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From the Social Concerns Committee
Episcopal Relief and Development
Ash Wednesday
Dear People of God: The first Christians
observed with great devotion
the days of our Lord’s passion
and resurrection, and it became the
custom of the Church to prepare for
them by a season of penitence and
fasting. This season of Lent provided
a time in which converts to the
faith were prepared for Holy Baptism.
It also was a time when those
who, because of notorious sins, had
been separated from the body of the
faithful were reconciled by penitence
and forgiveness, and restored to
the fellowship of the Church. Thereby,
the whole congregation was put
in mind of the message of pardon and
absolution set forth in the Gospel
of our Savior, and of the need which
all Christians continually have to
renew their repentance and faith.
I invite
you, therefore, in the name of the
Church, to the observance of
a holy Lent, by self-examination and
repentance; by prayer, fasting and
self-denial; and by reading and meditating
on God’s holy Word…
Book of Common Prayer 264-65,
Proper Liturgy for
Ash Wednesday
You invite us to
what? A holy Lent! Oh! Ashes smudged on our faces,
no
chocolate, no caffeine, no cheeseburgers and another
Thursday night Lenten Program, etc. etc. etc.
The instinct of the early Christian Church was
that the time leading up to Easter (now forty
days excluding Sundays) should be a time of personal
inventory, clearing away of the junk, and reconciling
with those around you who may have felt hurt by
some of the accumulated junk. And those ashes
smudged on your face, often mentioned in scripture,
if worn with the right attitude, are symbols of
regret or sorrow and a reminder of mortality.
We are invited to a sacred season, this season
of Lent. Like any other sacred time, it becomes
real to the extent that we live it. The story
behind the season is Jesus’ struggle of
the soul in the wilderness. It is the most intimate
of stories of searching of the soul. This year
we read it from Mark, but a more detailed version
is found in Matthew 4:1–11.
Take the opportunity to read it, and join the
Church in this wilderness struggle. Begin to clear
away the junk, consider reconciling with someone,
and rediscover the rich spiritual practice of
fasting. Lent is really the opportunity to find
union with God.
Take the opportunity!
Peace,
David+
(top
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Thursday
Night Lenten Program
March
13, 20, 27, April 3, 10 & 17
At our Adult Forum on Sunday mornings,
we have been reading and discussing
Parker Palmer’s book, The
Courage to Teach. The class has been challenged,
strengthened and fed by Palmer’s
words.
His little, but powerful book, Let
Your Life Speak: Listening for the
Voice of Vocation, can help us live
more deeply into the selfhood that
is our birthright gift. To quote him, “Before
you tell you life what it intends to
do with you, let your life tell you
what truths you embody, what values
you represent.” Come and join
us for a look and discussion of vocation.
The book will be available in the
Parish Office on March 3.
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Gatorade Needed
Gavin Wageman, a United States Marine, and
son of Carole and Ed Wageman has been sent
overseas, probably to the Middle East. He
has asked for Powdered Gatorade so
he and his companions can stay hydrated
in the desert. Next time you go shopping
pick up a container of Powdered Gatorade
and bring it to Church. We will ship it
to Gavin monthly.
UPDATE: We have
discovered that shipping costs are quite
high. If you want to contribute cash to
this ministry, it will be used for shipping.
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Thank you for the Gatorade
Dear Members of Christ Church,
Ed and I want to thank you for your
generous and kind response to the “Marine
Gatorade Project.” Twenty-eight
containers of Gatorade were collected
(one of them was a mega-canister donated
by Sarah Balkcom who is Dot Albert’s
granddaughter). We shipped them out
in three smaller boxes on the week
of February 10 and they are somewhere
between Montpelier, vt and the Gulf
region. We will let you know when
we hear anything from Gavin and his
buddies.
In our
last conversation with Gavin while
he was still aboard the USS
Portland, he said: “Wow! That’s
great. You tell them they have supplied
an entire Marine battery with Gatorade.
Thank you so much and keep it coming!”
It has meant a lot to him that you
would remember him not only in your
prayers, but also in such a concrete
and supportive way. Your prayers and
thoughts have also meant a lot to
our family here at home and have been
comforting during this time of such
uncertainty.
Thank you again. Semper Fi and God
bless.
—Carole,
Ed, Jody and Kate Wageman
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Thank you from Joan Rock
To Christ Church,
Thank you for all of the hand-made
hats and mittens that your congregation
supplied for the children and youth
in need. What a wonderful gift you
have given when the weather is as
cold as it is right now. The folks
that made these items are obviously
very talented at what they do.
