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Thursday, February 25, 2016

A Saint for the Rest of Us?


Grace Episcopal Church

Sheboygan, Wisconsin



Grace Notes

25 February 2016



Yesterday’s feast of St. Matthias the Apostle can be thought of as the feast for a “saint for the rest of us”.  Matthias was a figure of whom there is no record in the gospels, but who is described in Acts 1 as having accompanied Jesus and His disciples from the time of the baptism of the Lord.  The disciples discern the will of God and name Matthias to replace Judas, and after this mention he disappears from the canonical record.

Which brings us to ourselves, the “rest of us”.  Each of us has accompanied Jesus and His disciples (the Church) from the time we were baptized.  With very rare exception, each of us serves in ways that are not reflected in a public record.  The point is not who we receive the recognition of others, but how God recognizes our faith, that we follow.  When we do this we bear witness to who God is; we bear witness in following.

Few people will ever persuaded by any words we may use.  We are called to testify using words as well as actions, and when we are called to testify using words, when we are faithful, God will give us the words needed, but we will certainly never just persuade anyone of the faith.  We may, however, demonstrate the faith.  We may live lives that cause others to notice that there is something different about those who follow Jesus Christ.  For example, when we can remain thankful to God even in the midst of misfortune, people will notice.

Consider the “misfortune” of Matthias and his contemporaries, that the faith they professed was officially proscribed by the most powerful empire in history; that the eponymous founder of their faith died the death of a criminal; that their most important first leader was described as having abandoned his master.  These “facts on the ground” would not be considered favorable in any age, and yet by their example Matthias and his contemporaries began to open hearts that God might win them. 

We have no record of Matthias ever considering himself as having earned favor with his fellow disciples in how he walked along with them in following Jesus.  He probably did, but we do know that he found favor with God, as God will find favor with each of not in great works and the good opinion of others, but in how we offer our hearts in following Jesus.



Grace abounds:  Please thank:

§  Kevan and Traci Revis, and Paul and Andrea Aparicio for the Sunday coffee hours.

§  Ben Dobey for organizing the supper prior to Compline, and for the Compline musical offering.

§  Gary and Elaine Dinstuhl, and Jennifer Pawlus, for providing the Friday night Lenten meal.

§  Bobbie May for work in the parish library.



Call for Contributions:  If you have a spiritual reflection to share, or want to point your fellow worshippers toward a resource, submit your contributions to Fr. Karl (by email) by Wednesday in the week of publication.



Music this Week: The Third Sunday in Lent



Prelude                           Chorale Preludes on Lord, keep us steadfast by thy Word

                   Pachelbel and Buxtehude

Introit                             My eyes are ever looking toward the Lord          Plainsong

Mass Setting                             Gregorian Mass X  

                                                                                    Plainsong, adapt. Wildman

Offertory Hymn 401        “The God of Abraham praise”                                  Leoni

Communion Motet           Like as the hart                                                     Willan

Communion Hymn 684    “O, for a closer walk with God”                         Caithness

Closing Hymn 344           “Lord, dismiss us with thy blessing”         Sicilian Mariners

Postlude                Prelude & Fugue in G Minor                                            Fischer



Parish Notices



§  Dinner Needed: For those participating in the 30 Hour Famine.  We need volunteers to provide a lite meal (e.g. chicken soup and salad/sandwich or rice and beans – nothing heavy or acidic) to be served on Saturday, February 27th at 5:30 p.m. for 20 people.

§  Adult Education: On Sunday we will continue Discipleship – as Ethics and Evangelism. This is the last class in a three-week exploration of what Jesus intends for his followers in these two specific areas, with an intention toward faithful and imaginative obedience for us today.  This series is presented by our Seminarian, Ryan Pollock.

§  Lenten Meditation Booklets are available on the table in the Narthex.

