St Paul s Anglican Church

Transcription

1 St Paul s Anglican Church A caring community of Christ worshipping God, engaging the community and building connections between people of all ages and cultures. 2 Margaret Street, P.O. Box 352, Canterbury Vic 3126 Tel: Website: Church Office: office@stpaulscanterbury.org.au 24 th of December, 2017 Fourth Sunday of Advent Gracious God, whose eternal Word took flesh among us when Mary placed her life at the service of your will: prepare our hearts for his coming again and keep us steadfast in hope, that we may be ready for the coming of his kingdom; for his sake, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. Prayer: A Prayer Book for Australia. Image: Unknown. Hymns: 289 (vss 1-4) Instrumental Setting: Mathias Psalm: Song of Mary (choir) Anthem: Myn Liking by R.R. Terry Postlude: Fanatasia in G major (Allegro) BWV 571 by J.S. Bach 1

2 Notices of the Day Welcome to worship and to our St Paul s Faith Community. Please join us for a cuppa in the Parish Centre after the 10am service. Prayer Corner: Great Spirit, we remember the land and its First People with respect and dignity. May we live in harmony with all those who share this sacred earth and be thankful. Amen. We pray for the World: For those who mourn loved ones, for the injured and distressed, and for all those committed to the work of peace. For all refugees and asylum seekers. We pray for the worldwide Church: St Paul s Kindergarten staff, children and parents; Diocese of Yola, Nigeria (Bp Markus Ibrahm); Diocese of The Murray (Bp John Ford, Clergy & People); Royal School of Church Music (Roslyn Carolane, Chair); St Stephen's Gardenvale (Paul Carr); Melbourne Assessment Prison Christmas Eve Service (Bp Genieve Blackwell); Holy Trinity, Hampton Christmas Eve Pastoral Visit (Bp Paul Barker); St James and St Peter s, Kilsyth/Montrose Midnight Service (Bp Paul Barker); Lorne Anglican Uniting Church - Christmas Eve Service (Bp Philip Huggins); and St Dominic s Catholic Father Rev Peter Toan Nguyen. We pray for those in need: Joan Harrington-Johnson (Charles mum); Anne Shaw (Helen s mum); Diana Barclay (Henrietta s mum); David Bishop (Jeremy s dad); Dean Fleming (Nick s dad); Yvonne Foster (Kesta s aunt) Stel (Geoff and Jan s son-in-law) Trevor Bickinstaff (father of Anne and father-in -law to Michael Sayers) Margaret Clausen; Iris Mather; Tricia Cain; Gwen Towart; John and Dora; John Anderson; Scott Findlay; Vanessa Moss; Meredith Carrington; Beatrice Wong; Yvonne Dann; Dulcie Herd; and Bill Chalmers. We pray for ourselves and the community: Ever-present God, take care of all who travel by land, water or air; surround them with your loving care; protect them from every danger; and bring them safely back home. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. A Parish Prayer for St Paul s: Renew in us, O God, the zeal of your love. Let our parish come alive with the power of your Spirit. Where we have failed, forgive us. Where we have persevered, encourage us. When we are in doubt, direct us. Help us to see new opportunities for witness and service. For the sake of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. We give thanks for the lives of: June Miriam Morrison 26 December 2016 Trudence Barnard 29 December 1993 Notice Gluten free wafers are available upon request. Parish Council Members for 2018: Please keep our parish councillors and wardens in your prayers: Parish Council: John DeAraugo, Charles Harrington-Johnson, Cathy Hudson, Rosemary Miller, Alex Murray, Todd Reichmann and Nick Scott. Wardens: Jeremy Bishop, Andrew Flint and Liz Olie (vicar s warden) 2

3 Parish Events for the Week School Holidays This Sunday 8am 10am 5pm 11pm Monday 25 th 9am Tuesday 26 th 24 th of December: Fourth Sunday of Advent Christmas Eve Eucharist Eucharist; followed by morning tea in the Parish Centre Children s Christingle Service Midnight mass the Birth of Our Lord Christmas Day Sung Eucharist Farewell to Roxanne Addley, our Theological Student. Stephen, deacon and first martyr Office Closed Wednesday 27 th John, apostle and evangelist Office Closed Thursday 28 th Holy Innocents Office Closed Friday 29 th Thomas Becket, archbishop of Canterbury, martyr (d. 1170) Office Closed Saturday 30 th Josephine Butler, social reformer (d. 1905) Next Sunday 9am 31 st of December: The Epiphany of Our Lord New Year s Eve Eucharist 3

4 God of love, you were so generous, sending the presence of your Beloved to dwell among us and to tell us who you are. Encourage me during this Advent season to continue in the sharing of this loving presence through my attentiveness, given in prayer and in deeds. You who dwell within me, remind me often to let go of my busyness and my hurriedness so that I can be with others in a loving way. Convince me that being is as important as doing. Thank you for your strengthening presence. Thank you for being with me. Amen. (From: Out of the ordinary by Joyce Rupp) Confession (From: Prayers for an Inclusive by Stephen Shakespeare) You bring our fear into the light of love; we prefer to hide in the shadows. Lord have mercy Lord have mercy You promise healing for the earth; we turn our backs on our common world. Christ have mercy Christ have mercy Readings & Psalm You come near in the vulnerable word made flesh; we worship distant idols of celebrity and power. Lord have mercy Lord have mercy 2 Samuel , 16 1 Now when the king was settled in his house, and the Lord had given him rest from all his enemies around him, 2 the king said to the prophet Nathan, See now, I am living in a house of cedar, but the ark of God stays in a tent. 3 Nathan said to the king, Go, do all that you have in mind; for the Lord is with you. 4 But that same night the word of the Lord came to Nathan: 5 Go and tell my servant David: Thus says the Lord: Are you the one to build me a house to live in? 6 I have not lived in a house since the day I brought up the people of Israel from Egypt to this day, but I have been moving about in a tent and a tabernacle. 7 Wherever I have moved about among all the people of Israel, did I ever speak a word with any of the tribal leaders of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, saying, Why have you not built me a house of cedar? 8 Now therefore thus you shall say to my servant David: Thus says the Lord of hosts: I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep to be prince over my people Israel; 9 and I have been with you wherever you went, and have cut off all your enemies from before you; and I will make for you a great name, like the name of the great ones of the earth. 10 And I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them, so that they may live in their own place, and be disturbed no more; and evildoers shall afflict them no more, as formerly, 11 from the time that I appointed judges over my people Israel; and I will give you rest from all your enemies. Moreover, the Lord declares to you that the Lord will make you a house. 16 Your house and your kingdom shall be made sure for ever before me; your throne shall be established for ever. 4

