Our parish s patron is St Paul the Apostle who was one of the early Church s missionary leaders.

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1 Our parish s patron is St Paul the Apostle who was one of the early Church s missionary leaders. W ELCOME TO ST PAUL S. We are glad that you have come to worship God with us today. If you are a visitor from another parish, or worshipping with us for the first time, please introduce yourself to our parish priest, Fr James Collins, or to anyone wearing a name badge, over a cup of tea or coffee in the parish hall after the service. You ll find the hall behind the church. Sunday 4th June at 9.30am Service Pentecost Sunday and Confirmation 8.00am Sung Eucharist 9.30am Choral Eucharist Sunday 18th June at St Paul s Church at 3pm Symphony for life Concert Tuesday 20th June at 1.15pm Lunchtime Oboe Recital by Madison Hallworth Tuesday 26 September at 1.15pm Lunchtime Guitar Recital by James McDonald Tuesday 24 October at 1.15pm Lunchtime Organ Recital by Mark Congratulations to the newly baptized 3 Whitsunday - The Feast of Pentecost 5 Sunday, 4 June 2017 Yet another successful lunchtime recital 8 "Be steadfast and do the little things 13 A Guide to the Eucharist 16 Parish Pantry 21 Church Growth 26

2 First aid kits are located on the wall of the kitchen in the Large Hall behind the church and in the choir vestry. People needing wheelchair access can enter St Paul s most conveniently by the door at the base of the belltower. Name badges help make St Paul s an inclusive community. If you need a new name badge, fill in the form inside the pew sheet, send it to the parish office, and one will be made and left in church for you. Please turn your mobile phone off or on to silent before the service starts. It ll save you much embarrassment later on. Toilets are available at the entrance to the parish hall, which is located behind the church. Ask a member of the clergy or anyone who s wearing a name badge. We re here to help. Children are welcome in church at any service. There is a selection of children s books and toys at the back of the church near the font and there are also kids activity sheets and pencils available at the back of the church where the pew sheets and prayer books are. Children s Church runs during Term Time. Meet at the back of the church at the beginning of the 9.30am Eucharist. Please feel free to bring your children to the altar rail to receive a blessing, or to receive Communion if they have been admitted to the sacrament. As you take your place in your pew, please make yourself aware of the route to the nearest emergency exit. Should there be a fire, leave quickly, turn right, and assemble by the roundabout on Burwood Road. Please do not take photos inside the church or during the services of worship without permission.

3 Tickets are now available for the Mother's Day Raffle. $2 each or 3 for $5. It will be drawn today after 9.30am Service. Today, we welcome Indianna Therese Coghlan, Ivy Rose Elliott and Ignatius Drew Rogers into the family of God, the Church, through the sacrament of Holy Baptism. Please pray for Indianna, Ivy, Ignatius, their godparents and parents that they may know God s presence in their lives and be enfolded with God s love. Yesterday, Fr James officiated at the wedding of Harrison Courtney George Singh and Rachael Naomi Colmar Wheldall. We pray God s blessing upon them as they begin their lives together. With apologies, we offer our belated best wishes to Vanessa O Neil on the celebration of her birthday during the week before last Sunday may blessing abound on her in the coming year and always many happy returns Vanessa!

4 If you have any used stamps then please bring them to Church with you and leave them in the box at the back of the Church as these earn money for the work of the Anglican Board of Mission Australia. Please note that we are no longer collecting reading glasses. Tuesday nights commencing at 7.30pm and finishing at 8.30pm Tuesday 23rd May - Topic - GRIEF Tuesday 30th - Break * It is the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity and there is a service at Exodus which we will be attending and if anyone is interested they are welcome to come along. (See page 24 for details;) Tuesday 6th June - Break Tuesday 13th June recommence Study Group - Surprised by Hope by N.T. Wright Chapter I Tuesday 20th June - Surprised by Hope by N.T. Wright Chapter II Tuesday 27th June - break (School Holidays) Tuesday 4th July - break (School Holidays) Tuesday 11th July - break (School Holidays) Tuesday 18th Recommence Study Group - Surprised by Hope by N.T. Wright Chapter III Tuesday 25th July - Study Group cont. Surprised by Hope by N.T. Wright Chapter IV

