Grace Episcopal Church
Sheboygan, Wisconsin
Grace Notes
14 February 2013
In our Baptismal Covenant we each promise to “proclaim by word and example the Good News of God in Christ”. This sounds a little dramatic, but in reality this proclamation can best be made and understood in terms of how we share our own journey to faith and journey in faith. When we can share how it is that we came to believe, and how we practice our faith, this personal communication can have a profound effect on others, and in most cases such sharing will take place in a one-on-one or small group situation.
Despite the simplicity of sharing faith, it is not something that many of us have a lot of experience in, and so it can seem to be foreign, and maybe even a little bit daunting. But consider the fact that we are used to sharing—sometimes with perfect strangers—anecdotes and details of family life, where we were raised, what we enjoy in recreation, what bothers us, how our career path has formed ... the list is a long one. Sharing faith involves nothing more complicated than telling someone else how it is that we came to have a relationship with God, and what this relationship is like.
Some of us grew up in families or environments “that put the ‘fun’ in ‘dysfunctional’,” and so we are more concerned about privacy than about sharing. But even allowing for such “baggage” we can each speak about how we experience faith now. In Lent we are going to participate in what this looks like. On Friday evenings, following a 5:30 liturgy of Stations of the Cross and a simple supper, we will be joined by other pastors in the county, who will testify to how their identity in a particular faith tradition has formed their relationship with God. This form of witness will be complimented by what we do on Sunday mornings.
Sunday mornings in Lent will feature adult education which is focused on Christian testimony, and on getting to know something about the faith an experience of the spiritual leadership in the parish. We will begin this on 17 February, following an all day retreat for the Vestry on 16 February. The retreat (to be led by Dr. Garwood Anderson, Professor of New Testament at Nashotah House) will focus on how the spiritual leadership of the parish is both lay and ordained—on how members of the Vestry have a role far beyond that on management. Throughout Lent we will hear from the leaders of the parish, about their own identities and faith journeys, and about their vision for what it is that God is calling us to be at Grace. Join us, to learn about the faith of those around you, to participate in sharing in small group discussions, and to live into the vision which God is articulating for His Church.
Grace Abounds: Please thank Mary Clabots for collating the results of the spiritual gifts inventories used in the adult education course.
Please take the opportunity to notify the office of any member or friend of the parish to whom we owe thanks, in order that we can publicize this in the weekly newsletter.
Which Rite in right? On Sunday, the First Sunday in Lent, we will switch Rite I for our liturgy of Holy Eucharist. (We will switch back to Rite II at the end of Lent.) This Rite follows more closely the language patterns of earlier prayer books, and expresses better a theology which focused on how we stand before God (an appropriate focus in Lent!) No matter how familiar you are with worship at Grace, pay attention to your bulletin.
A Swell Project: A swell engine (a device which controls the volume of sound) in the organ needs to be replaced. The approximate cost if $3,500, and this amount is not included in the 2013 budget. Our goal is to raise the necessary funds, to allow for installation of the device prior to Holy Week, and the clergy and Vestry are leading the way in donations. Update: More than $1,200 has been raised! If you wish to contribute to this project, please contact the parish office.
Bible study will meet this Thursday at 9:30 a.m.
Episcopal Youth Community: As we enter this season of Lent, I, and many others, enter into a time of self examination. I have decided that the discipline I am starting this Lent is to “stay present” specifically when it pertains to my smart phone. I find that I will check my phone while speaking with someone face to face, just because I felt (or think I felt) a buzz in my pocket. I want to learn to not do that so I can stay in the moment with whomever I am with. I want to be a better steward of my time especially when I am with my family or any of you.
―Yours in Christ, Nick
Adult Christian Education: Adult Education meets on Sundays at 9 a.m., in St. Nicholas Hall. On 17 February we will begin a Lenten series of sharing our faith, on Christian Testimony. The theology of this intersection between witness, evangelism and fellowship will introduced by Fr. John Ambelang, followed by a example of testimony by Fr. Schaffenburg, and the opportunity for small group discussions. Throughout Lent we will hear the witness to faith from the leadership of the parish.
Lenten Friday program: On Fridays we will gather for Stations of the Cross at 5:30 p.m., followed by a simple supper and a program in Christian testimony, in St. Nicholas Hall. Featured speakers will be:
February 15 Fr. Phil Reifenberg, St. Dominic R.C. Church, Sheboygan
February 22 Pastor Diane Loberger, St. Peter Lutheran Church (E.L.C.A.) Sheboygan
1 March Mthr. Marie Gray, Priest in Charge, St. Paul’s E. C., Plymouth
8 March Pastor Bill TeWinkel, Hope Reformed Church, Sheboygan
15 March Pastor Ric Olson, St. Luke United Methodist Church, Sheboygan
2 2 March Pastor Todd Smith, First United Luther C. (E.L.C.A.), Sheboygan
We have guests. Please come to listen to them, and to share in fellowship. We need, as well, hosts/cooks for meals.
