~ the eSPIRE Newsletter ~
July 3, 2022
The Fourth Sunday After Pentecost
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Making Waves at VBS
by Dorothy Lancaster, Director of Ministry to Children and Families
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We know that a church is not the building but the people who come together to worship and serve alongside one another, and this year’s Vacation Bible School was a beautiful representation of just that. Children, youth, young adults, parents, grandparents, and loving members of our congregation all came together June 13-16 to help us have the Very Best (week of) Summer!
We had approximately 60 children and 25 youth and adult volunteers begin each day upstairs in the Parish Hall for worship led by Father Andrew and his talented assistant, May Fitzgerald, along with the Aloha Hula Girls (aka Chloë Gilbert and Lilly Johnson). After worship, the children got to experience live theater at its finest. David Gilbert wrote, directed, and narrated a hilarious and Gospel-centered skit to go with our theme, “Make Waves: What You Do Today Can Change the World Around You.”
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Welcome Aboard, Marc Collins! |
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The clergy and Vestry of St. Philip’s Church are pleased to announce that Marc Collins has come on board as our new director of audiovisual content!
Marc will oversee all aspects of our audiovisual production, providing support for all worship services, ministry events, and special events, and ensuring that our ministries continue to grow in effectiveness, quality, and excellence as we work to spread the Gospel in Charleston and well beyond.
About Marc:
Lowcountry native Marc Collins grew up in Summerville before heading to Boston in 1980 to attend Berklee College of Music. He worked as a professional musician and songwriter for 26 years, including 13 years playing saxophone and singing at the Carolina Opry. In 2006, Marc changed his path to focus on production and joined East Cooper Baptist Church, where he served as media director for 15 years. Now Marc is a freelance engineer who wears many hats: flying drones, producing videos, and doing AV installs.
Marc and his wife, Nancy, have four grown children and three grandchildren. Family is the most important aspect of his life. When he is not working, Marc enjoys fishing, hunting, and being with family. Marc is very excited to be a part of the growth and development of AV for St. Philip’s Church.
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Interested in joining Marc's team of volunteers? |
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Marc is looking for people to help on a rotating basis (about once a month) with audiovisual components during worship services, special events, and classes. Marc will provide any training necessary––no experience required! |
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Record Number of Donor Appointments at Summer Blood Drive! |
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As of Monday evening, June 27, the day before our summer Red Cross blood drive, St. Philippians, friends, and neighbors had filled 48 appointment slots, so we are on track to beat our previous record of 47 units collected, which we set in September. And what a time to be setting records––blood supply is at a 10-year low! Look for final numbers in the next inSPIRE.
Thank you to all who signed up and urged neighbors and coworkers to sign up, all who walked in, and all who brought family or friends along to donate with them! Thank you to the Home Missions Team for organizing the drive and coordinating all the volunteers needed the day of the drive. We are so blessed to have such a great crew managing all of those moving parts!
Bonner Cousins was one of the first donors to arrive. Home Missions Team members Swain Marion, Jennie Richardson, and Connie Rink (his daughter!) were on hand to check him in.
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Welcome Back, Passion Play Pilgrims! |
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Our “Renaissance and Reformation” pilgrims have returned! They had a beautiful journey on the Danube from Budapest to Passau, visiting Wittenberg, where Martin Luther nailed the ninety-five theses to the door of the castle church and ignited the Protestant Reformation, and seeing the world-famous Passion Play, which is performed just once every 10 years––the first performance was almost 400 years ago!
See lots of beautiful pictures and read all about their journey on Rachel Murphy’s travel blog at the link below!
Pictured: St. Philippians in front of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, where the 95 theses were affixed.
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Martha Vetter Update:
Rwanda Mission Postponed
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Thank you to all who prayed for protection for Martha as she was due to travel this month to Rwanda to visit one of our world mission partners, The Dufatanye Organization (DO), in Nyanza, Rwanda.
When Martha arrived at the airport on June 19, she learned that her flight had been “voided” due to a labor strike in Brussels, one of the cities she was due to fly through.
It took almost two hours, but the agent at the United counter was able to reschedule her flight for July 3, but that would have put her flying through Newark––an airport that has cancelled 30% of its flights and delayed hundreds more––on a busy holiday weekend.
“I simply did not have any room for error between my flights,” Martha shared in an email to the World Missions Committee last week. She ultimately rescheduled her ticket for January (saving herself $700 in the process!). “While I am disappointed not to go now,” wrote Martha, “I believe that the Lord is ordering my steps. I pray that I have made the right decision.”
