bunco Group is being formed by Debra, our office manager and she is looking for new members/players. While not a church-sponsored event, the games will be held at St. Andrew’s Church and the first one is on Wed., June 18^th at 6 pm (for picnic supper and introduction) and seating for game start is promptly at 6:45pm.  This is a “ladies only” night out of food, fun, laughter and meeting new people. The dues for the group meeting once a month will be $6.00, this is used for prizes, refreshments and space use. If you have never played this popular, fun, dice-throwing game, that does not involve betting, don’t worry, it is very easy to learn on your first night! RSVP or questions to Debra in the office, 323-8515.

An open question to this congregation: For many years we have held a Rummage Sale in early September, offering good used clothing at incredibly modest prices. It is a service to the wider community and is particularly appreciated by parents of growing children. Recently, the burden of putting on this even has been shouldered by a very small group of hard-working, faithful people. It brings in about $700 towards our operating expenses. The FUN-Raising Committee is trying to decide the future of this event. What is your opinion? Should we continue? Are you willing to be involved? Should we give it a break for a year or two? Please feel free to express your opinions to Rev. Heidi (frantzdale@gmail.com), Carol Tubman, our Sr. Warden (cctubman@msm.com), or David Manley, committee chair (mitch0207@roadrunner.com). Thanks.

A word on how we manage our Parish Prayer list…
Prayer is “responding to God. By thought and by deeds, with our without words.” [BCP 856] Intercessory prayer involves bringing the needs of others before God; with petition, we present our own needs. In both cases asking that God’s will be done. As people of God it is our privilege and obligation to remember those in need, and it is reasonable and appropriate to ask own our own behalf. While prayer itself is a mystery, over time, praying for others changes the one who is offering the prayer, opening us to greater love and compassion, independent of any effect our prayers have on another!

We welcome your requests to people in need of our prayers. Our basic prayer-list policy is that a name remains on the prayer list for four weeks. A name appears in the Sunday bulletin and will be read aloud during the Prayer of the People. Generally first and last names are listed in print, unless you request first name only (or occasionally for reasons of confidentiality someone is listed only by an initial). Before you offer someone’s name, please ask them if they are willing to have their it listed, rather than just presuming it. It’s quite possible that you may have information that is personal and that needs to be respected, or that the person welcomes prayers but does not want that need made widely public. If it is important that a name remains on the list longer than a month, please tell Debra; if a name is very long-term (such as our home-bound parishioners), it will be put on a three-week rotation. Also, please let Debra know if the person has recovered or died. It they recover, it is wonderful for all of us to be able to offer thanksgiving to God! And if they have died, we will lift them up in the prayers for the departed.

 And keep in mind as well that our worship is enriched by prayers of gratitude! Please don’t hesitate to contact Deb to have special family blessings such as baptisms, weddings, reunions, and graduations included in our prayers of thanksgiving. As Christians, we are people of thanksgiving. I find it interesting that, during the silences in the Prayers of the People, names and situations are often lifted up for those in need, but there is often silence from the congregation when we are invited to offer prayers of gratitude!

See you in church!
Faithfully ours in the Ascended Christ,

Heidi+

May 22, 2014

 

Services for this coming Sunday, The  Sixth Sunday of Easter and Rogation Sunday, will be at 8 am and 10 am. We hope you will join us for worship and fellowship. For more about Rogation Day, see the “Food for Thought” at the bottom of this post.

Readings for this coming Sunday: Acts 17:22-31, Psalm 66:7-18, 1 Peter 3:13-22, John 14:15-21.

If this is Rogation Sunday, can Ascension Day be far behind? The Feast of the Ascension – one of the seven principal feast days of the church year and right up there with Christmas, Epiphany, Easter, and Pentecost – always falls on the Thursday following the Sixth Sunday of Easter. We will be honoring it a day early, this coming Wednesday, May 28, with a special 9 AM service of Holy Eucharist. Join us for this special service.

Saint Andrew’s has been a hub of activity this past week! Clergy of the diocese gathered last Thursday for a workshop on listening, reflective questioning, and trust-building. Our space and our hospitality were much commented on and much appreciated. Special thanks to David Manley for organizing the food, bakers Joan Wright and Val May, and the serving team of Barbara Lord, George Rau, and David.

And last Friday we had the joy of celebrating the marriage of Jennifer Glaws and Marcos Kroupa and welcoming their family and friends. The bride is the great niece of Peggy Cannon and the granddaughter of Peggy’s sister, the late Jeannette Glaws.

