Headlines & Happenings | September 10, 2026

Dear Friends in Christ,

Fifteen weeks ago, a scrap of yellow poster board went up over the doorway between the sacristy and the chancel — one word, a little crooked, all caps: Believe. It was a nod to Ted Lasso, but really it was Paul's own sign, hung over the door of the church at Rome. Not perform. Not earn. Not be right. Just believe.

This Sunday, we close that letter. Since June, we've walked together through the whole theological spine of Romans — grace, baptism into Christ, the divided self, God's refusal to walk away from anyone, and finally the practical call to love as the fulfilling of the law. Romans 14 brings us to the hardest, most ordinary application of all: what do we do when the person next to us eats, prays, or votes differently than we do? Paul's answer isn't a ruling — it's a release. None of us lives to himself. We are not the judge; we're just grateful to be judged mercifully. The sign isn't coming down. It's coming with us.

And it's coming with us into something new. This Sunday also launches our Fall Programming Kickoff, beginning with a four-week Forum series on the Book of Common Prayer, using Scott Gunn and Melody Wilson Shobe's book Walk in Love as our guide — its title taken straight from our own offertory sentence, printed right beside Romans 12:1 in the Prayer Book that forms our common life. After the 10:30 AM service, we'll gather for our Fall potluck, a simple, tangible way to live out Romans 14 together, each person bringing something different to a shared table.

Fifteen weeks of believing are coming to fruition. A season of walking in love together is just beginning. Come be part of one or both, and hear more about how we'll grow together as a school of prayer and service in the Lord.

God’s peace,

Mother Stacey+

Saturday, September 12 | 10:00 - 11:30 AM

Women's Gathering

Entirely on Zoom

Led by Lorraine Rollo, Women's Gathering opens its new program year with James Martin's newly published memoir and spiritual reflection, Work in Progress.

In this confessional memoir, Father Martin humorously and compassionately shares how his younger self learned valuable life lessons through various summer jobs. He discusses the formative influences that shaped him, explains the challenges he faced as he transitioned from a corporate career to Jesuit life, acknowledges his shortcomings, and seeks forgiveness.

If you are interested in a journey down memory lane that may spark your own compassionate self-reflection side, please join us. Click here to email Lorraine Rollo for the Zoom invitation.

Saturdays, September 12, 19, 26, October 3,

10:00 - 11:00 AM

Tai Chi Series with Frank Hollingsworth

Interested in reducing stress, improving balance, or enhancing your golf or tennis game? Tai Chi can help! Join us for a four-week introduction to the ancient martial art of Tai Chi Chuan.

You’ll engage in body opening, chi gong (energy work), and learn a short Tai Chi form. Wear loose-fitting clothing and bring an open mind!

Saturdays, September 12, 19, 26, October 3 | 10:00 AM

At The Urban Well Yoga Studio

lower level of the Parish House

4-class pack $60, individual class: $25

Click here to purchase Tai Chi sessions!

Sunday, September 13 | 9:30 AM

Forum Resumes with Randall Zachman

and Fr. Ron Jaynes

In the Parish House

Forum Room

Our Forum series on the Book of Common Prayer begins with an exploration of the development of the Eucharist in the Anglican and Episcopal traditions. Randall will highlight two Reformation themes from the 1549 Anglican liturgy that still appear in the current Rite I service, and Fr. Ron Jaynes will explore the way the Eucharist was made the center of Episcopal worship in the revised Book of Common Prayer of 1979. Join us this Sunday for a lively discussion of the liturgy that lies at the heart of our worship life at Saint James. Available in person and via Zoom. Click here for the Zoom link.

Sunday, September 13 | 11:30 AM - 1:30 PM

Fall Launch Potluck

In the Parish House

Forum Room

Join us on September 13th as we kick off a new season together at Saint James! After the 10:30 AM service, we will gather for a potluck lunch to celebrate the start of our fall programs.

Whether you bring a dish or just yourself, we would love to have you there! Click here to let us know you'll be attending and what dish you'll be bringing.

Feel free to drop off your dish in the church kitchen before the 10:30 AM service.

