The Beacon of St. Alban s Illuminating the Word of God in the World

Transcription

1 December 2013 The Beacon of St. Alban s Illuminating the Word of God in the World I love Advent. This is the season of the church year that orients us towards expectation, anticipation, and hope. Wake up! Watch! Look! Listen! God is coming among us in new ways. Emmanuel means God with us. In Advent, we sing the hymn of longing, O come, o come Emmanuel. As the days become shorter and the darkness grows, we light candles to mark the four weeks until the Christmas festival of Jesus birth, Jesus who is Emmanuel. Yes, there is the tension of living in an Advent spirit while the world around us already has rushed ahead to Christmas. During the church s celebration of Christmastide in the twelve days from Christmas Eve through Epiphany on January 6, the rest of the world has grown tired of Christmas carols and packs away its Christmas trees. I always feel a bit out of sync by enjoying Christmastide till the last day. But this tension serves as another reminder of how we Christians live in the world but not entirely of the world. Each of us finds our own ways of resolving the dissonance between the Advent yearnings of our souls and the holiday jingles of department store music. In this newsletter, you will find some suggestions to consider for living into Advent this year. Advent offers, along with the longer nights and starry skies, an invitation to quiet down and ponder once again what it means to be ready, open, and expectant for the gift that God gives of coming among us. God s incarnation is past, present, and yet to be. Will you notice the ways that divine love enters your life each day? Whose is the love that flows in relationships with friends and family? From whom comes the delightful taste of holiday treats? From whom Inside Music Notes...2 Nightwatch NYC...2 Advent Plans? Gift Suggestions Poinsettias...4 Social Ministries...5 Calendar.6-7 News & Happenings...8 Sr. Warden s Letter Women s Retreat...11 comes the movement of emotion that wells up as joy? From whom comes the yearning for space in a life overrun by responsibilities real and imagined. From whom comes the desire to pay attention to God with us? Wake up! Watch! Look! Listen! God is coming among us. Peace, Paula+ November December

2 Music Notes Join us for Advent Lessons and Carols on Sunday December 1. You ll sing along with us on old favorites and listen for some new ones! We will of course have special music Christmas Eve as well. Our handbells will play for the first time this year! Then on December 29, the service will be Christmas Lessons and Carols. And don t forget caroling while delivering the gifts to the Angel Tree families. Lots of opportunities to sing your favorite carols. We re making progress on cataloging the contents of all those boxes of music we got from St. Timothy s. We ve filled up the closet in the music room and Bob Laning has graciously volunteered to build some bookshelves for the choir room to hold more! There are some really nice pieces of music and you have already heard some and will hear more during Advent and Christmas. The handbell choir still needs ringers! Please join us! The Rockville Brass Band (Michael Arrington is a member) will present two holiday concerts with the Maryland Choral Society during December. These concerts will benefit Make-A-Wish Mid-Atlantic. Tickets are $20 for general admission, $15 for Seniors/ Students and children 10 and under are free. The concerts are on Saturday December 7 at 7:30 pm at Hughes United Methodist Church in Wheaton, MD and Sunday December 8 at 4 pm at Mount Calvary Catholic Church in Forestville MD. Hope to see you there! Youth Trip To Nightwatch in NYC! Bill and Bonnie Carter will lead members of St. Alban s youth on a trip to Nightwatch at the Cathedral of St.John the Divine in NYC January Members of St. Alban s youth need to get their permission slips in for the trip to Bill and Bonnie ASAP. Open to both junior and senior high youth, this is a new program at the world s largest church. We depart 12:00 noon from the Cathedral in Baltimore on Friday and return Saturday evening. The program is Friday evening through Saturday morning then time to visit New York City before coming home at 8:00. Cost $85 includes transportation, Friday dinner, Saturday breakfast. 2 This Is the Church For You