 

 Three cheers for George and Brooks, and one strong truck!!! The overgrown shrubs have at long last been removed!  And the lawn is being reseeded. Thanks, Guys!

 

 

 Troop 151 Boy Scout News  from Feb 1, 2014. Troop 151 took 3^rd place in the cooking competition at the Abnaki District Klondike—a one-day event.  That night, the troop was invited to camp with Troop 150 of Conway at the CCC camp.  They also won, for the second time in 7 years, the Honor award for cooperation and organization among themselves.

Sammie Wakefield is now in Peru on her mission trip with Eleanore’s Project, fitting mobility-impaired children with wheel chairs. She is keeping us posted through daily reports on the Parish Hall bulletin board and you can follow her here: http://www.eleanoresproject.org/blog/blog/ Please keep those children, their parents, Sammie, Tamara, and their team in your prayers.

 

HOLD THE DATE! You won’t want to miss Our Second Annual All-Parish Picnic at White Lake State Park scheduled for Sunday, June 22. Once again we plan to reserve the Pavilion, celebrate the Eucharist, enjoy burgers, hotdogs, swimming, and the joyful pleasure of each other’s company. Further detail will forthcoming.

Saint Andrew’s has long supported the Bearcamp Valley School and Children’s Center. On Sunday, June 8, 2014, from 4:30 to 7:30, they will be hosting a fundraising event: the Taste of the Bearcamp Valley Food Festival at the newly opened and widely acclaimed Hobbs Tavern & Brewing Company. Individual tickets are $15, but rates are slightly lower if we reserve a table. This will be the 21st year of this event. Enjoy a buffet of delicious appetizers, soups, breads, entrees and desserts from the region's best restaurants, cafes, as well as offerings from local community organizations.  Cash bar. This event is open to the public. Talk to or email Heidi or Deb in the office soon if you’re interested. Come be Saint Andrew’s as a visible witness in the wider community … and have a great meal and a great time! There are eight of us on the list so far, and plenty of room for more.

The Community Food Pantry is encouraging a new approach to non-food donations. Help stock the shelves with this necessary item that is not covered by Food Stamps. Thanks.  May 25^th: shelf stable milk/or dry milk.  June 1^st: Paper towels.

Food for thought … on Rogation Days…

Rogation Days (from the Latin rogare, to ask) are the days following the Sixth Sunday of Easter traditionally associated with intercession for the harvest, and more recently with the faithful stewardship of creation. In the old days it was a time for processions through the cornfields, praying that the crops would be free from mildew – so you might take that lead and go out to your garden in prayer. In the English Church an injunction in 1559 ordered a perambulation of the parish during Rogationtide. Is anyone up for a serious hike next week? Walking the bounds of the parish was not just walking the church property, it was walking the bounds of the entire geographical area – which for us would be something like Albany and Madison to the Maine border, westerly through Effingham and Ossipee and Moultonborough, up through the edge of Center Harbor incorporating all of Sandwich and Tamworth!  That would be quite a walk! 

The Collect for the Stewardship of Creation
O merciful Creator, your hand is open wide to satisfy the needs of every living creature: Make us always thankful for your loving presence; and grant that we, remembering the account that we must one day give, may be faithful stewards of your good gifts; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.   [BCP p. 259]

See you in church!

Blessings, Heidi+

May 15, 2014

Services for this coming Sunday, The Fifth Sunday of Easter will be at 8 am and 10 am. We hope you will join us for worship and fellowship. 

Readings for this coming Sunday: Acts 7:55-60, Psalm 31:1-5, 15-16, 1 Peter 2:2-10, John 14:1-14.

On Friday at 3 o’clock Jennifer Glaws & Marcos Kroupa will be joined in Holy Matrimony at Saint Andrew’s. If you would like to attend the liturgy, witness their vows, and wish them well you would be most welcome. Remember… there is no such thing as a “private” church service. (Jennifer is the great-niece of Peggy Cannon and the granddaughter of the late Jeannette Glaws, both longtime members of the parish.)

Sammie Wakefield is now in Peru on her mission trip with Eleanore’s Project, fitting mobility-impaired children with wheel chairs. She is keeping us posted through daily reports on the Parish Hall bulletin board. Please keep those children, their parents, Sammie, Tamara, and their team in your prayers.