5 Pentecost is the exciting day when we celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit on the church. The early members were so enthusiastic for their faith as a result they were seen to have flames leaping from their heads. Please wear as much Red as you can on this day (trimmed with white and/or gold if you like) to display your enthusiasm and joy and in thanksgiving for the gift of the Holy Spirit. Our Bishop will be with us for the Sacrament of Confirmation and there will be a Procession in honour the Festival and incense will be used to enhance our worship. Make sure you are in the Red to celebrate this great day of thanksgiving!!! Burwood is undergoing a massive change in population both numerically and demographically and, by God's grace, St. Paul's is seeing an outpouring of God's Holy Spirit as people dedicate their lives to following Christ and serving God, God's people, and God's world. It is an exciting time and I sense that this is just the beginning of a whole new phase of growth in the Parish in faith, hope, and love, and in numerical growth and in financial growth so that, as Archbishop Glenn recently said, we can grow more and more in love. St. Paul's is such a beautiful place and it's not just about the aesthetics it's about being a place of love and care and welcome and beauty for everyone. Apart from the beauty of the building, the real beauty of the Parish is in the lives of those who seek to follow and to serve God and we are seeing new people link up every week. As well as caring for our elderly and ensuring that they are visited and cared for, we are nurturing a whole new generation of young families and their children (and we already have children wanting to be Admitted to Communion next year who are just that bit too young this year) along with many adults who are committing their lives to follow Christ. Again, it is an exciting time in the Parish but it is only the beginning of a process to ensure that St. Paul's has a very healthy future.

6 Many of those to be Baptized, Confirmed, and Admitted to Communion are new Christians or young in their faith and it is quite wonderful that they are prepared to express their faith in God publicly. Those to be Baptized are: Siti Umi Wei Those to be Confirmed: Zainab Siti Jessica Wei Evangeline Bojeong Those to be Admitted to Communion are: Claudia Justin Ellie Amelia Noah Charlotte Sophie Increase in them the spirit of wisdom and understanding, The spirit of discernment and inner strength, The spirit of knowledge and true godliness, And fill them with wonder and awe at your presence, Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

7 What a wonderful response for Tuesday s recital, including the Music co-ordinator and members of the choir from Rosebank College! Thank you for all for coming. There is no doubt in my mind that you found the vocal calibre of Judith Rough and Nicole Smeulders to be an outstanding feature. With the dexterity of Michael Deasey s accompaniments, I felt enormously proud that St Paul s, Burwood, offers performances comparable with, perhaps better than, our sister city churches. The beauty of the Church provides an inspirational setting for our fine musicians; our artists never disappoint. As always, my thanks to Fr James Collins for his continued support, Margaret Whittaker - welcomer, Jane and Bob Woods - caterers, Mary Purnell - special helper, Rosemary King and Caroline Badra for their assistance. Our soloist is oboist, Maddison Hallworth. Maddison has been awarded a full scholarship to study at the Royal Academy of Music, London, commencing in September. Her accompanist is John Martin, whom we met last year, at the fund-raising recital in July last year. St Paul s Anglican Church Burwood Road, Burwood LUNCHTIME RECITAL OF MUSIC FOR OBOE Tuesday, 20 June pm pm Maddison Hallworth with John Martin - Piano C. P. E. Bach and Rietz Entry by donation Light refreshments will follow in the Rectory. Sheryl Southwood Director of Music If you enjoyed Tuesday s Recital, we invite to come to our next recital on Tuesday 20th June 2017.

8 My Dear Friends, Thank you for all that each of you have done to make Tuesday s recital such a success. The recital was musically wonderful and Michael, Judith, and Nicole played and sang brilliantly. The recital was a triumph and it was great to hear the Walcker Organ being put through its paces as Michael accompanied Judith and Nicole. Sheryl, thank you for organizing everything so brilliantly. Can you please thank Michael, Judith, and Nicole for giving so freely of their time to support the Parish and our community? Thank you. Jane & Bob, and Mary, thank you for catering for the masses after the recital. It was good to have the time to chat with people after the recital itself. Thank you, Margaret, for putting the recital into the Facebook domain and for coming along and helping afterwards. Thank you, Judith, for arranging the flowers for the recital and for helping in so many other ways. Thank you, Rosemary and Caroline, for all of your help before, during, and after the recital. I am grateful to each of you for helping to make St. Paul's a place of beauty, love, and peace and for sharing this beauty, peace, and love with those in our community. With my love and thanks. Peace, James.

