Have you seen the Diocese decked out in full regalia lately? It's quite a sight! Here's your chance to see them all represented on Saturday in Trenton when you go to the Vespers service at the Cathedral. Be there at 3 pm. Here's the memo inviting everyone to show off:
Dear Friends,
It's been a while since the clergy processed in full choir vestments: Cassock, Surplice, Academic Hood, Tippet. You've now got ten days to go the dry cleaners! Preaching tabs are only for our guest, Bishop Sutton, of course. The Evensong will express our prayers through a diverse and delightful mix of musical idioms from various communities of faith around our Diocese. Please plan on gathering in the Chapel. Parish Banners (with banner bearer - non- vested) are also asked to be brought for the procession. Thanks! Right Onward PCJ Philip@churchholyspirit.org
Showing posts with label Time. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Time. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
A Message from the American Association of Pastoral Counselors
The Formation Committee of the American Association of Pastoral Counselors, Eastern Region (NY, NJ), in conjunction with the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, New York City, presents Jill L. McNish, PhD., pastoral theologian, Episcopal priest, attorney, author of Transforming Shame - A Pastoral Response (Howarth Press, 2004) on Saturday, February 21, 2009 at The Cathedral of St. John the Divine Cathedral House, Second Floor, Amsterdam Avenue and 112th Street, New York, NY10 AM-3 PM (Lunch is available for purchase). ADMISSION IS FREE (sponsored by Eastern Region AAPC).
Dr. McNish will be presenting her book's analysis of the transformative power of shame. As Dr. Donald Capps (Princeton Seminary) states in his reflections on this book, "McNish brings clarity and depth of understanding to a dimension of our human experience whose very ubiquity tends to impede such illumination and insight. Our formal religious rites and practices provide resources for the guilty to confess and experience forgiveness, but leave the shamed stranded, bereft of comfort and lost in their own self-condemnation. Instead she testifies to the various ways ministers may 'make space' through informal acts of attention to care for those whose shame has become an unbearable burden. "This book is also an amazing compendium of interdisciplinary research enlisting the insights of Freud, Jung, Horney, Miller, Kohut, Rank, and Erickson. It constructs a portrait of the shame of Jesus as a father lesson in first century Palestine, employing insights of social-scientific studies on honor and shame systems in first century Mediterranean culture.Please come and enjoy a day of learning, insight, and reflection. This gathering is also a chance for those engaged in doing Pastoral Counseling and/or Psychotherapy or those interested in its study to partake of a thoughtful analysis of an important aspect of this work.For purposes of planning food and seating needs, please RSVP at http://us.mc635.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=hlavengood@aol.com or call 609-744-4204. Hope to see you on Feb.21st!
Hennie Brandt Lavengood D.Min., Chair, AAPC Eastern Region Formation Committee.
Dr. McNish will be presenting her book's analysis of the transformative power of shame. As Dr. Donald Capps (Princeton Seminary) states in his reflections on this book, "McNish brings clarity and depth of understanding to a dimension of our human experience whose very ubiquity tends to impede such illumination and insight. Our formal religious rites and practices provide resources for the guilty to confess and experience forgiveness, but leave the shamed stranded, bereft of comfort and lost in their own self-condemnation. Instead she testifies to the various ways ministers may 'make space' through informal acts of attention to care for those whose shame has become an unbearable burden. "This book is also an amazing compendium of interdisciplinary research enlisting the insights of Freud, Jung, Horney, Miller, Kohut, Rank, and Erickson. It constructs a portrait of the shame of Jesus as a father lesson in first century Palestine, employing insights of social-scientific studies on honor and shame systems in first century Mediterranean culture.Please come and enjoy a day of learning, insight, and reflection. This gathering is also a chance for those engaged in doing Pastoral Counseling and/or Psychotherapy or those interested in its study to partake of a thoughtful analysis of an important aspect of this work.For purposes of planning food and seating needs, please RSVP at http://us.mc635.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=hlavengood@aol.com or call 609-744-4204. Hope to see you on Feb.21st!
Hennie Brandt Lavengood D.Min., Chair, AAPC Eastern Region Formation Committee.
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Christian Food for Thought About Stewardship by Anne Magierski
“The most obvious lesson in Christ's teaching is that there is no happiness in having or getting anything, but only in giving." -Henry Drummond, 1851-1897, Scottish evangelist, scientist, and theological writer
Stewardship is choosing what we will do with the gifts God has given us. The key to its success is the premise that as the years pass, each of us will gradually come to a new understanding of the word stewardship: the proper use of all we have received from God. During this time of Advent, we have been asked, as good stewards, to consider making a pledge...a commitment, a promise of how much each of us can give of our time, talent and treasure, enabling our vestry to put together a budget and plans for the coming year.