Have you noticed? Our parking lot is free of winter sand! Thank you, George Rau! Thank you, Gretchen, for the pansies in our outside barrels, and to David Manley and Barbara Lord for providing hospitality for the diocesan clergy gathering!

Last Sunday we pondered the Gospel reading for Good Shepherd Sunday thinking about the purposes of gates, gates in our lives, and wondering what it might mean for Jesus to be a gateway for each of us – how he might be urging us to explore new pastures and how he provides a place of protection and safety, and even how our mothers might also be our shepherds, then we honored Mothers’ Day with flowers for all women, delivered by the children of the parish as they passed the peace. Special thanks to Val for bringing (and playing) her harp. Don’t miss the additional pictures in the gallery below.

 The Women’s Lunch Bunch enjoyed Sally’s hospitality, meeting at the DeGroot’s farm in North Sandwich yesterday. We surprised Kitty Lou by honoring her birthday with song, cake, and forget-me-not flowers. Thanks to everyone for your contributions to the midday feast! The Lunch Bunch meets on the 2^nd Wednesday of each month, usually at the Mt View Station Restaurant in Center Ossipee and is open to all women.

 HOLD THE DATE! You won’t want to miss Our Second Annual All-Parish Picnic at White Lake State Park scheduled for Sunday, June 22. Once again we plan to reserve the Pavilion, celebrate the Eucharist, enjoy burgers, hotdogs, swimming, and the joyful pleasure of each other’s company. Further detail will forthcoming.

Saint Andrew’s has long supported the Bearcamp Valley School and Children’s Center. On Sunday, June 8, 2014 from 4:30 to 7:30 they will be hosting a fundraising event: the Taste of the Bearcamp Valley Food Festival at the newly opened and widely acclaimed Hobbs Tavern & Brewing Company. Individual tickets are $15, but rates are slightly lower if we reserve a table.
     This will be 21st year of this event. Enjoy a buffet of delicious appetizers, soups, breads, entrees and desserts from the region's best restaurants, cafes, as well as offerings from local community organizations.  Cash bar. This event is open to the public. Talk to Heidi or Kathy soon if you’re interested. Come be Saint Andrew’s as a visible witness in the wider community … and have a great meal and a great time!

The Community Food Pantry is encouraging a new approach to non-food donations: May 18^th will be dish detergent. Help stock the shelves with this necessary item that is not covered by Food Stamps. (May 25^th is shelf stable milk/or dry milk) Thanks.

Food for thought as we live into the Great 50 Days of Eastertide from Brother Curtis, SSJE…
Meet God face-to-face. Receive God’s light. Don’t live your life cowering, with your shoulders hunched, your eyes to the ground. Receive God’s light shining on your own countenance. There’s nothing to be afraid of.

 

 

 

See you in church!

Blessings, Heidi+

May 8, 2014

Just a few of the many hands helping out
with last Sunday's cleanup (more pictures below).

 Services for this coming Sunday, The Fourth Sunday of Easter and sometimes known as Good Shepherd Sunday, will be at 8 am and 10 am. It also happens to be Mothers’ Day. We hope you will bring the family and honor your mother or the mother in your midst by joining us for worship and fellowship. 

Readings for this coming Sunday: Acts 2:42-47, Psalm 23, 1 Peter 19-25, John 10:1-10.

 Special thanks to Marty Cloran, who took the pulpit last Sunday to share with all of us some poignant stories from his volunteer work with CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates for Children), opening the eyes of our faith that we might glimpse the power of Christ's redeeming work in the lives of our neighbors. Interested in knowing more about CASA? Pick up a flier from the table in front of the bulletin board in the Parish Hall.

 Hearty thanks to all who teamed up on our All-Parish Clean-up Sunday: Chris B., George R., George P., Lisa, Sammie, Gretchen, Heidi, Grete, David, Marty, Ellie, Duane, Betsy, Beverly, Lisa's friend Sarai, Carolyn, Brooks, Elaine, Dale, Joan W., Cathie, Haley, Lexi, and anyone else whom we’ve accidentally overlooked and known only to God!
The windows now sparkle, the chancel is immaculate, the gardens are weeded and sprouting more greenery by the minute, and the front tree has been pruned (see photo above).

The Community Food Pantry is encouraging a new approach to non-food donations: May 11th is Laundry Detergent Week. Help stock the shelves with this necessary item that is not covered by Food Stamps. (May 18th will be Dish Detergent Week.) Thanks.

