TWO
ADVENT OFFERINGS FOR THIS YEAR:
ADVENT: A SEASON OF WAITING WITH A SENSE OF PROMISE
Christi Humphrey will offer an Advent Quiet Morning on Saturday, December 5 at 10:00 – Noon. Please scroll down for more information. Thank you for once again helping to feed our souls, Christi!
MAYA ANGELOU AND THE FREEDOM POETRY OF ADVENT
This Advent we will meet weekly to discuss this resource from the SALT Project. It is very similar to the Lenten sturdy we did two years ago using Mary Oliver’s poetry. Booklets will be available at the church office after today, or we can put one in the mailbox outside the church entrance if you can’t go by when Deb is there. We will meet via Zoom for discussion on Wednesdays at 12:30 pm, unless there are some who prefer to meet in the evening. Please let me know asap if you plan to attend and what time is best for you at RectorSAITV@gmail.com.
Here is the info:
In
this Advent devotional, biblical texts and simple, accessible practices
interweave with Maya Angelou’s stirring vision of faith, freedom, and dignity.
All you’ll need is your favorite Bible and Maya Angelou’s The Complete
Poetry (all the poems are also available online). Week by week, as we
wait, and watch, and pray, we’ll walk toward Bethlehem - with Maya Angelou as
our guide.
Time off: I will be off Tuesday through Saturday of next week (November 24-28). Please contact our Sr. Warden, Sally DeGroot, if you have a pastoral emergency.
Worship on November 29: I will be here on Sunday the 29th, but I’d like for us to worship with the Bishop as he introduces something similar to an agape meal. If we like it, we can use it ourselves; if not, we won’t! we’ll have our usual Coffee Hour following the service and discuss what we think about it and if we want to do it again.
Caroline
Advent: A season of waiting with a sense of promise
As the calendar turns toward Christmas, the liturgical season moves into Advent. It is a season of preparation and waiting. Advent arrives in 2020 in an atmosphere of stress, worry, and loss. Our routines have been upended for months, there are still many unknowns and it is difficult to wait for answers, relief, and clarity.
In the scripture readings for Advent, prophets, saints, and shepherds proclaim the incarnation of God in the world. Is the waiting in Advent different from our waiting for the results of a medical test, a vaccine, or to be able to gather with family? Advent waiting has been described as holy waiting. Waiting that requires profound patience and trust and is colored by hope.
A quiet morning is planned for Saturday, December 5, 2020 from 10:00am-noon for cultivating the practice of holy waiting. Gathering virtually, our time together will include prayer, guided meditation, individual contemplation time, and fellowship. Christi Humphrey will facilitate. Christi is a spiritual director, retreat facilitator, and a colleague at the Bethany House of Prayer in Arlington, MA.
No matter where you are on your journey of faith and your ability to wait, please plan to join. To indicate your interest in attending and receive login information, please contact Christi Humphrey at cchumphrey@comcasat.net or 508-633-7466.
TJOIN US FOR WORSHIP
via Zoom (email RectorSAITV@gmail.com for Zoom information) AND...
on ZOOM
The Last Sunday after Pentecost
Christ the King
Proper 29, Year A
Collect of the Day We center ourselves for worship in prayer
Almighty and everlasting God, whose will it is to restore all things in your well-beloved Son, the King of kings and Lord of lords: Mercifully grant that the peoples of the earth, divided and enslaved by sin, may be freed and brought together under his most gracious rule; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
First Lesson Ezekiel
34:11-16, 20-24
In
our opening reading the Lord promises to be the shepherd of the people. God will bring them home and heal them. God will feed and protect them. The exile of Israel is coming to an end. Ezekiel has prophesied against the false
shepherds, the rulers who only fed off the flock. Now God will tend the sheep who have been
dispersed and preyed upon, but the overfed will be judged.
Psalm 95:1-7
A call to
worship the Lord our God.
The Second Lesson Ephesians
1:15-23
In this
lesson Paul gives thanks for the faith and love of the Ephesians and prays that
they may see with their inward eyes the power of God, who has raised and enthroned
Jesus far above all earthly and heavenly dominions. How vast is the treasure that God offers to
those who trust in the Lord! The Lord
Christ now reigns as head of the church, which is his body and which
experiences the fullness of his love.
The Gospel Matthew 25:31-46
Faith, Compassion and Healing our National Divides
Washington National Cathedral and the National Institute for Civil Discourse
invite you to hear from two of America’s most respected religious leaders on
how we find a way forward healing our divisions through faith and
compassion.
Friday, Nov. 20, 2020, 11:00am ET
Featuring:
The
Most Rev. Michael B. Curry, Presiding Bishop and Primate, The Episcopal
Church
Dr.
Russell Moore, Executive Director of the Ethics & Religious Commission of
the Southern Baptist Convention
Hosted
by Krista Tippett, broadcaster and host of On Being
As
the nation gives thanks for the enduring strength of our democracy, we invite
you to draw inspiration and practical tips on how to engage our neighbors with
dignity and respect.
This online event is free and open to the public, but registration
is required.
For God alone my soul in silence waits; from God comes my salvation.
God alone is my rock and my salvation, my stronghold, so that I shall not be greatly shaken.
Psalm 62:1-2
If you are interested in strengthening or building a contemplative practice or seek silence within community, please plan to join others, each Tuesday, beginning September 15th, at 9:00am. Newcomers are welcome at any gathering. No previous meditation experience needed.
Our time begins with a brief sitting practice, facilitated by Christi Humphrey. Christi has lead other groups which gather to explore contemplative practices through meditation, teachings, and discussion. Guided meditations and teachings draw upon the Christian contemplative tradition, monastic spirituality, Buddhist meditation, and self-compassion practices.
If you would like to learn more or have questions, contact Christi Humphrey at cchumphrey@comcast.net. If you would like to sample Christi leading a guided meditation visit her blog https://watchingforgrace.wordpress.com/2020/03/21/bringing-compassion-to-these-anxious-times/
For our First Nation people and those in this country who are living in impoverished areas of the Ninth Ward of New Orleans and the inner city areas populated by some of our poorest citizens.
For all those who are on the front lines serving communities during these difficult times.
Updating the Prayer List
Please let Deb know if you want to put someone back on the prayer list going forward. Thank you for helping us keep our prayer list up to date.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Volunteer Shoppers Needed for the Tamworth Christmas Project
As most of you know, the Tamworth Community Christmas Project distributes gifts to local children at St. Andrew’s in December each year. This is also one of the projects our outreach program supports. This year, due to the pandemic, some of their volunteer shoppers will not be shopping. Cathy Baybutt, director of the project, is looking for new volunteers
Volunteers shop for a family (from 1 to 4 children). The parents fill out a form with sizes and needs. We ask shoppers to purchase items on the list and then tally them up, then we send them a reimbursement check for the amount. I have very specific directions which seem to work very well. If you enjoy shopping and might lend a hand, please contact Cathy Baybutt at tamworthchristmasproject@gmail.com.
Next Food Pantry: December 9
25 John & Joan Marshall
