Last Sunday November 15, 2015)
November 22 – 10:00am, Godly Play (preschool through 2nd grade
November 22 – 10:00am, "Weaving God’s Promises" (3rd grade and up)
November 22 – 10:00am, "Song’s in Waiting" (Parish House)
November 22 – 11:00am, Holy Eucharist, Rite II, Last Pentecost, "Christ the King"
November 25 – 10:00am -12:00pm, Ecumenical Bible Study
November 25 – 5:30pm- St. Peter’s Bookgroup reading "Being Mortal"
November 29 – 9:00am, Morning Prayer, Rite I, Advent 1
November 29 – 11:00am, Holy Eucharist Rite II, Advent 1
November 29 – 11:00am, Kickoff for the Altarpiece Fundraiser
This Sunday at St. Peter’s – Servers, Readings
A new Village Harvest Record…
Today is the one year anniversary of this ministry. We started in November, 19, 2014 with the idea to "make fresh food more available to those in our area in need of food". In recognition of the anniversary and the nearness of Thanksgiving, we stocked up on food:
- 882 pounds of produce, including watermelons, pineapples, butternut squash, peppers, tomatoes, apples, and sweet potatoes
- 188 pounds of chicken (we are providing a chicken for each family)
- 87 pounds of "mixed groceries" (Peanut butter, canned beans, etc)
That was a wise move – we served 118 people, a record and almost double the 60 people that came a year ago. Here is the record of people served in the last 6 months:
Over the 12 month period we have served 977 people and provided 6,177 pounds of produce to the Port Royal community. Our effort provides a positive identity for the Church, breaks down barriers and creates new relationships.
Thanks to the ECW who have led this ministry and particularly Johnny Davis who has worked with the Northen Neck Food Bank and has been our main buyer. And to all the helpers, some who come every month, the celebration is yours!
Deadlines!
1. Have you given a gift to the ECM for their Thanksgiving distribution to 2 Port Royal Families ? Due Nov. 22
2. Samaritan Purse shoeboxes are due Nov. 22, final collection
Advent and Christmas at St. Peter’s, 2015
Advent is a season of preparation for the coming of Jesus as one of us. Jesus brought God’s light into the world during his lifetime and we expect him to return to reign in glory at the end of time. We have a variety of events and activities to concide with this time of year.
See the first event below which is coming up this Sunday:
Advent Study- "Songs in Waiting" begins Sunday, Nov 22, 2015, 10am
Songs in Waiting weaves together the perspectives of the four Gospel writers with insights from artists, prayers, and hymns from around the world. It provides a glimpse through many centuries and cultures of God’s coming among us.
This Advent study will help you go deeper into the Christmas story. It begins this Sunday, 10am in the Parish House. Join us! We will discuss the introduction on "Surprises" and the "Song of Mary." Please read it ahead of the class if you can, but come anyway if you can’t
Paul-Gordan Chandler wrote this book while spending 10 years as Rector of the Episcopal St. John’s Church/Maadi in Cairo, part of the Episcopal Diocese of Egypt and North Africa. He brings the knowledge of several cultures to bear on this book.
Updated price at Amazon . There are used copies at t Amazon marketplace. There are other comparison sites for used copies – Books Price Book Finder
Schedule:
November 22 —The Magnificat or Song of Mary
Please read the introduction and Chapter 1, "A Call to Childlikeness" (Song of Mary) to be discussed on Nov. 22
November 29 —The Benedictus or Song of Zecchariah
December 6 —The Gloria or Songs of the Angels to the Shepherd
December 13 —The Nunc Dimititis or Song of Simeon
Preparing for Advent, the Season of Preparation
We are ending the liturgical year on Sunday, Year B and approaching a new year, Year C. Naturally we are looking ahead and seeing if we are ready. The anomaly is that Advent starts that year which is itself a time of preparation. So this Sunday we are preparing to prepare!
The key in all of this is to begin Advent with a different or changed mindset and a resolve for doing. Here are a few steps from BeliefNet:
1. Have a proper mindset – Be ready to stop in your busy tracks and embrace the season of Advent and, most importantly, its purpose. The Advent message is “deliverance from oppression and bondage, to those who have much and those who have nothing..” The message of Advent is that, whatever our circumstance in life, Jesus Christ was born to be with us wherever we are. We have to be ready mentally to hear it.
