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Save the Date
Saturday, November 8, 2025 9:30 - 12:30PM
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Fall Clean Up Work Party - Let’s Ready the Grounds for Winter. Bring gloves, clippers, rakes. Does anyone have an edger? If so, please bring it.
Sunday, November 9, 2025
- Family Service with Youth Acolyte Information and Training Session following the service. All youth 7+ are invited to attend.
Sunday, November 16, 2025
- All Congregational Meeting: How do we support each other and create a refuge during these times? What resources can the church and community provide you?
In This Issue
- Incense
- Altar Guild: A Ministry of Service
- Feed Our Community
- Episcopal Insider: Incense
- Coffee Hour: The Family Team is up this Sunday
- St. Francis Center: Male Volunteers Needed
- All Office Space Rented
| | This past Sunday we had incense for the Feast of All Saints. Some people have expressed displeasure with the fact that incense was part of the service and that they did not know ahead of time. We apologize for not providing a heads up to the congregation. In the future, we will announce in the newsletter when a service will include incense. Please see the article in the Episcopal Insider section below about the use of incense in the church. | | Altar Guild: A Ministry of Service | | |
(Current Altar Guild Members: Kate McGoldrick, Karmen Carter, Liz Sunderland, and Morgan Harrower)
Join the Altar Guild!
Do you ever wonder what goes on in the sacristy (or even what and where the sacristy is)? Do you wish you knew the difference between a paten and a purificator? Members of the Altar Guild would love to enlighten you!
The Altar Guild is responsible for “setting the table” for Eucharist and tidying up afterward, as well as organizing and caring for other sacramental details and equipment. As a relatively new member, I have found it to be a peaceful, relaxing, and meditative way to connect with our liturgy and the traditions of the Church. I especially love helping with services during Holy Week. An unexpected bonus has been the opportunity to learn more about other members of the liturgical team (for example, discovering what an amazing human our Brother Daniel is!).
Here is what Altar Guild means to another member, Kate McGoldrick: “I love the beautiful parts of the church - the silver, linens, candles and altars. It means so much to be a part of something that is universal in the church and joins us with Episcopalians around the globe. Knowing that someone is folding the linens the same way here at St Thomas as they are at an Anglican Church in Brussels or Nairobi feels very connecting. When I was a little girl I watched my mom, who was in the Altar Guild, going into the sacristy and at home ironing the linens - it seemed very magical and mysterious. I feel lucky to have such a natural and easy way to keep our church sacred.”
No experience is necessary, all training is provided. Please let one of us know if you are interested in a tour of the sacristy, shadowing an Altar Guild Member, and finding out if you are called to help. No commitment, we promise - just check it out!
Written By Liz Sunderland
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Food insecurity impacts 1 in 6 Denver residents. As you are probably aware, due to the current government shutdown, SNAP benefits (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) will be reduced and delayed this month, leaving 100,000 Denverites without critical food support. SNAP benefits typically provide about $188 per person each month. Most recipients are households with children, elderly individuals, or people with disabilities.
We know that St. Thomas members want to help prevent hunger in our community! There are multiple ways to help, and we hope that everyone will get involved in a way that works for you. Here are some suggestions to start with:
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Donate money to Food Bank of the Rockies or Metro Caring: Thanks to bulk purchasing power, these organizations can provide more food for the money than buying from grocery stores. For example, the Food Bank of the Rockies can provide three meals for every dollar donated.
- Bring non-perishable food to St. Thomas and we will distribute it to local food banks. We also plan to keep our own mini food bank at church. Feel free to “shop” there and share with friends and neighbors in need!
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Volunteer at St. Thomas to help sort and deliver donated food to local food banks. Please contact Liz Sunderland if you would like to help: Lizsunderland4115@gmail.com, or text (970) 593-2892.
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Sign up to volunteer with CHUM (Capitol Hill United Ministries) to help cook and distribute meals: https://www.chumdenver.org/
We will update this space with new opportunities to give or volunteer as they arise!
| Episcopal Insider: Incense | | |
When burned or heated, usually over charcoal, certain woods and solidified resins give off a fragrant smoke. Both the materials and the smoke are called incense. Incense was widely used in Judaism and other cultures of the ancient world as a means of sacrifice, purification, and veneration. Frankincense or pure incense, the resin of certain trees, was among the gifts brought by the Magi to the young child Christ (Mt 2:11). Despite this scriptural precedent, early Christians avoided incense as a pagan practice connected with sacrifice and emperor worship, and churches did not begin to use it until the fourth century. Thereafter incense was burned at several points in the Daily Office and the Eucharist, and extensively in eastern churches.
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Symbolism of prayer: The rising smoke is a visual representation of the prayers of the saints ascending to heaven, as suggested in Revelation 8:3-4.
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A reminder of God's presence: The fragrant smoke is seen as a sign of the "sweet-smelling presence of our Lord".
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Enhancement of worship: Incense is used as a sacramental to venerate and sanctify, creating an atmosphere of mystery and awe.
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Biblical roots: The use of incense in worship has deep roots in the Old Testament, where God commanded its use, and this tradition continued into the New Testament and Christian antiquity.
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Anglican tradition: While the use of incense declined during the Reformation in some Protestant denominations, many Anglican churches, particularly "high church" or Anglo-Catholic parishes, have continued or resumed its use.
| | The Family Team is responsible for coffee hour this Sunday. If you'd like to volunteer for a coffee hour team or wish to know what team you are on, contact Emma Jurado Hillenburg at emma.jurado@gmail.com | | St. Francis Center - Male Volunteers Needed | | |
I am reaching out from St. Francis Center, a refuge for those experiencing homelessness in Denver. Each day, we open our doors to hundreds of neighbors in need, offering basic services such as showers, laundry, clothing, mail, and storage. These simple acts of hospitality allow our guests, many of whom are older men, to maintain dignity and hope in very difficult circumstances.
At this time, our greatest need is for adult male volunteers to help with our men’s showers. This role involves passing out towels and hygiene supplies to men who come to shower at our facility- on average, more than 300 each day. Because most of our current volunteers are women and unable to staff the men’s showers, this need is especially pressing.
We are open 7 days a week, and we welcome volunteers to serve on a schedule that works for them. We understand the idea of serving as a shower attendant may sound a little intimidating at first, but again and again our volunteers share that it becomes one of the most meaningful and rewarding parts of their service. In the Shower Stations, volunteers provide far more than hygiene items—they offer dignity, care, and a fresh start. For many guests, a shower can be a grounding and rejuvenating moment that helps them feel human again.
We would be deeply grateful if you might invite the men of your congregation to consider this call to serve their brothers in a very tangible way. Even a few hours a month can make a profound difference in the lives of our guests.
Volunteers can sign up directly here: https://www.volgistics.com/appform/2145380031
I would also be glad to speak further, provide tours of our facility for your members, visit your church, or provide more details if that would be helpful. Please let me know if you have any questions.
Thank you for your faithful leadership and for encouraging your members to be in service to their neighbors in need.
Sarah Taylor
| | All Office/Studio Space is Rented | | All of St. Thomas' office and studio space is currently rented. The church provides affordable space for professionals and organizations. The revenue we receive from rent helps to fund the operation and programs of the church. | | |
Faith Communities Against
White Christian Nationalism
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