Dragon Tales E-News
December 19, 2018
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A Note from Peter
Our Advent journey is almost complete. On Sunday, we will take our last steps towards the manger in Advent 4, and on Monday, we will celebrate the Eve of the Nativity with three special services. Here is what you need to know:
The Spirit Singers and Chorale will be featured musically at the 4 pm service. This is typically the fullest service of the year, so please arrive early, or consider attending one of the other two services that evening. There will be no service in the parish hall this year. We will do our best to seat people in the church, six to a pew, and hang up all our coats to have enough room for everyone. For those seated in the annex, we will provide a tv screen where a livestream will be provided.
At both 7:30 and 10:30, a choral prelude will proceed the liturgy. That 30 minute prelude will begin at the bottom of the hour, so please be seated by then. As both of these later services involve candles for the singing of Silent Night, please refrain from spilling wax on the floor.
Oftentimes, we think of Christmas Day as the finish line: we’ve MADE it! We’ve done it all, and now it’s time to rest. Rest you will, but also rejoice! Rejoice that for you, a Savior was born. He is Jesus. Come and worship the newborn king on Tuesday, December 25 at 10 am, eucharist and carols provided. And don’t forget that our annual Christmas Lessons and Carols service on December 30 will celebrate the 100
th
anniversary of the original Kings College service. It will be a special day.
Advent blessings and Christmas love to you and to all our St. Margaret’s family. We are a brood of vipers, but we are also children of God, and a royal priesthood. Thank you!
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The Christmas season can be overwhelming, especially for those who are experiencing sadness, loss, or illness. Join us for a special service that allows participants to remember loved ones in a calm and reflective way (and invite any friends or relatives that have had a challenging year).
Our Quiet Christmas services will be held this today at noon and 7 p.m.
Childcare available at the 7 p.m. service.
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Christmas Eve Services
4:00 p.m. -- With music from children & youth
7:30 & 10:30 p.m. -- With music from the combined choirs
Christmas Day Service
10:00 a.m.
First Sunday after Christmas - Dec. 30
7:30 a.m. -- Rite I Service
9:00 & 11:15 a.m. -- Christmas Lessons and Carols
A celebration of the 100th anniversary of the
King's College First Lessons & Carols Service
10:20 a.m. -- Parish New Year's Brunch
Bring a breakfast casserole to share!
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Sunday's Service
December 16, 2018
Watch the service "LIVE"
Sundays @ 9:00 a.m.
&
Christmas Eve service @ 7:30 p.m.
http://www.facebook.com/smcannapolis
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Service Schedule for Jan.-Easter
Our new service schedule for January through Easter Sunday on April 21 is now available on the new online scheduling system. This means you can now begin swapping or asking for subs if you know you cannot complete the duty assigned.
Office Copy Machine Use
Because of the upcoming Christmas services, the office copy machine will be in use even more than usual by staff. We ask that parishioners do not plan to use the copy machine without scheduling a time with staff first. And if you can avoid using the machine and can copy elsewhere this month, please do so.
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To help our homeless brothers and sisters, the Missions Commission is once again collecting
small value gift cards ($5 or $10)
for area restaurants and convenience stores. The gift cards will allow homeless men and women to purchase food or a hot cup of coffee and in some cases get out of the cold for a while. Suggested gift card venues include fast food restaurants, coffee houses, and Wawa. Gift cards can be given to parishioner Christine Feldmann, placed in her mailbox in the church office, or given to clergy on Sunday.
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LONGEST NIGHT”HOMELESS PERSONS MEMORIAL SERVICE
for Annapolis and Anne Arundel County
Friday, December 21, 4:30pm
Sunset at 4:47pm
WHITMORE PARK
37 Clay St., Annapolis
just off Calvert St.
Sponsored by
Arundel House of Hope, Sarah’s House - Catholic Charities,
and Light House Annapolis
A 40-minute somber service to remember the lives of homeless sisters and brothers who have died in Anne Arundel County in the previous year.
