Coffee hour, stained glass windows when the sun appeared after the sermon, the sermon, filling bags with 300 daffodil bulbs to celebrate Stewardship Sunday, fall leaves
Pictures and text from this Sunday, October 7
The Week Ahead…
Oct. 10 – 10am-12pm, Ecumenical Bible Study
Oct. 11 – ECW Fall Gathering. Epiphany Episcopal Church 3301 Hidden Meadow Drive, Oak Hill, VA 20171. 8:30 a.m.Registration, 9:30 a.m. Meeting, 1:30 p.m. Holy Eucharist
Oct. 11 – Honoring Bishop Shannon, 6pm-7:30pm Aquia Episcopal
Oct. 14 – 10:00am, Living the Good News Christian Ed for children
Oct. 14 – 11:00am, Pentecost 20, Holy Eucharist Rite II II
Sunday, Oct. 14 Readings and Servers
October’s Village Harvest, Oct. 17
For Oct’s Village Harvest on Oct 17 we are distributing cleaning supplies. Bring your supply to the church by Sunday, Oct. 14. Thanks for your help for this worthwhile ministry. Last month we fed 112 and we had ample foods to serve many more over 13 pounds available per person.
ECW Fall Meeting, Oct. 11
The meeting will be at Epiphany Episcopal Church 3301 Hidden Meadow Drive, Oak Hill, VA 20171.
Map and Church website
Join us for a day of Fellowship, Education and Holy Eucharist with Bishop Bob Ihloff.
• Hear UTO Grant recipients, Claire Hitchins and Mark Heisey, of Charis Community.
• Hear Just Ask spokesman, Bill Woolf, on Combatting Human Trafficking in Virginia.
• Learn about The Triangle of Hope and Mother’s Union Initiatives from the Rev. Rock Higgins and the Rev. Cayce Ramey.
Honoring Bishop Shannon, Oct. 11
The event will be held at Aquia Episcopal Church, 2938 Jefferson Davis Highway, Stafford, VA
The Fredericksburg Region is hosting this gathering to honor the time that Bishop Shannon has served as the Diocesan Bishop of this Diocese. He will be resigning at the end of the Convention which takes place on the first weekend in November.
The time will include an opportunity to talk with the Bishop, hear some reflections from him, and also to join in a short worship that will close our time together. The Bishop is hoping to receive cards with short messages of appreciation.
If you can attend, please let Catherine know or sign up on the Diocesan website. And if you cannot attend and would like to send a card to the Bishop, Catherine will carry it to the Bishop that evening. If you have questions, please give Catherine a call at 540-809-7489.
Lectionary, Pentecost 21, Proper 23
I. Theme – Working for Justice may cause us to change our lives and lifestyle
“Rich Young Ruler”
“He said to him, ‘Teacher, I have kept all these since my youth.’ Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, ‘You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.’ When he heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions.” – Mark 10:20-22
The lectionary readings are here or individually:
Old Testament – Amos 5:6-7,10-15
Psalm – Psalm 90:12-17 Page 718, BCP
Epistle – Hebrews 4:12-16
Gospel – Mark 10:17-31
Today’s readings encourage us to work for justice, to release our attachment to things and to trust Jesus to form us into a people of compassion. Amos decries Israel’s unjust treatment of the poor and oppressed. Trusting in God’s justice, Job wants God to hear his case in person. The author of Hebrews points out that only through Jesus will any of this be fully accomplished—as our apostle and high priest, he builds us into “God’s house.” In today’s gospel, Jesus advises a wealthy man who seeks God to obey God’s commandments and to detach from his possessions and focus fully on God. With God all things are possible!
Being faithful to God calls us to live into God’s ways of justice. We need to love our neighbor as ourselves—it is the commandment Jesus gives us—and we cannot love our neighbor without seeing to their needs. And it is hard for us to see to their needs when we are too busy caring for our stuff, worrying about our material wants, rather than seeing the needs of others. This is a difficult lesson for us, and I’m not sure I’ll ever fully be able to let go of all the things I have. But I know that faith is a lifelong journey, and I don’t have to accomplish it all now. Before God, all our sins are exposed, but before God, all things are possible, all forgiveness is given, and all things are made new
Voices on the Gospel
The Gospel story of the “young ruler” is challenging . “Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, “You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” When he heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions.”
Some thoughts:
1. David Lose, President of Luther Seminary, Philadelphia
“That is, Jesus might be looking at us with love and, perceiving the deep heart sickness in each of us, actually asking something of us, giving us something to do, something to give up or away, somewhere to go. Now don’t get me wrong: this is not about our salvation; we are saved by grace through faith for Christ’s sake alone. But what if it doesn’t end there? Or better, what if, in one sense, it only starts there. That is, what if God isn’t only concerned about our eternal destiny but also cares about the life we enjoy here and now, with each other in God’s creation”
2. Suzanne Guthrie, writer
“Jesus loves him, but he walks away. The heartbreaking image of the rich young ruler who Jesus loved, turning away in grief, is too much a mirror of daily life. Jesus loves me, but I turn away because of my life of glittering distractions. It doesn’t even have to be money, although money is often connected to it.