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10 We believe in being good stewards of what God has given us. We also believe in being cheerful and giving with those resources. God wants us to be faithful, no matter how little or how much we have. The New Testament teaches over and over about being faithful with what you have been given. The New Testament gives us eight principles on generous giving: 1. Generous giving is sacrificial. 2. Generous giving is something that only some people are spiritually gifted for, others must be taught stewardship. 3. Generous giving is a gospel issue. 4. Generous giving encourages churches to share with other churches and ministries in need. 5. Generous giving is motivated by friendly competition (Paul challenges the Corinthian church to match the impoverished Macedonian church). 6. Generous giving is about sowing and reaping. 7. Generous giving is one of the many evidences that someone is truly a Christian. 8. Generous giving promotes the worship of Jesus as God. It cannot be overstated that when we give to God, we are not deciding how much of our wealth to give; rather, we are determining how much of God s wealth to keep for our own uses. In 1 Chronicles 29:14 David articulates precisely this fact, saying, "But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to make this freewill-offering? For all things come from you, and of your own have we given to you." God's people today are not required to tithe. But, like everything else in the New Covenant, our grace giving is to exceed Old Testament requirements of the law. Therefore, for God's people, 10 percent should be a floor, not a ceiling, and a place to begin, not a place to end.

11 At St. Paul's we seek to be obedient to God and to give generously to further God's work, to play our part in participating with God in the extension of God's kingdom of justice, peace, and love. This generosity is evident in the Offertory and the collection of Alms (the Collection). We take bread and wine (Offertory), bless bread and wine (Consecration), break bread (Fraction), and give bread and wine (Communion). The Offertory refers to the offering we make to God on the Altar. Having heard the Word of God we are moved to respond by offering ourselves to God. On Sunday, two visible actions take place. There is a collection of alms (money) and bread and wine are placed on the Altar. The second of these is the essential part of the Offertory. The bread and wine are the people's gifts. Those who bring the elements of bread and wine, the Offertory, represent the people in presenting the elements to the celebrant. We offer back to the Creator that which God has given to us (wheat and grape) modified by human effort (making the wheat into bread and the grape into wine). Through the tokens of bread and wine, the people (the creation) offer themselves back to God (the Creator). The collection of alms is an appropriate complement. These are taken up during the singing of the Offertory Hymn and they are used to purchase the bread and wine and to extend God's kingdom of justice, peace, and love. Over the years the parish has benefitted from the generosity of parishioners, not only when they have been active members of the parish, but also at the time of their death. Parishioners are invited to remember the parish in their wills by making a bequest as a thank offering to God and to ensure that generations to come will enjoy worship and fellowship in well maintained buildings. Those wishing to make a bequest are invited to do so using these or a similar form of words: "I bequeath the sum of $... to the Rector and

12 Wardens of the Anglican Parish of St Paul, Burwood, to be used at their absolute discretion for the charitable purposes of the parish." If you would like to make a donation to the Parish for the upkeep and maintenance of the Heritage building it can be done through the National Trust. Cheques can be made out to: National Trust of Australia (NSW) St Paul s Anglican Church Burwood Or Direct Credit to the above name with bank account details: Westpac BSB: Account number: Branch: 275 George Street Sydney NSW In Romans 6: we read: Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words. And God, who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. (NRSV) Please take time to pray, either before, during, or after the Service to allow the Spirit to intercede for the saints according to the will of God. If you pray for someone, you might like to send them a card. These beautiful cards are on the table in front of the Icon of St. Paul in the South Transept, where you might light a candle for those for whom you have prayed, and we are grateful to the Parishioner who has designed and made them for us.

13 These are the last words of St. David of Wales (c ). We give very special thanks to all the people who make our Parish what it is by being steadfast and doing the little things that matter... Our Director of Music, Choir, and Organist and Musicians, our Bell Ringers, our Archivists, The Office Secretary, Sacristan, Servers and Crucifers and Acolytes, Thurifers and Boat Carriers, Cleaners and Polishers and Flower Arrangers, those who care for the Altar linen and purificators, those who are making our new kneelers, Side-persons and Welcomers and Tea and Coffee Makers, Gardeners and Handypersons and Caretakers, Children's Church Teachers and Helpers, Play Group Leaders and Helpers, Youth Group Leaders, Wardens and Parish Councillors and our Treasurer, our Lay Readers, Lay Assistants and our Clergy, our Lay Minister, Visiting Clergy, Honorary Clergy, Preachers and Speakers, our Intercessors and Bible Readers, and to those who have no special role but just step in, at a moment s notice, to do what needs to be done. Thank you so much, everyone. One of the most important ministries in the Church is the Ministry of Welcoming. A Church can never be too friendly, so it is important that visitors receive a special welcome. This is one form of evangelism. Don't forget to give a warm welcome to regular attendees as well. They are the ones who form the foundation for the ongoing ministry of the congregation. You are part of a very important ministry of our congregation. It's called the "Ministry of Welcome". That's right, being an greeter or usher is a ministry. In fact, the position of "door-keeper" or "gate-keeper" was a significant and exalted office in the Old Testament, a position of great trust. You stand in that great biblical tradition. This information is intended to assist you in your task so that together we can continue to make our congregation a friendly place where people matter. For a Biblical founda-