3 ADVENT PLANS? Advent is the season in the church year that leads up to Christmas. Traditionally, it is a time to prepare intentionally for the celebration of Jesus birth into the world. How might you keep this focus during the upcoming weeks? BIBLE STUDY? Come to St. Alban s at 9am on Saturday mornings (December 7, 14, 21). Join Rev. Paula in exploring scripture stories like the Angel s Visit to Mary, the Birth of Jesus, and the Wise Men. Video, paintings, and discussion will open our minds and hearts to the Word of God in our lives now. DAILY ADVENT MEDITATIONS? Look for a link on St. Alban s website to the daily meditations offered by our diocese. Would you rather have a daily e- mail come to you? Subscribe to Let Every Heart Prepare at episcopalcredo.org/publications/credo-reflection-series/advent Also you can subscribe to a Digital Advent calendar from the Society of Saint John the Evangelist at and get a daily . For those with an iphone, ipad, or ipod Touch, look for a fun free app called It s Advent in the Apple apps store. A cartoon will arrive daily to stimulate reflection and action based on scripture readings and the Sermon on the Mount. AN ADVENT RETREAT? On Friday evening and Saturday, December 13-14, a 24 hour retreat will be offered at Claggett Center. Titled The Heavens Declare, this retreat enables people to explore the earth and sky, open the books of nature and poetry, and deepen our connection to the universe as a part of God's creation. Talks by Dr. Alex Storrs, professor of Astrophysics, Towson University; Dr. Robert Kachur, professor of English, McDaniel College; and the Rev. Dr. Ann Boyd, rector, St. John's Parish, Hagerstown, and professor of Biology, Hood College. Registration forms are available at St. Alban s Church or online December

4 Christmas Gift Ideas Are there people on your gift list who really don t want or need more stuff? Consider these alternatives that make it possible to change lives with gifts that enable people to feed their families, create economic opportunities, and support health initiatives. How does it work? Visit one of the websites below to select and buy a gift. You then can print or a card for the person on your gift list. Examples? At Episcopal Relief and Development, $12 buys a mosquito net and training to prevent malaria. $25 buys a share of a flock of chickens. $80 buys a goat. At Heifer International, $20 buys a flock of chicks. $120 buys a sheep. People who receive animals have eggs, milk or meat to eat and sell. Offspring enable the resources to expand to others in the community. Poinsettias! It is a tradition at St. Alban s to decorate the church with live poinsettias for Christmas. To donate to this worthy cause, please use the forms that are available at the back of the church. Checks and forms are due by December 22. Poinsettias are $9 each and may be taken home after services Christmas Eve. Also volunteers are needed to wrap and display the poinsettias and decorate the church with wreaths on the weekend before Christmas as well! 4 This Is the Church For You

5 Social Ministries Winter Activities By Louise Izat WINTER RELIEF DINNER: St. Alban's will host a spaghetti dinner on Tuesday, December 3rd for about 30 guests at the Winter Relief Shelter at St. Christopher's Episcopal Church in Linthicum. St. Alban s cooks the food and our youth will serve the food and Lily Cook s junior Girl Scout Troop is baking brownies for dessert and providing entertainment! ANGEL TREE/HOLIDAY SHARING PROGRAM: The Angel Tree will be in church on Sunday, December 1st. We will be providing gifts to children this year to help to make their Christmas a happy one! We need you to deliver the gifts to church by December 15, when we will load them into cars and caravan around the area to deliver them and sing Christmas carols while we do it! It s a great activity for the whole family. You will really feel the Christmas Spirit when you help deliver these gifts. NCEON/BUDDY BAGS: Please remember that there is an increased need for food for both during the holiday season. The long Christmas vacation means children need to take home more food to keep from being hungry during the break because they will not be getting breakfast and lunch at school. Also, struggling Moms need more food from NCEON to feed their children while trying to pay higher heating bills during the cold winter months. AFRICAN TEAM MINISTRIES: We sold $933 in crafts for African Team Ministries! Your generosity will help care for and educate African orphans as well as providing income for unemployed women who made the jewelry. Learn more about them at: December