Sunday, September 13 | 5:00 PM

Vespers at the Urban Well Begins Weekly

In the Chapel

Experience a contemplative candlelit service to nurture mind, body and spirit in the serene surroundings of the Saint James Chapel. This quiet, reflective service embraces Christianity's rich prayer traditions and the embodied practices that nurture our spiritual lives today.

Join us for uplifting singing, find solace in moments of silence, and choose the posture that feels most comfortable as we open our hearts to listen for God’s voice. We have meditation cushions, yoga mats, and chairs available. Everyone is welcome—come as you are! In person only.

Tuesdays, September 15, 22 & 29

5:30 - 6:45 PM

The Practice of Recovery

Yoga, the twelve steps, and a path for everyone to explore healing and renewal

in our daily lives

Tuesdays in September 15, 22 & 29 | 5:30 - 6:45 PM

Urban Well Yoga Studio, lower level of the Parish House located at 119 North Duke Street.

Led by Sarah Shelton, Urban Well Yoga Studio Coordinator, and The Reverend Stacey Carpenter, Associate Rector at Saint James.

Join us for this three-week series exploring recovery, healing, and embodied practice in everyday life. This series is rooted in the wisdom of the 12 Steps, something that the co-founders of Alcoholics Anonymous believed everyone could benefit from.

Recovery is not limited to one experience or one path. Many of us are recovering from something—alcohol or substance use, codependency, grief, stress, burnout, perfectionism, anxiety, illness, major life transitions, old patterns, or the places where we have felt disconnected from ourselves, others, our bodies, or a sense of meaning. Please register for planning purposes. Click here for more information and registration.

Wednesday, September 16 | 3:00 PM

Holy Eucharist at Willow Valley

Residents of Willow Valley are warmly invited to come together with clergy and staff from Saint James and Holy Trinity Lutheran churches to celebrate Holy Eucharist in Manor North Auditorium on the third floor of the main building in Manor North. All are welcome to partake in this meaningful occasion; feel free to bring a friend!

Saturday, September 19 | 8:30 - 10:30 AM

Upper Room Men's Group

In the Parish House

Forum Room

UNDER PENALTY OF LAW THIS TAG IS NOT TO BE REMOVED EXCEPT BY THE CONSUMER

The Fear of Removing the Mattress Tag: What does it say about us?" How many of us remember being afraid to remove one of these tags, and when did you finally learn consumers were actually allowed to remove them? And what other warnings or "rules" from childhood turned out to be misunderstood?

Many times, we have experienced irrational fears, not because they were logical but because they were deeply ingrained.

Join us for breakfast, fellowship and a lighthearted discussion that will lead us into deeper themes about fear, authority and the lives we live by, whether as children or adult men.

Breakfast menu: Western-style scrambled eggs, sausage gravy & biscuits, bacon, potato cakes, coffee and juice.

Looking forward to another great session with "the dudes of Saint James." Have questions? Click here to email Chuck Smith.

Sunday, September 20 | 9:30 AM

Women's Bible Study

In the Parish House Library

Women's Bible Study is back! Join us on the third Sunday of each month in the parish house library at 9:30 AM. Kristy Clark will lead this month as we study the lectionary reading, Matthew 20:1-16.

The format is simple: come as you are, bring your Bible, and we will read and discuss God's gracious benefits to us and to all. Have questions? Click here to email Kristy Clark.

Sunday, September 20 | 5:00 PM

Vespers Addiction & Recovery Service

In the Sanctuary

On Sunday, September 20, we will hold our annual Addiction and Recovery Service as part of Recovery Month at our 5:00 PM Vespers gathering. This service is open to anyone whose life has been touched by addiction — those in recovery, those still struggling and the family members, friends and loved ones who walk alongside them. Addiction carries a particular kind of pain — one that is often carried in silence, and one that ripples outward to touch everyone who loves the person affected.

In this service, we hold that pain honestly and without judgment, naming it before God as a community that refuses to look away. And in the same breath, we give thanks for the healing and hope that recovery makes possible: the daily courage it takes, the grace that sustains it, and the deep truth that no one walks this road alone.

Come as you are, bring whomever you carry in your heart and join us for an evening of honesty, compassion and hope.

Sunday, September 20 | 5:00 - 6:30 PM

Youth Group School Year Kickoff!