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Year End Giving from the Church Office
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Please mail your final 2018 contributions so that the office receives them by Thursday, December 27
.
Did you know the IRS requires those over age 70.5 to withdraw a certain amount from their IRAs each year? Talk to your financial planner about possibly giving to St. Margaret’s. You might avoid paying income taxes on the distribution!
NOTE: We will not be mailing 2018 pledge giving statements until after the new year. If you need a statement before the first of the year, please email Elizabeth Radley at Elizabeth@st-margarets.org before Dec. 20th.
The church office will be closed to visitors from Dec. 24-Dec. 28
. If you wish to drop by to provide a payment for 2018, please email Elizabeth Radley at the address above or office@st-margarets.org to make sure that someone will be there to receive it.
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Genealogical Presentation on Jan. 3
The Anne Arundel Genealogical Society is hosting a presentation on Thursday, January 3 at 7:30 pm at the Severna Park United Methodist Church, 731 Benfield Road. There is no charge and all are welcome — members and non-members alike. The program will focus on the
Exhumation of Sir Robert Eden presented by Michael Parker.
The mania for assembling colonial tombstones in St. Anne’s Churchyard, Annapolis, culminated in June 1926 with the translation, not of another stone, but of human remains: those of the last pre-revolutionary governor of Maryland, Sir Robert Eden. Lawyer and antiquary Daniel Randall crowned his three-year search for the bones in the ruined church of St. Margaret’s Westminster by commissioning an elaborate stone to mark the new grave and planning a grand re-interment ceremony. The Eden translation relied extensively on forensic analysis and public pageantry to secure national and even international validation for the groups that supported it. The reburial, however, ignited a noisy public dispute between the parishes of St. Margaret’s and St. Anne’s that soured Randall’s triumph and raised questions about the bones that remain unanswered to this day.
Michael Parker taught English at the United States Naval Academy for 38 years until his retirement in 2018. He has published extensively on the history of Annapolis.
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Children's Epiphany Pageant
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After the Christmas week is over, the children of St. Margaret's will be offering the story of the Magi in a
pageant on Epiphany Sunday, Jan. 6
. There will be no Sunday School that day.
Dress rehearsal will be on Saturday, Jan. 5 in the parish hall at 9 a.m.
We are in need of volunteers to help with costume mending (before Christmas) and rehearsal help. We are very happy to announce that parishioner Sierra Mullen will be leading this effort. Since this is her first year, we are in need of many parents to offer her support.
Please email Sierra
at to let her know if you can help!
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Annual Meeting/Vestry Candidates
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Mark your calendar for our annual meeting to be held in the parish hall on Sunday, January 27
. There will be a parish potluck lunch right after the 11:15 a.m. service and the meeting will begin around 12:45 p.m.
There will be four new Vestry members elected (three annually and one to cover Paul O'Donnell's spot who became senior warden). If you would like to be a vestry candidate, please contact the Rev. Peter W. Mayer at
peter@st-margarets.org.
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Plans continue for our upcoming trip to Tanzania. We have 21 participants confirmed. The max space is 24. So that leave three spots remaining: one double room and one female share.
Teri Priebe of King George Travel will come to St. Margaret's during coffee hour
10:15 am on
February 3
to collect passports to get the visa’s for everyone ($100 fee for the visa – her services to do this are no charge). If there is space, she and possibly a Tanzanian friend of Sue Snyder will review the itinerary and give a talk on what to expect in Tanzania.
For questions, contact Teri Priebe at 540-760-8178.
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Upcoming Diocesan Retreats
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The Diocese of Maryland is offering upcoming retreats for men and women at its Claggett Center located near Frederick, Maryland.
Participants across Maryland join together to study and discuss scripture, pray, and celebrate the love of God in a peaceful setting.
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Contacts
Jim Bowersox, Facility Operations Assistant
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St. Margaret's Church
1601 Pleasant Plains Road
Annapolis, MD 21401
(410) 974-0200 Office
(443) 867-5463 Pastoral Emergency Number
www.st-margarets.org
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