Deliver to Addressee or Current Occupant. Save The Date. September. 7 Adult Choir Rehearsals Begin. 11 Celebration of New Ministry & Installation

Transcription

1 St. James Episcopal Church 9 Williams Street Clinton, NY Non Profit Org. U.S. POSTAGE P A I D Clinton, NY Permit No. 24 September 2017 Newsletter Deliver to Addressee or Current Occupant Save The Date September 7 Adult Choir Rehearsals Begin 11 Celebration of New Ministry & Installation with Bishop DeDe 16 Wine & Cheese Gathering 23 Parish Workshop 30 Annual Fall Potluck

2 St. James Episcopal Church NEWSLETTER September 2017 St. James Episcopal Church 9 Williams Street Clinton, New York office@stjamesclinton.org Regular Services: Saturday, 4pm Sunday, 9:30am, nursery provided, Sunday School 9:30am Church office hours: Monday - Friday: 9am - Noon Staff: Rector: Father Gary Cyr Minister of Music: Richard Lloyd Sexton: Mustafa Mujo Salkic Administrative Assistant: Tacie Languein Godly Play Program Director: TBD Vestry: vestry@stjamesclinton.org Senior Warden: Karen Anderson Junior Warden: Pat Davis Kathy Collett Chris Fox Randy Grant Sue Hecklau Deb Lucas Terry Neil John Crossley Randy Wilson Treasurer: Jan Wilson Webmistress: Laura Stoll Newsletter: Tacie Languein Leadership Group Chairs: Communications: Kathy Collett Fellowship: Terry Neil Finance: Mike Baldwin Investment: Craig Heuss Outreach: Pat Evans Property Management: Sharon Williams Worship: Kathy Collett Youth: Rahel Elmer Reger St. James is a community where we come together in Christ to develop spiritually; find opportunities for outreach; receive comfort when in need; and engage in sacred experiences through our liturgy, music, fellowship, and mutual ministry. 2

3 Vestry Corner Important Since our last newsletter, a great deal has changed on the Vestry. We had to say goodbye to two of our beloved members: John and Sharon Pick are comfortably settling in to their new home in California and church shopping for a new spiritual home. Back here in Clinton, we have a new/recycled Senior Warden in Karen Anderson. Karen will do her best to fill John s shoes for the remainder of his term (January). We are also delighted to welcome back Pat following her recovery! One of the things the Vestry has considered and approved is the installation of a new sound system. Many of you have had difficulty hearing clearly in the sanctuary for some time, and we hope that when the new microphones and speakers are installed, we will all have an easier time hearing all that is said during worship. We had the pleasure of welcoming The Rev. Canon to the Ordinary John Crosswaite to our July meeting. Canon John is a warm and enthusiastic addition to our Diocesan staff. He explained to us the vision of the Diocese for the future. We hope that you will all have a chance to meet him when he comes to preside at a service sometime soon. The two most exciting events we would like to encourage everyone to attend in September are the Celebration of New Ministry on the 11th and the Boundaries, Borders and Better Relationships workshop we have scheduled with The Rev. Diane Wheatley on the 23rd. You are all not only welcome, we hope to pack the sanctuary and the parish hall respectively for both events. We would like to thank all of you who have worked so hard this summer to get our property ready for the fall. As always, if you have concerns or questions, we are here to listen. Our goal is to work with Father Gary to make St. James a sanctuary of support for those in need, a source of spiritual growth for our parishioners and our community and a place of joy for all. - Karen Anderson 3 In order to reduce mailing cost, we are moving to an electronic format for communication with exception of those who desire to receive the monthly newsletter in your mail. Please verify with Tacie, our Administrative Assistant, your current mailing address if you wish to continue receiving a printed copy. To further assist our electronic distribution, please verify your address with the office if it has recently changed. Thank you! Outreach Over the summer St. James has been collecting from parishioners the kids pak items requested by the Country Pantry. Colorful reminders of the items needed were in the weekly bulletins. Some members of the congregation also help pack and distribute Country Pantry foods each month. In August the cooking and serving of two dinners befitted over 200 people at Hope House. Several members also regularly volunteer at Hope House. The personal products that we collect at St. James are also distributed at Hope House as well. In preparation for our September trip to Haiti, we have been collecting school supplies to take to St. Paul s school in Beaudin Jean Pierre, which anticipates over 150 students this year. Outreach will cover the costs above what is collected from the congregation. The five from St. James making the trip are Karen Anderson, Mike Baldwin, Randy Wilson, Margaret and Blair Jones. We look forward to their reports. - Pat Evans Godly Play We would like to hire a Godly Play Instructor. This job is 10 hours per week and involves developing and leading the Godly Play program for our youth. Training is available. For a complete job description see Father Gary or Karen Anderson. We currently need volunteers during Sunday worship who would be willing to read a story to our youngest members and supervise while they complete artwork. We are looking for 1 or 2 adult volunteers to cover our nursery and Godly Play room during worship on Sunday mornings through the month of September. No training needed. Sign up sheets are available in the back of the church and Parish Hall. Please consider helping out one week!

