Don’t miss the photo gallery at the
end!
Your presence is requested this coming Sunday, February 7th, at 9 a.m. for worship, followed by
brunch and our Annual Meeting. We both want and need you
with us for the service and the meeting that follows as we check in on how
we’re doing, officially welcome newcomers, are introduced to our new Master
Plan, and elect new vestry members. And… in order for us to have a valid
Annual Meeting, we need a quorum.
The Brunch is Pot Luck, so bring something to
share for the sit-down meal – savory or sweet, vegetable, fruit, or protein.
If you missed church last Sunday when copies of
the 2015 Annual report were provided, feel free to stop by Thursday or Friday
morning to pick up a copy to read in advance of the meeting. They are on the
table in front of the bulletin board in the Parish Hall. Or email Debra (office@standrewsinthevalley.org) for an electronic copy.
The Nominating committee has put forward the
following slate:
Junior Warden: Sally DeGroot
Clerk: Jen Huckman*
Treasurer: Bob Seston
Vestry: Kaitlyn Marshall*
Vestry: Hettie Buck*
Vestry: Pat Adams*
Delegates to Convocation: Carol Tubman, Gretchen Behr-Svendsen
Alternate Delegates: Lisa Thompson, Marty Cloran
* indicate new to the position
Readings for this Sunday: Exodus 34:29-35, Psalm 99, 2 Corinthians 3:12,
17-4:2, Luke 9:28-36.
Do you still have palms from last Palm Sunday? Please bring them this weekend so they can be
burned for Ash Wednesday ashes.
Join in the fun at the Shrove Tuesday Pancake
Supper on Tuesday, February 9, starting at 6 pm. Wear a costume or a mask if you’re so
inspired! And for the young and young-at-heart: Visit the Temporary Tattoo
Parlor or compete at the Pancake Toss! This is the traditional “last blast”
before Lent. Invite your friends and neighbors, eat and enjoy, then go home to
watch the Primary returns!
Thanks to George Rau for organizing the cook & serving team.
The following day, February 10th, is Ash Wednesday.
9 am: Service of Morning
Prayer
Noon & 7 pm: Imposition of ashes & Holy Eucharist.
We will be burning last year’s palms to make ashes immediately before the
evening service.
Lent is traditionally a
season (40 days) in which Christians are urged to set some time
aside to go deeper in our relationship with God and we as the church are here
to support you in that.
2016 Lenten Meditations booklets, courtesy of Episcopal Relief & Development will be
available on the table in the Parish Hall.
Our Wednesday evening Simple Soup & Salad
Supper Series
topic this year will be Growing
a Rule of Life. Please don’t be intimidated by the title! Think of is as a
time-honored approach to developing tools for leading a balanced life –
customized to your realities. The materials for this series come to us
from the Society of St. John the Evangelist, teaming up with the Center for the
Ministry of Teaching at Virginia Theological Seminary and include both brief
daily on-line videos and a workbook. It can be done as an individual exercise,
but there is wonderful additional benefit in the group support! PLEASE sign up
on the easel board in the Parish Hall, where you can also take a look at the
workbook. The meetings will take place on February 24 and March 2, 9, and 16.
We will gather at 5:30 and be out at 7.
Lent Madness 2016: The Saintly Smack Down! If you’re looking for a Lenten discipline that is fun,
educational, occasionally goofy, and always joyful, join the Lent Madness
journey. Lent needn’t be all doom and gloom. After all, what could be more
joyful than a season specifically set aside to get closer to Jesus Christ?
For the seventh year running, people worldwide
are gearing up for Lent Madness, the “saintly smack-down” in which thirty-two
saints do battle to win the coveted Golden Halo.
Yes, the world’s most popular online Lenten
devotion is back for another round of saintly thrills and spills. With its
unique blend of cut-throat competition, learning, and humor, Lent Madness is
really about being inspired by the ways in which God has worked through the
lives of saintly souls across the generations. Read more… http://www.lentmadness.org/2016/02/free-lent-madness-article-2/
This all kicks off on “Ash Thursday,” February
11. To participate, visit the Lent Madness website: http://www.lentmadness.org where you can also print out a bracket to
see how you fare or “compete” against friends and family members. Like that
other March tournament, there will be drama and intrigue, upsets and
thrashings, last-minute victories and Cinderellas!
