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Sunday, December 1 is the

First Sunday of Advent

Service at 10:00 AM, Holy Eucharist

Find this week's readings in the bulletin.

Advent Note from Marya: As we enter the season of Advent this Sunday, our worship will reflect a sense of anticipation, quiet, and hope. One way of listening for God's voice during Advent is to practice intentional times of silence. During our Sunday liturgies this Advent,(the next 4 Sundays) we'll lean into silence in two particular ways. First, on entering the church, you're invited to maintain holy silence, using the time before the liturgy for quiet prayer and reflection. There will be no musical preludes during the next four weeks. Our posture of "holy noise," enjoying the opportunity to gather and chat with our neighbors will resume during Christmas. 

Secondly, after the readings and homily, we will observe a full minute

of silence and stillness as a way of letting God's Word soak into our hearts. May God bless us as we enter this season of joyful preparation.

Advent Calming Service and Prayers for Healing

Do you know someone who could benefit from a Calming Worship experience to begin Advent... and Christmas in the world? Invite them to join us for worship on December 1 at 10:00am.

The Holidays can be hard. We can bring that to God. Our Calming service will be one in which those who experience the weeks before Christmas as stressful or difficult, will have a calm sanctuary. You will come because you may be mourning the death of a loved one. You May be far from home. You may suffer from illness, addiction, or estrangement. You may be lonely, struggling financially, or in conflict with another. You may hurt because of the great pain, need, and violence in our nation and world. The reasons for coming are many. We will gather in the midst of suffering to remember God is good. God is strong. God is near. We are not alone, and we have every reason to hold on to hope.

A Festival of Lessons and Carols

Please join us at St. John's on Sunday, December 15 at 4:00 pm for A Festival of Lessons and Carols. Our exuberant choir will be joined by four community vocalists and trumpeters, adding to the hope and anticipation of the season!!

ACTION LUNCHES ON HIATUS UNTIL APRIL Grace Center has begun its Sunday Winter Warming Program which provides lunch to homeless and vulnerable people in our community each Sunday through March. This enables the small but dedicated band of St. John’s volunteers who provide lunches to the Action Shelter every week to take a much needed break. 

This year we have had several new volunteers join this vital ministry which has been an important part of our outreach to the broader community for thirty years. We thank you and look forward to your continued participation in the spring. 

St. John’s Lenten Retreat at St. Margaret’s in Duxbury

March 21-March 23, 2025 Spend time in silence and in prayer during Lent listening for God’s call in your life. You are invited to join fellow parishioners in silence along the ocean at St. Margaret’s in Duxbury. Or immerse yourself in the daily offices worshiping with the sisters in the chapel 4 times a day. Rest, create, rejuvenate in silence along the sea. St. John’s parish retreat is scheduled for Friday March 21, 2025 through Sunday March 23, 2025. This will be a quiet retreat with one meeting at the beginning to review expectations for retreat and one meeting at the end to gather the fruits of our retreat. St. Mariana house has 9 bedrooms, a few of the bedrooms have two twin beds or queen beds so can house between 9 and 15 people if anyone wants to share a room. The cost will be $225 per person based on 9 people attending and includes meals with the sisters. A sign up sheet will be available on the bulletin board in the parish hall. Checks can be made payable to St. John’s Episcopal Church and write "Retreat" in memo line. 

Email questions to Kim Prentice at kdprentice@hotmail.com or Rick Britton at rixowen20@aol.com. More information about St. Margaret’s is on their web site.

Meet Rav Naomi

Rav Naomi Gurt Lind, the spiritual leader at Temple Ahavat Achim will join St. John's for coffee hour after worship on Sunday, December 8. Marya invited her to talk about her call to be a rabbi, her school experience and her discernment to come to Temple Ahavat Achim. To learn more about Rav Naomi, read her profile.

Fair Follow-Up Meeting

Monday December 9th at 10:00 at Connie DeSimone's house at 3 Long Beach Road. Anyone who participated in the fair or who has thoughts on how to improve the fair is welcome to attend. If you cannot attend feel free to send ideas and suggestions to Gwen Kopka at gwenkopka@comcast.net.

HUGE THANKS!!!

Thank you to everyone who attended last weekend's fair and made it a huge success! And EXTRA SPECIAL thanks to the parishioners, friends and family whose volunteer work made it possible. These include the following folks (listed in no particular order):

Got Leftovers?

Thanksgiving has come and gone, and the the requests for assistance keep growing at the Open Door. If you have any unopened canned goods or other nonperishable leftovers from Thanksgiving, and you have just stuffed them into the back of the pantry, please feel free to bring them to church and put them in the basket at the rear of the church on Sunday. The items will be put to good use. Many thanks.