Is this story about poverty? Upholding voluntary poverty in times of financial distress seems a little callous and ignorant, as if poverty were some nostalgic romantic ideal. On the other hand, the wildly imbalanced culture of greed for possessions and power drove us to cause the current global economic crisis. Where is the balance? Where is love?”
From Catherine – “We’ll enjoy some traditional Guatemalan food together, and I’ll talk about my time in Antigua, Guatemala. I want to tell you about all sorts of things that I experienced in my time away and to share with you how my experiences affected me. I’ll share some of my photos with you, and please bring your questions.” Please let her know if you will be there so there will be enough food for all!
Email Catherine
Early Fall, October
Fall is a wonderful time to pause and look at nature all around you especially in very early October. You have to take the time and not think of the minutes. The time before church is my time to let nature envelop me, especially with all the rain creating effects on fallen leaves, on the graves and on the river. Take a look at what I saw in 2015…
Read more and see the photo gallery
The Season of Creation year B encompassed all 5 Sundays in September, 2018 and through St. Francis Day, Oct. 4. .
This is our second year doing the Season as alternative liturgy during Pentecost. Personally I think it is the most important part of our church year behind Advent and Lent. It connects us all to the world around us and unites us all to the common goal of being both in awe of God’s Creation and making us aware of our shortcomings in our day of being God’s stewards. With that said I can see real improvements being made with steps in process for the future.
Here’s the complete retrospective with a summary below
6 Takeaways
1. The Season of Creation as with last year focuses on God the Creator. God Creates the world God’s sustains the earth, promotes renewal for the entire creation, gives us the ability to take action where needed in the world.
2. The final creation was not at the beginning of Genesis and left as it was. The world is in constant creation.
3. As the Pope has said many times, “We are the guardians of Creation” and “everything is connected.” We must be the stewards of our earth and be on guard for its exploitation.
4. When we choose to live in God’s new creation, we grow, and contribute to the good of the world around us, loving one another.
5. The Season of creation is about images and symbols to depict creation and our roles through scripture and the sermon. We used the sower, miracles, butterflies seeds, gardens, and mandalas to convey the meaning this year.
6. During the season we highlighted 5 areas of the environment – water, earth, food, climate change and energy that have been endangered over a generation. Grading the environmental quality of the Rappahannock River, controlling sand and gravel operations in Caroline County, expanding feeding ministries at the same time focusing on waste, reviewing the global increase of temperature and effect and seeing the growth of renewable energy sources were all a part of the study.
One Year After Irma and Maria
Reported from Reuters – “Shuttered businesses, blue tarp roofs and extensively damaged homes can still be seen throughout Puerto Rico and access to electricity and fresh water remain spotty.”
“The storm knocked out power and communications to virtually all of island’s 3.2 million residents, while destroying the homes of thousands. More than 472,000 homes across Puerto Rico were damaged by Hurricane Maria
“Even before the Category-4 storm hit, Puerto Rico was financially bankrupt with $120 billion in debt and pension liabilities it cannot pay. A year after Maria, the island is far from prepared for the next big storm, with an ever-fragile power grid, damaged infrastructure and the same crippling debt.
“There are still some 45,000 homes with so-called “blue roofs,” or tarps installed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The San Juan mayor has noted that the island has seen only a fraction of almost $50 billion in recovery funds Congress approved, including the $20 billion in HUD funds.”
Read more about the hurricanes
2. Contact the Rev Catherine Hicks, Rector 5. Latest Newsletter-the Parish Post (Oct, 2018) 6. Calendar 9. Latest Sunday Bulletin (Oct. 14, 2018 11:00am), and Sermon (Oct. 7, 2018)
10. Recent Services: |
Block Print by Mike Newman
Projects
| Green | Ordinary Time | Jun 3-Oct 31 | |
3-Minute Retreats invite you to take a short prayer break right at your computer. Spend some quiet time reflecting on a Scripture passage.
Knowing that not everyone prays at the same pace, you have control over the pace of the retreat. After each screen, a Continue button will appear. Click it when you are ready to move on. If you are new to online prayer, the basic timing of the screens will guide you through the experience.
Daily meditations in words and music.
Your daily prayer online, since 1999
“We invite you to make a ‘Sacred Space’ in your day, praying here and now, as you visit our website, with the help of scripture chosen every day and on-screen guidance.”
Saints of the Week, Oct. 7 – Oct. 14
|
7
|
Birgitta of Sweden, Mystic and Prophetic Witness, 1373 Henry Melchior Muhlenberg, Pastor, 1787 |
|
8
|
William Dwight Porter Bliss, Priest, 1926, and Richard Theodore Ely, Economist, 1943 Thais of Alexandria, Monastic, 5th c. |
|
9
|
Vida Dutton Scudder, Educator and Witness for Peace, 1954 Wilfred Thomason Grenfell, Medical Missionary, 1940 William Carey, Missionary, 1834 |
|
10
|
|
|
11
|
Philip, Deacon and Evangelist |
|
12
|
Elizabeth Fry, Social Reformer, 1845 |
|
13
|
|
|
14
|
Samuel Isaac Joseph Schereschewsky & Channing Moore Williams, Bishops & Missionaries, 1906 & 1910 |