Crossings. Living into Our Baptismal Promises CHURCH OF THE HOLY CROSS EPISCOPAL 875 COTTON STREET, SHREVEPORT, LOUISIANA JANUARY 20, 2016

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1 Crossings Holy Eucharist Sunday: 9:30 and 11:00 AM Saturday: 5:00 PM Wednesday: 12:15 and 6:00 PM Nursery Sunday 9:45 AM 12:30 PM Choir Practice Sunday: 9:45 AM Sunday School Sunday: 11:00 AM The Vestry Reece Middleton, Senior Warden Gerry Brooks, Jr. Warden Christine Hennigan, Secretary Monty Walford, Treasurer Melissa Fowle Stephanie Hamblin Jo Ann Horton John Hughes Kendall Raymond Contact Information Telephone: (318) Fax: (318) Please visit our website Deadline Material for Crossings must be received by 12:00 Wednesday. Please send to CHURCH OF THE HOLY CROSS EPISCOPAL 875 COTTON STREET, SHREVEPORT, LOUISIANA JANUARY 20, 2016 Living into Our Baptismal Promises Whenever we participate in a service of BAPTISM, in addition to promising to support the newly baptized in their Baptismal Vows, we renew our own Baptismal Vows, a vow being a solemn promise, in this case to GOD. When we do this, the renewal of these significant promises made to God must be more than a perfunctory reading of words printed in the Book of Common Prayer. They are words of such power that if we do not think we can embrace and live into what they describe, we might ought not say them. The words of these promises that we made at our baptism, or that were made on our behalf, are words of such strength and commitment that they could and should renew in us concern and commitment to radical and continuing growth and change for ourselves, our parish, our community, and our world. You have probably heard numerous parish churches described as sleeping giants, meaning that although they may not be so now, they definitely have the potential to make significant difference for the good for GOD. This can surely be said about most churches, including our own Church of the Holy Cross. And this is why: Each and every one of us truly understanding and acting upon the words of our own baptismal promises will awaken this giant and bring new and renewed life to the mission and ministry we are called by God to carry out at this time, in this place! Each of the five promises of the Baptismal Covenant is a call to a major area of Christian life. In reaffirming our baptismal promises, we recommit ourselves before God: To come together regularly to WORSHIP, LEARN, and GROW IN OUR FAITH as we continue in the apostles teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in the prayers; To give of our TIME, TALENT, and TREASURE so that we as individuals and as community can better proclaim by word and example the good news of God in Christ;

2 To CARE FOR and SERVE those in need by seeking and serving the Christ in all persons, and by loving our neighbors as ourselves; To STAND UP FOR and to SPEAK OUT ON BEHALF OF ALL PERSONS, including those who differ from us, so as to bring about justice, peace, respect, and dignity for every human being; And, finally, no matter how short of our intended goals we might fall, to persevere and repent and return to God or, as a friend of mine often said TO KEEP ON KEEPING ON. At Saint John s in Royal Oak, Michigan, where I was ordained priest, the Rector designed a little card of Baptismal Promises for everyone to keep on their bathroom mirror to meditate and reflect upon regularly as a continuing reminder and commitment to living the Baptismal Promises each day. In so doing, you might feel called to focus on a particular promise for a week or a month or a season, and a different one another time. So that we at Holy Cross might do likewise, there are similar cards available for everyone on the tables in the back of the Nave and in the Narthex. You are invited to take one of My Baptismal Promises cards for your own meditation and reflection. The Rev. Sally M. Fox Daily Feast: Meditations on the Word, Year B Louisville: Westminster, John Knox Press, 2012 The Third Sunday after the Epiphany The Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany January 24, 2016 January 31, 2016 Nehemiah 8:1-3, 5-6, 8-10 Psalm 19 Jeremiah 1:4-10 Psalm 71:1-6 1 Corinthians 12:12-31a Luke 4: Corinthians 13:1-13 Luke 4:21-30 (Nehemiah 8:1-3, 5-6, 8-10) The covenant renewal of all the people calls them to unity and invites them to renew life in their God. Rather than seeing divine instruction as cramping, restricting legislation, the Jews, then and now, recognize Torah as a compassionate guide, a pathway, a set of wise instructions about how to live together in justice and joy. But that guide and that path have not been sealed forever in concrete at Sinai. Instead, they must be reinterpreted to show the path to community and to joy, as the people worship the God who renews their life. In the season of Epiphany, Ezra reminds us that we too are recipients of divine instruction, a people called to continual renewal and reinterpretation of God s word among us. That word is alive and ever new in the power of the Spirit among us. Kathleen M. O Connor (1 Corinthians 13:1-13) These words on the primacy of love can help the Church in conflict understand that there are some things more important than being right or powerful or honored. If those within the Church do not do what they do in a spirit of love, then all religious talk, knowledge, piety, and sacrificial giving add up to nothing. Without love, Christians are like the salt Jesus described as having lost its savor and not good for anything except being thrown out and trampled underfoot (Matt. 5:13). Those who think they have gained everything by standing on principle, by dominating others, or by being right, have lost it all. Lewis F. Galloway You can only protect your liberties in this world by protecting the other [human s] freedom. You can only be free if I am free. Clarence Darrow