6 December 2013 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 1 8:00 am Holy Communion 10:30 am Advent Lessons and Carols 2 3 Winter Relief Dinner at St. Christophers 4 5 6:30 pm Handbells 7:30 pm Choir 6 7 9:00 am Advent Bible Study 8 8:00 am Holy Communion 10:30 am Holy Communion :30 pm Food Addiction :30 pm Handbells 7:30 pm Choir 13 12:30 pm Lunch Bunch at Gunnings Too 7:30 pm Alanon 7:30 pm Alateen 14 9:00 am Advent Bible Study 15 8:00 am Holy Communion 10:30 am Holy Communion :30 pm Ladies Guild Christmas party 7:30 pm Food Addiction :000 pm Prayer Shawl Ministry 7:00 pm Vestry Meeting 19 6:30 pm Handbells 7:30 pm Choir 20 7:30 pm Alanon 7:30 pm Alateen 21 9:00 am Advent Bible Study 22 8:00 am Holy Communion 10:30 am Holy Communion Christmas Eve 5:30 pm Family Service 10:00 pm Holy Communion 25 Merry Christmas! :30 pm Alanon 7:30 pm Alateen :00 am Holy Communion 10:30 am Christmas Lessons and Carols :30 pm Food Addiction 6 This Is the Church For You December

7 Lunch Bunch Holiday Gathering! December Birthdays Carol DeGarmo 12/2 Thomas Parran 12/3 Richard Marshall, Jr. 12/4 James Laning 12/7 Susan Payne 12/7 Maija Denson 12/15 Bill Davidson 12/17 Ed Buxton 12/21 Stephen Maceiko, Jr. 12/22 Victoria Murphy 12/22 Mark Landry 12/22 Sharon Smith 12/27 Ruth Burns 12/30 Joan Rumenap 12/31 Dottie Moore 12/31 Susan Laning 12/31 We will be meeting at Gunnings Too located in the Burwood Plaza at the intersection of B&A Blvd. and Ordinance Rd. at 12:30 on Friday, Dec. 13, Their éclairs are to die for and not to be missed. Let's try to have a nice big turnout and have some new folks join us. Give it some thought. All are welcome. Ladies Guild Christmas Party We will have our traditional Christmas meeting on Tues. Dec. 17th, at 6:30 in the Vestry room. As usual, it will be a covered dish dinner with a gift exchange. The cost of the gift is not to exceed $ Remember that all of the ladies of St. Albans are members of the Guild and are invited to this event and will be most welcome. So ladies, please come to this fun evening. Interested in Online Social Networking? If you don t know where to start, check out these websites: Church/ Please send your submissions for the January Beacon by December 29 to lynnmcfarland@gmail.com, or place them in the newsletter editor bin in the vestry room. 8 This Is the Church For You

8 December Anniversaries Help deliver Christmas gifts to some needy families in our area and sing carols with some choir members too? This will really put you in the Christmas Spirit! After Church on December 15, we ll load up some cars with gifts and carpool to family homes and deliver gifts and Christmas joy! Dee & Steve Smith 12/16 Joe & Nora Biddle 12/28 11 years Thanks to all who helped with setting up, food preparation and cleanup for the Holiday Bazaar and Turkey dinner on November 14. Thanks to JoAnn Cherrico and all who contributed pictures of our faith in action so we could complete our church directory. The final version went to Lifetouch on November30. Nancy & Steen Westerberg 12/29 56 years Meet our new assistant! Since the lease for our old copier is running out, Charleen investigated three options for the future. Our new Toshiba copier will bring our printing prices down to less than two cents per page, whether color or not. We also will be able to make banners for special events. December