2. Prepare a room at the Inn. Your heart is where Christ wishes to dwell and Advent is the perfect time to make room in it for His presence. If your heart is filled with unforgiveness, it has no room for Christ.
“We need to uncover that place this Advent where we can be silent, reflective, and prayerful. During this time of waiting, our eyes, ears, and minds can adjust to the radiant presence of God’s love for us in Jesus Christ.”
AdventWord, a Global Advent Calendar
Signup here for a daily Advent word and to post your photo and reflections
"Participate in the Anglican Communion’s Global Advent Calendar. Live into the season of Advent as we anticipate the coming of Christ, the fulfillment of our deepest desires and longings. Respond to a daily meditation with images and prayers that speak to your heart and be part of a global Advent Calendar that brings us together in communion"
The Anglican Communion with the SSJE Brothers invite you to:
•Sign up
•Pray through Advent
•Use your phone camera
•Help create a Global Advent Calendar.
How To:
Receive the daily AdventWord meditation and respond with an image of your own on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook. Watch the Advent Calendar grow each day.
On Twitter & Instagram tag with #adventword & the tag for the day. Make sure that there is a space between the tags for example: #adventword #proclaim.
On Facebook go to the AdventWord Page and write on page using #adventword & the tag for the day.
Visit: www.instagram.com/adventword
Visit: www.twitter.com/adventword
Visit: www.facebook.com/AdventWordOrg
Here is an example of what is being created, Nov. 29- "Wake Up"
The Word List
Christ the King Sunday, Nov 22, 2015
We celebrate Christ the King Sunday as the last Sunday of Ordinary Time just before we begin Advent. It is the switch in the Liturgy between Years A, B, and C. This year we will switch from Year B with a focus on Gospel According to Mark to Year C reading passages from the Gospel According to Luke.
The readings for the last Sunday after Pentecost are full of references to the return of Christ, when evil will be defeated and Jesus will begin his final reign as King of kings. In Advent, the Church year begins with a focus on the final restoration of all creation to its original glory. In preparation, on the last Sunday of the Church year, we proclaim the advent of the Lord of lords and King of kings.
The earliest Christians identified Jesus with the predicted Messiah of the Jews. The Jewish word "messiah," and the Greek word "Christ," both mean "anointed one," and came to refer to the expected king who would deliver
Christians have long celebrated Jesus as Christ, and his reign as King is celebrated to some degree in Advent (when Christians wait for his second coming in glory), Christmas (when "born this day is the King of the Jews"), Holy Week (when Christ is the Crucified King), Easter (when Jesus is resurrected in power and glory), and the Ascension (when Jesus returns to the glory he had with the Father before the world was created).
The recent celebration came from the Catholics in the 20th century who saw some dangerous signs on the horizon…
Church Liturgical Year Table
This time of year there is a focus on the church calendar as we end one year and begin another. Here is a handy table. We have a separate page that provides descriptions of the calendar details. 
We’re ready to kickoff our Altarpiece restoration fundraising
The Altarpiece has witnessed all events at St. Peter’s in the last 160 years – except its own restoration.
That’s about to change…We’re ready to kickoff a project to restore the altarpiece…and we can only do it with your help.
Our restoration conservator will be here on Sunday, Nov. 29, to answer your questions about the project during the announcements – "Why restoration ?" "What is going to be done..and how ?" "How long will it take?"
We will answer other questions- "How much is it going to cost ? How can I help?"
We will be kicking off our fundraising effort to the congregation. We have been fundraising behind the scenes and will be announcing where we are.
We will have special online articles and videos leading up to it and will have a printed pamphlet on that day.
So please come, hear the details and get involved so we can get the job done!
