January 5, 2012
Sunday Services:
~8 am Highlands Chapel;10:00 am St. Dunstan's Church~
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In This Issue
Next Sunday's Readings
This Sunday we will observe the feast of The Epiphany. This feast celebrates the arrival of the Wise Men from the East who came bearing gifts. This festival is the final celebration of the Christmas season. Last Sunday's Sermon: The Holy NameThe feast of the Holy Name celebrates Jesus’ naming and circumcision on the 8th day of his life. When we meet someone, the first thing we are likely to learn about them is their name. As we get to know a person, learning their name is the key to establishing recognition, from one person to another. As we get to know Jesus, we will benefit from learning more about his name.
This sermon is a meditation on the Holy Name of Jesus. As you meet Jesus, I pray that you will get to know him more deeply by learning who he is and what his name means. In this case, the name reveals a deep and important truth. A New Year, A New PromiseDear Friends,I want to take this opportunity to wish each and every one of you a very Happy New Year. May 2012 bring you much happiness. As we begin the New Year at St. Dunstan’s we realize that we will be continuing to work together to bring God’s word to each other and to our friends and neighbors. We have many opportunities ahead of us and my hope is that each one of you will be involved in some of our many ministries. There are a variety of things that you can do to enrich the lives of each other and to enrich the life of our church. Your gifts and your talents are needed in order to make St. Dunstan’s a place where people will want to come and worship. One of the most important things that we have always been blessed with is our caring for one another and this is reflected in many ways. The year 2012 will bring us challenges and it will bring us joys. If we work together as a team, we will be able to make a difference in the lives of many. The New Year brings new promises with it and it is up to each one of us to get involved and to see those promises come true. On Sunday, January 29th following the worship service, we will hold our Annual Meeting. We hope that you will attend. Have a cup of coffee after the service and then please join us in the sanctuary for our meeting. Blessings, Mary E. Pacher
You can now follow my postings on our web site and respond with your thoughts, inspiration and comments. Youth NewsBoth Sunday School and Youth Group meet this Sunday at 10:00. Youth Group will also meet from 11:30 to 1:00, with lunch at a local eatery and time with Father David as we plan our 30 Hour Famine, "Souper Bowl of Caring" and various activities! See you all on Sunday at 10:00!Ann-Patrice and Sandy SAINTS ARE US The Church celebrates the life of Pastor William Passavant on January 3rd. He was born in Zelienople Pennsylvania on October 9, 1821. As a young man he attended Jefferson College and later Gettysburg Seminary in preparation for his life in ministry. He began his ministry in in Baltimore, Maryland in 1842. He became a publisher of the first "Lutheran Almanac" and in 1845 "The Missionary", which in 1861 was merged into "The Lutheran of Philadelphia". For 21 years he was pastor of Christ Lutheran Church of Baden, Pennsylvania. His main ministry was founding and administering benevolent institutions for the poor and working classes. He founded schools, hospitals, infirmaries, and brining the order of Deaconesses (in 1849) from Germany to the United States to staff these institutions. Four Deaconesses staffed the infirmary in Pittsburgh, which later became Passavant Hospital. In addition he founded orphanages, colleges and a seminary all in the service of the Lutheran Church. He did not believe in fund rising or asking for money in order to carry out these works of the Gospel, always believing God would provide the means to carry out the work. He would labor as a pastor and care giver by day, and spend his nights in prayer asking God to send the means to carry on the work he was called to. Many of the institutions he founded would later join together to help found the Lutheran Services in America, the largest church social service program in the United States. He went home to Our Lord on January 3, 1894. Next week we will look at another hero of the Gospel - until then, God's Peace - Br. John, O.C.P. |
A Journey of Discovery The Wise Men, or Magi, traveled from their homeland in the east to see the king that had been born to the Jews. They saw the signs in the stars that announced this event and were inspired to travel from their own country to Jerusalem to honor and bless this new king.We celebrate their arrival with pageants and the festival of Epiphany. The details of the story that stand out are their visit to King Herod, and their bestowal of gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh to the baby Jesus. Did you ever wonder, why did they come all this way? Why did they give these extravagant gifts to a humble family, staying in a stable? These wise men followed signs in the stars, and they were so sure of these signs that they set out on a great journey, carrying extravagant gifts. I wonder, what would move us to take such a journey? What would move you to seek out Jesus with as much intention and effort as these travellers from the east? Today we know Jesus to be the Christ. We know that Jesus reveals God to us. But do we know Jesus in a way that would send us on a journey of discovery like that of the wise men of old? As we begin 2012 and the season of Epiphany I want to extend a challenging invitation to all of us. I invite you to join me on a spiritual quest, like those wise men, in search of Jesus. Let’s set out on our own search to encounter Jesus