9 St. Senior Alban s Warden s Loans for Letter Accumulated by Peg Davidson Maintenance Caring Ministries - We are beginning a ministry within St Albans to support congregants in need of assistance whether it be a meal, transportation, or maybe a note of encouragement or congratulations for a special happening. Perhaps you would be interested in visiting someone who is unable to get out and would look forward to seeing a friendly face. We are a family and family supports one another in time of crisis and celebration. I would like to make a list of people who would be interested in lending a supporting hand in any one of these facets, then organize the list by the type of need to be filled. Are you interested in bringing communion to a congregant s home or someone in the hospital? Please call the office and let Charleen know. Paula would like to set-up a training class. If you have any questions or would like to participate in this needed ministry please contact me at or pegdavidson@comcast.net. Renovation/Repair You have heard a lot of talk about all the repairs and renovations needed at St. Albans. Your Vestry is making a great effort to keep everyone up do date on the work being done, cost involved and our loan status. Starting in January you ll find a display in the Parish Hall updating our loan status and quarterly the loan figures will appear in the Beacon. You should be aware that for every repair and new work no less than 3 estimates per job are received and reviewed by the vestry before a final decision is made. Energy efficiency, future maintenance and cost are all criteria discussed along with references and visual inspection of work done by prospective contractors. As you know, we took a loan from the Endowment Fund of $115,000 to cover the balance of the cost of a new roof on the church. After 3 years of making payments and having a multitude of fundraisers, the loan was paid down to about $42,000. In January 2012 we had to waterproof the basement due to water seepage and mold. The conditions in the basement made it unhealthy for our children and choir to be down there. The waterproofing work came to approximately $25,000. At that point we combined the roof balance and waterproofing cost together and refinanced our Endowment loan to $67,000 with the intent of having it paid in full in 5 years. In 2013 we found ourselves in a very unique situation. After over 30 years we would have a priest living in the rectory. With this blessing came a lot of needed repairs in addition to many repairs to our church. In order to complete these needed repairs we had to once again refinance our loan. This decision was not made lightly but out of 10 This Is the Church For You

10 necessity. We are so blessed that many years ago the congregation of St. Albans had the foresight to set up an Endowment Fund. We need to ensure this loan is paid in full for future congregations of St Albans. People thought the loan for the roof was almost paid in full and stopped making monthly donations to the Roof Fund. Consequently, we had to take money from the general fund to make our payments. We have a $21,000 deficit in our budget, $12,000 of which is from paying off the loan. With this in mind, your help is needed. We are going to begin having fundraisers to help pay off our loan. We are asking members of the congregation to step up and volunteer to spear head a fundraiser. Mary Wilcox has agreed to coordinate this project. She will not run each fundraiser but will help to coordinate your event. Successful activities have been dinners, Basket Bingo, Silent Auctions to name a few. There will be lots of support and congregants to help but one person cannot chair all the fundraisers. We hope to have more concerts and sell food as we did with the Benfield Brass Band and will need someone to run the food booth. The total due for all the repairs, renovations, waterproofing and balance on the roof comes to approximately $137,000. As was presented during our Stewardship Drive, all funds will be distributed from the general fund to include our Endowment Loan payment. We cannot do this alone, the community supports our fundraisers and with our combined efforts we can get this loan paid off sooner rather than later. Save the Date! Claggett Women s Retreat in January January Friday 5 PM-Sunday 11 AM God s Magic Kingdom Join other women for a weekend of reading about, thinking about and discussing how to make God's Kingdom on earth a place for all to share in God's love at the Claggett Center in Buckeystown, MD. Chaplain: The Rev. Monique Ellison - St. Christopher's Church, Linthicum Coordinator: Barbara DeLorenzo - St. Christopher's Church, Linthicum. Cost: $190. Registration forms available at St. Albans and at December

11 The Beacon of St. Alban s St. Alban s Episcopal Church 105 1st Ave SW Glen Burnie, MD Phone: , Fax: stalbans.church@verizon.net RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED Sunday Worship Services 8:00 am - Holy Communion, Rite I (no music) 10:30 am - Holy Communion, Rite II (with music) Sunday School, K-8 and Nursery Church Office Hours Monday-Friday 9am-12 pm Priest In Charge Rev. Dr. Paula Datsko Barker 12 This Is the Church For You