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~ the eSPIRE Newsletter ~
November 12, 2023
After Pentecost: Proper 27
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Wednesdays Alive! Service, Supper, and Class Cancelled Tonight
Due to Clergy Conference in Flat Rock, NC
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Our clergy team is in Flat Rock, NC, this week for the diocesan clergy conference, and unfortunately they will NOT be back in time to lead our weekly Wednesdays Alive! service, so we are canceling service, supper, and C.S. Lewis class tonight. Children's choirs will meet as usual, and the Rector’s Bible Study (tomorrow at noon) will go on as usual. We will see you next Wednesday, November 15, for our regular Wednesdays Alive! lineup (Chef Connie Stahl will be cooking up some delicious chicken marbella!). Thank you for your understanding! | |
Church Office Closed Friday in Observance of Veterans Day | |
In the event of a pastoral emergency while the church office is closed, please call the Rev. Bill Christian at (843) 327-0791. | |
Canned Food Drive for Star Gospel Mission
Drop off at the office this week or at church on Sunday
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As we join together this season to thank God for all our blessings, please consider filling a bag with some of the canned goods that Star Gospel Mission needs. One of St. Philip’s home mission ministry partners, Star Gospel transforms lives through Jesus Christ by compassionately providing resources for people experiencing hardships. It is the oldest Christian charity in Charleston.
Items needed (largest sizes preferred): green beans, peas, corn, mixed veggies, canned meats (tuna/chicken), tomato sauces, cabbage and other greens, large bags of rice, large bags of pasta, cornbread mix.
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Tuesday: ECW Fall Social with Dr. Amy Orr-Ewing
All women of the community are invited! Limited spots available.
5:00 p.m. Heavy hors d'oeuvres and mingling on the Parish House lawn
6:00 p.m. Program in the Parish Hall
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Join Every Church Woman for a fall social with guest speaker Dr. Amy Orr-Ewing. Amy will be guiding us toward Advent with reflections from her book Mary's Voice: Advent Reflections to Contemplate the Coming of Christ:
About the book: Find guidance through the advent season with the mother of Jesus and central figure in the story of Christmas, Mary. At Christmastime, we remember that an ordinary, young, poor, oppressed woman was chosen to play a significant and breakthrough role in the redemption of the world. It is no mistake that a woman gets to be a part of all this, and that her voice, her questions, her fears, and her actions matter.
Mary’s faith and her wisdom form an astonishing aspect of the story of how God became a person for the love of this world. And in our weary world that is waiting and longing for light, meaning, peace, and love, we can do as Mary did when she “treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.”
The evening will begin with a social hour on the Parish House lawn at 5:00 p.m., followed by a presentation from Dr. Orr-Ewing in the Parish Hall. Please let us know you're coming at the link below, and invite all women of the community to join us!
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Tuesday: Theology on Tap
Conversations about life and God for young adults
7:00 p.m. in the Whiskey Room at Henry's on the Market
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Advent Wreath Fellowship
Sunday, November 26 ~ 9:15 a.m. in the Parish Hall
(No Sunday School or Rector's Forum Sunday after Thanksgiving)
Join us for an Advent wreath fellowship! Sign up to receive a wreath kit (candles, greenery, and wire wreath frame), or bring your own ring and sign up for just candles and greens.
Breakfast treats and coffee and tea will be provided to sustain you!
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55+ Outing to Crèche Festival and Middleton Place
Thursday, November 30 ~ meeting at 8:30 at the church
Get ready for Advent with a peaceful visit to the Crèche Festival at Mepkin Abbey with your St. Philip’s family! Then enjoy lunch at Oscar’s in Summerville and head to beautiful Middleton Place before taking the coach back to St. Philip’s. Call the church office at (843) 722-7734 or click the link below to register.
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Mere Anglicanism Conference
January 18–20, 2024
Charleston Music Hall
Speaking the Truth in love is a scriptural mandate for Christians, yet our culture today often sees Truth and Love as incompatible. In seeking to engage a hurting world, how can the Church share the Truth of God's Word that makes for human flourishing while speaking from a place of deep empathy and compassion and humility? World-class theologians and scholars will help us engage this challenge both philosophically and practically at this year's conference.