Years ago, I lived alone and had a steady income as a hospital employee. I pledged to my church each year and the amount was carefully determined after I had made up a monthly budget to see how much I could afford to give. A dear friend hinted that by so doing, I was “giving from what was left”, rather than giving “off the top,” “skimming off the cream”. The idea had never occurred to me to give to God first, and then budget what I had left! It worked! God really does love a cheerful giver. With every increase I received, I upped my pledge until I was able to tithe...10% of my take home pay.
Many things influence the amount of what we can give back to God out of what He has given us. When I made the decision to tithe, I was alone. My children were grown and had families of their own. With a very modest income, I was responsible for only myself. Many things change over the years that influence our giving habits. Financial and physical limitations often determine our decisions, and instead of looking for what we can do with our gifts of time, talent and treasure, we're more inclined to focus on what seems the impossibility of doing anymore than we are right now.
But Christianity MEANS giving. God gave us His creation, He gave us life, He gave us His Son, Jesus Christ. Jesus gave food for body and soul, He gave healing to the sick, and He gave His life on the cross for our sins, our unrighteousness, so that we might have God's reward of eternal life with Him. By pledging, we are demonstrating a desire to do the will of God, to be righteous followers of His Son and to participate more actively in the life of Holy Spirit Church.
“Freely, freely, you have received, Freely, freely, give: Go in my name, and because you believe, Others will know that I live."
Stewardship is choosing what we will do with the gifts God has given us. The key to its success is the premise that as the years pass, each of us will gradually come to a new understanding of the word stewardship: the proper use of all we have received from God. During this time of Advent, we have been asked, as good stewards, to consider making a pledge...a commitment, a promise of how much each of us can give of our time, talent and treasure, enabling our vestry to put together a budget and plans for the coming year.
Years ago, I lived alone and had a steady income as a hospital employee. I pledged to my church each year and the amount was carefully determined after I had made up a monthly budget to see how much I could afford to give. A dear friend hinted that by so doing, I was “giving from what was left”, rather than giving “off the top,” “skimming off the cream”. The idea had never occurred to me to give to God first, and then budget what I had left! It worked! God really does love a cheerful giver. With every increase I received, I upped my pledge until I was able to tithe...10% of my take home pay.
Many things influence the amount of what we can give back to God out of what He has given us. When I made the decision to tithe, I was alone. My children were grown and had families of their own. With a very modest income, I was responsible for only myself. Many things change over the years that influence our giving habits. Financial and physical limitations often determine our decisions, and instead of looking for what we can do with our gifts of time, talent and treasure, we're more inclined to focus on what seems the impossibility of doing anymore than we are right now.
But Christianity MEANS giving. God gave us His creation, He gave us life, He gave us His Son, Jesus Christ. Jesus gave food for body and soul, He gave healing to the sick, and He gave His life on the cross for our sins, our unrighteousness, so that we might have God's reward of eternal life with Him. By pledging, we are demonstrating a desire to do the will of God, to be righteous followers of His Son and to participate more actively in the life of Holy Spirit Church.
“Freely, freely, you have received, Freely, freely, give: Go in my name, and because you believe, Others will know that I live."
Tuesday, December 09, 2008
A Pledge is a Prayer
Good Morning! Hi, everyone!
For those who don’t know me, my name is Ed Nuttall. My only claim to fame is that I serve as your Finance Chairman on the Vestry Committee. I am also a member of the Stewardship Committee, and I am a reader, an usher and coffee maker at the 8 o’clock services….. You know, all my life I’ve prayed asking God if he would someday make me into a real somebody….Well, I can see now that I should have been more specific!!
Anyhow, the reason I am up here talking to you this morning is that this is the time of our church’s annual pledge drive. My objective is to encourage each and every one of you to fill out and return the pledge form that you received in the mail. Speaking of mail, that reminds me of a little story (you probably heard this one but it sure does fit nicely into this talk!):
Reverend Billy Graham tells of a time early in his ministry when he arrived in a small town to preach a sermon. Wanting to mail a letter, he asked a young boy where the post office was. When the boy had told him, Dr. Graham thanked him and then said, "Now, if you'll come to the Baptist Church this evening, you can hear me telling everyone how to get to heaven." The young boy thought about it and then replied, "Well sir, I don't think I'll be there... I mean how can you tell me how to get to heaven when you don't even know your way to the post office?"
