The Abbey. Jesus accepts all at His Table; so do we. The Episcopal Church of St. Benedict June 2017 Bolingbrook, Illinois

Transcription

1 The Abbey Jesus accepts all at His Table; so do we. The Episcopal Church of St. Benedict June 2017 Bolingbrook, Illinois May 21, 2017

2 From the Interim Rector Dear Benedictines, On the last two Sundays in church, I have been talking about our new topic for Wednesday Night Bible Study: The Apocrypha. These are books in the NRSV (New Revised Standard Version of the Bible) that are Judaic writings in Greek written in the years between the composition of the canonical (officially recognized as Scripture) Old and New Testaments. The Episcopal position on these books is that we don t officially recognize them as Scripture, but we agree they are definitely worth studying. We have kept them in our Bibles for example of life and instruction of manner but not to establish any doctrine (from the Thirty-Nine Articles in The Book of Common Prayer). Every once in a while, we have a reading from one of these books during a service, usually from Sirach or Baruch. Honestly though, I have read very little of The Apocrypha. We certainly never studied these books in seminary. In order to pick a suitable companion book for our exploration, I read the apocryphal book of Tobit. I didn t know what to expect, but I was pleasantly surprised at how new and different it was. As I ve mentioned on Sundays, it s a fairy tale with theological underpinnings. There are definitely funny parts, and how can you not like a Bible story that has a dog and a big fish? 2

3 The best thing about my experience with Tobit is that I was reading this part of our story for the very first time. So, it was fresh. After all, I hadn t ever heard it read in church. I hadn t heard preachers or scholars interpret it. I didn t have all that Bible baggage to sort through. It was fun. Our accompanying book is The Apocrypha: Fortress Commentary on the Bible. Click on the title for the link to Amazon. It is available for Kindle as well as in paperback. Cheaper used copies are also for sale. If the book is out of stock or if it won t arrive in time for our first meeting on June 7, just let me know and we ll make a copy of the Tobit materials for you. If you'd like me to order you a book, just ask. It s usually between $ Summer is a great time to set aside a couple of hours a week for Bible study. Please consider joining us! God bless you, 3

4 The Deacon s Corner Thank you for a wonderful party, gifts, cards, and your love. I will miss all of you greatly; you know I have loved serving here. As a way to help the transition of the roles I have taken and with Rev. Donna s approval, I have asked the following people to oversee particular areas. Chalice bearers: Beth Erickson and Angel Morrison Acolytes: Ulric Johnson and Paula Howard Lectors: Frank Spoto and Mark Schwantes Continue to go with God and you will be blessed. Deacon Chere 4

5 Education Wednesday Night Bible Study Beginning on June 7: The Aprocrypha! The Apocrypha are books in the NRSV (New Revised Standard Version) which are Judaic writings in Greek between the canonical (officially recognized as Scripture) Old Testament and the New Testament. We'll begin with the book of Tobit, a fairy tale with theological underpinnings. It's funny and has a dog and a big fish. Chances are you'll be reading Bible stuff you've never heard before and that will be fun. Our accompanying book is The Apocrypha: Fortress Commentary on the Bible. See This Weekend for a link to the book on Amazon. It is available for Kindle as well as in paperback. Cheaper used copies are also available. If you'd like Rev. Donna to order you a copy, let her know. What to Read for Our June 7 Apocrypha Study Read the Introduction to the Apocrypha chapter in the commentary. SKIP the Content of the Apocrypha and the Date and Genres sections. Then, get started on reading Tobit from your Bible and the relevant sections in the commentary. We re not sure how far we ll get on Wednesday, so read as much as you re able. That will be fine. 5

6 Education Sunday Seminar June 4 - Pentecost. No Seminar. June 11 - St. Benedict 45th Anniversary Celebration. No Seminar. June 18 - Deacon Rachel Hultz of Redeemer Episcopal Church in Elgin will share her knowledge and reflections about Islam, focusing on the beliefs and practices of this faith and how it compares and contrasts to other world religions, including Christianity. Deacon Rachel is an experienced teacher of world religions. June 25 - Rev. Donna will lead us in an exercise provided by Exodus World Service that helps us better understand and empathize with the plight of refugees. (If you attended the training on May 20, yes, it is the same exercise but you're welcome to attend and participate again just don't tell anyone about it ahead of time, please!) Laura and Steve Keyser to be Received and Confirmed At St. James Cathedral (65 E. Huron, Chicago) on June 10 Laura will be received and Steve confirmed by Bishop Jeff Lee at 11am. You are all welcome to attend the celebration. Vestry Talking Points Feast of St. Benedict will be July 16th. This will be a potluck and a sign-up sheet will be coming soon. St. Benedict will be 45 years old on July 11th. Rev. Donna will be getting a cake to celebrate. 6