4 Creation Season Music Let All Creation Praise! Inaugurated in the mid-1990s at Church of the Redeemer in Morristown, New Jersey, the Season of Creation has emerged as a worldwide Christian effort to raise awareness for the proper and just stewardship of all God s creation: human, plant, and animal, and our symbiotic interdependent relationship. After all, God lies at the heart of all that is seen and unseen; the Author of life whose Breath caused all matter of things to be. The Season of Creation celebrates God s handiwork as well as reminds us of our sins against the planet, our island home in the cosmos of God s infinite timeless Love. The Season of Creation became a component of the Episcopal Church after a concerned group of active lay individuals and clergy formed the Episcopal Ecological Network who independently worked to develop liturgical lectionary resources for a new season: Creation. Over the ensuing decades, more and more Dioceses have embraced the Creation Theme, encouraging congregations to offer opportunity for worship that focuses on the fifth mark of mission: To strive to safeguard the integrity of creation and sustain and renew the life of the earth. Here at St. James, we will be celebrating Creation Season during the month of September, beginning on the 10th and culminating on October 1st with a Sunday afternoon blessing of the animals on the village green cofacilitated with the Clinton Ministerium. It is my prayer that this will be an annual event for the Village. Therefore, let our voices join with All Creatures of our God and King and sing Alleluia throughout the Season of Creation. 4 Two great services in a row! The Adult Choir will be back in action on Sunday, September 10. This will be followed by the celebration of Father Gary s installation on Monday the 11th. Of course, the choir will need to prepare for these services, so our first rehearsal will be at 7:30 pm on Thursday, September 7 in the Parish Hall. As things start up again after the summer, it is a great time to join, if you ve been thinking about it. The choir contains dedicated, welcoming members who are there to share their musical and performing talents as leaders of worship (and we have a load of fun while we re at it!). Not only will you get to sing beautiful, varied and challenging music, but you will also get to practice in advance all the great hymns, psalms and service music we will be using. You may find the choir a very satisfying way to celebrate our worship together! - Richard Lloyd Day School News We are excited to welcome new students as well as familiar faces to the Day School. Students arrive on September 11th for another year filled with friendship, creativity, curiosity and enrichment. In September we will focus on the themes of friendship, cooperation and exploring safety. We will begin working on a variety of arts and crafts projects incorporating fall themes such as apples, autumn leaves and pumpkins. We will also begin identifying colors and shapes as well as recognizing and writing our names. A new addition this year will be our Science Center where the students will be able to observe and explore the natural world around them. We plan to take fall field trips to the Apple Orchard, Fire House and Pumpkin Patch. If you know of a local family with a 4 or 5 year old who might be looking for a wonderful preschool experience, please let them know that we still have spots available. The Day School is very appreciative of the continued support and generosity of the St. James Church community and we wish you a happy and productive fall season. - Elise Morford

5 Property Management Painting the Rectory! Successful Work on the Rectory! Fellowship Service and Reception for the Celebration of New Ministry & Installation of Father Gary as Rector will be held at St. James on Mon., Sept. 11th, beginning at 7pm. Bishop DeDe and many other clergy will be here for the celebration. Refreshments will follow. Sandwiches, green salad, and cake will be provided, but we would like parishioner to help with cheese and crackers, veggies and dip, fruit, set up and clean up. Sign up sheets have been posted. Contact Libby Beardsell or Terry Neil for more info. By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established; - Proverbs 24:3 A Wine and Cheese Gathering will be held Sat., Sept. 16th, following the 4 PM service. Wine will be provided but please bring some finger food to share. All are welcome! Our annual Fall Potluck will be on Sat., Sept. 30th, following the 4 PM worship service. Sign up sheets will be posted soon. Please mark your calendar to attend - we always have such a good evening of fellowship! But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them - yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. 1 Cor. 15:10 5

6 Women s Spirituality Group Join the Women s Spirituality group in reading The Agile Church: Spirit-Led Innovation in an Uncertain Age, by Dwight Zscheile; Bishop DeDe would like the whole diocese to read it! We will be meeting to discuss it Monday, September 25, at 7:00pm in the library room. Following Gary s suggestion, we will read Living the Sabbath: Discovering the Rhythms of Rest and Delight (The Christian Practice of Everyday Life), by Norman Wirzba, for October and November. Anyone who is willing to come to a group called Women s Spirituality is welcome! Acolytes I am sorry to announce that for the upcoming school year we will have no acolytes at St. James. Right now we just don t have enough youth of the appropriate acolyting age to have someone signed up regularly. We therefore decided to take a break for this coming year and will see who is available and willing to acolyte in the fall of Thank you very much to all those kids who have been faithfully showing up on Sunday mornings to do their part in the service: Charlotte and Margaret Jones, Sydney Evans, Liam Schmalz, Henry Fehlner, Louis, Nick and Gigi Pinto, Anna Reger, Olivia and Emma Peto, Mia Davis. - Rahel Building Stones Fair Trade Shoppe The Building Stones Fair Trade Shoppe at Stone Presbyterian Church, 8 South Park Row, Clinton offers a wide variety of unique handmade items from 37 different under-developed countries. Hours are 10am to 6:30pm every Thursday at the church, 10am to 4pm every Thursday at the Farmer s Market, with extended hours to 6pm on third Thursdays, and 10am to 4pm on second Saturdays at the church. Kirkland Community Bloodmobile Saturday, September 9, am - 1pm Clinton United Methodist Church 105 Utica Street, Route 12B, Clinton NY NEW and Past Blood DONORS NEEDED Register online: RED CROSS to schedule your appointment. Walk-ins appreciated and needed to meet goal. Love God and Love your neighbor as yourself. 6