14 tion of this ministry read First Chronicles 9:17-32 and First Chronicles 26:1-19. It is stressed that welcoming God's people is a position of trust. "Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it." (Hebrews 13:2) The Importance of Being Visitor-Sensitive How do you feel when you enter a place that is unfamiliar to you? Insecure, self conscious, conspicuous, alone? Perhaps you feel that everyone is looking at you, that you don't fit in. That's how many of our Church visitors feel when they meet you at the Church door. What do you need at a time like that? A warm welcome, a friendly smile, just the simple reassurance that "we're glad to see you"? How about some simple directions, or an invitation to fellowship time after worship? Always remember that visitors to our congregation do not feel the same way as our regular worship attendees, so don't forget the importance of being visitor sensitive. Never forget that Church visitors are important because: the Christian Church exists for mission many are "seeking" God and a Church family they often have a specific need. So welcome them warmly! "The only difference between Churches is the way they treat their visitors and members." Guidelines for Greeters and Ushers "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you ill receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving." (Colossians 3:23-24) 1. Prepare yourself spiritually. Pray. You are not involved in a job or a task but a ministry and it must be undertaken with that understanding. 2. Prepare yourself physically. Be well groomed. No heavy perfume or aftershave. Don't slouch.

15 3. Be on Time. Gather and be in position at the appropriate time. 4. Remember that you are the minister's assistant. Ushers and welcomers are an extension of the ministry of the minister. 5. Be friendly. It takes 72 muscles to frown and only 14 to smile. Pay attention by keeping eye contact, and wear a name tag. Refrain from hugging. 6. Follow the approved guidelines. Discover the guidelines used at St. Paul's (on page 2 of our pew sheet) and follow them. 7. Stay at your post. Visitors -- and regular attendees -- often arrive early or late, so be ready to serve them. 8. Seat people carefully Usher people to their seats once the worship area is near capacity. Always usher people once worship begins. Avoid seating people you don't recognize in the front 2-3 rows. Seat young families with children beside young families with children and/or near an exit. 9. Always be positive. Don't say: "You're late! You can't go in now!" Do say: "I'd be happy to seat you in just a moment." 10. Pay attention, to the minister(s) (she/he/they may need your assistance), to the people (someone may be ill), and to the bulletin (it may contain changes in the usual order of worship). Keep your eyes open for people standing or sitting alone and speak to them. If you have a fellowship time after worship get to know those who are new to your congregation. 11. Follow up after worship. Go back to your position as worship ends and thank people for coming. Assist any who require it. 12. Clean up. Straighten up hymn books/bibles, remove old pew sheets, close doors, etc. 13. Receive the offering. The Head Usher will review procedures with you. Do this with dignity. These gifts are being brought to the Lord by His people.

16 Please count everyone in worship (including children, the Choir, Servers, Clergy, etc., etc.) and, before the Collection, let the Servers know how many are in Church. To usher someone to a seat: Ask the person to wait for a moment Locate appropriate places in worship area Ask them to follow you Step back as they enter the pew Always be courteous Final Words We end where we began. Your ministry is a vitally important one within our congregation. There is nothing insignificant or unimportant about it. It is worthy of your very best. Each week our greeters and ushers perform an outstanding ministry just like the "door-keepers" of old. Keep up the good work! The Eucharist is the central act of Christian worship. The New Testament tells us that, for as long as Christian communities existed, they have followed the example of Jesus in breaking bread and drinking wine together to make his presence known among them. What we do in our Eucharist is, of course, far removed in its external character from the simple meal which was the Last Supper. But at the same time, it is not radically different from the celebrations Christians have conducted from as early as the second and third centuries. A Church or chapel has no purpose apart from the worship of God. It has other uses, to be sure, but no other purpose. It is holy, set apart, for God. For this reason, the atmosphere of a Church should never be ordinary. Just as in worship we offer our whole selves to God, so every aspect of that worship the sights, sounds and even the smells are different, set apart. We strive to offer what the Psalmist calls the beauty of holiness.