3 Vestry Members Elected at the Parish Meeting At our annual parish meeting last Sunday, January 17, five new vestry members were elected: Gerry Brooks (re-elected after filling in a term for a member who resigned) John Hughes Jo Ann Horton Reece Middleton Steve Snodgrass After the parish meeting, the new vestry met and elected new officers: Senior Warden: Reece Middleton Junior Warden: Gerry Brooks Secretary: Christine Hennigan Treasurer: Monty Walford (the treasurer is not required to be a vestry member) We are very fortunate at Holy Cross to have members who are dedicated to the ministry of the church and willing to give of their time and talent in leadership! Thank you to all who agreed to your nomination! Newly Elected Members of the Holy Cross Vestry Gerry Brooks Jo Ann Horton John Hughes Reece Middleton Steve Snodgrass

4 Calendar for January and February Sundays Informal Eucharist 9:20 AM Rose Garden or Chapel (depending on weather) Choir Practice 9:45 AM Nave Nursery 9:45-AM-12:15 PM Education Building Sunday School 11:00 AM Education Building Holy Eucharist II 11:00 AM Nave Wednesdays Holy Eucharist (Enriching Our Worship) 12:15 PM Chapel Supper, Eucharist, Bible Study 6:00 PM Undercroft Saturdays Holy Eucharist 5:00 PM Chapel Sunday, February 7 Last Morning Prayer until Easter Season 11:00 AM Nave No Continuing Feast transferred to: Tuesday, February 9 Shrove Tuesday Gumbo Supper 6:00 PM Undercroft Wednesday, February 10 Imposition of Ashes, Holy Eucharist 12:15 PM Chapel Imposition of Ashes, Holy Eucharist, hymns 6:00 PM Nave Wednesdays in Lent Soup Days 11:00 AM-1:00 PM Undercroft Bill Alexander Wanda Allen Margaret Boudreaux Jim Boyd Barbara Campbell Charlie Campbell Jay Colvin Laurie Connell Evelyn Corley Ron Dean Jean Dooley Elizabeth Eglin Shirley Enani Floyd Buzzy Farrar Jackie Free Lady Martha Garner Austin Gleason Kenneth Jordan Elizabeth Joyce George Love Prayer List Mim McCoy Paige McCranie Marie Nanco Trish Peyton Ila Riggs Laura Rhoades Linda Robinson Sandra Robinson Brady Sessions Jack Theurerkauf Gary Thomas Jane Thompson Robert Todd Cliff Townsend Mattie Washington Charlotte Webb Bill Wright Larry Wright Mary Wright If you would like to request an addition to the Prayer List, please call the church office, Our practice is to keep names on the list for six weeks. If we have an update at that time requesting that we continue to pray for the person, we will leave the name on the list. If not, we will remove it. You can always call if you would like us to add it again. We pray for those who serve and are served by Providence House; for all who are homeless or hungry; for the people of our country who are harmed, threatened, or homeless by flood waters; for the people of Mexico, the Middle East, and all places where there are war, oppression and fear; for migrants in Africa and Europe; and for all who seek peace; for all immigrants seeking acceptance and safety, that our country may be a safe place for all people; for the people of our country, that we may find together the way of compassion and peace from our prejudices and racial tensions; for law enforcement officers and the people they serve; for candidates running for office this year, and for our President and Congress, that they may work together to pass legislation to lessen the danger of violence and injustice in our country. In our Diocesan cycle of prayer we pray for Trinity, Cheneyville, Holy Comforter, LeCompte, and the Rev. Ella Breckenridge.

