JOIN US FOR WORSHIP
THIS SUNDAY, March 18th, The Fifth
Sunday in Lent, there will be two services at 8:00 and 10:00 a.m.
There is a service of Morning Prayer on Wednesday mornings at 9:00 a.m.
We hope you will join us for worship and
fellowship.
READINGS FOR SUNDAY
Sunday, March 18, 2018
Fifth Sunday in Lent
Year B
Jeremiah 31:31-34
Psalm 119:9-16
Hebrews 5:5-10
John 12:20-33
ALTAR FLOWERS FOR EASTER
If you would like to make a dedication for the Easter Altar flowers, please complete a slip found on the bulletin table or on the Parish Hall table and turn in to the office by March 25th. You may also send your request by email to office@standrewsinthevalley.org.
FROM THE RECTOR
Another Snowy Day and the Book of Revelation
Having a snow day
this week gave me time to immerse myself in preparations for Holy Week a bit
earlier than usual. Bulletin drafts for all the Holy Week services are ready
for Deb, and I’ve made a good start on all those sermons! For the most part our
Holy Week schedule is the same as in previous years. But we are reviving a
practice from a couple of years ago on Wednesday evening of Holy Week, and
we’ve decided that the noon observance on Good Friday will consist only of
Jesus’ Seven Last Words from the Cross (no Stations of the Cross). On Wednesday
March 28 at 7:00 pm we will read the Revelation to John in its entirety. We
will gather in a circle in either the Chancel (the space behind the altar) or
the Transept (the area with the piano) and those who would like to read will
take turns until we reach the end.
Some background on
The Book of Revelation, adapted from Cliff
Notes and various other sources: The revelation
contained in this final book of the Bible was given to John while he was in
exile in Patmos, and gives us a glimpse into the apocalyptic hopes of the early
Christian community. The Apocalypse was not a new phenomenon among Christians;
it was a well-established belief among Jews, who held that the coming of the
kingdom of God would not be brought about by a gradual transformation but by a
sudden intervention, when God would end the present age and establish his
kingdom in the new age. But before this occurred, it was believed that the
struggle between the forces of good and evil would become more intense. As the
evil powers grew stronger, those who lived a righteous life would experience
persecution or even death. The struggle would eventually reach a climax, at
which time God would intervene, destroy the forces of evil, and set up a new
order in which the righteous would live for all time to come. The early
Christians believed that all this would be accomplished through the return of
Jesus. This second coming would initiate the coming of the new age, as well as
the final destruction of all the forces of evil.
The purpose of the book was to strengthen the
faith of the members of these churches by giving them the assurance that
deliverance from the evil powers arrayed against them was close at hand. John
was confident that the great day of divine intervention would occur within a
comparatively short time, but in accordance with the apocalyptic literature
with which Jewish Christians were familiar, he knew that many terrifying events
would take place first. He wanted to warn his fellow Christians concerning
these events and thus prepare them for the time when their faith would be put
to a more severe test than anything that they had experienced thus far.
The idea of reading
the Book of Revelation in one sitting intrigues me. Hearing it read aloud in
different voices will help us pay attention and stay focused throughout. And it
is a book that isn’t read that often in the Sunday morning Lectionary cycle of
readings. I suspect that is, at least in part, because hearing only a brief
passage without the context of the surrounding passages loses much of the
meaning.
So I invite you to
join us for this reading. You may choose to read a section aloud or to simply
listen. Revelation is not terribly long; we will finish in less than an hour.
FUNDRAISING
St. Patrick's Day
Dinner
Friday March 16th, 2018 6 pm
Join us for a traditional Corn Beef and Cabbage Dinner .
and live music provided by Chris and Carolyn Boldt!
Adults $10.00 Kids 6-16 $5.00 5&under free
Family Rate 2A/3K $25.00
For more info Call DAVID MANLEY @ 603-651-1744
DINNER BELL
Dinner Bell cook team for this Sunday March 18th
Hammond
Dinner Bell cook team for next Sunday March 25th
Slader
~
Thank you for your volunteer
work in this special Outreach program!
COMMUNITY FOOD CENTER
The Food Pantry thanks you for your contributions throughout the year.
The monthly item
for March is JELLO.
FORWARD DAY BY DAY FOR
TODAY
THURSDAY, March 15, 2018
Luke 17:1-2 Jesus said to his disciples, “Occasions
for stumbling are bound to come, but woe to anyone by whom they come! It would
be better for you if a millstone were hung around your neck and you were thrown
in the sea than for you to cause one of these little ones to stumble.”
In my mid-20s, I rented an apartment from a
colleague. She warned me before I moved in that I might hear negative things
about her. There had been one or two complaints from tenants, she said, but her
tenants had misspoken and were “crazy.”
Soon I realized that my landlady routinely
screamed expletives at her two little girls, accusing them of misdeeds large
and small. Verbal abuse was rampant. Was there physical abuse? I didn’t see
any, but I would not have been surprised. But I was scared that if I reported
her, I would be the focus of anger both at work and at home.
I moved after six months. My lack of courage
bothers me to this day. No doubt the girls were already stumbling—I could have
at least smiled at them and better yet, picked up the phone to call for help.
MOVING
FORWARD: Is there a difficult phone call you’ve
been avoiding? Ask a friend to pray for you and make the call today.
FROM Deb IN THE OFFICE
It’s good to be back! even though….
"toes in sand"
THANK YOU to Joyce Carter for helping in the office during my
absence.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
In our last Sunday book discussion meeting we touched on the fact that all of us have old
prejudices that sometimes rear their ugly heads and take us by surprise. This
reflection by Henri Nouwen in Called to
Love; Called to Life: Lenten Reflections spoke to me of that discussion.
It’s called “Living without Prejudices Is Difficult”.
One of the hardest
spiritual tasks is to live without prejudices. Sometimes we aren’t even aware
how deeply rooted our prejudices are. We may think that we relate to people who
are different than we are in color, religion, sexual orientation or lifestyle
as equals, but in concrete circumstances our spontaneous thoughts, uncensored
words and knee-jerk reactions often reveal that our prejudices are still there.
Strangers, people
different from us, stir up fear, discomfort, suspicion, and hostility. They
make us lose our sense of security just by being “other”. Only when we fully
claim that God loves us in an unconditional way and look at “those other
persons” as equally loved can we begin to discover that the great variety in
humanity is an expression of the immense richness of God’s heart. Then the need
to prejudge people can gradually disappear.
Dear God, make known to me my
prejudices and help me to overcome them.
March BIRTHDAYS & ANNIVERSARIES
If you do not see your birthday or anniversary listed, please make
sure Deb in the office has an information sheet on file for you.
Birthdays
March
10 Susan Ines
13 Trudy Thompson
16 Caroline Hines
20 Albert Bunker
21 Chris Boldt
21 Chris Boldt
31 Claudia Kennedy
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