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| Parish send off to Nancy Whitaker and Peter Sandberg |
There will be only ONE service this coming Sunday, August 4th at 9 AM.
Immediately following the liturgy, you are invited to the Rector’s Biennial Summer Brunch, which will take place at the rectory at 247 Pound Road in Madison, about a twenty-minute drive from the church. Beverages and strata will be provided; additional contributions to the food table are welcome. And, yes, you’re invited even if you don’t make it to church.
Time: about 10:30 to 12:30. We hope you will join us for worship and fellowship.
Time: about 10:30 to 12:30. We hope you will join us for worship and fellowship.
[The short version: East on rt. 25 to rt.16; briefly left on rt. 16; right on rt. 41 passing silver Lake to rt. 113; right on rt. 113 to the stop sign; right on East Madison Road; first real left onto Pound Road; Rectory is the 4th visible house on the left, #247. Please park on the street headed down hill. Driveway parking is reserved for people who need easy access. The house has a ramped entrance. 267-8220.]
People of the Way conversations continue: Wednesday, August 7, from 10:15 to 11:30 AM; Wednesday evening, with brown-bag supper at 5:30 and conversation from 6:00 to 7:15.
Last Sunday we bade farewell to Nancy Whitaker and Peter Sandberg. We had a full congregation to see them off. They will be missed. “For I am persuaded that nothing in all of creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Education for Ministry: This past year, 10 members of 5 churches joined together most Tuesday evenings to talk about the Bible, Church History, and how those are connected to our lives. The EfM curriculum has been revised, and so we are entering a new phase in this wonderful program that helps us see ourselves as ministers in the world.
Education for Ministry is a program developed at the University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee. It is a four year program (you only commit to one year at a time) which includes learning and theologicial reflection in a small group setting.
Tom & Peg Reinfuss and Gretchen Behr-Svendsen took part last year and expect to continue. If you would like to know more about EfM, please talk to Heidi or Gretchen, and come to an informational session on Tuesday, August 13 at 7 pm at Trinity church, Meredith. Robin Soller, rector of Trinity Church, is the mentor. The meeting time for this year is not firm, so if you cannot make Tuesday evening (the standard for last year) please don’t discount the program.
For questions or more information, please contact Robin at 279-6689 or robin.soller@trinitymeredith.org
Copies of the homily from John Booty’s Memorial Service, preached by the Rev. Ellen Aitken, are available on the table under the Parish Bulletin Board.
A reminder from Fun-Raising that this is the last chance to buy raffle tickets for the Red Sox VIP Experience, as we will have the drawing on Sunday. The winner will get two tickets to a game of their choice in the remainder of the 2013 regular season, seating infield grandstand, with a tour of Fenway before the game (value about $250). The raffle cost is $10 per ticket or 3 for $25, with all monies collected benefitting the church. You have a good chance of winning, but only if you buy a ticket or three! Stop by and see Debra in the office or buy them this Sunday morning.
Food for mid-summer reflection from the Rector…
The Labyrinth
Have you walked the labyrinth lately –
taken off your shoes
as you entered the sacred ground?
Breathed deeply and gratefully
as the complexity in your mind stilled to calm?
It is an almost alpine meadow
in our own backyard,
unmown, but still low,
dozens of species
planted here by the wind
and birds –
fed by sun and rain.
in our own backyard,
unmown, but still low,
dozens of species
planted here by the wind
and birds –
fed by sun and rain.
Wild strawberry vines entangle
my toes in places –
soft moss in others –
bliss under foot,
punctuated by tiny grasshoppers,
new to the world,
tender and energetic,
cheating
as they hop across the stones
that form the path –
turn by turn
inward to the open heart.
my toes in places –
soft moss in others –
bliss under foot,
punctuated by tiny grasshoppers,
new to the world,
tender and energetic,
cheating
as they hop across the stones
that form the path –
turn by turn
inward to the open heart.
Clover blossoms,
blue-tinged starflowers,
vestiges of hearty dandelions,
yellow cinqfoil,
dwarf yarrow,
a two-inch pine seedling here,
another there,
offspring of the tall pines
that border the field
and whose sun-warmed fragrance fills the air.
blue-tinged starflowers,
vestiges of hearty dandelions,
yellow cinqfoil,
dwarf yarrow,
a two-inch pine seedling here,
another there,
offspring of the tall pines
that border the field
and whose sun-warmed fragrance fills the air.
And now a stunted, woody micro-shrub,
sprouting hopefully
amongst the minute red blossoms of earthy moss.
sprouting hopefully
amongst the minute red blossoms of earthy moss.
Yes, of course … grass,
broad-leafed here,
thin and yellow there,
slightly matted in the path,
growing more freely along the stones.
broad-leafed here,
thin and yellow there,
slightly matted in the path,
growing more freely along the stones.
Clearly others walk here too.
not just I,
but have you?
not just I,
but have you?
Now, in the mid of summer
when the sun is low in the sky
and the insects buzz in the wetlands
and a swallow soars and swoops its supper?
when the sun is low in the sky
and the insects buzz in the wetlands
and a swallow soars and swoops its supper?
Have you allowed yourself
to be touched
by the sacred
here and now? HFD 7/25/13
to be touched
by the sacred
here and now? HFD 7/25/13
The labyrinth is in the field behind the Parish Hall, slightly to the left. It’s always open and available. Explanatory pamphlets are on the rack by the office door.
See you in church!
Blessings, Heidi+
Blessings, Heidi+