§  Stations of the Cross and Simple Suppers: We will continue this program on Friday, March 4th meeting at 5:15 p.m. for a prelude of Lenten organ music followed at 5:30 p.m. with Stations of the Cross. Afterwards a simple supper will be hosted in the parish hall with a presentation and pictures of Jordan, Israel and Palestine by the pilgrims who went to the Holy Land. Please sign up on the sheets in the Narthex so we will know how much food needs to be prepared.

§  First Communion Lessons: Pat Ford Smith will be providing Communion Lessons during the month of April in preparation for the Bishop's visit on Sunday May 1st, 2016.  If you or your child are interested, please contact the office to sign up.  Dates have been set for each Thursday in April (April 7, 14, 21 & 28), times are still being determined.  

§  Sunday School Snacks: Ms. Nicci and Ms. Andrea's Sunday school classes are in need of donated non-perishable snacks.  Each class consists of a prayer around our classroom altar followed by snack and craft time.  Having snacks to offer during this time is a wonderful opportunity for the classmates to serve each other and come together in fellowship.  It would be wonderful if anyone who is willing could place non-perishable snack options such as applesauce, goldfish cracker bags, fruit cups, as well as juice boxes, in our craft room to replenish our supply. Thank you!  

§  Lenten Retreat for Women: Lead by the Rev. Dr. Paula Harris and entitled “Recognizing God’s Voice”, this retreat will take place on Saturday March 5th 9:30 – 3:30 p.m. at St. Aidan’s Episcopal Church in Hartford. For more information, please see the notice board in the Narthex.

§  Horvats in Hrvatska: Their most recent newsletter, which includes their prayer requests, has been posted on the notice board in the Narthex.  Additional copies can be found on the table in the Narthex.

§  SCIO Program Top 3 In-Kind Needs: SCIO is in need of (1) Spaghetti sauce, chicken/vegetable broth, (2) Tampons, Conditioner, and (3) Pledge, Windex, bathroom cleaner.  SCIO is a spiritually based organization of faith communities in Sheboygan County. If you would like to learn more about SCIO, please see the brochure on the noticed board in the Narthex.

§  Something Extra for Grace: Envelopes are available in the pews if you are moved to give an extra gift, beyond your pledge or regular plate donation, toward the life of the church.  Gifts are tax deductible if you write your name on the envelope.

§  Like Grace Church on Facebook

§  Follow Grace Church on Twitter: @GEC_Sheboygan

§  We Are on Itunes! Check out the new podcast!!!



Thursday, February 18, 2016

The White Rose


Grace Episcopal Church

Sheboygan, Wisconsin

Grace Notes

18 February 2016

Events occurring on this date in 1943 provide an extreme example of the contrast between a worldview which is centered on God’s will and one centered on the exaltation of human will (indeed, of the “triumph of the will”).  Those centered on God’s will included the circle of students (and a philosophy professor) at the University of Munich, who came to be known as the “White Rose”.  These Christians spoke out against the Nazi policies under which the mass killing of those with development disabilities, Jews and Poles were murdered, and on this day they were arrested by the Gestapo, to later be beheaded.  And the contrast on this date in 1943?  This was provided in the speech given by Joseph Goebbels, propaganda chief for the Nazis, in which he proclaimed the need for “total war” in light of the regime’s first admission that Germany had suffered serious military defeats.

Those who looked to God to reveal truth spoke out and acted to proclaim the truth.  Those who looked to the supremacy of human will spoke out and acted to further a lie, and continued to focus on destruction and evil.

The 18 February 1943 contrast is, of course, extreme.  What about the contrasts in our own lives?  The temptation is always present to each of us that we are at some level sovereign.  We have enough experience of life to know that we cannot just get our way, and that if we attempt to just get our way this will lead to conflict in relationships and at work.  But it is all too easy, even in being realistic about how successfully we might impose our will, to just be “realistic,” and so to view life as no more than a series of pragmatic trade-offs, in which we try to get what we want, and are prepared to “cut the best deal we can get”.  Such pragmatism is not the same as recognizing that God’s will is sovereign, and that our identity is formed by how we discern God’s will and then do it.

