News & Notes - October 18, 2020
The Twentieth Sunday After Pentecost
Online Service at 9:30 a.m.
From the Deacon: Voting Our Values
"Voting is how a community or a nation decides how the moral values that it holds and shares shape public policy and the lives of people." -Presiding Bishop Michael Curry

I was a teenager when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed into law the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Before the law was passed, officials at state and local levels created legal barriers that prevented African Americans from exercising their right to vote as guaranteed under the 15th Amendment. *Not yet permitted to vote because of my age in 1965, I remember how I looked forward to the day when I would be able to have a say in selecting the people who were making decisions that affected my life.

Over the years, I learned how the suffragette movement worked for decades to secure women's right to vote. I remember the fight it took to win the right to vote for 18-year-olds when young men were drafted to serve in the military while simultaneously forbidden to vote. Throughout the 20th century, many people marched, protested, and lost their lives to ensure that all eligible people could vote. Knowing the price paid to protect this right, I am astonished and saddened when people say, "I am not voting, I cannot be bothered." Or "I don't like the top candidates, so I will just stay home." That is, of course, their right. However, I wonder if they realize that our democracy's health rests on the people's voice as expressed through voting. When we vote, we give voice to what we value and believe to be right. We provide the leaders we elect with information about what is important to us.

As followers of Jesus Christ and as Episcopalians, we share common beliefs and values about caring for one another, ministering to one another, and protecting one another. While we may have differences about how to go about this work, our underlying common ground remains based on Jesus' call to love God and love one another. We are, as Pastor Stephen preached two Sundays ago, stewards of God's creation, and therefore we have responsibilities for the care of all that God created. Those responsibilities include letting elected leaders know what we expect and what we want to be done in our name. While there may be additional ways to convey our expectations, voting carries a different weight, some say a mandate, that captures the attention of leaders who seek to represent us
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Presiding Bishop Michael Curry writes, "It is a Christian obligation to vote, and more than that, it is the church's responsibility to help get souls to the polls….Cast your vote, not on a partisan basis, not based on your biases, but vote your values. Vote the values of human dignity and equality. Vote the values of the rock on which this country was built. Vote."

The Episcopal Church has a Vote Faithfully Election Engagement Toolkit that provides information and strategies that encourage voting. It can be found at https://episcopalchurch.org/files/ogr_vote_faithfully_2020_election_toolkit.pdf.
Also, the State of California provides information about registering to vote, who is eligible to vote, and how to track your vote at https://www.sos.ca.gov/elections. The last day to register to vote in the November 3rd election is October 19.

Our beliefs, values, and desires need to be part of the discourse about how our communities and country are governed. We need to read, mark, and inwardly digest the information we receive about the people and policies that shape our future and then let our voices be heard.

Upcoming Services
Online Services:
During this time of pandemic, our worship continues. Using technology, we can gather from wherever we may be and join together in the Word and in prayer.

Here's more on how to use Zoom.
Sunday Services:


We are also live streaming each Zoom service on our Facebook page, so you can also watch the service on Facebook, and it will be archived there for viewing later in case you're not able to join in live. You don't need to be a Facebook member to see the live stream on the Facebook page by clicking the link above.
Outdoor Services:
Our next outdoor in-person services are scheduled for All Saints' Day, Sunday, November 1, conditions permitting, at 9:30 and 11:00 a.m. Please register in advance, as space is limited.

To learn more and to register to attend in person or receive Communion at home, click here.
Last Sunday we launched our 2020-21 pledge campaign: Acting in Faith.

Giving is one of the most powerful spiritual practices in existence. It’s a statement of gratitude and trust in God. At Incarnation we encourage all our members and friends to prayerfully choose a percentage of their income to make a pledge of financial support to the parish. This both allows our vestry to plan ahead in making a budget and serves as a tangible commitment to what God is doing here at Incarnation.

To learn about our pledge campaign and our financial status, read letters from parish leaders, and make a 2021 pledge online, please click the link below:


If you signed up for an all-digital pledge packet, this is the link you'll need. You can read all the materials on the web or download a PDF of the printed packet. Paper packets were given out at the in-person services on Sunday, and others in our membership database should be receiving paper packets in the mail this week.
A Word from our Campaign Co-Chair

2020 has been quite a year! I dare not recount the global, national, and local events of this year for fear you will just stop reading this letter right now. In a world of such unrest, we find ourselves longing for the Peace of God to descend upon us and bring us assurance of our future. We are in exile from our communities and sojourners in a strange new pandemic world. Like the Israelites in Babylon or Abraham traveling to the Promised Land, we find that each action we take is a call to act in faith. 