7 RECTOR S REPORT Over the past five months, I have been blessed with a variety of conversation partners who have helped flesh out the history of St. James. Their gift of memory has enriched my understanding of the joys and tribulations that have enveloped a dedicated faith community seeking to do God s work. This is a church family that has endured various trials and survived in the midst of uncertainty. Priests come and go, the congregation that is St. James remains. This is testament to God s grace at work and the people s response to said grace. For 155 years, there has been an Episcopal presence here in Clinton. Our forbearers decided long ago to plant a church here to serve the needs of Episcopalians and to do God s work. It is my commitment as St. James s Rector to honor that decision made so many years ago and, God willing, to help facilitate its mission in the Village of Clinton and the world at large. Thus far I have attended various committee meetings to further gauge the working relationships within the parish. I have also had two of several informal potluck dinners and I am looking forward to more. Throughout this time, so many have bravely shared their pains and joys with me, offering further glimpses into the spiritual life of the parish. Much of what I have heard encompasses the tenure of at least four Rectors and the parish s relationship with the Diocese throughout their time with St. James. I have held what I have heard prayerfully and asked God for guidance as I begin my own ministry here. Everyone has expectations and ideas, including me. As I ve listened and will continue to I ve come to understand that our first task together is to continue to share one another s story, to offer forgiveness when necessary, and to heal old wounds. This takes time, intentionality, and prayer. Over the course of nearly two decades, St. James and its people have moved through the cyclical life of a parish which is predicated upon trust and faith. When trust is violated it erodes faith. be provided) entitled Boundaries, Boarders, and Better Relationships. The Rev. Wheatley has been leading this workshop in the Diocese over the past few months and it has been well received. Rather than simply encourage folks to attend one of the workshops, it was more prudent to have this program offered here considering our current transitional time. This is a first step in a larger conversation the parish will be engaging in over the coming months as I continue to grow in understanding the spiritual life of the parish and its needs. It will be helpful for us to hold in our collective consciousness as we officially enter into mutual ministry together a spiritual truth: God has a mission which happens to have a Church. Whether Diocese or parish, we all partake in God s mission. And what might that be? To reconcile all things in Christ. The Diocese as well as the local church has to prayerfully discern how it will participate in this mission. Thankfully, the Anglican Communion has established the Five Marks of Mission to guide us in this endeavor. This is something that you will hear more about in the coming months as the parish begins to reframe its understanding of stewardship as one not centered in budgets but one centered in Christ. When we are able to do this, we will be able to answer how we, as St. James, minister to the larger community beyond the walls of the church building. There will be those who wish to jump ahead and move into mission work when there is still much listening and healing to be done. Taking a cue from the desert monastics, we need to step back from rushing forward and be present to the Spirit. We need to be present to each other, to listen to our varied stories, and to hear what God is saying to us as a people of faith. I ask for your prayers and for patience as we continue to get to know one another. There will be moments of discomfort for some and excitement for others throughout this listening and discerning process. Spiritual growth is impossible without it. In community, through God s grace, we will face our challenges together in this journey we call faith. Through our shared ministry together we will walk with Christ confident in God s love. Spiritual health and well-being are core values from which all else emanates. To guide our faith community towards developing good working relationships and healthy boundaries, the parish has engaged the Rev. Diane Wheatley to facilitate a workshop on Saturday, September 23 from 9:00am till 3:00pm (a light lunch will 7 Shalom, Fr. Gary+

8 September 2017 September Server Schedule Date Lectors Eucharistic Ministers Ushers/Greeters Sat. Sept. 2 Kathy Heuss Nancy Toylor Craig & Kathy Heuss Sun. Sept. 3 Service on Clinton Village Green Sat. Sept. 9 Patty Fox Chris Fox Chris & Patty Fox Sun. Sept. 10 Sharon Williams Judy Logan John & Cynthia Crossley Sat. Sept. 16 Ted Johnson Karen Anderson Wendy Seifried Sun. Sept. 17 Lorna Grant Kathy Collett Chris Evans & Bruce Coe Sat. Sept. 23 Kathy Heuss Patricia Jue Craig & Kathy Heuss Sun. Sept. 24 Pat Evans Bill Kistner Karen Anderson & Wendy Seifried Sat. Sept. 30 Chris Fox Patty Fox Chris & Patty Fox Sun. Oct 1 Mary O Neill Mary Lou Iles Don Neil & Randy Wilson