In this Lenten time, may our prayer be that we may ever seek God’s will, discern His will, and do it.  In this we will be blessed; we will be blessed to discover that God’s will so far exceeds our own expectations that the choice between my will and God’s will is revealed as just one more temptation.

  

Grace abounds:  Please thank:

§  Kevan and Traci Revis, and Leslie Kohler for the Sunday coffee hours.



Call for Contributions:  If you have a spiritual reflection to share, or want to point your fellow worshippers toward a resource, submit your contributions to Fr. Karl (by email) by Wednesday in the week of publication.



Creative Learning:  In a 2009 study Jackie Andrade, a psychology professor at the University of Plymouth in England, designed an experiment to show whether doodling actually benefited attention and memory.   The results showed that the control group that was allowed to doodle while listening to a message remembered 29% more information than did the control group that was not allowed.

When I learned of this study, I wondered , “Can doodling help engage my Sunday School class?”  Every child has a different learning style.  If you’ve ever had the pleasure of teaching kids between the ages of 7 and 12, you understand that their attention spans are, well—let’s just say it can be tough to keep them all engaged at the same time!  But, I’m happy to tell you that kids can be engaged. 

The kids are so engaged that I recently added two more tables to our room, to accommodate the growing number of kids attending each week and their need for personal space to create.  I’ve seen a crossword puzzle made with words from our lesson and a calendar-style page filled with numbers important to God (3, 7, 40).  I’ve seen Jesus depicted  as a superhero and a ninja (Ninjas for Jesus, was the title).   I’ve seen Him riding on what I believe was the Millennium Falcon and I’m pretty sure I saw St. Michael (or some angel with really big wings) holding a light saber doodled this past week!

All this creativity is sparking amazing conversations, as well.  Just last Sunday, my daughter Chase came running in from her snow fort to ask, “Mom, is there any chance that Judas is in Heaven?  Could Jesus forgive even him?”  Talk about a teachable moment!  Hours after church, she’s still thinking about the lesson, yet if you saw her in class, she’d be doodling away, seemingly paying no attention to what I’m saying.

Our Grace Church kids are doodling Jesus into their lives! 

This brings me to a request:  If you have extra paper/poster boards/paper plates/anything creative to write on lying unused  around your house, please consider donating it to my class.  We’ll learn great things through it!  Thank you so much.



Keep Calm and Doodle On  (Nicci Beeck, 2nd-5th Grade Sunday School Teacher)



Music this Week: The Second Sunday in Lent



Prelude                Chant chérubique                                        Nicolai Tcherepnin

                             Élévation                                                   Camille Saint-Saëns

Introit                 Plainsong.  Antiphon:  Call to remembrance



Tract (choir)         Psalm 25:16-21                                                          Plainsong

Offertory

Hymn 448             “O love, how deep, how broad, how high”   Deus tuorum militum

Communion

Motet                    Dear Lord and Father of Mankind                   C. Hubert H. Parry

         

Dear Lord and Father of mankind, forgive our foolish ways;

          Reclothe us in our rightful mind; in purer lives thy service find,

          In deeper reverence, praise.

         

          In simple trust like theirs who heard, beside the Syrian sea,

          The gracious calling of the Lord, let us, like them, without a word,

          Rise up and follow thee.

         

          Drop thy still dews of quietness, till all our strivings cease;

          Take from our souls the strain and stress, and let our ordered lives confess

          The beauty of thy peace.

         

          Breathe through the heats of our desire thy coolness and thy balm;

          Let sense be dumb, let flesh retire, speak through the earthquake, wind, and

fire,    O still, small voice of calm.

                                                                                          John Greenleaf Whittier

Closing

Hymn 142             “Lord, who throughout these forty days”                    St. Flavian

Postlude              Fantasia & Fugue in C Minor                    Johann Sebastian Bach



Parish Notices



§  Adult Education: Discipleship – as Ethics and Evangelism. Sunday we will continue with the second class in a three-week exploration of what Jesus intends for his followers in these two specific areas, with an intention toward faithful and imaginative obedience for us today.  This series is presented by our Seminarian, Ryan Pollock.