Being the Body: Don’t forget! Being the Body (Knowing, Being, Doing)—our discipleship program—will gather again on Saturday, 2 March (9 a.m. to 1 p.m.) We will finish up our “knowing” trimester with a program led by Bp. Edward L. Salmon, retired Bishop of South Carolina and President and Dean of Nashotah House, who will speak on our identity as Anglican Christians, and the unique gifsta an challenges associated with being an Anglican.
Music this week:
Prelude Psalm Prelude: De profundis (Ps. 130, v.1) H. Howells
The Great Litany (sung in procession)
Offertory Hymn 143 “The glory of these forty days” Erhalt uns, Herr
Communion Motet Savior, when in dust to thee M. Carr
Comm. Hymn 301 “Bread of the world, in mercy broken” Rendez à Dieu
Closing Hymn 150 “Forty days and forty nights” Aus der Tiefe rufe ich
Postlude Out of the depths I call to thee J. S. Bach
Parish Notices
Adult Christian Education in Lent: In Lent our Sunday morning Adult Education program will focus on Christian Testimony. We will hear each week from members of the parish leadership team (ordained and lay) about how a person came to be a Christian, and Episcopalian, a member of Grace. We will then have opportunity in small groups to reflect on our own faith journeys and testimonies. We will share by doing it, as we grow in our appreciation of how we are formed by each other.
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. Most Fridays are open. Thank you for your willingness to serve in this manner.
Stations of the Cross, Simple Suppers and Teaching: Beginning on the first Friday in Lent (15 February) we will meet each Friday at 5:30 p.m. for Stations of the Cross, followed by a simple supper and Christian formation. Our formation program this year will focus on testimony in faith. How do we share our faith with each other? Lent allows us to focus on how we have separated ourselves from God, but in this context we need to look at how we are separated from each other, when Jesus wills that we be one. (What He says at John 10.16 is not merely a suggestion.) We will combine an examination of separation with the experience of testimony, and are blessed that we will be joined each Friday by the pastor of another church in Sheboygan. Each pastor will testify to his own or her own experience of the Christian faith, and what it is about his or her identity in a particular faith tradition (e.g., Roman Catholic, Lutheran, Methodist, Reformed) that informs their faith and the practice of their faith. We will then have the opportunity to share with each other our own reactions to such testimonies, and to learn how to testify to faith by experiencing the testimony of others.
Women’s Bible Study: Believing God: Experiencing a Fresh Explosion of Faith - We are starting a women's bible study in February. We will be using "Believing God" a study by Beth Moore The study includes a workbook for individual study five days a week plus meeting together 1 day a week for in-depth discussion based on Isaiah 43:10 that explores what it means not only "to believe in God" but "to believe Him." "Believing God" challenges' women to take God at his word, believe his promises and as a result, live fuller lives. Join us and experience the great blessings this study offers as well as meeting each week with other women who want a deeper walk with God. The class will begin Monday, February 18. We will meet at Grace Church from 1-3 PM. This is a 10 week study. However, the women's Bible class will be a continuing class, as long as there is an interest. Pray and ask God for direction for you as a women of God and if this class might be a fit for you. Child care will be provided.
Songs of the Seasons Choral Concert: You are cordially invited to attend this year’s choral concert of music through the church year. The first concert will be held on Feb. 10 at 1st Congregational Church (310 Bluff Ave.) beginning at 2:00 P.M. accompanied by piano and organ. The second concert will be held at Bethlehem Lutheran Church (12th and Georgia Avenue.) on Feb. 17, also beginning at 2:00 P.M. This concert will be accompanied by orchestral instruments and a hand-bell choir. Directed by Sandra Kasten and accompanied by Bill Born, this concert specializes in unique, east-to-listen-to sacred music sung by a 48-voice choir. A free-will offering will be taken to help defray costs.
Love Bowls: will be held on Sunday, February 17th from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm in The Commons at Sheboygan South High School -3128 South 12th Street. Love Bowls is a fun, family-oriented event where patrons buy a beautiful bowl for $20 and sample as many soups as they wish. Over 70 local restaurants donate their signature soups. Local talent will entertain throughout the day. All proceeds from Love Bowls stay in Sheboygan County and help defray the cost of meals for our elderly, homebound and disabled neighbors.
Bishop Search: For all information concerning the search for the eighth Bishop of Fond du Lac please go to bishopsearch.info.
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