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Dear Friends-

This weekend’s Gospel, the Parable of the Good Samaritan, is among the most well known of Jesus’ teachings. It begins with a lawyer testing Jesus. He says,  "Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" Jesus replies, "What is written in the law? What do you read there?" He answered, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself." And he said to him, "You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live." 

It would have been more than enough if the conversation stopped there. Instead, our Gospel says, “But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?" Which leads us into the story of the Good Samaritan that we know so well. 

Of this interaction, theologian Fred Buechner says, “When Jesus said to love your neighbor, a lawyer who was present asked him to clarify what he meant by neighbor. He wanted a legal definition he could refer to in case the question of loving one ever happened to come up. He presumably wanted something on the order of: "A neighbor (hereinafter referred to as the party of the first part) is to be construed as meaning a person of Jewish descent whose legal residence is within a radius of no more than three statute miles from one's own legal residence unless there is another person of Jewish descent (hereinafter to be referred to as the party of the second part) living closer to the party of the first part than one is oneself, in which case the party of the second part is to be construed as neighbor to the party of the first part and one is oneself relieved of all responsibility of any sort or kind whatsoever."

Instead, Jesus told the story of the Good Samaritan the point of which seems to be that your neighbor is to be construed as meaning anybody who needs you. The lawyer's response is left unrecorded.” 

I look forward to seeing you all this weekend at St. Peter’s.

Blessings-

George

A Note on ‘Scam Emails’ from the Interim Rector

This week a number of you received an email that purported to come from me asking for ‘a favor’ or even more alarmingly, for direct deposit information. 

Sadly, this kind of scam is rampant in the church and emails ‘from the clergy’ are used to prey on parishioners.

Thanks to all who let me know that this has happened. I’ve changed my passwords which will hopefully alleviate this problem.  Thanks so much! 

Anti-Racism Book Club:

The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

"Assured and magnetic... expertly paced... Bennett is deeply engaged in the unknowability of other people and the scourge of colorism... in this rich, sharp story about the way identity is formed.”

— Kirkus Starred Review

As we continue the Christian work of anti-racism, join us in reading The Vanishing Half, the #1 New York Times Bestseller by Brit Bennett. Members and non-members are welcome!

"The Vignes twin sisters will always be identical. But after growing up together in a small, southern black community and running away at age sixteen, it's not just the shape of their daily lives that is different as adults, it's everything: their families, their communities, their racial identities.

"Weaving together multiple strands and generations of this family, from the Deep South to California, from the 1950s to the 1990s, Brit Bennett produces a story that is at once a riveting, emotional family story and a brilliant exploration of the American history of passing. Looking well beyond issues of race, The Vanishing Half considers the lasting influence of the past as it shapes a person's decisions, desires, and expectations, and explores some of the multiple reasons and realms in which people sometimes feel pulled to live as something other than their origins."

In order to find an August evening that best accommodates everyone's schedules, please select a date via this Google Form by the end of July!

Questions? 

Please contact Rachel Schacter at [email protected] or Mike Iacono at [email protected]

We joined Instagram! 

Follow us at @stpetersepiscopal_weston

If you are interested in adding to our profile, please send any pictures and/or announcements to Emily at [email protected]

Thank you St Peter’s for coming together in support of

our partner program B-SAFE! 

I recently learned what B-SAFE stands for through Grace Church and I will share with you what this abbreviation stands for in their words and what it has meant to the community of St Peter’s.

BSAFE stands for the Bishop’s Summer Academic, Fun & Enrichment Program, which was initiated by St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Boston’s South End during the summer of 1999 and is currently a part of the St. Stephen’s Youth Programs (SSYP). The initial program funding came from St. Stephen’s, Bishop Tom Shaw, and the City of Boston (via youth summer jobs program). It has evolved to include partner churches and continues to foster equity and skill building.

Each year, a small group of St. Peter’s members have gathered volunteers and raised funds to support a week of lunches and a Friday field day for children at St. Augustine and St. Martin’s in Lower Roxbury.

