Dear Friends, 

I am so excited for the next few weeks at church! Having a quieter time in summer is so sweet, but having you all together, at the same time, in the same place on a Sunday morning is so joyful!

This Sunday our children return to Sunday School and Youth Group kicks off. The following weekend we have "Start Up Sunday," but the action really begins on Saturday with our Parish Clean Up, rehearsal for our Multi-Generational Choir, and training for Altar Guild and adult Acolytes. That will prepare us to have a great day on Sunday as we gather for worship and enjoy a celebratory coffee hour--we hope you'll come to that at 10 am no matter which service you attend--followed by an ALL PARISH PHOTO! You can read about all of that and more in the articles below.

Now, two boring but important announcements about Sunday mornings:

As we enter the program year, we will start services right on the hour and begin a new practice regarding announcements.

Starting on time allows us all to know what to expect, especially any visitors or newcomers, and it is especially important at the 9 am so that we leave plenty of time for our children to explore and learn in Sunday School. As always, YOU can be as late you like (unless you're serving in the service), and no one will judge if you slip into your pew mid-service!

All announcements should be made at all three services (you can do it yourself, recruit other members of your ministry, or ask clergy to do it) and be included in the weekly e-news. Also, please plan to make announcements--live and/or in the e-news--beginning three Sundays before an event.

See you in church!

Faithfully, Suzanne+

P. S. Sigh. Tuck pointing of the Parish Hall delayed. See article below for more information.

We'll celebrate the “start up” of the program year with a celebratory coffee hour and an “All-Parish Photo” taken at 10:55 am in front of the church! 

Worship and Service at All Saints

Start-Up Sunday Multi-Generational Choir!

Practice September 16. 9 - 10 am

As we start another program year at All Saints, we'd like to commemorate the occasion with a multi-generational choir. If you sing or play a musical instrument, we need you!

We'll gather on Saturday, September 16 from 9:00-10:00am for a rehearsal, then perform on Sunday, September 17 at the 9:00am service.

For more information, you can contact Colin.

Interested in serving as an Acolyte?

Acolytes - adults and youth ages 9 and up - serve an important role in our 9:00 and 11:00am liturgies. Acolytes help lead our processions in and out of the sanctuary and serve at the altar as we prepare for Holy Communion. 

We'll hold a training for those wishing to be ADULT acolytes on Saturday, September 16 from 9:00-10:30am in the church. 

Training for YOUTH interested in serving as acolytes will be on Saturday, September 30 from 10:30am - 12:00pm and again on Thursday, October 5 from 4:30-6:00pm. 

Please sign up here. Contact Courtney with any questions.

Fall Clean Up Day! September 16. 10:30 - Noon

We'll provide the cleaning supplies, lists of tasks, and lunch. All we need is YOU! Join us on Saturday, September 16 beginning at 10:30am in the church. We'll clean until about 12 and then have a quick lunch.

Please RSVP to Courtney if you plan to attend so we have enough sandwiches. 

We Need YOU!

Altar Guild Training: Saturday, September 16. 10:30 am - Noon.

Altar Guild is one of the most important ministries at any church; without it, Sunday services wouldn’t happen. Altar Guild members make sure that we have the correct readings at the lectern; set up all the items needed for the Eucharist; clean up after services, and more. This is a meaningful, even prayerful, way to serve the church and one another and is especially good for folks who like order, beauty, and working behind the scenes (plus, you get to participate in all the sacristy chit-chat!).

We have relied on a small, faithful group of folks to make sure that worship happens Sunday after Sunday, and we need more folks to ensure this work continues. 

Serving on Altar Guild requires arriving 30 minutes before the service and staying 20 minutes after the service. Ideally, members serve roughly every four weeks. 

Interested? Plan to come to the Altar Guild training on Saturday, September 16 from 10:30-Noon. Can’t make that training? We’ll be glad to provide an individual training for you! 

Contact Suzanne at [email protected] to RSVP or for more information.

Calling all percussionists!

As part of our worship services this fall, we'll be singing a spirited new setting of Glory to God which would only benefit from the addition of percussion. If you'd be willing to play percussion, please either stop by and see Colin after services on the weekend or send him an email.

Formation and Fellowship

THIS Sunday: Church School is Back!

We can’t wait to welcome All Saints children back to the Atrium for the 2023-24 year.

If you’re the grown-up of a child who'd like to join our Church School, register for our free program and learn more by emailing Polly Tangora, Children’s Formation Coordinator.

Classes start Sunday, September 10 at 10:00am for returning and older students in Atrium I (3 to 6 years old), Atrium II (6 to 9), and Atrium III (9 to 12).

New 3- to 6-year-olds (and their grown-ups) should join us the following weekend, Saturday, September 16 from 9:30–11:00am, for snacks and a gentle orientation to Atrium I.

