The St. Paul's Epistle
December 16, 2006
Contents
Dear Members and Friends of St. Paul's
Come all ye faithful!
New Window to be Dedicated
A $5,000 Challenge Grant!
"Feed my sheep." John 21:17
The Fourth Sunday of Advent
Christmas Services
East Avenue Memories
SPY Corner
Looking Ahead
Tips For Year-end Giving
Dear Members and Friends of St. Paul's
Like many of you, I am making preparations for Christmas by making lists for presents, for cards, and people to visit. Other than the crowds, I thoroughly enjoy the festive music and colored lights that can raise my spirits during a dingy, gray day. I especially enjoy the lights that adorn people's houses, turning a simple, modest home into a blazing castle of color.
But I fool myself if I believe that this is the only preparation I need for Christmas. As much as I enjoy the festive, colorful parts, the deeper spiritual preparation comes by opening up my heart and soul to God. Because God understands how difficult it can be for us, God has chosen to come to us as a baby! I believe God does this so we can lay down our emotional defenses from all the hurts in our lives and freely, openly, in all our vulnerability, receive the baby Jesus into our lives.
Our preparation for Christmas is to be vulnerable! To be vulnerable with our family and friends, to crack open our hearts for the unexpected, to receive care and love where we may least expect it.
It is a counter-cultural message to be vulnerable, particularly in the midst of increasing violence in Rochester, as well as in Iraq and Darfur. However, with Mary as our role model, we are to trust God with our vulnerability to receive the incredible gift of Christmas - the birth of Jesus in our hearts.
~ Frederic Reynolds, Rector
Come all ye faithful!
Be in the Sanctuary at 4 p.m. on December 17 for the Christmas Pageant. Enjoy St. Paulers, young and young at heart, enacting the wonderful story. Marvel at the familiar lines and sing the glorious carols. Come immediately afterwards for supper, socializing, and song in the Parish Hall. Your neighbors are welcome!
~ Barbara Warner
New Window to be Dedicated
The Reverend Robert M. Wainwright was rector of St. Paul's from 1970 to 1995. Bob loved the excitement and joy of Christmas. The birth of Jesus Christ marked the beginning of our Christian journey, and our faith in God has grown in a very special way from that moment on.
From 1957 to 1967, Bob was rector of the Church of the Messiah in Gwynedd, PA, a suburb of Philadelphia. A parishioner hand-crafted beautiful crèche figures, and the senior warden and his wife, Dr. and Mrs. Walter McKinney gave these lovely figures of the nativity to us. Their daughter, Ruth Balderstrom, is a member of St. Paul's. The crèche figures have been very special to Bob and me, and many of you have seen them at the rectory at Christmas time.
I thought it appropriate to use the crèche figures as the subject of a stained glass window in Bob's memory, which our sons John, Andrew and Tim and I are giving in thanksgiving for Bob and St. Paul's. The window was designed by Jeffrey Mueller of the Godfrey Mueller Studios. Without Gwen Cheney's great support this never would have happened.
The dedication of the Nativity Window over the Porte Cochere entrance will be at the 5:30 p.m. service on Christmas Eve. Merry Christmas!
~ Nancy Wainwright
A $5,000 Challenge Grant!
A parishioner who wishes to remain anonymous is challenging the St. Paul's congregation to match their grant of $5,000 to Water for Sudan, Inc. The matching grant means your dollar can be doubled! Think about this as a possible year end donation or as a way for your children to become involved in a critical Third World issue.
Salva Dut will be leaving December 29 to drill for another season in his home area of Sudan. Water for Sudan's newly-purchased drilling rig needs to be assembled, used trucks need to be purchased for hauling the rig, and a mechanical engineer and crew need to be hired before any drilling begins. Water for Sudan, Inc. is no longer a subcontractor. It is now a well-drilling company in its own right. A couple more successful years of drilling wells will establish the track record necessary to partner with UNICEF or USAID.
Salva speaks someplace nearly every day about the borehole project. There are churches, schools and organizations all over Rochester who are trying to raise $5,000 each, the cost of one well. Indeed, Allen Creek Elementary School in Pittsford and Downtown United Presbyterian Church have already been successful in raising these funds. We also know that Penfield and Fairport schools are actively working on raising money.