7 At. St. Benedict Coffee Hosts Hospitality has always been a cornerstone of St. Benedict. As our namesake has charged us, "Let all guests who arrive be received like Christ, for He is going to say, 'I came as a guest and you received Me' (Matthew 25:35)." Sunday mornings following worship, many of the good folks of St. Benedict meet in the parish hall for conversation and fellowship. This time, commonly known as our "coffee hour," is also an excellent time to welcome newcomers to St. Benedict. It has been the custom here that families take turns hosting this coffee hour. I wanted to take a moment to invite you to be a coffee host. Being a coffee host is relatively easy. The coffee host's responsibilities are to make sure that the coffee is made (St. Benedict provides the coffee and all supplies related to it), provide a few goodies for people to share, and make sure the kitchen has been cleaned up afterward. While some people may offer an elaborate array of food and drinks, a simple offering of cookies or donuts is equally appreciated. It s perfectly fine to pair up with another person or family to serve coffee hour. Please consider being a coffee host. The sign up sheets are on the table in the narthex. If you are interested in hosting, but are hesitant because you have never done it before, please know that there are "veteran" coffee hosts that would be more than willing to co-host with you the first time, helping you locate whatever you need. Please contact Jill Crisman, Ruth Denofrio, or myself and we would be more that happy to join you! We pride ourselves in being earnest in our hospitality at St. Benedict. Please join us in our efforts to foster friendship and fellowship. Tish Sanborn, Sr. Warden 7

8 At. St. Benedict Smile! We Need Your Picture! As Denise Majewski, our secretary, prepares our directory and Miranda Hillesheim develops our database fields (more info on that soon), we need to populate both with pictures of our parishioners. It will certainly be good for all of us to be able to put names with faces, and it will be especially nice for the new rector. So, please send Denise and Miranda pictures of you and the other members of your family. Headshots are best. Don't hesitate to ask someone to take your picture during Coffee Hour so that you can submit it. Are You New to St. Benedict's in the Past Two Years? If you are, please let me know. Certainly, I know who is new since I became Interim Rector, but I don't know who the rest of you may be. My purpose? We'd like to invite you to a Newcomer Barbecue and we'd like your help in scheduling the best day for that gathering. So, please let me know. Thanks, Rev. Donna. 8

9 At. St. Benedict Save the Date 5K Time to start training for Mission Possible, MorningStar Mission s annual 5K Run/ Walk Race day on Saturday, August 19, at 7:30 am. There will be awards, giveaways, snacks and drinks. Register on race day or online: $35 per person at MorningStar Mission Serving Lunch St. Benedict has the opportunity to help serve breakfast at MorningStar Mission on Saturday, July 8 th and August 12 th from 11-1 pm We are limited to 7 volunteers per meal. Individuals 18 and older will need to fill out an application and be subject to a background check. No children under 8 are allowed to volunteer. Please look for more information in the weekly bulletin and a sign-up sheet in the narthex. And, don t hesitate to contact Jeanette Cruz ( ) for more information. A New Look for St. Benedict Our web site, is seven years old. That is nearly antique status in the world of the Internet. It has served us well, it continues to work, but has lost pizzazz. We are making plans on revamping our web site. This is most likely a two-month process, with planning and testing meetings occurring perhaps nearly every week. If you have web experience, artistic experience, communications experience, or just an intense interest in giving St Benedict an electronic face-lift, please submit your name to Mark Wright or Tish Sanborn. The group will convene some time near the end of June. 9