17 Preparation We begin with the entrance of the servers, and the sacred ministers. Each wears an alb which simply means white. It derives from the ordinary under tunic a citizen of the empire would have worn under his cloak or outer garment. Then each minister puts on a stole, a coloured scarf which displays his office. The celebrant puts his round the neck to indicate that in this Eucharist his is the part of the Priest. Above the stole, each puts on a large coloured garment: the priest wears a Cope, rich outer garments which would have testified to someone's importance in the ancient world. In our context, they point not to an important person, but to the importance of the liturgical function the Priest has. The colours we use change according to which season of the Church's year we are in. You will also see a thurible, for burning incense. The use of incense in public worship is mentioned frequently in the Old Testament, and of course the frankincense which Matthew records as one of the gifts to Jesus is a sign of his divine origin. The Priest censes the Altar on which our offering will be made. In the Eucharist we cense objects and people to indicate their holiness, to set them apart for God's purposes. The Altar is the physical centre of our offering. At its centre is the cross, and you will have noticed that it is given special attention by being censed before the ministers move along the Altar. We start with Preparation. We are about to offer ourselves to God. And so we begin with self examination and penitence. We know, all too well, that we're not able to stand before God and offer God praise: our failings and weaknesses prevent us. But God asks us to offer those to him as well, to confess our sins, so that God may forgive them, and accept us just as we are. To remind us of God's forgiving grace which we received in Baptism, the Priest sprinkles us with holy water, and then pronounces this forgiveness of God, and an ancient hymn will be sung. Like this hymn either the Kyrie or the Gloria - some of what we say, sing and hear we have every week, and some of it is particular or, as we say, proper to certain days or occasions. The readings change each day, and so does our next prayer, the collect. This 'collects' our thoughts and intentions, and captures the theme or the event proper to the day.

18 The Ministry of the Word The Eucharist tells the Christian story through words and actions. Like any community in history, we come to know our identity by telling and retelling the stories of our birth and origin. And so, having prepared ourselves, we come now to read the scriptures. We read of God's saving acts in the days of ancient Israel, we read about the earliest Christian Churches, and we read the good news of Jesus, the records of what he said and did. The reading of the Gospel is, of course, a tremendously important part of Christian worship, and so we make a great fuss of it, processing with candles, having incense to show its importance and with the gospel book itself held high aloft. The Gospel book is held high and carried into the midst of the people, but once it is read it resides in each of us, so the book loses its significance. Something else you will notice, and can practise, is the making of the sign of the cross. + In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. This is, as it were, a shorthand of the faith. We use it at the beginning of Eucharist and at the end, but at several other points, usually indicated by a cross on your order of service. We cross ourselves at the absolution, for example, when the Priest pronounces God's forgiveness. We do it three times at the gospel, asking that the Word of the Lord might be in our minds, on our lips and in our hearts. And we cross ourselves at the climax of the Eucharistic prayer, to acknowledge God's presence among us. The Peace, Offertory and Consecration We have come to the middle, more or less. In many early liturgies, this is the point when all visitors and those still learning the faith would have left. Those whom remained greet one another as a Christian should, offering the peace of Christ, and this greeting marks the transition from reading to offering, from word to sacrament. We are now setting out on the journey which will end in Christ's own presence. So the Priest prepares the Altar, bread and wine are brought, and prayers of blessing are said. The gifts of bread and wine are then censed by the Priest, who now censes the altar again, before being censed himself. We are all part of the offering of this Eucharist and we are all important,

19 all made holy by God. So we are all censed. Finally the Priest washes his hands to remind himself of the enormity of the act which God performs through him. We are offering a sacrifice. The word sacrifice means, not to give up, but to make holy. We are making these gifts, and ourselves holy, or rather God is making them holy through us. And it is our sacrifice; it is not the property of the Priest. That is why the Church is arranged as it is, with the ministers forming a kind of spearhead to focus the prayers of all upon the offering of the Altar so that all our worship is channelled on to that one place. The Eucharistic prayer is the focal point of our service, which we mark by kneeling, with candles and with incense.'eucharist' means thanksgiving. The miracle of the eucharist is that, even as we thank Christ, he comes among us again to make us holy, to offer us to the father. So the prayer rehearses, yet again, the story of our redemption. God created us, and all belongs to him. He sent Christ to redeem us, and caused us to live in the power of the Spirit. So we worship and honour him, and pray that his grace will transform our gifts into the body and blood of Christ. We obey Christ's command, we repeat his words. We ask the Holy Spirit to come upon the gifts at this point a bell rings, because the central act of our drama is upon us. At the words of Christ and the invocation of the spirit the gifts are transformed, they become something which they were not before. Christ. Not something you can see touch or taste, but something which is divine, and hence more real than our dim grasp of reality can ever understand. So as we consecrate first bread, and then wine, the bell rings, the incense rises, we make the sign of the cross and we honour our Lord's presence by genuflecting. As our prayer reaches its end, we celebrate our Lord's coming by holding him aloft in joy, and glorifying God. The end of the prayer is called the great Amen. Not because it is very loud, but because it is being said not just by us, but by the whole Church. In the Eucharist we unite ourselves with the Church in every place, and we unite earth and heaven together, and all say 'Amen' to our prayers. The time is almost come to receive Christ into ourselves. We must give full thought to the importance of this action. We offer ourselves to God's mercy in the best way possible, by praying in the words Jesus taught us.