§  Compline: Sunday, February 21, we will meet at 6:30 p.m. in St. Nicholas Hall for a simple chili supper and salad hosted by our Organist and Choir Master, Ben Dobey. Please sign up on the sheets in the Narthex so Ben will know how much food needs to be prepared and if you would like to supply bread, butter or a dessert, or help with clean-up. At 8:00pm the Schola Cantorum will sing Compline, a beautiful restful service full of candles and music.

§  Lenten Meditation Booklets are available on the table in the Narthex.

§  Stations of the Cross and Simple Suppers: We will continue this program on Friday, February 26th meeting at 5:15 p.m. for a prelude of Lenten organ music followed at 5:30 p.m. with Stations of the Cross. Afterwards a simple supper will be hosted in the parish hall with a presentation and pictures of Jordan, Israel and Palestine by the pilgrims who went to the Holy Land. Please sign up on the sheets in the Narthex so we will know how much food needs to be prepared.

§  Nashotah House: continues its Lenten Program this Wednesday, February 24th lead by Dr. Travis Bott – “The Psalms and Christian Worldview”.  For more information on the Nashotah House Lenten Program please see the notice board in the Narthex.

§  The 30 Hour Famine is an international event started by World Vision, an
organization attempting to eradicate global poverty and hunger in Jesus'
name. This event will begin at 6 pm on Friday, February 26 and end at 6 pm on Saturday, February 27, at Grace Episcopal Church. Yes, it's only 24 hours If you'd like to do the full 30 hours, feel free to make lunch your last meal on that Friday.

YOU MUST SIGN UP FOR THIS ONLINE! www.styg.com/signup is the place to go. The cost of the event is $10, which helps cover the cost of juice as well as some of the supplies we need. If cost is an issue, please let us know, but we hope $10 won't be a problem. The 30 Hour Famine is an overnight event where 6th - 12th grade students come together to learn, pray, fast, have fun, serve, and lots more. We do not eat during the event until the very end. Why? Because we are attempting to not just learn about global poverty and hunger but empathize, sympathize, and realize what it means to be hungry. Fear not, we will drink water and fruit juices so no one will be dehydrated. But you will be hungry by the end of this.

§  Thirty Hour Famine Volunteers needed: to prepare dinner for conclusion of the Thirty Hour Famine. We need a group of volunteers to supply dinner or participate in the preparation of the dinner.  Please sign up on the sheets in the Narthex.

§  Sunday School Snacks: Ms. Nicci and Ms. Andrea's Sunday school classes are in need of donated non-perishable snacks.  Each class consists of a prayer around our classroom altar followed by snack and craft time.  Having snacks to offer during this time is a wonderful opportunity for the classmates to serve each other and come together in fellowship.  It would be wonderful if anyone who is willing could place non-perishable snack options such as applesauce, goldfish cracker bags, fruit cups, as well as juice boxes, in our craft room to replenish our supply. Thank you!  

§  SCIO Program Top 3 In-Kind Needs: SCIO is in need of (1) Spaghetti sauce, chicken/vegetable broth, (2) Tampons, Conditioner, and (3) Pledge, Windex, bathroom cleaner.  SCIO is a spiritually based organization of faith communities in Sheboygan County. If you would like to learn more about SCIO, please see the brochure on the noticed board in the Narthex.

§  Bible Challenge: Grace Abounds launched The Bible Challenge on Monday, January 4, 2016. If you take this challenge, you will find that in one year you will read all of the Bible! This will require less than an hour of your time, six days a week. A schedule of readings will be provided on the parish website, along with weekly study summaries and a weekly video summery of the readings. If you need a good study bible for the challenge, contact the parish office. When we immerse ourselves in Scripture, the mantle of the Lord does fall upon us. We are equipped to discern God’s will and to lead others to know and love and serve the Lord.

