Grace Notes | 2014 March

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Grace notes March 2014

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Grace Episcopal Church Siloam Springs, AR Monthly Newsletter

Transcript of Grace Notes | 2014 March

Page 1: Grace Notes | 2014 March

Grace notes March 2014

Page 2: Grace Notes | 2014 March

OUR TEAM

Stan McKinnon RECTOR

[email protected]

Lora Walsh CURATE, DIRECTOR OF CHRISTIAN FORMATION

& YOUTH MINISTRIES [email protected]

OFFICE OFFICE ADMINISTRATOR

Bay GreenHill COMMUNICATIONS ADMINISTRATOR

Hope Johnstone FINANCIAL ADMINISTRATOR

Anne Jones

CHILDREN 9 A.M. CHILDREN’S CHAPEL COORDINATOR

Ben Bergstrom GODLY PLAY DIRECTOR Meredith Bergstrom

KITCHEN AND NURSERY COORDINATOR Angie Chaney

11 A.M. CHILDREN’S CHAPEL COORDINATOR Travis Chaney

MUSIC ASSISTANT CHOIRMASTER

Liesl Dromi DIRECTOR OF MUSIC & ORGANIST

Dr. Jan Wubbena CHILDREN’S CHOIR SCHOOL DIRECTOR

Terri Wubbena

MINISTRIES Altar Guild Outreach

Episcopal Peace Fellowship / G.A.P.P. Meals on Wheels

Prayer Chain

VESTRY Meredith Bergstrom

Andy Bossler Ben Hill

Rob Lambert Amanda Orcutt

Debi Selby Curtis Smith Robert Smith

Mike Moss, Treasurer Hope Johnstone, Clerk

COMMITTEES Building & Grounds Christian Formation

Community Life Finance

Outreach Worship

WORSHIP SCHEDULE SUN Holy Eucharist, 9:00 A.M. Christian Formation (all ages), 10:00 A.M. Holy Eucharist, 11:00 A.M. WED Holy Eucharist & Healing, 12:10 P.M. MON-FRI Yoga Morning Prayer at Studio, 7:00 A.M.

CHURCH OFFICE HOURS Monday – Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

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THE PRAYER BOOK’S LENTEN INVITATION Dear People of God:

The first Christians observed with great devotion the days of our Lord's passion and

resurrection, and it became the custom of the Church to prepare for them by a season of

penitence and fasting.

This season of Lent provided a time in which converts to the faith were prepared for Holy

Baptism. It was also a time when those who, because of notorious sins, had been separated

from the body of the faithful were reconciled by penitence and forgiveness, and restored to

the fellowship of the Church. Thereby, the whole congregation was put in mind of the

message of pardon and absolution set forth in the Gospel of our Savior, and of the need

which all Christians continually have to renew their repentance and faith.

I invite you, therefore, in the name of the Church, to the observance of a holy Lent, by self-

examination and repentance; by prayer, fasting, and self-denial; and by reading and

meditating on God's holy Word. The Book of Common Prayer, p. 264

Next week, on Wednesday, March 5th, we begin the season of Lent with two services of The

Imposition of Ashes and Holy Eucharist at 12:10 and 6 pm. Please join us as we begin our

Lenten journey together.

Peace,

Rector’s Reflections

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I NEED TO PAY ATTENTION TO WHAT WE SING by Jan Wubbena You may recall that last month I spoke of how often we miss the opportunity to truly grasp a hymn

text’s content because we mindlessly sing the hymns each Sunday. Our hymns have been carefully

chosen to reinforce the Propers for that Sunday, both in a general sense and sometimes also with

phrases or imagery drawn directly from one of the lessons, yet we miss the connection between

the Word for the day and the hymns. Perhaps we are struggling with an unfamiliar tune, perhaps

the hymn is so familiar that we scarcely need to read it from the hymnal, so we can just “zone out,”

or perhaps we are thinking about having to get milk on the way home.

Musicians may have other distractions too. I take great delight in analyzing a hymn’s harmonic

progression (the more sophisticated, the better). Also, I have been known to sing the tenor on a

particular line because it is a great line, then moving to the alto for a measure or two because the

altos do something especially interesting, and so forth. This is what I term “recreational singing.”

It’s rewarding for a musician – but it’s not intentional worship.

“I need to pay attention to what we sing. But how can I? What are some practical steps I might

take to pay attention to the hymn text?”

On the rare occasions when I have taught a course with a hymnology component, I require the

students to copy out the entire text of the hymns we study in the course as poetry. Hymn texts

usually precede the tunes with which they are associated – they are written as poetry, and when

the students commit the assigned hymn texts to paper this way, they again look like poetry. The

students subsequently write a short mediation with commentary on each stanza, each line – much

easier to do than when the text is integrated with the tune.