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Young Artist Donates Painting to St. Philip’s
by Dorothy Lancaster, Director of Ministry to Children and Families
As Director of Ministry to Children and Families, I am blessed to have firsthand knowledge of how precious, talented, and gifted the children at St. Philip’s are! On a weekly basis, these kiddos amaze me with their thoughtfulness and their ability to learn and grow spiritually.
Recently, one of our parishioners blessed my socks off! Cate Stratos (age 5) and her mother, Callie, appeared in the doorway of the Children’s Church room with a gift Cate wanted to share with her St. Philip’s family. Cate painted this wonderful picture of St. Philip’s Church and had it on her heart to share it with the ministers and all of us at St. Philip’s. This special young lady already knows what it means to use all her gifts and talents for the Lord. Of course, all of the clergy and staff were blown away by her kindness and skill at our office staff meeting when I shared the painting last week.
Thank you, Cate, for blessing us all in this special way! Rest assured that her artwork will be proudly displayed in the Parish House for all to enjoy.
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House of Prayer: November Prayer Points
by Frenchie Richards, St. Philip’s Prayer Ministry
"My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations.” ––Isaiah 56:7
“Enter into His gates with thanksgiving and into His courts with praise.”
––Psalm 100:4
Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone!
Answered Prayers and Thanksgivings:
1. For the large number of children who turned out for acolyte training on October 29. 2. For the $12 million already committed for the Shine the Light capital campaign. 3. For those who attended the Spiritual Warfare teaching. 4. For the water purification system sponsored by St. Philip’s and installed in Rwanda. 5. For the owner of Henry’s for providing space for Theology on Tap and Mark Finlay’s men’s group. 6. For Guv Gottshalk's witness at the men’s luncheon. 7. For the staff at St. Philip’s and all that they do. 8. For the Wednesday Alive worship and our worship team. 9. For the 3000 teens that gathered on the football field in Hot Springs, AR, to worship and pray together. 10. For the successful spiritual gifts class. 11. For the large turnout for the annual Prayer Breakfast.
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Avian Photo Shoot
Thank you to Nancy Egleston for sharing these beautiful photos she took last week!
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Home and World Mission Updates | |
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St. Philip's Raises Over $1,000 for Lowcountry Pregnancy Center
There's still time to donate!
Team St. Philip's put on their walking shoes on Saturday to help Lowcountry Pregnancy, one of our home mission partners, reach their $200,000 goal, which would help them in their efforts to provide free pregnancy testing, counseling, life-affirming ultrasounds, parenting classes, and essential baby supplies for mothers and fathers in our community. They fell $60,000 short of their goal, but you can still help them reach it if you'd like!
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The Angel Trees Will Be
Lighting Up the Narthex Soon!
The Home Missions Team humbly and joyfully invites you to take part in the St. Philip’s Angel Tree project, which will offer hope and encouragement to those in need in our community. This year, three of our ministry partners will be represented on the Angel Trees: Lowcountry Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA), Lowcountry Pregnancy Center, and Star Gospel Mission.
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International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church: November 12
by Tammy Gottshalk, World Missions Committee
“Remember those who are in prison as if you were in prison with them. Remember those who are suffering as if you were suffering with them.” ––Hebrews 13:3
According to New Wineskins, an Anglican organization whose mission is “to advance the Kingdom of God by mobilizing Anglicans for authentic, cross-cultural partnership around the world,” more than 260 million Christians live in places where they experience high levels of persecution, just because they follow Jesus––1 in 8 believers worldwide! If those of us who follow Christ are to follow Hebrews 13:3, we need to be more aware of the plight of the persecuted church and be better equipped to support our faithful brothers and sisters around the world. But what can we do? What can I do in Charleston that could possibly help someone being persecuted for their faith in North Korea, Iran, or Nigeria?
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Regular Weekly Services/Classes | |
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This Morning: Morning Prayer
Wednesdays at 8:00 a.m. in the Chapel
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This Morning: Moms' Bible Study:
The Book of James
Wednesdays at 9:00 a.m. in the youth room
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TOMORROW: The Rector's Bible Study
12 noon in the Parish Hall
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Schedule Change:
Youth Group in Recess This Weekend
Regular weekly meetings resume November 17 and 19
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This Sunday's Service and Class Information | | |
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The Rev. Jeffrey S. Miller is preaching at our services of Holy Eucharist at 8:15 a.m. and Morning Prayer with the children's choirs at 10:30 a.m. Sunday school for children of all ages begins at 9:15 a.m., and adult classes, including the Rector's Forum, begin at 9:30 a.m. | |
The Best-Laid Plans of Mice | |
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With the planned absence of our clergy team this week, the rest of the staff had a lot of questions about how our weekly staff meeting would go: Who would sit at the head of the table? Who would lead the prayers? Who would read Sunday’s gospel? Would there in fact be mimosas?