20 We invoke him as the Lamb of God, the sacrificial offering who takes away our sins, and we rejoice that, despite the infinite divide between our weakness and his glory, one word of forgiveness is all that he needs to welcome us again. 'I am not worthy to receive you, but only say the word, and I shall be healed.' The bell rings again, because it is time. We come forward, we kneel, we make again the sign of the cross, and Christ himself gives himself to us, to unite us once again with him. Post Communion and Dismissal We have received Christ again, and he has fed us with himself, the food that brings salvation. The grace of God strengthens us not just in this place, but in all our lives, so now God sends us out to live out the story we have told ourselves again - to be his people, in the world, the body of Christ on earth. Our drama is almost over. Just as we began by invoking God and greeting one another, so we end with the Priest pronouncing the blessing of God, and the deacon inviting us to 'Go in Peace to love and serve the Lord'. Anointing of the Sick is available at any of our Services. In James 5: we read: 14 Are any among you sick? They should call for the elders of the church and have them pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord 15 The prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise them up; and anyone who has committed sins will be forgiven. (NRSV) If you would like to be anointed and to be prayed for then please ask one of the Priests in the Parish so that you can be anointed during any of our Services. The Wednesday mid-week Eucharist includes prayers for healing every week.

21 Below is a list of the foods most commonly required for the pantry. If you are able to contribute any of these items they would be much appreciated. Juice & Poppers; Tinned Fruit; Fruit in jelly cups; Rice Cream; Pasta & Spaghetti; Sun Rice Meals e.g. Butter chicken, Green chicken curry, Chicken satay Tins of corned beef; Instant potato, cuscus Tinned vegetables, peas, mixed vegetables, potatoes, etc Tins of spam; Tins of ham; All Day Breakfast by Heinz; Chunky soups Heinz & Campbells; Tinned tuna; Tins of sardines; Tins of salmon; Savoury biscuits; Sweet biscuits; Sugar; 1Kg bags Tea Bags; Instant Coffee; Long life Milk; Up & Go All flavours; Cereals; Currently we do not need any tinned spaghetti. Parish Pantry hours this year are: Tuesday am; Wednesday pm; Thursday am Thank you to everyone who continues to contribute food to the pantry. It is great to see that some of you have been able to source the Sun Rice Meals. This is terrific. They would have to be the singularly most popular item each week.

22 Our Regional Bishop, The Right Reverend Dr. Michael Stead, will be with us on Pentecost Sunday the 4th of June, 2017, and we hope to have a Confirmation Service that day at the 9.30 a.m. Eucharist. Are you, or anyone that you know, interested in being Confirmed, Received into the Anglican Communion, or Baptized? Please speak with Fr. James, Fr Michael, or Rosemary if you are, or anyone that you know is, interested in being Confirmed, Received into the Anglican Communion, or Baptized. Collection given at St Paul s on Sunday 14th of May: $2064 Other collection given: Rising Nepal: $100 Parish Pantry:$55 Total: $2219 Thank you for responding to God s generous love. As the evenings are cooling down and the mornings are crisp it is time to turn our attention to those without adequate shelter. We would like to do a Life Jacket run in the next few weeks so if you have any blankets or WARM jackets they would be much appreciated. These can be left at the back of the church. On a later run we will take out new socks and jocks. We have already had 250 torches donated. Thank you for your care for our friends.

23 St Paul s Anglican Church Burwood Road, Burwood LUNCHTIME RECITALS pm-1.45pm Tuesday 20 June Madison Hallworth - Oboe Tuesday 26 September Ben Secrett and James McDonald - Guitar Tuesday 24 October Mark Quarmby - Organ Other dates and artists TBC Entry by donation Light refreshments will follow in the Rectory For further information, please contact the St Paul s Church Office: Ph.: / office@stpaulsburwood.org.au St Paul s is an historic Church designed by Edmund Blacket. It is famous for its beauty and spiritual ambience.