Well, I know that all of you know how to get to the post office to mail your pledge forms or that you can simply put your pledge form in the plate on Sunday, and I am not promising you that sending in your pledge will get you into heaven………….. however, I do know that it sure can’t hurt! Pledges have a purpose for our church that is far more than many of us realize: Pledges tell the Diocese how strong, solid and enduring we of Holy Spirit are as a church body and the number of pledges tell them if we are growing and at what rate. Altogether that information helps the Diocese determine what priority to give to Holy Spirit regarding future Diocesan expenditures of time, effort and resources, both physical and monetary. Pledges are also invaluable to our vestry committee in preparing the yearly budget, the annual report and assessing the skills and talents Holy Spirit Church has available not only for accomplishing tasks but also for advice and information. And of course, funding expenses.
One’s attitude toward filling out and sending in the pledge form usually depends on what we think the act of pledging really means. Some think of it primarily as a mandatory responsibility, some as a promise, some a voluntary bill, some a hope or wish, some a charitable gift and some consider pledging as an income tax deduction. Pledging can of course mean all of those things or none of those things. It is all relative to how pledging fits into the life of each person as we are all unique in some way. I would like to offer you another way to look at your pledge, a way in which we all are equal and the same. That is: I would like you to consider looking at your pledge as really being a form of prayer…..a written prayer. I think of it as being similar to the written prayers that the Jews in Israel place into the Wailing Wall. In the same way we are placing our written pledge prayers into the Church of The Holy Spirit. We all know that God answers prayer: sometimes sooner, sometimes later, sometimes yes and sometimes no. But the important thing is that we pray and leave the answer to God. Please don’t worry whether or not you will make your pledge amount. To me, having faith means…….not worrying. Just believe and know that with everyone pledging, the pledge amount total for everyone together will always average out to the right amount. None of us can know the future. Only God can. If your pledge is short one year, the next year you will be over. Presenting your written pledge would be a wonderful way to give a Christmas gift to our Holy Spirit Church. It isn't the size of the gift that matters, what matters is the size of the heart that gives it. Believe it or not even I myself, an esteemed Vestry member, have had a year or two when my pledge has been short. But then, in other years I was over. So, my way of figuring, is that I can always catch up later, if I live long enough. And I plan on living forever. Guess what: so far, so good!! For any person coming short in a given year, yet another person will be over. It all averages out. So, do not be afraid of tomorrow, for God is already there. The more people we have pledging, the more accurate the pledge amount total for the year will be. So this year, please make a special written prayer and place it into the walls of our Church of the Holy Spirit…..that special prayer called a pledge.
Respectfully submitted,
Edward Nuttall - 7 December, 2008
For those who don’t know me, my name is Ed Nuttall. My only claim to fame is that I serve as your Finance Chairman on the Vestry Committee. I am also a member of the Stewardship Committee, and I am a reader, an usher and coffee maker at the 8 o’clock services….. You know, all my life I’ve prayed asking God if he would someday make me into a real somebody….Well, I can see now that I should have been more specific!!
Anyhow, the reason I am up here talking to you this morning is that this is the time of our church’s annual pledge drive. My objective is to encourage each and every one of you to fill out and return the pledge form that you received in the mail. Speaking of mail, that reminds me of a little story (you probably heard this one but it sure does fit nicely into this talk!):
Reverend Billy Graham tells of a time early in his ministry when he arrived in a small town to preach a sermon. Wanting to mail a letter, he asked a young boy where the post office was. When the boy had told him, Dr. Graham thanked him and then said, "Now, if you'll come to the Baptist Church this evening, you can hear me telling everyone how to get to heaven." The young boy thought about it and then replied, "Well sir, I don't think I'll be there... I mean how can you tell me how to get to heaven when you don't even know your way to the post office?"
Well, I know that all of you know how to get to the post office to mail your pledge forms or that you can simply put your pledge form in the plate on Sunday, and I am not promising you that sending in your pledge will get you into heaven………….. however, I do know that it sure can’t hurt! Pledges have a purpose for our church that is far more than many of us realize: Pledges tell the Diocese how strong, solid and enduring we of Holy Spirit are as a church body and the number of pledges tell them if we are growing and at what rate. Altogether that information helps the Diocese determine what priority to give to Holy Spirit regarding future Diocesan expenditures of time, effort and resources, both physical and monetary. Pledges are also invaluable to our vestry committee in preparing the yearly budget, the annual report and assessing the skills and talents Holy Spirit Church has available not only for accomplishing tasks but also for advice and information. And of course, funding expenses.