Rev. Gail Cafferata’s recent sermon drove this message home for me.   

If there’s just one thing the scriptures today teach us, it’s that faith is our journey into new life with Jesus and the communion of saints—past and present. It’s about what we do, how we do it, why we do it, and who we are as ones who “faith” in Jesus Christ. “Faith” is like a verb, not a noun. We “faith” whenever we abandon
worship of things, achievements, and people, to trust God, God who is there for us
in the storms of life. Faith is a living gift, the rock within us, that heals, restores,
and strengthens us to be the body of Jesus Christ in the world.

This year's Pledge Drive theme is “Acting in Faith.” Your pledge is an act of faith in God and Incarnation’s ministry and future.  

We are in a time of great uncertainty—wildfires, November elections, and a possible second wave of Covid-19. By acting in faith we can strive to meet the challenges of this season, set new goals, plans, and visions of how we will worship, care, grow, and commune with one another. And so we do this “Faithing” as Rev. Gail urges, in a journey of communion with Christ and fellow members of our Incarnation family.
This year, my family is increasing our pledge by 10%. In our current circumstances this feels like a big act of faith for us! Faith has helped me carry on, finding renewal in Scripture, the Book of Common Prayer, new tools for worship, and new relationships with people at Incarnation, at a time when serving has felt quite draining.

We have faith that God is with us in these uncertain times and we are acting on it. I urge you to prayerfully consider increasing your pledge for 2021 and share how you are Acting in Faith this year.

Michael Del Vecchio
Co-Chair, Vestry Development Committee
October 5, 2020
... and from our other Co-Chair: More Examples of Acting in Faith

Connie Sinclair keeps this on her refrigerator - from The Talmud “Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world’s grief. Do justly, now. Live mercy, now. Walk humbly, now. You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it.”

So here’s David Jasper living The Talmud. He has been volunteering at Ceres for the past few years chopping vegetables in their kitchen. Due to the pandemic, he now delivers meals to Ceres clients’ homes two times a week. Yea, David!

Judy Velasquez, Co-chair of the Development Committee and member of the Vestry
Coming Right Up...
Fall Book Study: Join Us Sunday, October 18
Our fall book study on Derek Olsen's Inwardly Digest: The Prayer Book as Guide to a Spiritual Life continues with its third session. Join us on Zoom from 11:00-11:50 a.m. For this session we'll be discussing "Section 2: The Daily Office."

If you missed the first and second sessions, not to worry-you can 
Subsequent sessions will also be posted. Here's the Zoom link to join us Sunday:
669-900-9128, Meeting ID: 880 7935 8521 #
The fourth and final session will be on Sunday, November 8.
Lectionary Lunch: Tuesdays at noon, next date - October 20
Join Pastor Stephen on Zoom for a time to study and discuss the readings for the upcoming Sunday. 12:00-12:50 p.m. on Tuesdays: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86541597529#success; or to dial in, 669-900-9128, Meeting ID: 865 4159 7529 #.

Readings for Oct. 25:

To prepare for the meeting, either print out the lectionary or have your bible handy so you can follow along.
Acting in Faith Pledge Campaign Town Hall: Sunday, October 25

Join our vestry and Pledge Campaign team for a congregational conversation on how our spirituality shapes our finances, our parish's financial condition during the pandemic, and how we'll build a budget for 2021. This will be a special Zoom coffee hour--just stay on the link we use for Sunday services after the liturgy is over. The Town Hall will be from approximately 10:45 to 11:45 a.m.
All Saints' Day and Día de los Muertos: A Week of Observances

Remembering Our Beloved Dead: Monday, October 26 through Monday, November 2

Día de Los Muertos has become popular in the United States in recent years. For the last few years at Incarnation we have created an ofrenda, an altar adorned with images and objects that honor the beloved dead. This year our ofrenda moves outdoors, in response to the pandemic, and as an offering to our wider community.

An ofrenda, to be adorned with community-donated images and objects, will be erected in the Jerusalem Courtyard just south of the church entrance at 550 Mendocino Avenue. Bring copies of photos of your relatives or friends, and replicas of objects. Please remember to bring copies, as items will not be returned.

As the pandemic has disproportionately decimated the US Latinx community this year, we draw upon the rejuvenating joy that springs from the Muertos tradition. We also bear witness to racial divides in this country, affirming that Black and Brown Lives Matter. We honor the Latinx customs of communing with the departed in open and friendly delight, urging all in this year of illness and fire to gain solace from fond remembrance.