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26 We would like you to join us at our 135th Anniversary Service on Sunday 28th May 2017 at 2:00PM. Add: 39 Jamieson St, Granville Archbishop Dr Glenn Davies has accepted our invitation to celebrate and preach at the service. Mrs Davies will accompany the Archbishop on his visit. A High Tea will be held at 4PM at the conclusion of the service in the Community Centre. We look forward to seeing you at our Anniversary Service. Please RSVP to nsmith-obrien@bigpond.com or the church postal address by 19th May If you are aware of other people who would be interested in attending, please share this invitation with them. Yours Sincerely, Neil Smith-O Brien Parish Secretary This year s theme is: Reconciliation the Love of Christ compels us An Ecumenical Worship Service will beheld on Tuesday 30th of May, 7pm-8pm to celebrate the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity at Ashfield Parish Mission (180 Liverpool Road, Ashfield) followed by dinner. RSVP By: Friday 26th May 2017 For more information: nswec@ncca.org.au

27 The Anglican Church in England has been declining for over a 100 years. Those who profess a Christian faith in the Anglican tradition here in Australia, according to Australian Bureau of Statistics figures have been in decline for some time, particularly since The English cleric and author Bob Jackson (Hope for the Church (2002); The Road to Growth (2005)) argued that it was high time the Church adopted a strategy for growth, rather than one for managed decline. At a recent seminar here in Australia he articulated the lessons learned from the Church of England s response to the challenges of a real decline in church attendance and church growth (What makes Churches grow? (2015)). He also gently challenged his Australian audience to respond to his material. Those Parishes in the Diocese of Sydney who understand themselves to be sacramental, liturgical, and pastoral in nature, as well as honouring the written word and the Living Word, can and, dare I say it, should address these self-same issues. The question is: how to grow with grace? There are four key elements involved in growing a healthy Church: 1. Prayer, in which we turn to God to give growth in every spiritual gift and grace as well numerical and financial growth. Prayers for growth: Heavenly Father, you have welcomed us into your kingdom and your heart s desire is to draw every human being to yourself. Grant us clear eyes to see people as you see them, sensitive feet to stand in their shoes, and warm smiles to welcome them in your name. Give us such generous hearts that our church becomes a foretaste of heaven where every soul you send us finds their loving home in the community of your Son our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen. God of Mission Who alone brings growth to your Church, Send your Holy Spirit to give Vision to our planning, Wisdom to our actions, And power to our witness. Help our church to grow in numbers, In spiritual commitment to you, And in service to our local community, Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. 2. Welcome, in which we genuinely seek to welcome all people into the community of faith.

28 We aren't a club or a secret society we are the Body of Christ and we are, in Paul's words, to "welcome one another, therefore, just as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God." (Romans 15:7) 3. Nurture, where we care for one another and help to nurture new Christians and each and every one with whom we share the journey of faith, hope, and love. We will continue our study through the year to help each of us to understand the depths of our Anglican heritage and to meet regularly to reflect on what God is saying to us in the Holy Scriptures. 4. Worship of God with our beautiful Anglican Eucharistic liturgy that makes our worship accessible to whole new generations of Christians. Acts ; Psalm ; 1 Peter ; John Jesus says to us today: If you love me, you will keep my commandments. Yet how often do we fall short of loving God and loving neighbour? How often are we slack to attend to prayer and worship, annihilating our own spiritual lives? How many times do we fall into gossip and backstabbing, creating hurt in our own parish community? May we turn from our wickedness and live. Lord, may the world know we are your disciples by the love we show to each other! Pray that the Holy Spirit will help us to focus on our interior prayer lives, and to build up our parishes to be welcoming and transforming communities. Give thanks for the work and witness of the Church of the Province of South East Asia. Text: Robert McLean Partnerships Coordinator, ABM Anglican Board of Mission, 2017

29 Office use PR NB WL PV NSE Please return this form to the Parish Office. Surname First Name(s) Address Suburb Postcode Postal address (if different from above) Service(s) you normally attend Phone (h) Phone (w) Phone (m) DOB Occupation I m new to St Paul s I m already on the roll my details have changed I m already on the roll I just need a new name badge

