The St. Paul's Epistle
September 16-30, 2005
Contents
Letter from the Curate
Fred Needs Your Prayers
Antiques Show Donation Received
Parish Hall Renovation Update
Welcome to St. Paul's
The Prayers of the People
New Stephen Ministry Training to Begin
Email List
Mendelssohn's Elijah
SPY CORNER
ERD Launches Full Scale Response to Hurricane
Katrina
Dear Members and Friends of St. Paul's:
In what seems like the blink of an eye the summer has passed us by and the school year, with winter not far behind, has settled in. I'm not really sure how that happened, but here we are! I am blessed to be starting my second "program year" with you all, and I am looking forward to new and exciting growth.
Some of you may recall that back in June I wrote to you about the call to discipleship that comes to each of us in the words of the Gospel. In Matthew we hear this charge: "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit; and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you…" (Mt. 28:16-20) This call to discipleship is a call that is placed in each of our hearts as we are baptized and every time we have a baptism in the church we renew our commitment to this covenant we have with God and each other.
Baptism is a special thing; it moves us from being "outside" the community to being "inside" the community. On September 18 we will have a baptism here at St. Paul's, in fact we will have four of them. These are always joyous mornings filled with the exuberance of new life, not just the new life represented by the children but also the new life that we have in Christ. I invite you to experience this baptism, at the beginning of this new program year, as your baptism as well, as your call in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit to renewed and enriched ministry and life in Christ.
I am blessed to come to the table of the Lord renewed, refreshed and strengthened. I hope that each of you find renewal and excitement as we are baptized together into the work of Christ. God bless each of you and welcome back, it is time to begin again!
The Rev. Leslie M. St. Louis
Fred Needs Your Prayers
Please join us in praying for Fred! While Fred Reynolds is on sabbatical, it seems appropriate that we pray for his refreshment and well-being. Volunteers are requested to signup for a day or days during the month of October to be sure that prayers are being offered each day. Please contact Kathy Hiltunen at 244-0362 so that she can compile the calendar of prayer givers. This is a very informal process and can be done in any manner that is appropriate for you.
Antiques Show Donation Received
The Rochester Area Community Foundation has donated a large quantity of fabrics and trims to St. Paul's Antiques Show. These all came from the estate of Elizabeth Hollahan who was a well-known interior designer. We thank the Foundation for this gift and invite you to see the materials in the linen rooms during the 57th Annual Antiques Show & Sale April 28 and 29, 2006.
Parish Hall Renovation Update
Work in the Parish Hall continues and we have found a few more surprises. As we worked on the Parish Hall bathrooms we exposed the church school women's room pipes and found tiny leaks in the old galvanized pipes. The good news is we found them and can now replace them. As we removed the paint from the Parish Hall windows we found that they had a dark stain before they were painted. We needed to revise our plan on refinished color. While each of these findings does not take that much time a combination of these items does slow down the overall completion. We currently project that we will be able to use the renovated Parish Hall in October. The office staff is looking a alternative locations for activities scheduled for September and into October. Your patience will be well rewarded as the final outcome will be spectacular.
Bob Frank
Welcome to St. Paul's
Please welcome Ian and Carol Cunningham and their children, Alexandra, Monty, and Corinna, who have just transferred their membership from St. James Episcopal Church in Leesburg, VA to St. Paul's. The youngest member of their family, Paige, was baptized here at St. Paul's on Sunday, August 7.
The Prayers of the People
Prayers expressing the concerns of the community became a normal part of eucharistic worship as early as the second century. Later, these intercessions were incorporated within the eucharistic prayer itself; Eucharistic Prayer D (adapted from a 4th century rite) in the 1979 Book of Common Prayer is an excellent example of this development. These prayers were essentially lost to the congregation with the practice during the medieval period of the clergy praying the eucharistic prayer almost silently to himself.
The reformers of the sixteenth century restored audible prayers following the sermon, as had been the custom of the early church. Our BCP continues this practice and provides several forms for use in the liturgy.
Although many parishes have, more or less, restricted themselves to these forms, the intention was not to provide fixed texts, but to give directions for what should be included in the prayers, thus encouraging congregations to create their own prayers. Thus, on page 359 and repeated on page 383, one finds a list of the areas to be included:
- The Universal Church, its members, and its mission
- The Nation and all in authority
- The welfare of the world
- The concerns of the local community
- Those who suffer and those in any trouble
- The departed (with commemoration of a saint when appropriate).