5 Romans Now to God who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages 26 but is now disclosed, and through the prophetic writings is made known to all the Gentiles, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith 27 to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory for ever! Amen. Luke In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, 27 to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin s name was Mary. 28 And he came to her and said, Greetings, favoured one! The Lord is with you. 29 But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. 30 The angel said to her, Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God. 31 And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. 32 He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. 33 He will reign over the house of Jacob for ever, and of his kingdom there will be no end. 34 Mary said to the angel, How can this be, since I am a virgin? 35 The angel said to her, The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God. 36 And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. 37 For nothing will be impossible with God. 38 Then Mary said, Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word. Then the angel departed from her. Next Week s Readings: The Epiphany of Our Lord Isaiah Psalm , Ephesians Matthew Pew Sheet Deadline: Please ensure notices for the pew sheet are in the office by 5pm on Wednesday. Thank you! The office will be shut between 26 December 2017 and 1 January 2018 inclusive. I wish you all a happy, safe and holy start to the new year. Cassandra 5

6 Notices and Parish News: Coming up: December 24 8am and 10am services as usual. 5pm: Children s Christingle Service. 11pm: Midnight mass. 25 9am: Christmas Day service Roxanne s last day with us. 31 9am service only New Year s Eve. January am Sunday services only. 6 11:30am: Marriage of Julia Monborough and Robert Strachan. 24 Wednesday Eucharist and Meditation resume. 28 8am and 10am services resume. February 1 Choir resumes. 3 Roxanne s Ordination, St Paul s Cathedral. 4 Start-up Sunday. Advent Carol Service Success Congratulations to our wonderful choir for another memorable, uplifting Nine Lessons and Carol s service last Sunday night. Such a gift to the community! Donation to Malawi from Advent Carol Service A donation of $1225 has been sent to Mmanagas Parish in Malawi. The funds will go towards building a separate toilet for the girls so they can attend school. Christmas Tree Donations Thank you to all who placed donated gifts under our Christmas tree this year. Thank you to Gill Lambert for delivering the food to Mission House and Jonathan Chambers for delivering the rest to Anglicare. The Anglicare staff receiving the gifts were very pleased with the donations and assured us that the gifts would be greatly appreciated.. 6

7 CHRISTMAS MESSAGE FROM SUSANNE 2017 has been a tough year for many in our community and in the worldwide community. The year has also flown by and as a friend wrote in her Christmas letter, she thought it was still April! I would like to thank you all for all you do here at St Paul s. We are blessed in so many ways; through our care of each other, the care of our buildings, and the care of our local community. We care because God cares! I love to read from the Gospel of John at our annual Carols service. To quote a couple of verses:.what has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it. (John 1:4, 5) My prayer for us all is to trust the light. So as we sing carols, say our prayers, hear the Christmas story again, that our hearts will be moved as we give thanks to God for life and the gift of Jesus the Christ. God s peace and blessing be with you. Susanne Child Safe: We take children s safety seriously at St Paul s. If you have any concerns as to the safety of a child in the parish please see Susanne or one of the wardens; Andrew Flint, Jeremy Bishop and Liz Olie. Offertory Envelopes: Now available in the narthex. St Paul s Direct Debit: St Paul s Anglican Church Canterbury - BSB A/C

8 This Week s Ministry Team 24 th of December: Fourth Sunday of Advent 8am Sidesperson Reader Liturgical Asst Flowers Brass 10am Sidespersons Children s Talk Sunday School Assistant J2A Reader Intercessor Welcomer Liturgical Asst Server Refreshments Collection Counters Bruce Brown Rosie O'Shea Roxanne Addley Val Sayers, Julie Wagner and Leigh Etheridge Kajal Wagner Graham Scott Margaret Capper N/A N/A N/A N/A Alicenne Stevens Roxanne Addley All Rowan Litchfield Steven Wong Sue Flint Andrew Flint Geoff Davenport John De Araugo 5pm Christingle 24 December pm Midnight Mass Sidesperson 1 Jill Bales Gill Lambert Sidesperson 2 Anne Harding Tom Lambert Reader Intercessor This Week s Ministry Team 25 th of December: Christmas Day 9am Flowers Brass Sidespersons Reader Intercessor Welcomer Liturgical Asst Server Collection Counters Val Sayers, Julie Wagner and Leigh Etheridge Kajal Wagner Liz Olie Sue Chapman Gilliam Jensen Ros White All Roxanne Addley Graham Scott Malcolm White Rosie O'Shea Henrietta Barclay Priest: Reverend Susanne Chambers vicar@stpaulscanterbury.org.au Director of Music: Trevor Henley Organist: Greg Ellsmore Pastoral Lay Coordinators: Rowan Litchfield Sue Flint Vicar s Warden: Liz Olie Church Warden: Andrew Flint Jeremy Bishop