"Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations." Psalm 90:1

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Accolades for Acolytes! 8-9 What s Up with YOU TH 10-11 J2A Auction Night 12 4 5 "Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations." Psalm 90:1 Of Psalm 90, scholar Lawrence S.

1 October 2013 Christ Church : E Page October 2013 Volume 36, Issue 10 Rector s Reflection Inside this issue: Off to Haiti! 2 Blessing of the Animals 3 Football Watchin Party 3 Transitions 4 Biblical Study Tour to the Holy Land Next Year Halloween for Haiti 5 Diocesan Global Mission Conference Scribbles in the Sand 6-7 Accolades for Acolytes! 8-9 What s Up with YOU TH J2A Auction Night "Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations." Psalm 90:1 Of Psalm 90, scholar Lawrence S. Cunningham writes, " the Psalm testifies to the truth of the entire Biblical Tradition we come out from God; we are sustained by God; and our proper destiny is to be with God. Never was the truth of this Psalm more apparent to me than this evening [Sept. 12] in our group discussion at the monthly meeting of the ECW. Borrowing from the noted Christian Educator Maria Harris, we divided ourselves into groups based on the decades in which we were born. Each group responded to the following questions: 1) What is the best thing about being your age right now, 2) What about life would you like to ask the generation a decade older than you, and 3) What advice would you give to those a decade younger than yourselves? After the small group discussion we raised and fielded these questions in a larger group circle that included all generations present. Sitting in that multi-generation circle, listening to the hard fought wisdom of those both older and younger than myself, I was transported back in time to my Aunt Peg's screened porch. It was there that my mother and her two sisters shared stories about life with my cousins and me. Gathered with them, I felt secure, encouraged, and hopeful. This evening, out of the shared stories in this circle of Christ Church friends, we found the threads of God's presence and hope which flows "throughout all generations," as the Psalmist writes. It was more than worth the trouble it took to navigate the traffic on a drive to church on a Thursday evening. As self-determined Americans, we often carry heavy burdens in isolation. And yet, St. Paul reminds us in his letter to the Galatians that, "we must bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. As the conversation drew to a close, one woman observed how difficult life would be without our church community. This is a reminder to me that we have a responsibility to invite others into God's saving grace through His Body, the Church. For it is in Him that we have a dwelling place, a secure place, a place of hope with our God. Ceci +

2 Page 2 Off to Haiti! Terry Franzén and Daphne Gary will be traveling to Haiti with members of St. John s, Minneapolis, to visit our partner, St. Joseph s of Arimethea, and St. John s partner, St. Phillippe and St. Jacques. They will serve the communities at mobile medical and dental clinics Oct. 25-Nov. 2. Please keep the team in your prayers. You may follow their adventures online (assuming the internet and electricity work!) at companions.blogspot.com. Reading Glasses, Vitamins, and Beanies for Haiti is a monthly publication of Christ Church Episcopal 400 Holcomb Bridge Rd. Norcross, GA The Rev. Ceci Duke Rector The Rev. Jeff Cave Associate Rector Hispanic Ministry The Rev. Jody Greenwood Associate Rector Christian Education & Youth The Rev. Nora Cruz-Diaz Deacon Judy Moore, Editor newsletter@ccnorcross.org Deadline for submissions is the 10th of each month for the following month s issue We fit everyone at our clinics who asks with reading or distance glasses. We get the distance glasses from the Lions Club, but we need donations for reading glasses. Our patients use the lower strength ( ) glasses. These are available at our local "dollar" stores. I can't tell you what the gift of sight means to our patients! The looks on our patients faces as they can see clearly are unforgettable! We want every patient to leave our clinics with adequate vitamins. Vitamins are a huge help to malnourished people. Please be on the lookout for "BOGO" (Buy One, Get One) deals over the next few months and buy what you are able for our kids. We need children s chewable (NOT GUMMI) vitamins with iron. The smaller bottles are best, as we can just give a bottle to each patient. We are able to purchase adult vitamins very cheaply from a pharmaceutical supplier, so we do not need those. If you're like me, my kids loved Beanie Babies and we invested quite a lot into their collections. With our kids now "grown," we're cleaning out and our Beanies are finding new children to love them in Haiti. Please donate yours to our young patients at our clinics. I've put bins in the Communications Breezeway for your donations. Thanks for your help! Terry Franzén