personally and powerfully through our worship, prayer, study, fellowship, and service to the community. Our mission statement calls us to “walk in Christ's love and forgiveness through worship, prayer, and service to the community.” Christ is present and we can experience his wisdom, forgiveness and love through our common life as a congregation. It is the presence of Christ that blesses us with God’s saving grace. It is the experience of Christ’s forgiveness that saves us from lives punished by sin. It is the experience of Christ’s love that transforms life, bringing us into blessed communion with God. Join us this Sunday for our celebration of the Feast of the Epiphany. Yours in Christ, Fr. David Click here to respond to this post at Fr. David’s Blog. Stewardship CampaignI want to give everyone an update on the 2012 Stewardship campaign. Last year, we had a total of 102 pledges for a total of $220,760, which was an average of $2,164 per pledge. So far this year, we have had 70 pledges for a total of $181,381, an average of $2591 per pledge. We had 4 new pledges this year, 8 pledges that were lower than last year and 34 that were increased from last. Four pledges were removed from the listing because they had either moved or passed away, and three did not renew their pledge for 2012.First of all, thank you to all of you who have pledged for 2012 and also for the many of you who were able to increase your pledge over last year. As pointed out by Fr. David, the congregation at St. Dunstan's has done wonderful things this past year and your support allows them to continue. At this time, we still have 22 pledging units that we have not heard from, although some of these have told us they will be able to finalize their plans soon. This is a busy time of year and I understand many people need to see where their finances are at the end of the year in order to determine their pledge. If you haven't sent in your pledge yet, please feel free to contact myself or Mary Pacher if you have any questions. Thank you all and have a Happy Christmas! Tom Paulson Treasurer Community EngagementVOLUNTEERS for Sunday School. There will be a note coming out for VOLUNTEERS in the SUNDAY SCHOOL for the months of Jan., Feb and March. It will be sent to our current list of volunteers, but if there is anyone out there that we have not asked, and you are interested in stepping in to volunteer for a couple of Sunday's over these next three months, please let one of us know! THANKS in ADVANCE! Sandy Lamb and Ann-Patrice RiccardoPrayer Shawl Ministry - Knitting & Crocheting Lessons: Calling all knitters and crocheters and those who'd like to learn. Do you desire to help those in need of comfort but don't know how? Here is an opportunity to use your needlework talent to make a prayer shawl for our ministry. Several people have expressed an interest in learning how to knit and crochet to support this ministry. Please contact Diana Rall (206-660-9156, dtoshiba@comcast.net) or Susan Vanek (susanv@aceweb.com)if you'd like to learn or if you'd like to help with lessons. Upcoming EventsSt. Agnes Guild Meeting.First one of the New Year. Friday, January 6 at 10AM. Corporate Communion and Potluck Luncheon. Saint Agnes Guild is sponsoring the Shrove Tuesday/Mardi Gras Dinner on Tuesday, February 21, 530pm. There will be a delicious Italian Dinner prepared by the Carosiello family, No-Host Wine Bar, Silent Auction and Musical Entertainment. It will be fun for all ages. Tickets will go on sale later. If you have any questions contact Lu Gardiner, President of Saint Agnes Guild. Vestry CornerI hope you all had a wonderful time this past holiday season. The holiday was filled with all the wonder that we look forward to each year, including spending time with friends and loved ones, and beautiful worship services. Some years I feel a little sad when I start to put away my Christmas decorations, because all the hustle and bustle is over. However in recent years, I have started looking forward to this time of year when I can get back into my routine.The Christmas decorations will be put away at St. Dunstans too. While our holiday celebrations are over, we still have much work that continues. Please remember that those we give service through our different ministries are still in need even though the holidays are over. I know that our Care Teams and Eucharistic Visitors will be continuing to support and comfort those in need in our congregation. The Food Bank and Matthew House will still need donations. Our next Tent City meal will be on Jan. 9. There will be those who will receive the comfort of a prayer shawl. St. Agnes will continue outreach to all their different charities as well as planning for Shrove Tuesday and other events. The Vestry will be hard at work as we build what we expect will be a lean budget for 2012. I want to express a heart felt thank you to all of you who have worked and supported, and will continue to support our ministries and outreach programs. Happy New Year. Liz The Old Cedar Bench In our lovely area by the columbarium, stands the statue of Spokane Garry. Next to that statue is an old cedar bench that is deteriorating. It is quite rotten and no longer safe to sit on. Jon Pacher is working on his Eagle Scout project and will be installing new benches between the columbarium and the labyrinth. These benches will provide a wonderful resting place for all of us. He has also offered to replace the old rotting cedar bench by Spokane Gary, but wants to be very sensitive about the bench. Do any of you know if it is a memorial to someone? If you have information that it is, will you please let Jon or Fr. David know. If it is a memorial, it will be left alone and let nature take its’ course. However, if it is not, a new bench will be installed. |