For a complete schedule of events, including weekday Noon Prayer, outdoor Sunday services for All Saints Day, and a socially distanced Halloween event for all ages, click below:

Please Take Note...
Sing in our Diocesan Virtual Choir for Convention
Help us worship together in song!

Everyone in our diocese is invited to participate in a “virtual choir” to prepare music for our worship at Diocesan Convention. You simply record yourself singing your own part, using a smartphone or computer microphone, while listening to the accompaniment through headphones.

We will sing two hymns plus a choral anthem, and you're welcome to submit recordings for one, two, or all three pieces. Our own Stephen Shaver and John Nykamp are organizing the project, with Robert Young providing the organ accompaniments. For more information and to participate, visit here.

Please submit all recordings by Friday, October 30. 
Healing Labyrinth Workshop from
Grace Church, St. Helena
Saturday, October 17, 1-3 PM

Our friends at Grace Church in St. Helena are offering an online afternoon of learning more about the ancient spiritual practice of traveling the labyrinth, led by author and labyrinth facilitator the Rev. Lauren Artress. They write: “The labyrinth has been used as a tool for healing, processing grief, and connecting with God for many years, and we hope this offering will be an opportunity for healing in our community after the Glass fire. We'll gather on Zoom from 1-3 pm on Saturday, October 17 for an afternoon of learning and participating in a virtual meditative labyrinth walk, using a finger labyrinth. Grace's labyrinth will be open all weekend for safe, socially distanced walking as well, providing us a way to safely gather, over a period of many hours, as a community to mourn, heal, and center ourselves spiritually.” Register here.
Prayers
Prayer requests will stay on our list for 3 weeks. After that, if you would like long-term which is for 3 months, please notify the office. Prayers for those who have died will remain on for 6 months.

Your prayers are requested...
...for members and friends of the parish who are sick, sorrowful, or in any kind of trouble, including Brandon, Francoise, Lance, Leanne, Geoffrey, Gene & Elizabeth, Kristin, Doug & Karin, Rob M., Hugh & Angela, Mary, Robyn, Bruce, Nancy, Lauren W., Amy C., Monique & Kirk, Amanda, and Nancy H.

...for those who have died: Susan, Jerry, Alphonsine, Raimundo Castro, Wallace Look, Marilyn Payne, Gary Lindsey, David Ratner, Frank, John, Hollie, Dan.
 
...for the victims of the fires: specials prayers for the first responders, and all those who have suffered injury or loss.
 
...for the victims of COVID-19:  especially we pray for those affected by the COVID-19 virus, and for all who are in danger.
 
...for our city, county, and community; the city council, the board of supervisors, for those who serve the common good in law enforcement and the courts.
 
click here for the Diocesan Cycle of Prayer.
click here for the Anglican Cycle of Prayer.
This Coming Week...
Sunday, October 18

Monday, October 19

Tuesday, October 20
  • 8:00 am Outside Morning Prayer: We meet in the courtyard, socially distanced, with face coverings. Enter via the 636 Cherry Street parking lot. Prayer Books will be provided or you may bring your own. Hand sanitizer will be available. Pre-registration not required.
  • 12:00 - 12:50 pm: Lectionary Lunch https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86541597529#success.

Wednesday, October 21

Thursday, October 22
  • 6:00 pm - St. Cecilia Choir: Zoom
  • 9:00 am - Education for Ministry (EfM)

Friday, October 23

Saturday, October 24
  • 9:00 am - 11:00 am - Open Table Prep

Sunday, October 25

  • 7 am - 8:30 am: Open Table
  • 9:30 am: Sunday Service - Zoom or Facebook

Pastoral Care
Talk with Stephen
Could you use a prayer or a listening ear? Do you have ideas you'd like to share? Although our offices are closed, Pastor Stephen is available to talk by phone or via Zoom. If you'd like to find a time to talk with Stephen, you can call Alison at 707-579-2604 or email Stephen directly at sshaver@incarnationsantarosa.org.

Need Support?
If you know of anyone, including yourself, who could use a communion visit or a prayer, please call the church office (707-579-2604) or email alison@incarnationsantarosa.org
 
If you have a pastoral emergency after hours or on weekends, please call the church office (number above) and follow the prompts for the Priest-on-Call.
Church of the Incarnation | incarnationsantarosa.org