3 October 2013 Page 3 Blessing of the Animals Our annual Blessing of the Animals will take place on Sunday afternoon, October 6, 2013, beginning at 1:00pm near the Memorial Gardens. This is in commemoration of St. Francis of Assisi, founder of the Franciscan order and patron saint of animals. It will be combined with the Hispanic Eucharist service for that day. All creatures, great and small, are welcome at this celebration. If your pet does not travel well or get along well with others, you can bring a photograph or a stuffed animal to be blessed instead. And why not bring a friend or neighbor along, too? This is a wonderful opportunity to introduce a friend to Christ Church, so even if you don t have an animal you d like to bring along, invite a friend who does! (In case of inclement weather, the service will be moved inside to the Parish Hall.) Fall Football Watchin Party This is an invitation to all the men at Christ Church. If someone you know has not heard, please pass it on. Jerry Lowe is hosting our annual Men s Fall Football Watchin Party on Sunday afternoon, Nov. 10 from 1-4. Come enjoy an afternoon of fun and fellowship with the rest of the guys from Christ Church. It is also an ideal opportunity to invite someone new. Happenings: Game watchin' on several screens Drinkin' beer Eatin' burgers and snacks Drinkin' beer Shootin' the bull Tellin tall stories Food and Drinks: Bring your favorite snack to share. Bring your favorite beer, maybe a little extra to share with others so we can sample different kinds. We will have some coolers to keep it cold. Burgers, buns, and fixin's along with some soft drinks will be provided. If you have something special you want cooked on the grill, bring that. Location: Jerry Lowe lives at 5385 Golden Leaf Trail, Norcross, GA (about 10 min. north of church just off P tree Pkwy/141). Jerry s home phone: RSVP: To Ben Pitman, benweb@ charter.net or so we know how much food and sodas to have on hand.

Page 4 Transitions Baptisms Madison Yuri Dotson, daughter of Hong Cao and William David Dotson, on Sept. 29, 2013 William David Dotson on Sept. 29, 2013 Deaths Virginia (Gia) Moor Lillie on Aug.

12, 2013 Biblical study tour to the Holy Land next year An informative presentation on the Explorations in Antiquities Center in LaGrange and archaeological study tours of Israel was given in the

4 Page 4 Transitions Baptisms Madison Yuri Dotson, daughter of Hong Cao and William David Dotson, on Sept. 29, 2013 William David Dotson on Sept. 29, 2013 Deaths Virginia (Gia) Moor Lillie on Aug. 21, 2013 Sharon Kaye Napier Bishop on Sept. 12, 2013 Biblical study tour to the Holy Land next year An informative presentation on the Explorations in Antiquities Center in LaGrange and archaeological study tours of Israel was given in the Parish Hall on Aug. 18, Hannaniah Pinto, Curator and study guide, introduced plans for a trip to the Holy Land for next year, on Sept. 6-18, churches in the Southeast. Space is limited to people. For added information contact Angela Pappas at or angelacp@bellsouth.net, or Ginny at Biblical Resources at or travelbr@earthlink.net. Photos courtesy of Angela Pappas Brochures are attached to the large display poster in the Parish Hall for your reference. Biblical study tours fill up quickly, so if you are seriously interested, a deposit should be sent soon to secure space. These tours are popular and are offered to many

October 2013 Page 5 Items Needed for Halloween for Haiti Halloween for Haiti, our haunted walk and fall carnival on Oct. 19, 2013, will be here before we know it!

5 October 2013 Page 5 Items Needed for Halloween for Haiti Halloween for Haiti, our haunted walk and fall carnival on Oct. 19, 2013, will be here before we know it! We are collecting donations and will need many hands to help prepare for, staff, and clean up after the event. Please look for our volunteer chart in the Communications Breezeway and sign up to help. We need the following items for decorating and setup: Card Tables Generators Extension cords Fog machines Fog juice Spot lights Red/orange/black string lights Spotlight bulbs Spider webbing Solar path lights Wheat straw bales Pumpkins (real or fake) Large Halloween decor (Skeletons, Halloween characters) If you want your items returned to you, please put your name and number on your donation and put it in the big box in the breezeway. If you are donating a large item like a generator or table, please contact us to arrange delivery or pickup. Thanks. Aurore Murphy and Terry Franzén Diocesan Global Mission Conference The Diocese of Atlanta's 9th Annual Global Mission Conference will be held Saturday, Oct. 5, 2013 at All Saints' Episcopal Church, Atlanta. The conference runs from 9am to 3:30pm (sign-in begins at 8:30am). The theme of the conference is What Can One Person Do? and breakout sessions will highlight opportunities for mission at home and abroad. All those interested in doing or supporting mission work are welcome. Cost is $25 per person and includes lunch. Registration and more is at episcopalatlanta.org. For more information or questions, contact Terry Franzén, or terryfranzen@gmail.com.