Last Sunday we also sent Sammie off as our emissary to mobility-impaired children in Peru with Eleanore’s Project:

 Lord, we ask your blessing upon Sammie, who with joy gives of her skills, her time, and heartfelt prayer to these children of poverty, too easily forgotten.  May our gifts and prayers be a source of spiritual courage and joy to her and to all who take part in this ministry of healing. Enlighten our imaginations with visions of the delight and excitement of these children, free to move with their new wheels!  Give to Sammie and her companions the courage, creativity, hope, and stamina, that, sustained by your presence, they may do this holy work of love, returning home with the joy that crowns Christian love in action. God bless you, Sammie, in the Name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen. 

 Women’s Lunch Bunch will meet this coming Wednesday, May 14^th at the home of Sally DeGroot. Please bring a covered dish to share. Call the office for directions (they will also be printed in this Sunday’s bulletin). Questions, or need a ride? Call Dale at 539-3761.

Introducing “First Wednesdays!” During Lent a number of us gathered each Wednesday at 5 pm for a simple shared meal of soup, bread, and salad. As we ate, we listened to a 20-minute reading that was followed by discussion. We closed with a brief Eucharist, departing by 7 o’clock. Those of us who were regular found ourselves missing that mid-week gathering – the table fellowship, the simple, tasty food, and the thought-provoking conversations. We are proposing to continue that form, meeting once a month rather than every week. Hence, “First Wednesdays” – with the plan to meet on the First Wednesday evening of each month. Please join us. Contact Rev. Heidi if you'd like to provide something for the meal.
Lat night, prompted by hearing selections from Confronted by God: the Essential Verna Dozier, we had a lively discussion about the ministry of the laity. Our next meeting will be on Wednesday, June 4^th at 5:30 p.m.

On Thursday of this coming week, May 15, Saint Andrew’s will be hosting the clergy of the diocese for their monthly gathering. These opportunities for learning, deeper formation, and the building of strong collegial relationships among the clergy of the diocese, including the bishop, take place at different churches through the diocese, although most frequently in the central area. This gathering will be led by the Rev. Caroline Fairless and Jim Simms, building trust and  equipping us to deal effectively with difficult conversations. Special thanks to the Vestry team, headed by David, who will provide us with coffee and coffee cake on arrival and a “spread” for lunch. Since there will be about 45 clergy here and we will be making use of the Parish Hall, the Prince Room, and the sanctuary, please try to avoid other use of our space until after 2:30.

Food for thought and reflection on this, the Feast Day of Dame Julian of Norwich…

Born around 1342 in England, she was taken gravely ill when she was 30 and was given last rites. On the seventh day, her pain and illness left her completely and she had a series of 15 visions of the Passion of Christ that brought her incredible joy. She prayed with and explored these visions for much of her life, becoming an anchoress (recluse) in a small cell attached to the Church of St. Julian at Norwich, became a spiritual counselor and guide to many, and eventually wrote a reflection on her visions called Revelations of Divine Love [which happens to have been the first widely circulated book written in the English language by a woman]. If you are interested, there are copies in our parish library.
Brother James Koester of SSJE writes The good news of the passion, cross, and death of Christ is that he suffered most, not because he was tortured, but because he loved much. It was because of love that he suffered. It was because of love that he died. And it was because of love that he rose again. As Dame Julian of Norwich says, “love was the meaning” not only of Christ’s birth, but also his death.

She is perhaps best known for referring to Christ as “our courteous Lord,” who offers to us these words: “I can make all things well; I will make all things well; I shall make all things well; and thou canst see for thy self that all manner of things shall be well.”

These word are also reflected in the folk song, and traditional medieval dance “Bells of Norwich.”

Loud are the bells of Norwich and the people come and go.
Here by the tower of Julian I tell them what I know.
Ring out, bells of Norwich and let the winter come and go;
All shall be well again, I know.

Love, like the yellow daffodil, is coming through the snow.
Love, like the yellow daffodil, is lord of all I know.
Ring out, bells of Norwich and let the winter come and go;
All shall be well again, I know

Ring for the yellow daffodil, the flower in the snow.
Ring for the yellow daffodil, and tell them what I know.
Ring out, bells of Norwich and let the winter come and go;
All shall be well again, I know

All shall be well, I'm telling you;
Let the winter come and go.


All shall be well again, I know.

See you in church.