I hope that you will share this with
the congregation and let them know
that we appreciate all that you do
to help out the children and youth
that we work with. You know that some
small person is a little warmer as
a result of your generosity.
—Joan
Rock
(top of page)
Sunday Morning Adult Forum
March 2, 9, 16,
23, 30, and April 6 & 13;
Carole
Wageman, Leader and Facilitator
Have you ever sat in Church, listened
to the Old Testament, Epistle or Gospel,
and said to yourself, “How can
that be the word of the Lord? No way!” Our
Bible Study program will explore some
of those difficult passages and our
responses to them.
Who wrote it? What is the author trying
to say? To whom is the passage written?
Why is this passage so hard for us
to understand?
Learn about Sitz
in Leben (the life
setting of early Christianity and
insight into its religious motives.)
We also will discuss how the passage
fits into the Heilsgecichte (Salvation
History).
Please join us Sunday mornings at
9 am and if you have any “No
Way” passages let us know so
we can discuss them.
(top of page)
From the Social Concerns Committee
The Food Shelf continues to meet the
needs of many in our community who
do not have enough food. It is continually
in need of restocking. Items most
in demand are canned tuna, soups,
stews, and spaghetti sauce, cereals,
pasta, and peanut butter.
The
Housewares Closet, a source of
bedding and household items for those
who need them, can always use any extra
items you might find in your spring
housecleaning. Blankets and towels
are a particular need. You may bring
any household items or food to the
church office.
The
Sweater Project is growing as Christ
Church Knitters have interested their
friends in knitting sweaters for children
here and abroad. For a pattern or more
information on the project, call Elaine
McIntyre at 223-4015. Donations of
yarn (even small amounts) are always
appreciated and can be dropped off
at the office.
(top
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Episcopal
Relief and Development
Lenten Calendar
Episcopal Relief and Development (Presiding
Bishop’s Fund for World Relief) has developed
a Lenten Calendar that helps us understand
how we can make a difference in the world.
Each day has an explanation of fund use
and a focus for our prayers and outreach.
There are free
copies in the Narthex and Parish office.
(top
of page)
Altar
Flowers
The flowers given by parishioners
are a beautiful contribution to the altar
for Sunday services. This is a way to
remember loved ones who have
died or to give thanks for something
or someone in your life, and at the same
time to give to the worship in a special
way.
This year, we have been gathering names
for flower donations a little differently
than in previous years. Instead of calling
people who have given flowers during
the past year, we now ask people to volunteer
their
names for a Sunday of their choice. Your
name will be placed on the flower chart,
which is hanging on the wall to the right
of the entrance from the parish hall
into the nave. You will be called a few
weeks before your Sunday to remind you
of your Sunday.
There are two options for giving a flower
gift. You may have the Altar Guild order
the flowers from the Pink Shutter, with
whom we have an arrangement for the delivery
of the flowers to the church, and they
will bill you (currently the cost for
two vases of flowers is $42, including
tax). Or you may choose the flowers yourself
from the Pink Shutter and pay them directly.
If you wish to order flowers from another
florist, please make arrangements for
this with Eunice Crosby.
Another
wonderful option, during garden season,
is to bring flowers from your
own or a friend’s garden, which
you may arrange yourself. Garden
flowers are very much appreciated. You
are asked to call Eunice Crosby in
advance to arrange a time to come in
and do the flower arranging—the
best time is a Saturday morning when
Altar Guild members are here and the
Sacristy is open.
We also have a change in policy this
year. People are asked to sign up anew
each year, and anyone who asks for a
particular Sunday will be given that
Sunday, whether there are others already
signed up or not. This means that some
Sundays will have more than one person
or family providing flowers. We do this
because there is often more than one
person to whom a certain Sunday is meaningful,
due to birthdays, anniversaries or other
special dates, and we want to make it
possible for people to make their
gifts on the Sunday that has meaning
for them. Two separate people or families
(or even a group, as did the choir
last year) may also choose to donate
flowers together.
We have the last two Sundays of March
available, two Sundays each in
May and June, and most of the Sundays
in July through December (except for
November, which has someone signed
up for every Sunday). So please check
the flower chart, sign up for a Sunday
you want, and speak to Eunice Crosby
about the date.
To sign
up for flowers on a particular Sunday,
call Eunice Crosby at 476-7160.
To specify colors or kinds of flowers
or to add or change the
names for the bulletin, call Marty
Roberts at 223-5506.
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