Please support this effort by making your check out to St. Paul's with the notation: Water for Sudan. You may mail a check to the church, drop your check in the collection plate or make a stock donation (call Chris Moore for details on stock contributions). Track the status of your contributions in the Sunday Notices.
Many, many thanks to the St. Paul's parishioner who has given all of us this challenge.
~ Nancy Frank, Water for Sudan Board member
"Feed my sheep." John 21:17
You can help feed the hungry in our neighborhood! Bring foods this Advent, through December 24, to the tree by the Parish Hall stage. Your offerings support the Food Cupboard of the Southeast Ecumenical Ministries (SEM). Church School students and teachers thank you for taking part in this project.
~ Barbara Warner
The Fourth Sunday of Advent
Sunday, December 24
10:00 a.m. Holy Eucharist
(One Service Only)
Christmas Services
Christmas Eve
| 3:30 p.m. - | Children's Service |
| & Holy Eucharist | |
| 5:30 p.m. - | Holy Eucharist - |
| All Choirs and Brass | |
| (Child care available) | |
| 10:45 p.m. - | Choir Carols |
| 11:00 p.m. - | Holy Eucharist - |
| Senior Choir and Brass |
Christmas Day
| 10:00 a.m. - | Holy Eucharist |
The First Sunday After Christmas
| 8:00 a.m. - | Holy Eucharist |
| 10:00 a.m. - | Lessons & Carols |
| (Child care available) |
East Avenue Memories
Elizabeth Brayer, local historian, author, and artist, will be speaking on the development of East Avenue on January 4 at 1:00 p.m. in the Parish Hall following the ECW Luncheon. She will take us over a 200 year time-span from the time a trail was blazed in 1805, through its glory days, to the present time of mixed development and use. Ms. Brayer will recall stories of the powerful and famous who made Rochester and East Avenue, in particular, their home. Through it all East Avenue has been a major land gateway to Rochester's city center.
As always, if you plan on Luncheon at noon with ECW, please confirm your reservation through the Church office at 271-2240 by Friday, December 29.
~ Mary Critikos
SPY Corner
Movie Night
December 22
School's Out! Let's Celebrate!!! On Friday, December 22 we will meet at the Pittsford Plaza Cinema in the early evening to see "Pursuit of Happiness". Following the movie, we will have dessert at Applebee's. Times will be determined the week of the event once the movie times are published. We plan to go to a showing sometime between 7:00 and 7:30, with pick-up at Applebee's approximately forty-five minutes after the movie lets out.
Please RSVP to Laura Hayden by Wednesday,
December 20
(383-8808 or lhayden@rochester.rr.com)
SPY joined with others parishioners at St. Joseph's House to prepare
and serve the
mid-day meal to nearly 100 guests.
Looking ahead
There are no Church School classes on either December 24 or December 31 so that families can worship together. Babies and young children are welcome upstairs in the nursery rooms. Classes resume on Sunday, January 7.
~ Barbara Warner
Tips For Year-end Giving
- To be eligible for tax-deductible charitable donation status, all contributions to St. Paul's Church must be received in the office or postmarked by December 29.
- Charitable donations of non-cash items, such as stock, may be made electronically. Please contact Nancy Wood at (585) 271-2240, or nancy@stpaulsec.org for information about routing and account numbers. We ask that all such donors also provide a letter or e-mail correspondence reporting the gift and the number of shares donated to St. Paul's.
- The Pension Protection Act of 2006 provides some new charitable giving opportunities, according to a variety of published sources. Donors more than 70.5 years of age who have money in an IRA will be able to withdraw an amount up to $100,000 for a charitable contribution without penalty and without having to subject it to the adjusted gross income on the tax form. This may be especially useful for those over age 70 who are required to make minimum distributions from their IRA each year, as these charitable contributions can be considered part of their minimum distribution. The charity cannot be a donor-advised fund, and the tax break is available only for 2006 and 2007. This information does not constitute tax advice, and you are advised to consult with your personal accountant or financial advisor before acting.
- You may prepay your 2007 pledge by December 31, so that your contribution may qualify as a charitable deduction on your 2006 tax return. If your gift includes a prepaid 2007 pledge, please let our financial office know, so that St. Paul's can properly record your gift.
For more information, please call the office at (585) 271-2240.
~ Nancy Wood