Page 6 Scribbles in the Sand The Word Made Flesh Constantly Gia s* family processed to their seats, in grief as humans are when a significant person passes forever beyond their physical touch, and

6 Page 6 Scribbles in the Sand The Word Made Flesh Constantly Gia s* family processed to their seats, in grief as humans are when a significant person passes forever beyond their physical touch, and yet, their minds are still filled with memories, sad to joyful, that marked the journey and meaning of Gia to each. There is often humor between survivors, not only to soften the blow, but also to rejoice, She lived a full life and I am still alive. It was fitting that she lay between the cross and the congregation, signifying her passage from the land of the living to the place of the Spirit. I heard Ceci interweaving the patterns of Gia s life with the promise of an eternal path, the mergence of Alpha and Omega in one grand seamless and dazzling mosaic. I chuckled internally, thinking I was more familiar with the back of Gia s head than her face; I usually sat near the back and she up front in church. I do not know when I drifted away, and this sounds strange imagining a herd of elephants standing near a fallen member of their herd, tentatively touching the body with their trunks, as if they sensed what humans know: there will be no more interaction. Then I saw a vision of a chimpanzee mother, clinging to her dead child, ignoring her own needs in apparent inconsolability. In the flesh of our lives we touch and are touched, just another animal hungry for the meanings found in our relationships and creations. My thoughts were like a cascading river, necessarily reduced to a rivulet in this writing: Gia, now ashes, once flesh, her spirit, essence, total meaning hovering over the pews the Gia gifted from God and finally gifted back, tempered by this long and often surprising and hard life, having felt the ecstasy of living in the flesh, known in her being, doing, acting, speaking, loving, misbehaving, loosing her way, finding it, sobbing over life s body blows, smiling, standing before the empty page, waiting for the dream to come from her spirit, through the mind, down the hands, to the finger tips changing the reality of the whole world by her life and work her word made flesh in a painting. The Word, logos, was wisdom, creativity and the power to think, long before John. Philo, writing some 50 earlier than John, calls it "The power of creation, the tiller by which God stirs all things, the intermediary between the world and God, the priest which sets the soul before God. That is the logos...the nondiscriminate, whole, overflowing power of spirit, reason, mind and will. With a touch of inscrutability part of the whole. John knew what the Word meant to Greek and Jewish philosophers. They (Continued on page 7)

7 October 2013 Page 7 Word Made Flesh Constantly (continued from page 6) also believed that God had created everything through his word, his wisdom, Sophia. John said the power of the universe, the power by which humans came to be, the power that gave humans the opportunity to think and reason, the power by which humans can reach for God, is here the Word has become flesh. Calling Jesus "the Word" implies that he is "God-Expressing Himself. I believe God s expression is the kingdom is among us; the kingdom is within us; the kingdom is here. John begins his gospel telling us that God, the Creation power think about that for a minute has come to us. The power and complexity of the unfiltered Word is beyond our ability to emulate or comprehend, so it was made flesh. The Word, wise and creative, with the power of mind and it s twin, the power of spirit, became flesh. The flesh was called Jesus, he who transfigured the Word and gave us an example, so we as flesh also, could feel it calling and respond. He spoke his word of a new way of life, and by that promise, gave hope and courage to those seeking transformation. He fired up the spirit of humankind by declaring that the Holy Spirit was in a form that flesh could understand, that could be called on for comfort and guidance, that could be donned as a mantle to encourage and serve the least of these. The Word became flesh so flesh could understand the Word and the only way we can feel it, hold it and show it is by the Word we understand becoming our flesh. The Word calls our name, begs us to exercise our gifts, to create life where we can, to care for and nurture, to stand against evil in any form, to be an example of hope and show the world the power of the spirit working for good, by our flesh showing our reliance on the understanding that even though we died with Christ, we are also resurrected with Christ. We are also the Word become flesh, including that touch of inscrutability. Outside, in the memorial garden, a soft breeze, sunny blue sky, the ritual, hearing tears as the last physical representation of Gia finally goes from dust to dust, but still living in Spirit in many places, in many things, in many people. I see a plane lifting off a runway, old enough to still have windows that can be opened. Gia s smiling face looking out the window, one hand on the wheel and the other waving. The flesh returning to the Word. Godspeed, says I, Godspeed. -- Dennis Marks * The Requiem Eucharist for parishioner Virginia (Gia) Moor Lillie was held at Christ Church on Aug. 25, Ed.

Page 8 Accolades for Acolytes! New Acolyte Coordinator: Brian Maruscsak We welcome Brian Maruscsak to his new role as Acolyte Coordinator and Trainer for Christ Church!