§  Coffee Hour Schedule: There is a sign-up sheet for hosting coffee hour in 2016. If you would like to host, please sign up for either 8:00 a.m. or 10:15 a.m. If you have any questions, please see Mary Massey. Thank you so much.

§  Flower Schedule for 2016: Giving the gift of flowers is a wonderful way to remember a loved one or to offer thanksgiving for your blessings. If you wish to sign up for a specific Sunday, the Flower Schedule is available on the table in the narthex. More than one person can sign up for each Sunday.

§  Something Extra for Grace: Envelopes are available in the pews if you are moved to give an extra gift, beyond your pledge or regular plate donation, toward the life of the church.  Gifts are tax deductible if you write your name on the envelope.

§  Like Grace Church on Facebook

§  Follow Grace Church on Twitter: @GEC_Sheboygan

§  We Are on Itunes! Check out the new podcast!!!







Thursday, February 11, 2016

Establishment?


Grace Episcopal Church

Sheboygan, Wisconsin



Grace Notes

11February 2016



Cuius regio, eius religio is a Latin phrase which means “Whose realm, his religion.”  This settlement adopted at the Peace of Augsburg in 1555, to broker an end to the warfare between Catholic and Protestant forces within the Holy Roman Empire (the empire being essentially a collection of German principalities).  Once this rule was adopted a person was defined to be a member of the Catholic Church or a Protestant church on the basis of the faith of the ruler of the place where he or she lived!  The reason the term has passing relevance today is that this date marks the anniversary of the 1534 adoption of the Act of Supremacy, under which Henry VIII was recognized as supreme head of the Church of England.  It is against this historical background (and the existence of colonial era state churches that the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was adopted in 1791.

The Establishment Clause reads, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof ...”  This federal constitutional principle applies, as well, to the states under the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution.  Notice that the language says nothing about a wall of separation between Church and State.  It says nothing about removing the influence of religion from the public square.  It just says that the United States (Congress) or a state (e.g., Wisconsin) cannot establish a church in the way a church existed in Virginia (for example), supported by tax revenues.

Leaving aside the many ways in which the Establishment Clause has been understood and interpreted to in fact require that faith be excluded from much of the public square, and recognizing that the model of a state church (including in the case of our own mother Church of England) led to many abuses, the real beneficiary of the Establishment Clause is, in fact, the Church.  If ever the exercise of religion is subject to the dictates of the government the faith and Church become corrupted.  Faith is a reality best practiced together, but it is founded on individual response and conscience absent any coercion.  We may mark this day in thanksgiving, therefore, that the phrase that we can apply is “Whose life, his religion.”



Grace abounds:  Please thank:

§  Bob and Anne Hanlon, and Dale and Mary Massey for the Sunday coffee hours.

§  All who contributed food and helped in cleanup at the Shrove Tuesday supper.

§  Bobbie May for work in organizing the parish library.



Education Alert!  Diocesan Deacons’ School will meet again this Saturday, at Grace in Sheboygan.  We will begin at 8:45 with Holy Eucharist, followed by classes beginning at 9:15.  At this session we will cover:

§  Old Testament:  Genesis (continued)—Leviticus.

§  Church History:  The Church and the Roman Empire; the Ecumenical Councils.

You can attend without having read the textbooks.  Class sessions will also be posted on Grace Abounds.

Have you ever wanted to know more about the dynamics behind the persecution of the early Church?

Have you ever wanted to better understand the narrative arc of the Five Books of Moses?



Call for Contributions:  If you have a spiritual reflection to share, or want to point your fellow worshippers toward a resource, submit your contributions to Fr. Karl (by email) by Wednesday in the week of publication.



Music this Week: The First Sunday in Lent



Prelude        Psalm Prelude: De profundis clamavit (Ps.130, v.1)      Herbert Howells

                    ‘Out of the deep have I called unto thee, O Lord;

Lord, hear my voice.’