All Saints Youth Group Kick-Off Party: Sunday, September 10

The new school year is just around the corner, and so is another year of the All Saints Youth Group (ASYG)! We'll be hosting a kick off party on Sunday, September 10 from 3:30-5:30pm in the parish hall. Anyone in grades 7-12 is welcome! Join us for games, snacks, and hanging out with friends, old and new. We'll also be brainstorming what kinds of things ASYG wants to do this year, so be sure to join us so we can make youth group the most fun for everyone. 

Parents: please fill out this form if your child is interested in joining ASYG. We'll also have paper copies at the first meeting. If you have any questions, please write us at [email protected].

Save the Date: Parables at the Annex!

Wednesdays at 7 pm: September 20, September 27, and October 4

All Saints’ Annex, aka O’Shaughnessy’s Public House (corner of Ravenswood & Wilson)

Come have a drink and learn about and discuss some favorite parables. We’ll be led by Olivia Stewart Lester, professor of New Testament and Early Christian at Loyola University and former Yale Divinity classmate of Suzanne’s. Parables are confounding and enlightening: what do we think they tell us about God, about faith, and about ourselves, and how are they, ultimately, subversive and radical? 

Come to any or all of the sessions!

Lunch for Adults Considering Baptism:

Sunday, September 24 at 12:30pm

If you would like to learn more about how adults prepare for baptism here at All Saints, please join us for lunch in late September. This is a chance to learn about the history and theology of baptism and the process of preparing to be baptized at the Easter Vigil here at All Saints. This is a no-pressure meeting—come to lunch for fellowship and learning.

Interested? RSVP HERE.

LAST CHANCE! Church Database Housekeeping

As summer draws to a close and the school year begins, we're doing our own getting ready for the program year by cleaning up our database. If you haven’t done so yet, please take a moment to complete this brief form. It will allow you to update contact information and choose a status that best describes your relationship to All Saints. For example, you may have moved away or no longer attend. You may think of yourself as a friend of All Saints, but not someone engaged as a regular attendee or member. Please choose what makes sense for you.

The form will also ask permission to include you/your family in our parish directory. We will not share this information with any other entity. Additionally, if you choose to be included in the directory, you'll be able to access our online directory by creating a password-protected login. This will allow you to search for contact information (email, phone, address) for other persons in the directory and for them to search for you. Your financial information is never visible to others.

We'd like to print an updated version of our directory later this fall and want it to be as complete as possible - with pictures! Any directory becomes outdated as of its day of publication, but we know that currently, we have a lot of information that is either incorrect or incomplete. 

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to reach out to Courtney. Please complete the survey by Friday, September 8. And thank you for helping us to update our database!

2023-24 Church School Events

Events calendars for the 2023-24 school year can be found in the church school wing. Or stay informed using our private, grown-ups-only All Saints Atrium Facebook group (email Polly if you’re not yet a member).

All Saints Book Club

Summer 2023

The All Saints Book Club meets on the second Thursday of the month at 7:30pm on Zoom. If you're not a regular attendee, email Mike Burke at [email protected] for a meeting invite.

Our next meeting will be on September 14 to discuss the last of three books tied to the "Black Lives Matter" initiative: Three Girls from Bronzeville by Dawn Turner.

The All Saints Book Club supports the book sanctuary initiative. We plan to include at least one banned book each year in our 2023 reading plan. 

Tuck pointing Delayed

Unfortunately, we've run into some delays as we await stones from the quarry to repair he north-facing wall of our parish hall and delays in getting permits. The front doors of the Parish Hall will be removed soon to be rehabilitated and refinished to their original charm. Once the doors are removed and replaced with "blanks," the entrance to the Parish Hall on Wilson will be unusable for about four weeks. Please use the side door from the ramp to enter the Parish Hall during that time.

Thank you for your patience during this process; the tuck pointing should return our Wilson facade to its earlier glory!

Outreach and Justice

Help refugees in Chicago!

Refugee Community Connections reports that refugees are arriving every day and that bedding remains in high demand! If you can, please order items from the Amazon wish list.

Before you know it, these arrivals will need winter coats too. If you have clean children's winter coats, let Annie Logue know.

Your help so far has been incredible! Almost 300 backpacks were distributed to help kids get back to school, in part due to your amazing generousity!

Breakfast for Refugees: Sign Up to Help!

All Saints is stepping up to help provide breakfasts for refugees staying at the 20^th District Police Station at 5400 N Lincoln Ave. Our “trial run” for this endeavor will be on Sunday, September 24^th.  

Here’s the initial plan:

• Someone shops for ingredients. These can be donated, or you can submit receipts for reimbursement.
• People meet on Saturday before the Sunday we deliver breakfast to cook and assemble the breakfasts, which are stored at All Saints.
• Someone drops the breakfasts off at the police station on Sunday morning before 9 a.m.

We need folks who are interested in donating money to support this endeavor, shopping for ingredients, prepping / cooking on a Saturday, and picking up and then delivering the breakfasts on Sunday morning.

If you are interested in being part of the Breakfast Crew, please fill out this FORM by September 10. We would like to develop a list of interested folks as we plan for our future participation. 

Did you know you can listen to All Saints sermons on Apple Podcasts?

www.allsaintschicago.org

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