Every time the choir sings an anthem new to our repertoire, I copy out the text so that Bay might

copy-and-paste it into the bulletin. When the text is metrical poetry, I try to imagine how the poet

formatted it on the page – perhaps in quatrains? – where he might have indented lines to reinforce

the rhyme scheme, and such, and then doing that in the bulletin copy. When doing this, I study

the text in a way quite different from my experience with it during choir rehearsal, when the music

is there on music rack in front of me and I am playing parts as we learn the notes. I stop short of

writing a personal reflection about the meaning of the text’s content – but you get the idea. I have

made a conscious effort to familiarize myself with the text in a manner quite different from singing

it from a printed format very different from the author’s conception when composing the text.

A second idea – and here I would ask for some input from you. In each week’s Monday Miscellany

– in the distribution list’s inbox by Monday afternoon – Hope lists the Propers for the following

Sunday. It wouldn’t be that difficult to include also the hymn numbers for the benefit of any who

might want to study the hymn texts as well as the lessons before coming to church the following

Sunday. This kind of study would bring a new dimension to your daily devotional life. Speak up,

please, if you think this would be a useful addition or our Monday Miscellany.

Finally, next month I’ll share some thoughts about what you might do after you arrive at church for

the service. To be continued….

Acciaccaturas

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Informative Meeting, March 2nd

at 12:00 p.m.

Preparations for our No Kid Hungry summer meal program have

begun! If you are interested in learning more about the program or

volunteer opportunities, please join us on Sunday, March 2nd at

12:00 p.m. in the Parish Hall. For more information, contact Patty

Gambill at 479-220-8171 or email her at [email protected]

Vestry Retreat, March 2nd

from 3:00-6:00 p.m.

Vestry will meet this Sunday, March 2nd

, from 3:00-6:00 p.m. in the

Parish Hall.

Pancake Supper, March 4th

from 5:00–7:00 p.m.

The Annual Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper will be held Tuesday,

March 4th

from 5:00-7:00 p.m. Adults $5, Children $3. Proceeds will

benefit The Genesis House. All are welcome to attend and

encouraged to bring donations for the homeless such as single

serving foods, canned goods, or travel size toiletries. Invite your

friends and join us for a great meal with live music from The Sons

of Otis Malone! Shrove is derived from the word shriving which

means confessing and absolving. The Tuesday before Ash

Wednesday is commonly known as "Mardi Gras" or "Fat Tuesday"

due to the Lenten feast. In some places it was a day of celebration

and indulgence before the discipline of Lent. If you would like to

volunteer please see the sign-up sheet in the Parish Hall or email

[email protected].

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March 5th

at Grace and Pour Jon’s.…

Grace | We will have Ash Wednesday Holy Eucharist and Imposition

of Ashes on Wednesday, March 5th

at Grace:

12:10 p.m.

6:00 p.m. (with music and childcare)

Pour Jon’s (Ashes-to-Go) | If you are unable to attend an Ash

Wednesday service at Grace, please visit Stan at Pour Jon's to

receive the Imposition of Ashes (Ashes-To-Go):

8:30-9:30 a.m.

1:00-2:00 p.m.

4:00-5:00 p.m.

March 9th

, Spring Forward.…

Daylight Saving Time begins at 2:00 a.m. on Sunday, March 9th

.

Spring forward and adjust your clocks forward one hour before you

go to sleep on March 8th

.

Would you like to follow along with us as we go through Lent?

Episcopal Relief & Development offers a Lenten study.

Download a copy here: http://www.episcopalrelief.org/church-

in-action/church-campaigns/lent

The Lent App by Church Publishing, Inc. | Walk through Lent

with beautiful daily devotions. A built in journal function lets

you record your own thoughts, and you can share Scripture,

the daily image, or your own thoughts via email or social

media. Visit https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/the-lent-

app/id816385116?mt=8 to download this app.

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Starting March 9th

at 5:00 p.m.

Lenten Evening Prayers will begin Sunday, March 9th

at 5:00 p.m.

The evening prayer service is a perfect opportunity for quiet

reflection during the season of Lent. This weekly service will

conclude on April 13th

, Palm Sunday. Childcare will be provided.

March 9th

at 5:30 p.m.

Are you interested in learning more about Grace Church or maybe

becoming a member? Inquirer's Class (IC) is the place for you! IC

will begin on Sunday, March 9th

, at 5:30 p.m., directly following

Lenten Evening Prayers. All are welcome to attend to learn more

about the Episcopal Church, the Anglican Communion, and our

Liturgical tradition. Childcare will be provided.