Reactions to the Paris attacks
1. Bishop Curry
"I do invite all Episcopalians and people of good will and faith to pray for those who have died, those who may be in harm’s way and those In Daniel and in Psalm 93, the Reign of God is depicted as glorious and authoritative, but also as being manifest through a person who is who seek to help in any way and to pray for us as a human family"
2. Bishop Pierre Whalon of the Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe
"Here is where our baptismal promise to “follow and obey Jesus as Lord” cuts into our lives. We should do good to those who hate us, because Jesus has told us to. So how can we?…"
3. The Very Rev. Lucinda Laird, dean of the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity in Paris
"Here in France I suspect there will be very, very strong anti-Muslim sentiment, and one thing we must do is stand with our Muslim brothers and sisters, and foster conversation and understanding. I think we also need to work harder to care for the flood of refugees fleeing terror in their own countries – work for immediate care and for political solutions. You will need to find your own mission in the U.S., but I know that it must involve continued dedication and commitment to making justice and making peace, and being a light in the darkness."
4. Bishop Goff
"Do not be afraid" is an ancient biblical command. "Do not be afraid" is a reminder that I cling to in this and every fearsome time. It is our human nature to respond to tragedies and uncontrollable changes with fear. In the immediate face of threat, fear can protect us. But in the long run, fear gets between us and our best selves, between us and God. We see that happening in the wake of the horrific attacks in Paris a week ago as some political leaders propose legislation to prevent Syrian refugees from entering the United States. In this reality, God’s message to us is, "Do not be afraid." Do not let fear prevent you from living out your baptismal vows to work for justice and peace and to respect the dignity of every human being." Read more..
5. Link to prayers of several faiths
Lectionary, November 22, Last Pentecost
I. Theme – Christ’s kingdom is one of truth and justice and not grounded in this world’s values of imperialism, coercion, violence, and oppression.
"Christ the King" – Hans Memling (1430-1494)
"Jesus answered, "My kingdom is not from this world. If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not from here." Pilate asked him, ‘So you are a king?’ Jesus answered, ‘You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice."" – John 18:36-37
The lectionary readings are here or individually:
Old Testament – Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14
Psalm – Psalm 93
Epistle –Revelation 1:4b-8
Gospel – John 18:33-37
Today’s readings celebrate the paradoxical kingship of Jesus Christ. What does "Christ the King" mean"?
In Daniel and in Psalm 93, the Reign of God is depicted as glorious and authoritative, but also as being manifest through a person who is “like a son of man”. In Revelation this one is seen as Jesus, who is revealed in glory and honor, and whose sacrifice is seen as the primary act in bringing God’s Reign into the world. Finally, in the encounter between Jesus and Pilate, the difference between human rulership and God’s Reign is starkly shown, as Jesus explains that he claims no human kingship, but is the king of a realm that is not of this world. It is a kingdom of truth and justice though not of "this world."
The challenge of this week’s celebration is to avoid triumphalism. We are not to make God’s Reign out to be the same as human power systems, only stronger, more dominant, and longer lasting. Rather, we are to recognise God’s Reign in acts of compassion and justice, in service and sacrifice, and in the challenge to human systems to give up their obsession with war and conquest in order to build a world of peace and love for all.
On this day, we celebrate God’s reign, kingdom, or community of faith, that endures forever, beyond time and beyond this world, beyond life and death. It is tempting to view Christ’s Reign as a conquering, all-powerful, phenomenon that will violently destroy human power systems, but that would be to misunderstand it. Rather, what the Lectionary reveals is a Reign that is not of this world, that is a completely different reality, and that works within human systems, even as it subverts them toward justice, peace and love
We know that we can glimpse something of this reign here on earth, but whatever vision we have is incomplete. What we do know for certain is this: we have a role to play. We are important. We are treasured by God. And God wants us to be part of this, whatever it is, that is beyond our understanding. Following God’s ways of love, justice, and peace, we will surely be on the path to this kingdom—as Jesus told the scribe who asked him about the greatest commandments, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.”
Our quest for the kingship of Christ in this world must begin by looking within ourselves. Does Christ reign over our lives and the conduct of our days? Or do we panic at every surprise, cling to false securities, dread change and worry incessantly about failures and flukes? If so, perhaps we have not enthroned in our hearts the One who cares for us intimately and longs only for our ultimate good. It is easy to point to a world run amuck. It is harder to admit that the tangled roots of systemic evils lie in our inertia or lack of belief.