Music Notes 

Music can stir the soul, and calm the mind. On the First Sunday of Advent, you will experience a service that doesn’t have a lot of singing, but instrumental music that will calm your spirit. Through the music created from piano, guitar, and cello: Gail Crane, Don Crane, and Maryann Tapiro will share their musical gifts with you to bring you into the Season of Advent. As you hear their music, and see the soft glow of the candles, welcome hope and promise into your mind and soul. The Season of Advent is my favorite Liturgical Season. The music, though sometimes in a minor key, is all about hope and promise. Sometimes that feeling of hope and the promises of the future are hard to realize. May this Sunday’s service bring that peace, healing, hope, and promise into your mind, heart, and soul, that we all desire and wish for.

Your Friend,

John Churchwell

Looking Ahead!

Advent Calming Service Sunday, December 1 at 10:00am

Holy Eucharist with Choir

A Service of Lessons and Carols Sunday, December 15 at 4:00pm

Holy Eucharist with Choir 

Christmas Eve Service Tuesday, December 24 at 8:00pm

Candlelit Eucharist with Choir

A Service of Christmas Carols Sunday, December 29 at 10:00am

Holy Eucharist with Choir 

First Friday Coffee House Friday, December 6 at the First Universalist Church of Essex. Doors open at 7pm, music begins at 7:30. December's guest is the Tregony Bow band. Tickets and more information here.

Handel's Messiah Chorus North Shore, conducted by Abigail Frost presents Handel's Messiah, December 7 at 7pm or December 8 at 3pm, at Our Lady of Hope, 1 Pineswamp Road, Ipswich. Buy tickets here or from Gail Crane, a CNS member.

December 1, 2024

The First Sunday of Advent

10:00 AM

Download the bulletin to see who is participating in the liturgy.

SIGN-UP IN THE PARISH HALL! We always need people to contribute funds for the weekly burning of our sanctuary lamp and for altar flowers. Pick a date that has special meaning for you (anniversaries, birthdays, etc.)! We also always need donations of any kind for the Open Door food bank (no expired items or glass containers please). And don't forget about helping provide lunches for the Action Shelter so people can have something to eat on Sundays!

Sign up in the parish hall for future dates for flower and lamp, Action Sandwiches and coffee hour.



CONTACT MARYA (Priest-in-Collaboration) at mdecarlen@comcast.net or 978-590-1642

St. John's Intercession List: Randy Travis, Dolores DeRuscio, Lois Lupo , Steve Jencks, Ben, Rosie, Reverend Stephen Woods, CoCo Baxter, Francisco Lococo, The People of the Middle East, Jim LaBelle, Eric Leibowitz, Ruth and Gabriel Leibowitz, Anna and Isabelle, Ondine, Don Baker, Mandy, Nina Ziv, Marjorie Frontiero, Hope, Brie-Anne Martel, Patty Reed, Marjorie Fergusson, Laurie Menard, Jeremy, Lucy, Gaëlle K., Sean G., Josh R., Sean, Alexis Morris, Charlie Bishop, Sarah Clifford, Ace Torrence and Family, Jacoby, Jay Featherstone, Isabelle Higgins, Christopher Antonuk, Miranda Featherstone and Family, Marsha White, Claire Stahler, Carole Secrest, Chris Klosterman, Sereda Feener, Alex Furth, Simeon Teitelbaum, Miriam Teitelbaum, Len Berry, Ellen, Wayne Martin, Ernie Runnells, Jack Ketchopulos, Michael Rocha, Liana and Joe Webb, Anne Sullivan, Linda, Malcolm Henderson, Emelia Currier, Danny, John Fleming. 

Contact prayer list manager: Joan Gorga 978-283-5926 or jmgorga@yahoo.com

Please notify Joan Gorga if there is any change with the people on this list. Thank you.

Join us for Zoom Coffee Hour, aka Reliable Joy! 

Reliable Joy meets Sundays at 12:30. 

Use this Zoom link to join in. Meeting ID: 873 3272 1412

Passcode: 01930 Dial by location: 1 646 558 8656

WEEKLY CALENDAR

Sundays               

• 9:00-9:30 am Choir rehearsal (Sept. through June)
• 10:00 am Sung Eucharist

Mondays             

• 9-noon Church open for prayer and meditation
• 9-noon Ms. Fixits Women gathering to tend to the fabric of the church

Tuesdays

• 9-noon Church open for prayer and meditation
• 4:30 pm Women's Cursillo Reunion Group (1st and 3rd Tuesdays)

Wednesdays

• 7 am Men's Bible Reflection, (Bible study) 
• 9-noon Church open for prayer and meditation
• 10 am to 2 pm Thrift Shop and Regal Rummage Open
• 7 pm Fish City AA

Thursdays    

• 9-noon Church open for prayer and meditation
• 7 - 8:30 pm Parish Choir rehearsal (Sept. through June)
• 7:00 pm AA

Fridays

• 10 am to 2 pm Thrift Shop and Regal Rummage Open

Saturdays             

• Action Shelter Lunch-Making, Carolyn Stewart
• 10 am to 2 pm Thrift Shop and Regal Rummage Open
• 7 pm Big Book AA