30 your kingdom. Amen. (Ted Loder) Pray for the Anglican Church for Justin, Archbishop of Canterbury; Phillip, Primate of Australia; Glenn, Archbishop of Sydney; Michael Stead, our Regional Bishop; and for all the bishops, priests, deacons and Religious of the Anglican Communion. In the Anglican Cycle of Prayer we are asked to pray today for the Diocese of Ngbo - (Enugu, Nigeria), for its Bishop, The Rt Revd Christian Ebisike and for all his clergy and people. Pray for Fr James and for Fr Michael as well as for Helen and Antonia. May God bless them and their ministries and may we support them as they work among us in Christ s name. Pray for St Paul s: God of mercy, strengthen us to help shape a parish where diversity is a source of enrichment, compassion is common, life s poetry realized, suffering lightened through sharing, justice attended, joy pervasive, hope lived, the hum of the universe heard, and together with you and each other we build what is beautiful, true, worthy of your generosity to us, an echo of Pray for, St Matthew s, Zababdeh, (West Bank, Palestinian Territorries), our Anglican Communion Partner: We remember especially their Parish Priest, Fr Saleem Dawani, and his ministry in the parish. We remember also Jameel Maher, who acts as the St Matthew s partnership link person with us. May both our parishes be blessed by the link we are establishing. Pray for the Church s mission: Lord Jesus Christ, you stretched out your arms of love on the hard wood of the cross that everyone might come within the reach of your saving embrace: So clothe us in your Spirit that we, reaching forth our hands in love, may bring those who do not know you to the knowledge and love of you; for the honour of your name. Amen. (Author unknown) Pray for our Children s Church: The Lord said, Let the little children come to me and do not forbid them for such is the kingdom of heaven. Bless, Lord, your children who now stand before you in prayer. Help them to understand the depth of your love. We pray also for all the teachers of our Children s Church. May our teachers be enabled to teach and

31 train your children and help them to grow spiritually. O Lord, bless our Children's Church and all its future endeavours, that through it we may glorify you with your Father and the Holy Spirit, now, always and forever. Amen. Pray for peace: Lead me from death to life, from falsehood to truth; lead me from despair to hope, from fear to trust; lead me from hate to love, from war to peace. Let peace fill our hearts, our world, our universe. Pray for all in need,especially for all people who have no shelter during this time of the year. Pray for the sick and their carers: Nola; Joyce; Sally & Leon Banducci; Joyce Bannister; Margaret Baseley; Tim Bolton; Wendy Bolton; Buddy; John Burns; June Cameron; Scott Cameron; Di Campbell; Fiona Carrick; (Sir) John Carrick; (Lady) Angela Carrick; George Cepak; Rodney Chesham; Beth Davidge; Hilary Davies; Leah Delacruz; Manish Dhakal; Dave Ernst; Mark Fisher; Ena Gillespie; Joyce Gorman; the Rev. John Gwilliam; Fr Brian Harker; George Harvey; Mary Harvey; Gerry Hayes; Margaret Hayes; Denis Hayes; Heather; Catherine Hallworth; George Hallworth; Margaret Hurley; Bishop Ivan Lee; Lee; Sandra Macleod-Miller; Chris Mannix; Bishop Ken Mason, Bruce May; Lerola Meyers; Jim McManus; Gae McMillan; Jean Millar; Barbara Moreton; Tas Murray; Narelle; Nicole; Alister & Sally Palmer; Valerie Perrin; Paul Phillips; Elisabeth Prasad; Jason Proctor; Deidre Reid; Joanne Roberts; Jenny Rorich; Tony Sheffield; Elsa Sorenson; Stephanie; Susan; John Telek; Pauline Thomas; Nancy Thompson; Alannah Walsh; Margaret Wheatley; Lynne West; Megan West; Valma Woolfrey; Bob Woods; Peter Ying. In love and charity please remember the recently departed, especially, Wilga Anthon that God may grant her a place of refreshment, light and peace. Pray, too, for Keith Shaw Greenwood, Reginald Clive Pollard, Shirley Ruth Ferneley, John Fogdon Hogan, Peter Allan Wright, Ronald George Lane & John Sutton and for any others whose year s mind falls around this time. Rest eternal grant unto them O Lord, and let light perpetual shine upon them!

32 Phone Fax Post PO Box 530, Burwood, NSW 1805 Website Rector Fr James Collins Senior Assistant Priest Fr Michael Deasey, OAM Honorary Priest Fr Jim Pettigrew Office Secretary Mrs Caroline Badra (9.30am to 2.30pm, Tuesday to Friday) Lay Minister Ms Rosemary King Rector s Warden Dr Jane Carrick People s Wardens Mrs Elizabeth Griffiths Mrs Pam Brock Director of Music Mrs Sheryl Southwood Organist Mr Edwin Taylor A mid-week Eucharist will be held in the Chapel of our Lord's Passion on Wednesday at 10.30am. Commemorations noted by the lectionary this week Wednesday 24 May John (d.1971) and Charles (d.1788) Wesley, evangelists Thursday 25 May Ascension Day Friday 26 May Augustine of Canterbury, missionary and bishop (d.605) Saturday 27 May Saturday 3 June Week of Prayer for Reconciliation