Sunday, December 02, 2007

Free Community Dinner, December 26

Looking for a few good people to cook, serve and clean up on Boxing Day, the British holiday for servants to return home. Join us for a home-cooked meal in thanks for God's blessings. To reserve your seat, call the parish office.

ECW Christmas Celebration at Meadowview Nursing Home, December 19

Our ECW provides gifts and party fixings for all 177 residents so they may celebrate Our Lord’s birth. ECW prepares throughout the year for this very special celebration with the residents of Meadowview, many of whom receive no visitors and receive no gifts from family. For more information, contact the parish office.

Gaudete Sunday, December 16

In our church, we light the pink (or Gaudete) candle on the third Sunday, the Sunday of “Joy.” The color is lighter because we celebrate the fact that we are now half-way through the season of Advent (one priest told me that there was no truth to the rumor that it was called Mothering Sunday because the mothers were being warned to get their cleaning underway before the holiday arrived!).

This year, the children of our church will participate in our celebration of the lighting of the Advent wreath on Dec. 16 during the 10:30 service. Join us as we light the candle and participate in the service by distributing the bulletins and collecting the offerings.

UTO Ingathering, December 9

Please drop your box or envelope into the collection basket at the door to help fund good works.

Card and Game Party, December 11

The ladies of the church gather each month strictly for fun, so come out and play! Bring cards or your favorite board game, and be prepared to wage war!

First Friday Pot Luck, December 7

Join us in family-style fellowship. Bring an entrée, bread, or dessert– or just yourself! Or see you next month on Friday Jan. 4.

ECW Christmas Dinner 2007

Once again our ECW has arranged for a parish holiday celebration at Creevey’s on Atlantis, the fine dining restaurant located in the clubhouse of Atlantis Golf Course, Country Club Boulevard in LEH. Mike Creevey always does a fabulous job and we go away well fed.

This year’s menu is a choice of tilapia, loin of pork, or chicken francese, along with veggies, potato, rolls, dessert and coffee or tea. Adults will only pay $20 for their meals. A children’s menu is offered for $10, and offers chicken fingers, pasta or a hamburger.

You truly have no choice but to join us on Thursday, December 20 at 6 pm. Sign up now and be sure you have a place at the table!

A Very Special Event at St. Mary's Abbey, Delbarton

Here’s a letter we received for an upcoming event:

This is a “save the date” notice for a lecture which will be held in the Fine Arts Center of St. Mary’s Abbey/Delbarton in December, 2007. St. Mary’s Abbey/Delbarton is located three miles west of Morristown Square on Route 124; and the Fine Arts Center can be found on the great lawn on the School Property. This public lecture is part of the sesquicentennial celebration of the New Jersey Benedictines in 2007-2008. You are welcome to be the guests of St. Mary’s Abbey/Delbarton for this event.

Monday evening, Dec.10, 2007– 7:30 pm, a public lecture by Bishop Frank Griswold. Bishop Frank Griswold is the former Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States. A theologian and an authority on monasticism, Bishop Griswold is an oblate of Mt. Savior Priory in Elmira, NY. He will speak about the education if St. Benedict as discerned from the Dialogues of St. Gregory and how we can employ in our contemporary teaching what we can learn from St. Benedict’s education. A reception for Bishop Griswold will be held at 6:30 pm in the Fine Arts Center as well as after his lecture.

Also on display in the foyer of the Fine Arts Center for those who attend Bishop Griswold’s public lecture will be a generous sampling of images from the traveling exhibit of the St. John’s Bible from the monks of St. John's Abbey, Collegeville, MN.

Mark Your Calendars - Annual Meeting January 20

It’s that time of year… when our church plans for the future. Here’s your chance to have a voice in our decision-making process by attending our annual meeting on January 20, 2008. We present reports on the activities of all of our committees during the previous year, and elect the new members of our Vestry (technically our Mission Committee, but that’s a longer name!), as well as our convention and convocation delegates.

This is a very important time in the life of our congregation. We need to have a firm foundation as we continue the transition from a small church to our current home. We will vote to fill two seats on our Mission Board and the position of Senior Warden. According to the By-Laws of the Church of the Holy Spirit:

Article IV: Committees
4.a) A Nominating Committee shall be comprised of two (2) Mission Committee members and two (2) members of the congregation who are not members of the Mission Committee. Said Nominating Committee shall convene at least forty-five (45) days prior to the annual meeting. The names, addresses and telephone numbers of the Nominating Committee shall be published and the Committee members shall receive recommendations for elective mission officers from any member of the congregation entitled to vote at the annual meeting who in turn shall ascertain from those recommended whether or not they will serve and thereafter make nominations for said elective officers from those recommended at the next annual meeting of the congregation.
B) The Vicar may attend the first meeting to offer suggestions to the Nominating Committee.
C) The recommendations of the Nominating Committee will be made known collectively at the annual meeting when nominations are opened. After which nominations may be received from the floor by a motion and a second by voting members of the congregation.

Our Nominating Committee to date is comprised of Evie Brown, Mary Malone and Bill Chapman, all of them reaching the end of their elected terms. Please pray for God to guide them during their search for our new leaders.

Christmas Services at Holy Spirit

It’s finally here! Advent is nearly over. By now you plan to help “green” the church for Christmas and will be here Dec. 23 after the 10:30 service. But what about the Christmas season services? When will we see you?

We offer three celebrations for your choice. They begin after sundown on Christmas Eve, as our wait for the birth of Jesus comes to an end.

The first service is our traditional Children’s Celebration at 7 pm. Father Terry asks all young people to join as we set up the crèche. This was the time that Joseph brought Mary to the stable in search of shelter as her time drew near to deliver Our Saviour. Father also invites everyone to stay for a few minutes after the Eucharist to party in our Fellowship Hall.

We extend an invitation to everyone to join our second celebration as we begin with the Carol Sing at 9:30 pm on Dec. 24. Our choir practices all month to lead us as we rejoice in the birth of Jesus and commemorate the appearance of the angels to the shepherds as the Good News was made known to all.

A Solemn High Eucharist begins at 10 pm on Dec. 24. We welcome the arrival of the Baby with full reverence and display, including incense and choir, concluding with a candlelit Silent Night.

Christmas Day begins with a quieter, more reflective Eucharist at 10 am. Join us to observe the birth of our Saviour before you celebrate with your family. May God bless all of us and watch us.