This fall we will be using a form of prayers of the people written for St. Paul's. This form includes the areas required by the prayer book and focuses especially on thanksgiving.
Thomas McCart
New Stephen Ministry Training to Begin
Four new members have been recruited to our Stephen Ministry team. We give thanks for Donna Nash-Bayley, Floyd Bayley, Louise Moore and Carol Panzer who began their fifty hours of Stephen Ministry training in September. Next May they will be commissioned as Stephen Ministers, joining the currently active Stephen Ministers in providing confidential, one-to-one care to individuals experiencing difficulties or significant life changes. Our active Stephen Ministers are Jim Blake, Joyce Bogdanski, Anna Marie Fabrowicz, Nancy Frank, Kitty MacDowell, Sally McGucken, and Beverly Vaughan.
The skills the Stephen Ministers learn and practice prepare them to provide a very high level of Christian care-giving. This year we are teaming with St. John of Rochester, Assumption, and Resurrection in Fairport for the 20 two and a half-hour training sessions. Worldwide more than 300,000 people have gone through Stephen Ministry training in more than 7,500 churches since the ministry began in 1975.
On September 6, Dr. Donald Schwab, an adjunct professor of Pastoral Theology and the founder and principal of HEALTHcore Counseling and Consulting in Rochester, presented "Ministry to the Dying and their Family and Friends." Leslie St. Louis and some of the Stephen Ministers from Asbury Methodist Church and St. Louis Pittsford joined us for this insightful presentation.
Please hold our training class and Stephen Ministers in your prayers as we move forward in this exciting ministry.
Anne Refermat and Judy Carpenter
Email List
We are compiling an email distribution list of names of those who have assisted with the needs of the Young Men of Sudan. The list will be a fast and effective way of communicating current needs and update information as we continue in this blessed ministry. If you would like your name added to the list kindly email your address to jjdeluccio@rochester.rr.com or call Ann Marie DeLuccio at 582-2648 by September 30.
Ann Marie DeLuccio
Mendelssohn's
with
ST. PAUL'S CHOIR
FESTIVAL SINGERS & ORCHESTRA
DAVID FETLER, Conductor
|
NANCY CURTIS, Soprano |
GRADY BAILEY, Tenor |
|
HOLLY BEWLAY, Soprano |
BERNARD HOLCOMB, Tenor |
|
PAMELA TERRY, Alto |
CHRISTOPHER MOORE, Baritone |
|
JESSICA BEST, Alto |
OLIVIA MOORE, Youth |
Sunday, October 2, 2005 - 4:00 p.m.
St. Paul's Episcopal Church
East Avenue & Westminster Rd.
Suggested donation - $10, Students - $5, Families - $25
SPY CORNER
September Event
September 25th 3:30-5:30 p.m.
Cruise the Genesee River
Aboard the Mary Jemison
SPY members and their families should
meet at 3:15 at the dock located across
from the
Corn Hill Market, 319 Exchange Blvd.
Please RSVP to Laura Hayden by September 15th (383-8808 or lhayden@rochester.rr.com) Save the date: October 7-8 Lock-in Plan fund raising, fun and games & a movie!
ERD Launches Full Scale Response to Hurricane Katrina
As of September 1, ERD had already launched a full-scale, multi-state response to the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina. We responded immediately to the crisis, sending over $100,000 in emergency funds to four dioceses affected by the hurricane. More emergency assistance will likely follow as we keep in close contact with our local partners.
The affected dioceses are using the funds to help meet critical needs:
- Emergency housing, food, water and medical supplies.
- Deploying rescue trailers equipped with emergency supplies.
ERD's long-term response will focus on the most vulnerable populations, like children, the elderly and disabled, the uninsured, and the undocumented -- people who might otherwise fall through the cracks.
A full recovery might take months or even years. ERD is committed to helping people reconstruct their homes, rebuild communities, and resume normal lives.
For more details about the ERD and the Episcopal Church's response to Hurricane Katrina, please check the Hurricane Katrina Crisis Center on our Web page at www.er-d.org. The center will be continually updated with new information, personal accounts, and other resources.