Easter Blessings,
Heidi+

May 1, 2014

Eastertide continues with “Wear-Your-Jeans-to-Church Sunday!” This coming Sunday, May 4^th and the 3^rd Sunday of Easter, we will have ONE service only at 9 o’clock, followed by a hearty coffee hour hosted by the Liturgy Committee, to fortify us for the All-Parish Workday that will follow. We hope that you will come to church dressed for helping with chores – indoors and out. So if you have favorite equipment – rakes, trowels, gloves, tarps, pruning supplies – bring them along with you. The snow has melted and the grounds are ready for our attention, and there are indoor chores as well, like window washing. Come lend a hand. We’ll be out by noon. Thanks!

Readings for this coming Sunday: Acts 2:14a, 36-41, Psalm 116:1-3, 10-17, 1 Peter 17-23, Luke 24:13-15.

 Don’t miss our special preacher this Sunday! All of us who are baptized into Christ are called to live as Christ’s hands and heart in our world. We live out our vocations in a vast variety of ways. Marty Cloran has a special place in his heart for children who have suffered profound abuse and neglect at the hands of their parents and extended family members. For a number of years Marty has been a CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate) Volunteer, supporting these children as a special advocate as they and their families make their way through our legal system toward safe and supportive homes for these young people. As a parish, we have supported CASA through our Outreach & Mission efforts. On Sunday Marty will open our hearts and give us an eye-opening window into the lives of some of the children he works with. Thank you, Marty, for the work that you do and for your willingness to claim the pulpit!

Gretchen and Karl appreciated the many visitors who stopped by last Sunday to wish Karl a Happy Birthday!

Introducing “First Wednesdays!” During Lent a number of us gathered each Wednesday evening at 5:30 for a simple shared meal of soup, bread, and salad. As we ate, we listened to a 20-minute reading that was followed by discussion. We closed with a brief Eucharist, departing by 7 o’clock. Those of us who were regular found ourselves missing that mid-week gathering – the table fellowship, the simple, tasty food, and the thought-provoking conversations. We are proposing to continue that form, meeting once a month, rather than every week. Hence, “First Wednesdays” – with the plan to meet on the First Wednesday evening of each month. Please join us. Contact Rev. Heidi if you'd like to provide something for the meal. We will meet this coming Wednesday, May 7, at 5:30.

Food for thought, reflection, and prayer….

I offer to you one of my very favorite Easter poems, this one by perhaps the best-known of Anglican poets, George Herbert (1593-1633). As one of his contemporaries puts it, “Herbert speaks to God like one that really believes in God, and whose business in the world is most with God. Heart-work and Heaven-work make up his book.”

You may already, unknowingly, be familiar with some of Herbert’s poetry through these hymns: King of glory, King of peace, I will love thee (382), Let all the world in every corner sing, my God and King! (402), Come, my Way, my Truth, my Life: such a life as gives us breath (487), and Teach me, my God and King, in all things thee to see (592). His poems frequently reflect the church year, unfolding for readers and hearers spiritual depths that many of us might well have missed. He is both a poet and theologian, pastor and person of prayer, always ready to own his shortcomings and God’s abundant grace.

A note on the “thee/thy” language… Many of us growing up in the U.S. in 20^th and 21^st century, have been (mis)led into thinking that thee and thy are archaic, out-of-style words that belong in the dead-letter pile of vocabulary. If you count yourself in that category, please think again! Our contemporary spoken English language has only the words you and yours, regardless of how well you know the person you’re speaking to. But if you know a little French, Spanish, or German, you know that in those languages one uses a separate form of you if the one you are addressing is a lover, precious child, dear friend, family member, or Almighty God! So when we pray, “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done” we are addressing God as our beloved. It is not “stuffy” language at all; it is precious, tender language of deep affection.

Knowing that, I offer you this poem “Easter (I):”   

Rise heart; thy Lord is risen. Sing his praise
    Without delays,
Who takes thee by thy hand, that thou likewise
    With him mayst rise:
That, as his death calcined [burnt to ashes] thee to dust,
His life may make thee gold, and much more just.

Awake, my lute, and struggle for thy part
    With all thy art.
The cross taught all wood to resound his name,
    Who bore the same.
His stretched sinews taught all strings, what key
Is best to celebrate that most high day.

Consort both heart and lute, and twist a song
    Pleasant and long:
Or since all music is but three parts vied
    And multiplied;
Oh let thy blessed Spirit bear a part,
And make up our defects with his sweet art.

See you in church.

Easter Blessings,
Heidi+