The Great Litany (S-67)

Tract (choir)  Psalm 91:1-4, 11-12                                                           Plainsong

Offertory Hymn 143        “The glory of these forty days”                 Erhalt uns, Herr

Sanctus                 Missa ‘Alme Pater’                  Plainsong, adapt. Wayne Wildman

Agnus Dei                                                                                               Plainsong

Communion Motet           Lord, for thy tender mercy’s sake                   John Hilton

Closing Hymn 150           “Forty days and forty nights”             

Postlude                          Out of the depths I call to thee                          J. S. Bach



Parish Notices



§  Work needed:  A parishioner is looking for work—all work.  He has experience and skills in home repairs, general maintenance, outside work, etc.  If you have work/projects, please contact the parish office.

§  Lenten Meditation Booklets are available on the table in the Narthex.

§  Deacon School: Saturday, February 13th we will celebrate mass at 8:45am. Church History will be from 9:15-12noon. Lunch from 12:00-12:45. Old Testament from 12:45-3:30pm. Please let the office know if you will be eating lunch so we know how much food to prepare. Thank you.

§  Adult Education: Discipleship – as Ethics and Evangelism.  Sunday, February 14th, we will begin a three-week exploration of what Jesus intends for his followers in these two specific areas, with an intention toward faithful and imaginative obedience for us today.  This series will be presented by our Seminarian, Ryan Pollock.

§Compline: Next Sunday, February 21st, we will meet at 6:30 p.m. in St. Nicholas Hall for a simple chili supper and salad hosted by our Organist and Choir Master, Ben Dobey. Please sign up on the sheets in the Narthex so Ben will know how much food needs to be prepared and if you would like to supply bread, butter or a dessert, or help with clean-up. At 8:00pm the Schola Cantorum will sing Compline, a beautiful restful service full of candles and music.

§  Stations of the Cross and Simple Suppers: Beginning on Friday, February 19th we will meet at 5:15 p.m. for a prelude of Lenten organ music followed at 5:30 p.m. by Stations of the Cross. Afterwards a simple supper will be hosted in the parish hall with a presentation and pictures of Jordan, Israel and Palestine by the pilgrims who went to the Holy Land. Please sign up on the sheets in the Narthex so we will know how much food needs to be prepared.

§  Cooking on Friday Evenings in Lent: If you are interested in cooking and hosting a dinner on the Fridays during Lent, March 4th is still open. Thank you for your willingness to serve in this manner.

§  Sunday School Snacks: Ms. Nicci and Ms. Andrea's Sunday school classes are in need of donated non-perishable snacks.  Each class consists of a prayer around our classroom altar followed by snack and craft time.  Having snacks to offer during this time is a wonderful opportunity for the classmates to serve each other and come together in fellowship.  It would be wonderful if anyone who is willing could place non-perishable snack options such as applesauce, goldfish cracker bags, fruit cups, as well as juice boxes, in our craft room to replenish our supply. Thank you!  

§  Bible Challenge: Grace Abounds launched The Bible Challenge on Monday, January 4, 2016. If you take this challenge, you will find that in one year you will read all of the Bible! This will require less than an hour of your time, six days a week. A schedule of readings will be provided on the parish website, along with weekly study summaries and a weekly video summery of the readings. If you need a good study bible for the challenge, contact the parish office. When we immerse ourselves in Scripture, the mantle of the Lord does fall upon us. We are equipped to discern God’s will and to lead others to know and love and serve the Lord.

§  Coffee Hour Schedule: There is a sign-up sheet for hosting coffee hour in 2016. If you would like to host, please sign up for either 8:00 a.m. or 10:15 a.m. If you have any questions, please see Mary Massey. Thank you so much.

§  Flower Schedule for 2016: Giving the gift of flowers is a wonderful way to remember a loved one or to offer thanksgiving for your blessings. If you wish to sign up for a specific Sunday, the Flower Schedule is available on the table in the narthex. More than one person can sign up for each Sunday.

§  Something Extra for Grace: Envelopes are available in the pews if you are moved to give an extra gift, beyond your pledge or regular plate donation, toward the life of the church.  Gifts are tax deductible if you write your name on the envelope.