Increasingly, St. Stephen’s, attuned to the needs and wants of their communities, has sought to put community members in greater positions of voice and authority. We, at St. Peter’s, have supported this effort by supporting St. Stephen's in the hiring of young adults as counselors and leaders during our years of involvement. This leadership development programming has been crucial to the success of the program as well as to the campers and the growing leaders themselves and their communities 

This year, St. Stephen’s asked the partner churches to join in again, primarily through financial support of the program, as well as modified hands-on help to the hired parent chefs. These newly hired community chefs (parents of campers) will do the lunch preparation and servicing at St. Augustine and St. Martin's. In past times, we have prepared meals, baked cookies and brownies, and provided healthy snacks in-person while building relationships with the youth. While circumstances have shifted, we continue to empower youth for the good of the community. 

Even though this pivot leaves us with less “hands-on” engagement, it still facilitates community empowerment and, likely, more culturally responsive meals and food waste prevention. To this end, St. Peter’s has come through yet again in supporting B-SAFE by fundraising and putting together the 25 B-LOVE grocery bags for distribution at St. Augustine & St. Martin’s on July 22.

Through your generosity, we will sponsor a youth counsellor stipend, cover transportation, hire lifeguards, provide provisions for the field trip, and donate any remaining funds from the $2750 already raised towards the compensation of the parent chef. 

For that, thank you St Peter’s!!! What is pending now is lining up all volunteers for the Ashland State Park field trip and securing 2 lifeguards. But God is good all the time we will get lifeguards. Also remaining are a few items on the SignUp Genius which we are hoping can be picked up by signing up using the link HERE 

Please email Rev. George Stevens [email protected] OR email/call Manty Shongwe [email protected] or (617-590-0332) OR to get more information about the Sacred Ground discussions and any other questions.

Thank you,

Manty

A donation link specifically for B-Safe has been added to our parish website in the 'Donate' section:  Link to online donation for B-Safe

Afghan Ministry Summer Fun Volunteer Opportunities and Requests

The kids are out of school and summer fun is underway in Manchester with our Afghan families. We’ve been enjoying some wonderful weather out on the lawn at Brookside Church and this past week we had our first field trip to the SEE Science Center. Despite the logistical challenges of transporting 8 Mom’s and 24 children, everyone had a great time. The kids had a BLAST learning through fun, interactive exhibits. The Mom’s had their valuable weekly social time together and the volunteers enjoyed being a part of it all. We’d like to thank Susan and Bill Poduska for the financial support that is funding these kinds of activities through the summer. An advance thank you to Anne and Steve Peacher for sponsoring an upcoming visit to the NE Aquarium. And thanks to Jim Daughtry and Molly Davidson for providing a cabana, badminton set and other lawn games for Camp Brookside. And to the many, St. Peter’s members who continue to support this important ministry through monetary and in-kind donations. Items high on the current wish list include rugs and vacuums (thank you John and Ann Sallay for the vacuum you left last week that has already gone to it’s new home), fans and air conditioners, children’s summer clothing, mens clothing size small, teapots, electric tea kettles, diapers (sizes 4/5/6) and Joanne Fabrics gift cards. Many of our Manchester families are from the area of Afghanistan that was devastated by the recent earthquake. Fortunately none of them suffered any losses. Sadly, the father of a Waltham Afghan family that Rosie is helping with english lost his father and several other close relatives. Lastly, an all expense paid RT visit to Manchester awaits anyone who would like to join me on a summer Tuesday. 

Happy 4th!

Karen

Though many of St. Peter's parishioners have returned to worshiping and receiving Holy Communion in person inside our church building, we know it is not yet safe for all of us to do so. We will continue to live-stream our services so that we may include as many as possible in our offerings of praise and thanksgiving to God.

If it is not yet safe for you to worship with us in person, and you would like to receive Holy Communion and/or a share a time of prayer at your home, please contact the Parish Office.

If you would like to schedule a time during the week for private prayer in the church, please contact the church office.

St. Peter's is committed to continuing to make our worship space safe and welcoming to all. We hope to have you back with us in person as soon as doing so is the right choice for you.

Do You Have a Pastoral Need?

For pastoral support or emergencies or for any other church matter, please call the church office number (781-891-3200) and press 2 or email George. We encourage you to let us know if you are in the hospital or have some other need that calls for pastoral support.

St. Peter's Episcopal Church | 320 Boston Post Road | Weston, MA 02493

www.stpetersweston.org