March Choir Camp & Music Schedule…

3/15: The Grace Children’s Choir School (GCCS) will have Choir

Camp on Saturday, Mar. 15th

from 10:00–12:00 p.m. at Grace

Church.

3/16: GCCS will lead worship on Sunday, Mar. 16th

at the 9:00 a.m.

service. Choristers please arrive by 8:15 a.m. to warm-up and

prepare.

3/24: GCCS will NOT meet on March 24th

due to spring break.

LENTEN EVENING PRAYER

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Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA), March 18th

CASA of Northwest Arkansas trains and supports community

volunteers who serve as Court Appointed Special Advocates to

speak for the best interests of abused and neglected children in

foster care, with the goal of moving each child to a safe, permanent

home as soon as possible. CASA will provide lunch for a Lunch &

Learn on Tuesday, March 18, 12:00-1:00 p.m. at St. Paul’s Episcopal

Church, 224 North East Avenue, Fayetteville in the Parish Hall. Come

to the lunch and learn more about what you will encounter as a

CASA advocate, what we expect of you, and the support you can

expect from our CASA program. For advance questions you can

contact Emily Bost at [email protected] or 479-301-7660

Please RSVP to Emily or Arbor Buchanan at [email protected] if

you plan to attend.

Cottage Groups

Cottage Groups have recently begun! All are welcome to join us as

we cover Brené Brown’s book Daring Greatly. For our March

gatherings (see dates below) we will cover chapters 1 and 2. Books

are for sale for $15 (cash, credit cards and checks accepted). Snacks

are welcomed but not required.

March 9, 6:30-8:00 p.m. | MAKE-UP COTTAGE GROUP at The

McKinnon's (for those who missed the first gathering)

March 25, 6:30-8:00 p.m. | Last Tuesday of the Month Cottage

Group at The McKinnon's

March 26 | Benjamin Cottage Group

March 30, 6:30-8:00 p.m. | Last Sunday of the Month Cottage

Group at The McKinnon's

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Are you available?

We would like to accommodate your schedule for the upcoming

Spring Break and Holy Week (April 13-20). Please let us know your

preferred schedule during these times.

Giving…

We have received a few donations for the upcoming mission trips

that Seth Long and Jon Larson will be taking. Thank you to those

who have donated! There is still a need of $7,115 to support these

trips. Please let us know if you would like to designate giving to

Seth or Jon (or split giving between both).

Seth Long…

Seth Long will be traveling with John Brown

University's (JBU) Cathedral Choir as part of

the JBU International Mission Program. For

more information about this trip, please click

here (or request a printed copy in the church

office).

Jonathan Larson…

Jon Larson will be traveling to London this

Summer to intern with World Harvest

Mission's. For more information about this

trip, please click here (or request a printed

copy in the church office).

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Babies!

This month we will celebrate

the future additions to the

Walsh, Dromi, and Chaney

families. On March 30th

at

12:00 p.m. we will gather to

celebrate these women and

their families. Details are still

being finalized; we will

announce more information

soon!

New Service Schedule

Vestry will review and assess the proposed service schedule change

and we will announce details once they are finalized.

Parish Retreat, April 11-12...

Mark your calendars for the first ever Grace Church Parish Retreat

at Camp Mitchell on the afternoon of April 11th

to Saturday evening

April 12th

. Sign-up sheet available in the Parish Hall!

Holy Week, April 13-20...

Holy Week begins April 13th

on Palm Sunday and concludes on

Easter Sunday, April 20th

. Service times will be posted soon.

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Additional details will be available closer to each date

Apr. 19-20, 2014 Champagne Breakfast & Easter Sunday

July 2014 Summer Potluck & BBQ

Aug. 17, 2014

Rally Day Potluck

MARCH 2ND

Exodus 24:12-18 2 Peter 1:16-21 Matthew 17:1-9

Psalm 2 or Psalm 99

MARCH 23RD

Exodus 17:1-7

Romans 5:1-11 John 4:5-42

Psalm 95

MARCH 9TH

Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7

Romans 5:12-19 Matthew 4:1-11

Psalm 32

MARCH 30TH

1 Samuel 16:1-13 Ephesians 5:8-14

John 9:1-41 Psalm 23

MARCH 16TH

Genesis 12:1-4a

Romans 4:1-5, 13-17 John 3:1-17 Psalm 121

Global Day of Prayer for Burma, March 9th

...

Global Day of Prayer for Burma is March 9th. For more information,

please visit http://www.freeburmarangers.org/