Martha Vetter spent almost six years teaching Bible to 450 children at Sonrise School for Orphans in Rwanda. She serves on the board of directors of the Dufatanye Organization, one of St. Philip’s world mission partners, which empowers vulnerable communities through improved agricultural practices, health education, medical navigation, biblical teachings, and assistance to victims of genocide and AIDS.
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Teaching Position Open at St. Philip’s Preschool |
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St. Philip’s Preschool has an opening for a teaching position! This is a five-day, 8:15 until 12:15 commitment, from August through May. Please email preschool co-directors Lee Moore (lmoore@stphilipschurchsc.org) or Angela Clark (aclark@stphilipschurchsc.org) or call 843-722-7610 if you would like to apply.
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St. Philip’s Preschool offers a safe, loving, Christ-centered learning environment with a craft/activity-based curriculum for children ages three months through three years. |
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Theology on Tap Coming Up on Tuesday!
Certain Tuesdays at 7:00 p.m. at Henry's on the Market
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About Theology on Tap: Theology on Tap is a gathering for young adults in Charleston who long for meaningful conversation about life and God. We’ll be meeting again Tuesday, June 21, at 7:00 in the Whiskey Room at Henry’s on the Market for drinks (cash bar), apps (provided), and conversation. Next week's topic will be "Divine or Human: Where Did the Bible Come From and Can We Trust It?"
At each of our meetings, we welcome your questions, which you can submit anonymously through a texting app. Free parking at the church parking lot is available on a first-come, first-served basis. Bring a friend!
We will continue meeting through the summer, but note that we are straying occasionally from our biweekly schedule.
Summer Schedule:
- July 5
- July 26
- August 2
- August 16
- August 30
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Donations and Volunteers Needed at
Lowcountry Pregnancy Center
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Lowcountry Pregnancy Center, one of St. Philip’s Home Missions partners, is continuously in need of items. Current urgent needs are:
- Diaper (sizes 5 and 6)
- New or gently used children’s clothing (sizes 6 mos.–2T)
- Gift cards from Wal-Mart, Costco, and Amazon
Donations are gratefully accepted at Lowcountry Pregnancy Center or DAZZ Mondays–Thursdays:
Lowcountry Pregnancy Center
7481 Northside Dr., Suites B&C
North Charleston, SC 29420
DAZZ Charleston
1106 St. Andrews Blvd., Suite B
Charleston, SC 29407
Volunteers are also welcome and encouraged as a way of supporting LPC:
- LPC Baby Boutique volunteer needed on Thursdays
- Spanish-speaking volunteers needed Mondays and Wednesdays 1:00-4:00 p.m. for teaching parenting classes, counseling, and other opportunities for those fluent in Spanish.
Please contact Home Missions Team chair Jennie Richardson at jmerr3975@aol.com or (843) 364-2912 for further volunteer information, assistance with donation delivery, or answers to any Lowcountry Pregnancy Center questions.
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Please call the Rev. Bill Christian in the event of a pastoral emergency when the church office is closed: (843) 327-0791. |
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Prayer Request for the St. Philip's Choir |
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The St. Philip's Choir is heading to London in August to serve as the resident choir at St. Paul's Cathedral! They appreciate all the support you've given them by worshipping with them at evensong, donating to and attending the art auction in January, and more––and now, as they enter the final stretch before their journey and as they travel in August, they covet your prayer support.
O God, whom saints and angels delight to worship in heaven: Be ever present with your servants on earth who seek through art and music to perfect the praises of your people. Grant them even now true glimpses of your beauty, and make them worthy at length to behold it unveiled for evermore; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (Book of Common Prayer 2019, page 650)
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2022 New Wineskins Conference: One Mission
Ridgecrest Conference Center in Western NC––September 22-25, 2022
Speakers include Archbishop Foley Beach and our own Suzy McCall
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. For more information about the conference and to join other St. Philippians who are attending, please contact Susan Keller or Gerry McCord.
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Walking the Battlefields with the Rev. Jeffrey S. Miller
Antietam, Harpers Ferry, and Gettysburg––Limited Space Available!
September 12-16, 2022
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Connoisseurs Tours invites you to enjoy a specially curated tour of Civil War battle sites with the Rev. Jeffrey S. Miller as your guide! The battles of Antietam, Harpers Ferry, and the three-day Battle of Gettysburg marked a turning point not only in the course of the American Civil War, but also for the future of the United States of America. This journey will deepen your understanding of this monumental conflict that left no American untouched. In the evenings, unwind in comfort at carefully selected accommodations in the heart of this historic region.