One’s attitude toward filling out and sending in the pledge form usually depends on what we think the act of pledging really means. Some think of it primarily as a mandatory responsibility, some as a promise, some a voluntary bill, some a hope or wish, some a charitable gift and some consider pledging as an income tax deduction. Pledging can of course mean all of those things or none of those things. It is all relative to how pledging fits into the life of each person as we are all unique in some way. I would like to offer you another way to look at your pledge, a way in which we all are equal and the same. That is: I would like you to consider looking at your pledge as really being a form of prayer…..a written prayer. I think of it as being similar to the written prayers that the Jews in Israel place into the Wailing Wall. In the same way we are placing our written pledge prayers into the Church of The Holy Spirit. We all know that God answers prayer: sometimes sooner, sometimes later, sometimes yes and sometimes no. But the important thing is that we pray and leave the answer to God. Please don’t worry whether or not you will make your pledge amount. To me, having faith means…….not worrying. Just believe and know that with everyone pledging, the pledge amount total for everyone together will always average out to the right amount. None of us can know the future. Only God can. If your pledge is short one year, the next year you will be over. Presenting your written pledge would be a wonderful way to give a Christmas gift to our Holy Spirit Church. It isn't the size of the gift that matters, what matters is the size of the heart that gives it. Believe it or not even I myself, an esteemed Vestry member, have had a year or two when my pledge has been short. But then, in other years I was over. So, my way of figuring, is that I can always catch up later, if I live long enough. And I plan on living forever. Guess what: so far, so good!! For any person coming short in a given year, yet another person will be over. It all averages out. So, do not be afraid of tomorrow, for God is already there. The more people we have pledging, the more accurate the pledge amount total for the year will be. So this year, please make a special written prayer and place it into the walls of our Church of the Holy Spirit…..that special prayer called a pledge.
Respectfully submitted,
Edward Nuttall - 7 December, 2008
Monday, December 01, 2008
Where We Were
We were treated this past Sunday to a talk on the growth that Holy Spirit has undergone in the past forty years. Long-time member Marlene Johnson spoke of her history with our church, and the importance of stewardship in our growth. But does "Stewardship" mean only money? Let's listen:
Thank you for the privilege of speaking with you today on stewardship. For those of you who may not know me, I am Marlene Johnson, a past Senior Warden , a member of the church's Audit Committee, and at the 10:30 service you will see me serving as Eucharistic minister, a lay reader and also a member singing in the choir.
When I first moved to Tuckerton in the very early 60's, being what they refer to as a "cradle Episcopalian" (baptized and confirmed in the faith), I looked in the telephone book for an Episcopal church in our area. Much to my dismay, the only one listed on the mainland at that time was in Waretown (I found out later that Holy Spirit could not afford the yellow book advertisement). Now I know that it's not really that far away, but with the time it took in the morning to get the four little ones ready, it seemed a forever trip. So, we attended only sporadically. One day the vicar of St. Stephen's, Father Paul, said to me, "You know, there is - and has been - a church in Parkertown, the Church of the Holy Spirit."
Now at this point in time, I was living in Parkertown, and never saw a church there. So, with address in hand, searching a side street, I found it: a house with a cross on the outside wall, with the worship area in what had been the living room. This area could seat about 36 people, and on Holidays, we had standing room only in the hallway. It was not a place that could be easily found, nor looked inviting from the outside. It took a few weeks of soul searching to make the decision where we should worship, and here I am, 40 plus years later.
We were so excited in 1979 when we made the move to Green Street here in Tuckerton. Once again, the windowless building was not what people expected to find as a church. Some people never even realized that the Episcopal church was next to the firehouse. But, you know, we were ever so grateful and happy to be there!
God had another, far bigger plan for all of us, one that would have been just a dream 10 years ago. In 2006 we made the big move from Green Street to where you're now sitting. Looking around, can you imagine how small we were in Parkertown? Six short pews, holding 3 persons each, and two longer ones.We are so blessed to be in a facility that is easily recognizable, housing not only our worship services and social events, but large enough to serve the greater Tuckerton community.