§  SCIO Program Top 3 In-Kind Needs: SCIO is in need of (1) Spaghetti sauce, chicken/vegetable broth, (2) Tampons, Conditioner, and (3) Pledge, Windex, bathroom cleaner.  SCIO is a spiritually based organization of faith communities in Sheboygan County. If you would like to learn more about SCIO, please see the brochure on the noticed board in the Narthex.

§  Like Grace Church on Facebook

§  Follow Grace Church on Twitter: @GEC_Sheboygan

§  We Are on Itunes! Check out the new podcast!!!

Thursday, February 4, 2016

Walk Alongside


Grace Episcopal Church

Sheboygan, Wisconsin



Grace Notes

4 February 2016



At the parish annual meeting this past Sunday, I spoke about how each of us brings gifts to offer into the life of the Church.  These can be specific skills (like help with a computer, or fixing a bicycle) or can be ongoing ministries (such as visiting a shut-in).  What the gift is does not matter; that it is offered is what is vital, vital because it is in offering that we grow beyond a Sunday-only model of “church” into the biblical model of discipleship.

A 1 Thess. 5.14, Paul writes that we are to encourage our fellow believers.  The word he uses in the original Greek is conventionally translated as “encourage” but is closer in usage to “walk alongside”.  When we offer the gifts that God has given us we begin to walk alongside those whom God has given us to walk with.  We get to know each other better.  We begin to understand each other’s burdens and to share in each other’s joys.  In other words, we become the Body not just in a spiritual sense but in shared experience.

Prayerfully consider what it is that you can offer in this Body.  Is it a skill or some specific knowledge.  (E.g., “I can help someone to prepare his/her tax return.”)  Is it your presence as a visitor or listener?  Is it how you will pray for others?  Pray about this.  God has given you something to offer, and will equip you to grow in His love in how you offer this gift.

There will be questions?  How do I do this?  Will the sharing of gifts be coordinated through the parish office or one-on-one?  How do I set boundaries?  As we grow in this life of ministry we will explore these questions together, and plan to offer formal training in how to walk alongside later in the Spring.  For now we are in a season of prayer and discernment, to identify gifts and to prepare hearts.



Grace abounds:  Please thank:

§  Bobbie May for work in organizing the parish library.

§  Julie Davidson for cleaning the freezer after it failed.

§  All who helped clean up after the annual meeting luncheon!

§  Michele Whitford and Ellen Aparicio for all of their extra work in preparing for the annual meeting.



Education Alert!  Diocesan Deacons’ School will meet again next on 13 February, at Grace in Sheboygan.  We will begin at 8:45 with Holy Eucharist, followed by classes beginning at 9:15.  At this session we will cover:

§  Old Testament:  Genesis (continued)—Leviticus.

§  Church History:  The Church and the Roman Empire; the Ecumenical Councils.

You can attend without having read the textbooks.  Class sessions will also be posted on Grace Abounds.

Have you ever wanted to know more about the dynamics behind the persecution of the early Church?

Have you ever wanted to better understand the narrative arc of the Five Books of Moses?



Call for Contributions:  If you have a spiritual reflection to share, or want to point your fellow worshippers toward a resource, submit your contributions to Fr. Karl (by email) by Wednesday in the week of publication.



Music this Week: The Last Sunday after the Epiphany



Prelude                           Diptyque for Candlemas                     Charles Tournemire

Entrance Hymn 7             “Christ, whose glory fills the skies”                      Ratisbon

Offertory Anthem             Christ, whose glory fills the skies      Frederick H. Candlyn

Communion Motet           Nunc dimittis in C                                       Charles Wood

Communion Hymn 137    “O wondrous type! O vision fair”                        Wareham

Closing Hymn 122 (alt. tune)    “Alleluia! Song of gladness”              Dulce Carmen

Postlude                          Paean on ‘Divinum Mysterium’                        John Cook



Parish Notices



§  Work needed:  A parishioner is looking for work—all work.  He has experience and skills in home repairs, general maintenance, outside work, etc.  If you have work/projects, please contact the parish office.