8 Page 8 Accolades for Acolytes! New Acolyte Coordinator: Brian Maruscsak We welcome Brian Maruscsak to his new role as Acolyte Coordinator and Trainer for Christ Church! Brian has a deep reverence for the church, particularly the liturgical practices, which will enrich his ministry with the Acolytes. Having spent most of his life in the Roman Catholic tradition, Brian became an Episcopalian seven years ago, and found his way to Christ Church this past Spring. When not working as an estimator for a commercial plumbing contractor, you may find Brian watching his daughter Bridget's marching band perform, and spending lots of time with his grandson Caden. Brian calls him the greatest gift my daughter Kaycee has given me. Brian also enjoys swimming and doing theatrical lighting design. We ve already benefited from his lighting design during Christ Church Players production of Evangel this past August! Thanks, Brian, for your enthusiasm and commitment to ministry with the Acolytes! Brian Maruscsak, with grandson Caden Acolytes Abound for ! Acolyte training on Sept. 8 provided an opportunity for our four newest Acolytes to understand the roles the Acolytes play in the worship service. Our new Acolytes are: Andrew Pridgen, Emma Friedrichs, Olivia Durbin, and Sarah Friedrichs. The training also gave our experienced Acolytes an opportunity to refresh their knowledge and just to have some fun with their fellow worship leaders. Returning Acolytes include: Addie Duke, Alden Pridgen, Alex England, Alex Root, Ashton Wilson, Demi Lehman, Dominic Wengenroth, Gary Gordon, John Allen, Jordan Noil, Lorren Nemorin, Mary Grace Manton, Mlawin Landford, Morgan Noil, Parker Lowe, Patti Broomfield, Piper Justice, Roni Wengenroth, Sarah Brocksmith, Shelby Smith, Taylor (TJ) Anderson, Will Jordan, and Zoe Gordon. A big thank you to the parents who were able to help with lunch, and especially to Keith England and John Emery for standing under the blazing sun and over the smokin grill, cooking up burgers and hot dogs for the post-training lunch! If you are interested in being an Acolyte, it s never too late! Contact Brian Maruscsak or The Rev. Jody Greenwood through the Church Office and get in on the fun!

9 October 2013 Page 9 Photos: Jody Greenwood

10 Page 10 What s Up with YOU TH The Fun has already begun join the Journey to Adulthood! Sunday morning: 9:15-10:15 Christian Ed. in the Youth Center (7th 8th grade) (9th 10th grade) (11th 12th grade) Sunday Evening Fall Schedule Oct 6 6 to 8 pm Haiti Halloween Prep Oct 19 4 to?? pm Halloween for Haiti Oct 20 6 to 8 pm Fun & Fellowship Nov 3 6 to 8 pm Fun & Fellowship Nov 16 7 to 11 pm J2A Silent Auction! Nov 24 6 to 8 pm Fun & Fellowship Dec 8 3 to 6 pm J2A Confirmation Dec 8 6 to 8 pm Fun & Fellowship Dec 22 6 to 8 pm Christmas Party?

October 2013 Page 11 In September the Youth Programs

both the Saints and the Angels, showing our Christ

During the Church Picnic we showed our Angelic and

11 October 2013 Page 11 In September the Youth Programs kicked off with a cookout and reconnecting after summer! We put our talents to work making the banners for both the Saints and the Angels, showing our Christ Church Community Spirit! During the Church Picnic we showed our Angelic and Saintly selves playing games and making the Kick-ball teams STRONGER than ever before! October will be filled with Halloween as we scare up some fun with Halloween for Haiti on Oct. 19! Don t miss out join in! ALL ARE WELCOME! Photos: Jody Greenwood

Page 12 Come see what all the FLAP is about! J2A Auction Night November 16 th, 7:00-11:00 p.m. Tickets are $15.

Tickets will be available for purchase from any of the J2A Youth or through the church website at ccn.

The ticket price includes heavy hors d'oeuvres and an opportunity to bid in both the silent and live auction

12 Page 12 Come see what all the FLAP is about! J2A Auction Night November 16 th, 7:00-11:00 p.m. Tickets are $15.00 The J2A Youth Group Silent Auction is hosting a Silent and Live Auction at the church. Tickets will be available for purchase from any of the J2A Youth or through the church website at ccn.episcopalatlanta.org, later in October. Keep an eye out! The ticket price includes heavy hors d'oeuvres and an opportunity to bid in both the silent and live auction for donated items. If you have an item or service you wish to donate for the auction, tax deductible receipts can be provided to you. All proceeds are used to help fund the J2A Pilgrimage to Scotland.

SPECIAL EVENTS FOR thru Vestry Elections Sun., Dec. 13th, 9:00am 2:00pm Parish Hall

SPECIAL EVENTS FOR thru Vestry Elections Sun., Dec. 13th, 9:00am 2:00pm Parish Hall SPECIAL EVENTS FOR 12-5-15 thru 12-13-15 Manger/Stable Setup The Night Before Nicholas CCP Show & Reception Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe Sat., Dec. 5th at 1:00pm Near Memorial Garden Sat., Dec. 5th at