It turns out that it's harder than you might think to get a room full of church staffers to volunteer to lead the prayers at the beginning of the meeting (but thank you to the resident preacher's daughter for reassuring us that any of us were technically qualified since nothing was being consecrated––we nonetheless read them in unison). Dorothy Lancaster had ZERO qualms about taking Jeff Miller's seat at the head of the table. Chris Walchesky did a commendable job of reading Matthew 25:1–13. And no. There were no mimosas.
If you follow St. Philip's on social media, you already knew about about our unsupervised staff meeting (and unfortunate lack of mimosas). But if you don't, why don't you take a minute right now to give us a follow so that you, too, can be among the first to hear about schedule changes, special events, and how the mice play when the cats are away?
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Important Dates
November 10 ~ Church office closed in observance of Veterans Day
November 12 ~ Canned Food Drive
November 14 ~ ECW Fall Dinner with Dr. Amy Orr-Ewing
November 22 ~ Church office closes at 1:00 p.m., no Wednesdays Alive! service, supper, class (office reopens Monday at 8:30 a.m.)
November 22 ~ No inSPIRE/eSPIRE or Wednesdays Alive! Thanksgiving week
November 23 ~ Thanksgiving Day Holy Eucharist (9:00 a.m.)
November 26 ~ Vestry Nomination Deadline
November 26 ~ Advent Wreath Fellowship (9:15 a.m. in the Parish Hall, no Sunday school or Rector's Forum)
November 30 ~ 55+ Outing (Crèche Festival at Mepkin Abbey, Middleton Place)
December 8 ~ ECW Advent Luncheon (12 noon)
December 9 ~ Advent Drop-In at the Rectory (3:00-6:00 p.m.)
December 10 ~ Lessons and Carols (10:30 a.m.), Wassail Bowl (about noon)
December 15 ~ The Greening of the Church
January 18–20, 2024 ~ Mere Anglicanism Conference
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We pray for the sick: Beau Brogdon, Diane Christensen, Karen Collins, Silas Cressman, Steve Darling, Sally Fayard, Mary Forbes, Pat Gould, Steve Graudin, Emily Meyer Hall, George Hooks, Ken King, Marvin Kirkland, Nancy Love, Stephen Lutz, Rena Mack, Rene Meyer, Eric Panizza, Lou Parker, Meredith Repik, Fran Sanders, Pete Sperr, Ginny Townsend, and Lindsey Wing.
We grieve with and pray for the family of Wayland Henry Cato, Jr., who died on November 3.
We grieve with and pray for the family of Jean V. Carlton, who died on November 7.
We pray for our expectant parents: Becca Baird and Louis Duffie, Liesl and Luke Cressman, Jill and Alton Phillips.
We pray for protection for those serving in the armed forces: Becca Baird, Janie Baird, Henry Clayton, David Daughtridge, Eric Gaines, Andrew Kane, Quin Kane, Horry Kerrison, Frazier Kulze, John Mason, Philip Middleton III, Jackson Miller, Edward Pritchard, Nathaniel Rollings, and David Scott.
We pray for our home and world missions: Lowcountry Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Lowcountry Pregnancy Center, Star Gospel Mission, 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, whose blessed Son was manifested that he might destroy the works of the devil, and make us the sons of God, and heirs of eternal life: Grant us, we beseech thee, that, having this hope, we may purify ourselves, even as he is pure; that, when he shall appear again with power and great glory, we may be made like unto him in his eternal and glorious kingdom; where with thee, O Father, and thee, O Holy Ghost, he liveth and reigneth, ever one God, world without end. Amen.
Readings for Sunday:
- I Thessalonians 4:13-18
- Psalm 70
- Matthew 25:1-13
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ST. PHILIP'S CHURCH
142 Church Street | Charleston, SC 29401
(843) 722-7734, www.stphilipschurchsc.org
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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