How did all of this happen over the years? Nobody waved a magic wand. It happened because of all of you, through your stewardship- the three T's: your time, your talents and your treasure. Christian stewardship involves all of us and all that we have. How we live our lives affects our relationship with God. Thinking of stewardship in terms of time, talents and treasures helps us to focus and to apply the concept of stewardship to our lives.
How we use our time for God's service, for work, for the care of others, for the care of ourselves, being part of vestry or any of the various committees of our church, is all a matter of stewardship.
How we use our talents for God's service, whether driving, cooking the community dinners, teaching someone how to crochet, building a home, or just making a call to check in with someone, is all a matter of stewardship.
And finally, there is treasure. We are invited to come into a relationship with God, the Owner and generous Giver of all that we have through our financial giving. Being intentional in our giving, and recognizing that we are giving back to God, consciously making choices on how we "spend" what has been given to us: they're all matters of stewardship. How we use our treasure to support and enhance the church is a matter of stewardship.
You might remember that in Luke 19, Jesus told of a wealthy man who was going away on a trip. He told his stewards, or servants, "Look, I'm going away. You take over. You take my place; do what you think I would do. " He didn't tell them what to do or how to do it. He just told them to do it.
I love my church, and I know all of you feel the same way too.
Let us pray that we will do what He would do.
Thank you. God bless.
Thank you for the privilege of speaking with you today on stewardship. For those of you who may not know me, I am Marlene Johnson, a past Senior Warden , a member of the church's Audit Committee, and at the 10:30 service you will see me serving as Eucharistic minister, a lay reader and also a member singing in the choir.
When I first moved to Tuckerton in the very early 60's, being what they refer to as a "cradle Episcopalian" (baptized and confirmed in the faith), I looked in the telephone book for an Episcopal church in our area. Much to my dismay, the only one listed on the mainland at that time was in Waretown (I found out later that Holy Spirit could not afford the yellow book advertisement). Now I know that it's not really that far away, but with the time it took in the morning to get the four little ones ready, it seemed a forever trip. So, we attended only sporadically. One day the vicar of St. Stephen's, Father Paul, said to me, "You know, there is - and has been - a church in Parkertown, the Church of the Holy Spirit."
Now at this point in time, I was living in Parkertown, and never saw a church there. So, with address in hand, searching a side street, I found it: a house with a cross on the outside wall, with the worship area in what had been the living room. This area could seat about 36 people, and on Holidays, we had standing room only in the hallway. It was not a place that could be easily found, nor looked inviting from the outside. It took a few weeks of soul searching to make the decision where we should worship, and here I am, 40 plus years later.
We were so excited in 1979 when we made the move to Green Street here in Tuckerton. Once again, the windowless building was not what people expected to find as a church. Some people never even realized that the Episcopal church was next to the firehouse. But, you know, we were ever so grateful and happy to be there!
God had another, far bigger plan for all of us, one that would have been just a dream 10 years ago. In 2006 we made the big move from Green Street to where you're now sitting. Looking around, can you imagine how small we were in Parkertown? Six short pews, holding 3 persons each, and two longer ones.We are so blessed to be in a facility that is easily recognizable, housing not only our worship services and social events, but large enough to serve the greater Tuckerton community.
How did all of this happen over the years? Nobody waved a magic wand. It happened because of all of you, through your stewardship- the three T's: your time, your talents and your treasure. Christian stewardship involves all of us and all that we have. How we live our lives affects our relationship with God. Thinking of stewardship in terms of time, talents and treasures helps us to focus and to apply the concept of stewardship to our lives.
How we use our time for God's service, for work, for the care of others, for the care of ourselves, being part of vestry or any of the various committees of our church, is all a matter of stewardship.
How we use our talents for God's service, whether driving, cooking the community dinners, teaching someone how to crochet, building a home, or just making a call to check in with someone, is all a matter of stewardship.
And finally, there is treasure. We are invited to come into a relationship with God, the Owner and generous Giver of all that we have through our financial giving. Being intentional in our giving, and recognizing that we are giving back to God, consciously making choices on how we "spend" what has been given to us: they're all matters of stewardship. How we use our treasure to support and enhance the church is a matter of stewardship.
You might remember that in Luke 19, Jesus told of a wealthy man who was going away on a trip. He told his stewards, or servants, "Look, I'm going away. You take over. You take my place; do what you think I would do. " He didn't tell them what to do or how to do it. He just told them to do it.
I love my church, and I know all of you feel the same way too.
Let us pray that we will do what He would do.
Thank you. God bless.
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