10 10 Rogation Sunday

11 Pentecost 11

12 12 Coffee Hour on Pentecost

13 Special Thanks to Deacon Chere for all of her work at St. Benedict Our coffee hosts: Barb and Larry Wolfrum, Tish Sanborn, Matthew Bauman, Miranda Hillesheim Our Potluck Shepherds: Tish Sanborn and Linda LaDeur All who participated in History Night Donna Williams for the large neighbor sign Linda LaDeur for the small neighbor signs Linda LaDeur for setting up the Exodus World Service training Our choir and Brian for a wonderful year Ruth Denofrio for lighting candles every Sunday and beautifying our Parish Hall and our bulletin board Our readers on Pentecost: Barb Wolfrum, Stephen Erickson, Ilani Valero, Sunshine Vega, Carol Todd Our lectors: Ruth Denofrio, Matthew Bauman, Paula Howard, Chinenye Ifeajekwu, Moses Ifeajekwu, O.G. Ifeajekwu, John Kellum, Kathryn Libbey, Natalie MacPhail, Juanita Merritt, Bob Simonson, Nichole Selock, Mark Schwantes, Frank Spoto, Carol Todd, Marcy Troy, Beth Valero, Ilani Valero, Donna Williams, Don Williams, Jill Wright, Ruan Wright, Andrew Wright, Linda LaDeur Our potluck shepherds: Erica Barta, Ruth Denofrio, Leticia Sanborn, Jill & Mark Wright, Sunshine Vega, Barb Wolfrum, Jill Crisman, Margaret Bauman, Linda LaDeur Our Children s Education Leaders: Ruth Denofrio, Mary Hinderer, Kat Escobido, Cindy Dauber, Juan Rocha, Elizabeth Erickson, Jessica Kristnofe, Margaret Bauman, Jeanette Miranda- Cruz, Erica Barta, Stephen Erickson, Jill Crisman 13

14 Our Wardens and Vestry: Leticia Sanborn, Mark Wright, Henry Vega, Erica Barta, Donna Williams, Angel Morrison, Mark MacPhail Our Clergy and Staff: Denise Majewski, Brian Cromer, Chere Bates, Donna Ialongo Our Green Team: Jill Crisman, Bill Scheets, Dan Troy, Mike Zarnott, Frank Klupshas, Sheeba Eapen If you or someone you know should have been thanked, we're sorry we missed it. Please let us know so that we may thank you or that person next month. 14

15 June 2017 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 28 9:00 AM Holy Eucharist 4 GIVING SUNDAY 9:00 AM Holy Eucharist 29 7:00 PM Codependents Anonymous 5 7:00 PM Codependents Anonymous 30 8:00 PM AA 6 8:00 PM AA 31 12:00 PM SMART Recovery Group 7:00 PM Bible Study 7 9:30 AM Contemplative Prayer Group 12:00 PM SMART Recovery Group 1 7:00 PM Grief Support Group 8 2 Rector Sabbath Day 9 Rector Sabbath Day 3 10:30 AM AA 10 Inquirers' Class 10:30 AM AA 11 9:00 AM Holy Eucharist 12 6:30 PM Vestry Meeting 7:00 PM Codependents Anonymous 13 8:00 PM AA 7:00 PM Bible Study 14 12:00 PM SMART Recovery Group 7:00 PM Bible Study 15 7:00 PM Grief Support Group 16 Rector Sabbath Day 17 10:30 AM AA 18 9:00 AM Holy Eucharist 19 7:00 PM Codependents Anonymous 20 8:00 PM AA 21 9:30 AM Contemplative Prayer Group Rector Sabbath Day 24 10:30 AM AA 12:00 PM SMART Recovery Group 25 9:00 AM Holy Eucharist 26 7:00 PM Codependents Anonymous 27 8:00 PM AA 7:00 PM Bible Study 28 12:00 PM SMART Recovery Group Rector Sabbath Day 1 10:30 AM AA 7:00 PM Bible Study 15

16 Rev. Dr. Donna Ialongo, Interim Rector Rev. Chere Bates, Deacon Tish Sanborn, Warden Mark Wright, Warden Erica Barta, Angel Morrison Mark MacPhail, Henry Vega, Donna Williams Vestry Brian Cromer, Music Director Pray for Someone to Invite The Church of St. Benedict 909 Lily Cache Lane Bolingbrook, IL (630) Sunday Worship 9:00 a.m. Office Hours Mondays, 9:30-noon Wednesdays, 2:30-5:30 p.m. Fridays, 9:30-11 a.m. 16 The Episcopal Church Welcomes You!