5 God of all peoples, remind us of your overwhelming love. Help us hear your call to us, your children. May we have faith like little children, so that we might enter your kingdom. Amen. Lay Ministries The Third Sunday after the Epiphany The Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany January 24, 2016 January 31, 2016 Sat. 5:00 PM: Lector: Trish Peyton Sun. 11:00 AM: Lector: Nathaniel Means Prayers of the People: Becky Snodgrass Eucharistic Ministers: Ginger Paul, Fred Ogunyemi Acolytes: Patrick Raymond, Steve Snodgrass Ushers: Herschel Richard, Bill Richard Altar Guild Sat. 5:00: Margaret Heacock, June Kirkland Altar Guild Sun. 11:00: Christine Hennigan, Becky Snodgrass Sat. 5:00 PM: Lector: Larry Wright Sun. 11:00 AM: Lector: Melissa Fowle Prayers of the People: Reid Raymond Eucharistic Ministers: Reece Middleton, Nathaniel Means Acolytes: Aaron Horton, Hannah Wallace, Audrey Roberts Ushers: Becky Snodgrass, Steve Snodgrass Altar Guild Sat. 5:00: Margaret Heacock, June Kirkland Altar Guild Sun. 11:00: June Kirkland, Jo Ann Horton Let s Celebrate Shrove Tuesday/Fat Tuesday with a Gumbo Feast! This year, instead of the Sunday Continuing Feast, we ll celebrate Shrove Tuesday/Fat Tuesday with a gumbo supper, cooked by the Holy Cross chefs and served by the Holy Cross kitchen crew. Dress in Mardi Gras finery if you like, and come hungry and ready for an evening of fun! We ll have gumbo, salad, French bread, and, of course, King Cake. Tuesday, February 9, 6:00 PM in the Undercroft You re welcome to bring guests, but please make reservations with Laurie in the office, , so we ll know how many to cook for. A donation of $4.00 each to help cover the cost of the food will be most welcome. We look forward to seeing you there!

6 Church of the Holy Cross Episcopal Non-Profit Organization P. O. Box 1627 U. S. Postage Shreveport, LA P A I D SHREVEPORT, LA Website: Permit No holycrossshrv1@bellsouth.net Return Service Requested Mission Statement: The Church of the Holy Cross, Shreveport, Louisiana, strives to be the presence of Jesus Christ in our community and beyond, through worship of Almighty God, open inquiry, sharing fellowship, valued diversity, genuine inclusiveness, and servant leadership encouraging all to exercise God s gifts and calling as we share the Gospel of Hope in programs, to serve without regard for religious affiliation, race, or economic status. Hope House: There is an ongoing need for coffee, sugar, creamer, laundry detergent, disposable razors, and personal size hygiene products (soap, shampoo, deodorant, etc.). Donations can be taken to 762 Austin Place or to the church office. Thank you for your continued support. Forward Day by Day for January and February, in both standard and large-print editions, is available in the Narthex and the Undercroft. If you cannot get to church and would like to receive Holy Communion or a visit at your residence or the hospital, please call the church office at , and Communion will be brought to you. Crossings is now also available via . Simply send or call in your address to the office. The Most Rev. Michael B. Curry, Ph.D. The Rt. Rev. Dr. Jacob Owensby, Ph.D., D. D. The Rev. Mary B. Richard The Rev. Sally M. Fox The Rev. Kenneth W. Paul The Rev. Donald D. Heacock Mr. Bruce Power Mr. Ron Dean Mrs. Laurie Connell Mr. Charles Alford XXVII Presiding Bishop IV Bishop of Western Louisiana Rector Assisting Priest Rector Emeritus Director, Holy Cross Child Placement Organist-Choirmaster Organist Choirmaster Emeritus Office Administrator Sexton