In the parish house forum room

Youth Group is back, and we’re kicking off the year with pizza, silly trivia, and a little preparation for the school year ahead!

We’ll enjoy dinner together, test our knowledge with ridiculous, fun trivia games and then create our own school day care packages filled with things to help us power through those long days of learning.

Come hungry, bring a friend, and get ready to laugh, create, and start the new Youth Group year together. All 6th – 12th graders are welcome! Please click here to register.

Thursday, September 24, 7:00 PM

The Mercy Seminar with Prof. Randall Zachman, Fr. David Peck

With Prof. Randall Zachman, hosted by Fr. David

Entirely via Zoom

Term 3 focuses on Christian understandings of resurrection and eternal life, beginning with the hope of future resurrection life in Paul's letters and the expectation of eternal life now in the Gospel of John. We will follow the development of these themes in Christian and Spiritualist traditions, including Emanuel Swedenborg's provocative visions of the soul's journey after death.

Classes meet on six consecutive Thursday evenings via Zoom from 7:00 to 8:30 PM EST. Each term stands alone, but when taken together, offers a layered understanding as our knowledge of the issues increases. All sessions are recorded and available to participants for viewing at any time. Click here to learn more and register for Term 3.

Sunday, September 27 | 9:00 AM

Saint James Voices

Calling all Singers!

Led by Kate Umble Smucker, the ensemble is open to anyone ages nine and above, with no experience required. The group will rehearse at 9:00 AM and then sing at the 10:30 AM service.

If you'd like your music in advance, click here to email Kate.

Saturday, October 3 | 5:00 PM

Saturday Night Mass

Instruments of Peace:

Standing in the

Space Between

For the Feast of Saint Francis, we will gather to reflect on scripture, prayers, and music that focus on being instruments of peace. The Mass will feature local singer-songwriter Liz Fulmer on acoustic guitar, performing original faith-based songs and cover tunes, including Sarah McLachlan's "Prayer of Saint Francis.

This Mass will lead into a 5-week Contemplative Citizenship series that gives people contemplative tools as they enter the midterm election season.

Available in person and via livestream. Click here to view via livestream.

Sunday, October 11 | 11:45 AM

Revolutionary Text Lecture and Brunch

Parish House Forum Room

Join Professor Randall Zachman to explore the thinking behind George Washington’s 1790 letter to the Jewish congregation in Newport, Rhode Island, in which he wrote that the new nation gives no sanction to bigotry nor assistance to persecution. Today, the letter is considered a stepping stone for the First Amendment that would come the following year.

Registration is required for catering with a suggested donation of $25 for adults. Registration deadline: October 5^th.

Click here to register.

Tuesday, October 13 | 7:00 PM

Fall Contemplative Citizenship Begins

Lord, make me an

instrument of your peace

Tuesdays, Oct 13 – Nov 10

7:00 – 8:00 PM, in person

and via Zoom

This Fall, our worship and teaching will be guided by a single line from the Prayer of Saint Francis: “Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.” We will begin this initiative at our Saturday Night Mass on October 3, with local musician and pastor Liz Fulmer leading music that inspires us to embody God’s peace in our lives.

On Tuesday, October 13, we will start a 5-week Fall Contemplative Citizenship series in which we will reflect on various lines from the prayer, exploring what it means to embody this prayer in both our personal lives and in our civic responsibilities, especially during this election season when our country feels divided and stressed. Registration link coming soon.

Mark Your Calendar

September 12, 19, 26, October 3, 10:00-11:00 AM | Tai Chi Series with Frank Hollingsworth

September 12, 10 - 11:30 AM | Women's Gathering via Zoom

September 13, 9:30-10:30 | Four-Week Forum Series Begins: Book of Common Prayer

September 13, 11:45 - 1:30 | Fall Launch Potluck

September 15, 22, & 29, 5:30 - 6:45 PM | The Practice

of Recovery Begins

September 16, 3:00 PM | Holy Eucharist at Willow Valley

September 19, 8:30 - 10:30 AM | Upper Room Men's Group

September 20, 9:30 AM | Women's Bible Study resumes

September 20, 5 - 6:30 PM | Youth Group

September 22, 5:30 - 6:45 PM | The Practice of Recovery