“Color Me Happy” is an Adult coloring opportunity hosted by Deb Hoyt.
It’s not just for kids anymore!
She hopes you will join
her in this opportunity to share in an enjoyed past time around a table of
fellow “young at hearts.” You don’t have to be an artist and you don’t
have to have books and pencils. There will be plenty of pages to choose
from and pencils to use. She will share a few tips and ideas. Anticipate
conversation and enjoyable comradery. All are welcome to both or one of the dates if you would like to attend.
Wed, Feb 17th: 6-8 pm and/or
Sat, Feb 20th: 10-Noon
Please sign up on the
sheet posted on the kitchen door or contact Debra at the office, on her cell
651-8938, or email dhoyt03814@gmail.com.
Get in on the raffle for
a handmade, KatBagDesign, coloring book portfolio. Wonderful way to carry your
book and tools with you or to give as a gift.
Food for thought …
This year the peculiarities of our calendar
bring us an unusually quick succession of special days! Hang on to your hats! We’re
going from Candlemas (The Presentation of Our Lord at the Temple) on February 2,
to the Last Sunday after Epiphany and our Annual Meeting, to Shrove Tuesday
(and NH Primary Day) to Ash Wednesday in eight short days!
Since the first of these probably has received
the least public attention, a few words about “The Presentation.” This day,
February 2nd, has been observed by the church since the 4th
century under various names: The Purification of Saint Mary the Virgin, The
Meeting of Christ with Simeon, the Presentation, and Candlemas. Jewish Law
specified the eighth day after birth as the time for the circumcision and
naming of a male child, and Exodus states that every firstborn son was to be
dedicated to God in memory of the Israelites’ deliverance from Egypt (when the
firstborns of Israel were spared), though no particular timing is specified for
that observance. However, 40 days after giving birth, the mother was expected
to present herself at the Temple for purification, which included making a
suitable offering. For a poor women two young pigeons sufficed.
When Mary, Joseph and the 40-day old Jesus
arrive at the temple [Luke 2:22-40], we are told they were greeted by elderly
Simeon, a holy and righteous Jew, and aged Anna, an 84-year old widow and a
prophet. The actions and words of each of them are significant in the account
of the Jesus’ infancy. When Simeon takes Jesus into his arms, it marks the
meeting of what are known as the Old and New Dispensations – the old systems of
sacrifices and burn offerings and oblations are done away with and a new “and
perfect offering” (Jesus) had come into the temple. Simeon’s words have been
treasured ever since and are known as the Nunc
dimittis: “Lord God, you now have set your servant free to go in peace as
you have promised, for these eyes of mine have seen the Savior whom you have
prepared for all the world to see – a light to enlighten the Gentiles, and the
glory of your people Israel.” They are said (or sung) as part of Evening Prayer
and Compline, and often at the close of the Burial office as well. At the
moment that Anna, a woman of need devotion and prayer, arrived and laid eyes on
Jesus, she “began to praise God and to speak about the child to all who were
looking for the redemption of Jerusalem.” Two elderly, faithful Jews who lived
in hope of greeting the long-awaited, long-expected anointed One of God.
The association of candles with this event
presumably is associated with the words “a light to enlighten the nations,” and
early on became associated with a candle-lit procession. With time it became an
occasion to bless the candles that would be used in the church as well as
candles that might be used at home, that they might burn in honor of God,
reminding us that we, too are enflamed with the fire of God’s love – not just
in these few waning days of this year’s brief Epiphany season, but into Lent,
Eastertide… and for ever!
Blessings.
See you in church!
Heidi+
Photo Gallery
If you haven’t yet done
so, please take time during coffee hour to familiarize yourself
with the Master Plan posters in the Prince Room. The committee really wants
your comments, comments, suggestions, and questions as they strategize priorities and improvements to our physical plant. Duane, Lisa, Sally, or Heidi
would be happy to talk you through the plans. Thanks to those of you who have
already made suggestions and comments. 