One of the most poignant lines in today’s readings captures that personal culpability. As John envisions the second coming, “every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and on his account all the tribes of the earth will wail.” That global lament suggests that Christ our King is present paradoxically in those whom we wound. In the bum we readily dismiss, the mousy secretary, the pompous cleric, the acned adolescent, the whiny child, the crack addict, you guessed it—in them, the King comes.
Facing that sorry lot, we wail: “If only I’d known it was you!” Salvadoran theologian Jon Sobrino poses a challenge relevant to this feast: “The reign of God presupposes the anti-reign of God, the reality of our planet today: poverty, injustice… We should look at the crucified peoples today and ask ourselves, ‘what have we done, so that they are on the cross? …and what are we going to do to bring them down from the cross?’”
May our worship remind us of this eternal, “otherworldly” Reign of God and enable us to open our hearts to receive it right here and now where we live.
Read more about the Lectionary…
40 Old Testament Stories that every Christian Should know – #9 The Binding of Isaac
Pastor Vicki Zust is the rector of St. Paul’s, Clarence, NY. Having completed a 2 year cycle of reading the entire Bible she decided to try something different. As she writes, "So I went through the Old Testament and wrote down the stories that a lot of our theology and history depends on. It turns out there are 40 of them." I am excerpting them here. #9. The Binding of Isaac Read it here in Genesis Chapter 22.
"The story in Genesis 22:1-19 is often called the Sacrifice of Isaac. I prefer the term the binding of Isaac, because he wasn’t actually sacrificed.
" I have to say that I have always found this story rather horrible.
" I understand that the point of the story is to show that Abraham was willing to trust God with the most valuable thing he had – his only son. The son that he had waited for for years, the son that he believed would never come. I get it.
" I also get that it prefigures God sending and sacrificing his Son for us.
" I still find the story rather horrible. The idea that God would ask a parent to kill their own child is bad enough. The idea that God would ask a parent to kill their own child and then when they are willing to do it, basically say "psyche! I didn’t mean it" is cruel. While I know that there are lots of times in the Bible when God seems cruel, this just doesn’t seem like the God that I know.
" An interesting note to this story is that in the Quran there is an identical story but with Ishmael as the son who is nearly sacrificed."
"Almighty and gracious Father, we give you thanks for the fruits of the earth in their season and for the labors of those who harvest them. Make us, we pray, faithful stewards of your great bounty, for the provision of our necessities and the relief of all who are in need, to the glory of your Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever." Amen.
Poem – "Christ Has No Body"
"Christ has no body but yours,
Yours are the hands, with which he blesses all the world.
No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which he looks
Compassion on this world,
Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good,
Yours are the hands, yours are the feet,
Yours are the eyes, you are his body.
Christ has no body now but yours,
No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which he looks compassion on this world.
Christ has no body now on earth but yours "
—Teresa of Avila (1515–1582), mystic, reformer, writer
Teresa de Cepeda y Ahumada (later known as Teresa de Jesus) was born in Avila, Spain, 28 March 1515, one of ten children whose mother died when she was fifteen. Her family was of partly Jewish ancestry. Teresa, having read the letters of Jerome, decided to become a nun, and when she was 20, she entered the Carmelite convent in Avila. There she fell seriously ill, was in a coma for a while, and partially paralyzed for three years. In her early years as a nun, she was, by her account, assiduous in prayer while sick but lax and lukewarm in her prayers and devotions when the sickness had passed. However, her prayer life eventually deepened, she began to have visions and a vivid sense of the presence of God, and was converted to a life of extreme devotion.
In 1560 she resolved to reform the monastery that had, she thought, departed from the order’s original intention and become insufficiently austere. Her proposed reforms included strict enclosure (the nuns were not to go to parties and social gatherings in town, or to have social visitors at the convent, but to stay in the convent and pray and study most of their waking hours) and discalcing (literally, taking off one’s shoes, a symbol of poverty, humility, and the simple life, uncluttered by luxuries and other distractions). In 1562 she opened a new monastery in Avila, over much opposition in the town and from the older monastery. At length Teresa was given permission to proceed with her reforms, and she traveled throughout Spain establishing seventeen houses of Carmelites of the Strict (or Reformed) Observance (the others are called Carmelites of the Ancient Observance).