Ready to book or learn more? Contact Connoisseurs Tours Guest Service Coordinator Chandler Scott at (800) 856-1045, ext. 4, or chandler@connoisseurstours.com. |
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This Week's Service Information |
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The Rev. Justin C. Hare will be preaching this Sunday at our services of Holy Communion at 8:15 and 10:30 a.m. |
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Batman Invites a Guest to Worship at St. Philip's |
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The St. Philip's staff was stumped last week when trying to figure out how to enter a visitor's information into our welcome workflow.
The visitor indicated he was the guest of a parishioner at the June 26 service. The parishioner's name is Batman.
It turns out that we do not have Batman listed in our database, so we have to assume that he goes by another name at church (before you ask, we don't have Bruce Wayne listed in our database either––which makes sense...that name is almost as well-known as Batman and would do his anonymity no favors!).
So Batman, if you're reading this, could you please contact the church office so we can note your connection to the visiting family?
If you follow St. Philip's on Facebook or Instagram, then you already knew that Batman was here in Charleston. If you don't follow St. Philip's...why not? Take a minute now to get connected so that you will always be among the first to hear about upcoming events, schedule changes, and the somewhat peculiar things that sometimes happen around the church office.
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Would You Like Someone to Pray With You? |
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To pray WITH someone:
Prayer appointments are available with trained prayer ministers for personal needs related to healing for physical, emotional, or spiritual needs. All meetings are confidential and can be arranged by contacting Juanita Orvin ( juanitaorvin@gmail.com) or Frenchie Richards frichards7@aol.com.
To ask for prayer FOR someone:
Call Suzanne McCord, head of the prayer chain, and she will pass your request on to members of the chain:
Both options are always confidential.
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Important Dates
July 5 ~ Theology on Tap (7:00 p.m. at Henry’s on the Market)
July 8 ~ Endless Summer Youth Group begins
September 11 ~ Rally Sunday (Sunday school resumes)
October 28-30 ~ Parish Retreat at Kanuga
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Never miss a sermon!
Click below to subscribe to our Sermons podcast.
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Membership Directory
Are you looking for a fellow parishioner's contact information? Our directory is online! Click the "My St. Philip's" button on our homepage, stphilipschurchsc.org, to log in or sign up for an account. And for easy access on your phone, download the Church Life app!
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We pray for the sick: Arthur Applegate, Robert Bowles, Jean Carlton, Sally Fayard, Elizabeth Flowers, Mary Forbes, Robert Gould, Glenna Greenslit, Mary Anne Hanckel, Kathryn Heikes, Susan Hemminger, George Hunter, Robert Johnson, Robert Kizer, Claudia Kolster, Lisa Lawton, John Legare, Connor Lowndes, Molly Margaret O’Quinn, Baby Zan Murphey, John Murray, Ulrika O’Neil, Bill Phillipps, Alfred Pinckney, Valerie Rouillard, Barbara Sainsbury, Fran Sanders, Sydney Severance, Pete Sperr, Margaret Swanson, Lindsey Wing, and Harrison Woods.
We grieve with and pray for the family of Maffett Warren Dowd, who died on June 14.
We grieve with and pray for the family of Robert Edward Lee Holt III who died on June 14.
We pray for our expectant parents: Anna Gray and Ralph Baker, Felicia and Tim Evans, and Carter and Foxy Foxworth.
We pray for protection for Becca Baird, Chris and Julia Beasley, Graham Blunt, Henry Clayton, Ben Colyer, David Daughtridge, Morgan and Mason Herring, Andrew Kane, Quin Kane, Horry Kerrison, Frazier Kulze, John Mason, Zach McFadden, Philip Middleton III, Jackson Miller, Edward Pritchard, Nathaniel Rollings, David Scott, and John Self serving in our Armed Forces.
We pray for our home and world missions: Star Gospel Mission, Lowcountry Pregnancy Center, Suzy McCall and LAMB, for the medical missions to Honduras, for ministry to victims of genocide and AIDS in Rwanda, for the Persecuted Church, for Anglican Frontier Missions, for Uganda Christian University Partners, for Water Mission and the Global Water Center, and for St. Jean Baptiste, our sister church, and the schools in Haiti.
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Collect for Sunday:
O God, who hast taught us to keep all thy commandments by loving thee and our neighbor: Grant us the grace of thy Holy Spirit, that we may be devoted to thee with our whole heart, and united to one another with pure affection; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the same Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Readings for Sunday:
- Galatians 6:6-18
- Psalm 66:1-8
- Luke 10:1-24
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ST. PHILIP'S CHURCH
142 Church Street | Charleston, SC 29401
Church Office Hours
8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday
8:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. Friday
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