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St. Paul's Communicator The Newsletter of St. Paul's Anglican Church Crownsville, Maryland Easter 2006 |
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A WORD FROM THE, RECTOR: What a glorious time of the year! What a time to be alive to the sights and sounds of spring and the profusion of life in the air and on the ground! Our Heavenly Father has provided us with such a miraculous environment in which to experience Him daily through His creation that one needs only to stop and "smell the roses", so to speak, to realize this fact. Our Lord referred so many times to the world around Him as evidence of His Father's handiwork. Nature and all other life on this planet function according to God's will. We, on the other hand, who were created for His glory, continue to live according to our will. The Christian life is a disciplined one. Therefore, there are times when we must take inventory of ourselves. We have a Savior who died on a cross for our sins. We need to recognize those sins and make an effort to correct them through God's Divine Power. We must confess that we have not loved the Lord with all our heart, that we have pursued our ways instead of His, that we have done and left undone, and that we have not loved our brothers and our sisters as ourselves. We need to be sorry for these sins - genuinely sorry. We need to repent of them and we need to beg for His mercy. Having done this, the disciplines in Lent of fasting, meditation and prayer will bring us into this marvelous event of the Christian season, Eastertide, when we truly celebrate the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. As a Christian community who know the Lord as our Savior and who follow Him in true belief with a tremendous sense of honesty and trust, we can declare, "He is risen! He is risen indeed!" That, my dear fellow parishioners, is something to shout about! That is something for us to rejoice about! How unique is our faith? We have everything to live for, every thing to hope for and everything to die for. What a wondrous gift is the Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that enables us to have this assurance! God loves us - have no doubt about that. However, it is not a one way street. In turn we must "Love the Lord our God with all our heart, with all our soul, and with all our mind." To show our love for God, we must also practice the second commandment, "To love our neighbor as ourselves." This is something we must be constantly reminding ourselves. I would be failing in my calling as your shepherd if I did not consistently press this issue. It is the true essence of our existence as the "Body of Christ." Let us strive never to forget this element in our relationship to our Lord. We will move ahead in our new building projects and the other facets of our church life only if we move according to the Lord's will. If we as a church want to do what is right in the sight of God, we will keep things in their proper perspective. We are nourished spiritually even, week by His word, but we can not keep it to ourselves. We must teach others and the best way to teach is by example. Dear loved ones, I assure you that if we will abide by the above, not only will we celebrate a joyous Easter, but our future will be bright as we become resurrected with Christ as new people in His Kingdom. Amen. Faithfully, +Bob Message from the Senior Warden We are now in the midst of the holy season of Lent; I trust you all are appreciating this most special time in our Christian year. The additional services that our Church provides make us more aware of God's sacrifice. We are still waiting for approval of our building permit. Our latest building plans have been revised with requested changes, i.e., sprinkler system and warming kitchen. We pray that we will break ground very soon. Hard hats and tee shirts announcing groundbreaking have been ordered; the exact date will be announced as soon as the permit is in hand. The building loan for $400,000 from Annapolis Bank & Trust was closed on Thursday, Mar. 2nd. We now have funds available to pay our contractors as needed. Our building project has required patience and perseverance for the past two years but St. Paul's has been up to the task. Thank you for your continuing patience and support. Spring is here in all its glory and St. Paul's has lots of plans. Don't forget to mark your calendars for our annual meeting on Sunday, April 30th following the 11:00 a.m. service. Your nominating committee has selected a slate of candidates to fill the 3 openings on the Vestry; they are Len Bender (second term), Linda Burr (second term) and Jerry Beard. These are very qualified people and will serve our church with dedication. As is our custom, nominations will also be taken from the floor. Please plan to attend our annual meeting and participate in St. Paul's future. Also, I want to remind you that the presiding bishop of the Anglican Province of America, The Most Reverend Walter Grundorf, will be visiting St. Paul's on Sunday, May 7th. There will be two services that day at 8:00 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. followed by a welcoming luncheon at the FOP; look for more details on this upcoming event. God's blessings, Betty Holy Week Schedule April 9th Palm Sunday-All communion services with Palms April 13th Maundy Thursday-
April 14th Good Friday
April 16th Easter-
ALTAR GUILD The Altar Guild will be making palm crosses on Saturday, April 8 beginning at 9:00 a.m. at church. If you have never made these crosses, don't let that hold you back, we can teach you very quickly. In preparation for Easter we will also be polishing the various brass and silver vessels used at the altar. Three of our members, Martha Blaisdell, Missy Carroll and Emily Loiselle, have been working very hard to make new white altar hangings that will be used for the fast time at the Easter services. Martha is an accomplished seamstress and needle woman and her exquisite hand embroidery adorns the new burse, altar frontal, stoles and other pieces. Due to a generous donation by Deaconess Ann Hayman and Martha, we were able to purchase the beautiful fabric which has used for all these appointments. These lovely items will be blessed by Bishop Bob at the final Friday Lenten Holy Communion on April 7. We are all so grateful for Martha's generous gift of her time and talent in the service of the Lord and to beautify St. Paul's Church and to Ann for making it possible for us to buy the brocade. During Holy Week at our various services, it would be helpful if altar guild members could help out when and where possible. Sign up sheets are posted in the sacristy as is the schedule for the weeks following Easter. Thank you to all of you who are so faithful in your work to care for the altar and to assist our clergy. Missy Carroll NUTS This Lent the NUTS focused on personal growth through teaching and bible study. As Easter approaches, we're ready for a little fun! Tuesday, April 18th will be a game night. Will it be another video game challenge? Will it be a board game battle? Watch the bulletin for more details. Time and place will be announced soon. Speaking of fun, the NUTS haven't forgotten about the bowling challenge! We're trying to schedule around league times, so save April 28th and May 14th as possible days. Well announce the actual day soon. Don't forget, we're always on the lookout for a few more NUTs. If you know any middle or high school student interested in knowing God's love, growing in his or her faith, connecting with other Christians, serving God by helping others, or honoring God with his or her life -- contact John or Kelli Welch.Prayer Remembrances Parishioners: Banny Bandoian, Jo Mafera, Rod Sorkin, Austin Smith, Yvette Ridenour, Deaconess Ann Hayman, Wallie Kramer, Shirley Jenkins. Friends: Little Riley Mitchell, Judith Sadugor, Christina Bennington, Milt Beard, Beryl Brandenburg, Johnna McGinsie, Harry Linnell, Spencer Langenstein, John Robinson, Martha Chilton, Butch Smith, Jim Graham, Kayla Tasker, Anna Curry, Kathy Caban, Blanca Caban, Carole Snyder, Al Smith, Charlie McCoubrey, Elizabeth deGuzman, all the residents of Hope House and the residents of Chrysalis House. Prayers for Those in the Armed Forces: We pray for Lt. Billy Franklin, Sgt. Jason Daniel, Sgt. Patrick Hurley, Capt. Corey Shackelton, Lt. John Baker, Airman Wendy McCoubrey, PFC Josh Reinhardt, PFC Brian Pittaway, Pvt. Ben Lawless, PFC Clinton Carr, Marine Dominick Grossi, LTC Paul Amos, Capt. Betsy Niemyer, Capt. Pete Vickerman, Lt. Angela Edwards and LCDR Steve Fuller. "Almighty God, we commend them and their families to your gracious care and keeping." If you have someone to add to this list, please tell Bishop Bob, Father Eric or Emily. Mark your Calendars The Most Reverend Walter Grundorf Celebrating Holy Communion at a special 8:30 service May 7th Sunday Brunch at FOP
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