§  Adult Education: Today we will continue with Sunday morning Adult Education with the series on Christian Community. How do we build Christian community within and outside the Church? What are the elements of community in Christ? What are the challenges? The focus will include examining the scriptural models for community, those of the early Church, those within our own heritage, and how all of these relate to our sense of community within the wider culture.

§  Boy Scouts: Today is Boy Scout Sunday.  Please greet our Boy Scouts and let them know how much we appreciate their work; especially the work performed in the grounds of Elkhart Lake Chapel and more recently their leaf raking last Fall.

§  Shrove Tuesday Feast before the Fast: Shrove Tuesday is February 9th. We will be having a Potluck Dinner following a 5:30pm mass. Please mark your calendars and plan to attend this festive occasion. There is a sign-up sheet on the table in the Narthex.

§  Ash Wednesday: February 10th, Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent, is a day of fasting and penitence. We will observe this day with Mass and Imposition of Ashes at 12:10 p.m., and Solemn Mass with Imposition of Ashes at 6:00 p.m. This is a holy day and a wonderful way to begin your Lenten observance.

§  Stations of the Cross and Simple Suppers: Beginning on February 19th we will meet at 5:15 p.m. for a prelude of Lenten organ music followed at 5:30 p.m. by Stations of the Cross. Afterwards a simple supper will be hosted in the parish hall with a presentation and pictures of Jordan, Israel and Palestine by the pilgrims who went to the Holy Land. Please sign up on the sheets in the Narthex so we will know how much food needs to be prepared.

§  Cooking on Friday Evenings in Lent: If you are interested in cooking and hosting a dinner on the Fridays during Lent, please sign-up on sheets in the Narthex. The first Friday, February 19th and March 4th are still open. Thank you for your willingness to serve in this manner.

§  Nashotah House Theological Seminary’s Lenten Program: “Reflections on Building a Christian Worldview”. The Program is free and open to the public. The presentations will be held at Nashotah House, 2777 Mission Road, Nashotah. The Schedule of Events begins on February 17th at 5:00 pm with Evensong in St. Mary’s Chapel, followed by a Soup Supper at 5:45 pm and Presentation at 6:30 pm in the DeKoven Commons. For more information, go to www.nashotah.edu.

§  Bible Challenge: If you take this challenge, you will find that in one year you will read all of the Bible! This will require less than an hour of your time, six days a week. A schedule of readings is provided on the parish website, along with weekly study summaries and a weekly video summery of the readings. If you need a good study bible for the challenge, contact the parish office. When we immerse ourselves in Scripture, the mantle of the Lord does fall upon us. We are equipped to discern God’s will and to lead others to know and love and serve the Lord.

§  Sunday School Snacks: Ms. Nicci and Ms. Andrea's Sunday school classes are in need of donated non-perishable snacks.  Each class consists of a prayer around our classroom altar followed by snack and craft time.  Having snacks to offer during this time is a wonderful opportunity for the classmates to serve each other and come together in fellowship.  It would be wonderful if anyone who is willing could place non-perishable snack options such as applesauce, goldfish cracker bags, fruit cups, as well as juice boxes, in our craft room to replenish our supply. Thank you!  

§  Coffee Hour Schedule: There is a new sign-up sheet for hosting coffee hour in 2016. If you would like to host, please sign up for either 8:00 a.m. or 10:15 a.m. If you have any questions, please see Mary Massey. Thank you so much.

§  Flower Schedule for 2016: Giving the gift of flowers is a wonderful way to remember a loved one or to offer thanksgiving for your blessings. If you wish to sign up for a specific Sunday, the Flower Schedule is available on the table in the narthex. More than one person can sign up for each Sunday.

§  Something Extra for Grace: Envelopes are available in the pews if you are moved to give an extra gift, beyond your pledge or regular plate donation, toward the life of the church.  Gifts are tax deductible if you write your name on the envelope.

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§  We Are on Itunes! Check out the new podcast!!!