The Bridge - December 3, 2021

The Bridge

December 3, 2021

The Mission of St. John’s is to be a community of God’s people who heal brokenness, build bridges, and exemplify borderless kindness.

BLUE CHRISTMAS SERVICE — Wednesday, December 8 at 7:00 PM. These past 20 months have been filled with many losses, both personal and of the community. This service will allow us to grieve together for our losses and draw on the promise of God's love in the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The service will be in person and on Zoom. Please click this button for access to the virtual service:

Blue Christmas service

Calendar of Events

Advent, Christmas, Epiphany

(updated)

Wednesday, December 8 - Blue Christmas service (7:00 pm)
Sunday, December 12 - Celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe (procession at 12:30 pm)
Saturday, December 18 - La Posada
(bilingual, 6:30 pm)
Sunday, December 19 - Greening of the Church
(2:15 pm, refreshments)
Friday, December 24 - Christmas Eve
5:00 pm Holy Eucharist Rite II with music (bilingual)
10:30 pm Choral presentation
11:00 pm Holy Eucharist Rite II with music (English)
Saturday, December 25 - Christmas Day
9:00 am Holy Eucharist with music (English)
Sunday, December 26
Regular service schedule
Sunday, January 2 - Feast of St. John the Evangelist
9:00 am Holy Eucharist Rite I in English
(no music)
1:00 pm Bilingual Holy Eucharist
(special lessons and music)
2:15 pm Parish Potluck luncheon
Sunday January 9 – Feast of the Epiphany observed
Sunday, January 16 – MLK Jr. Day observed
Regular service schedule with special liturgy and prayers

Consider This

"It can be especially challenging this time of year to make good decisions in these two areas of wellness [Care for the Body and Resilience]. Most of us find that we have to be particularly intentional about caring for our physical wellness and managing our stress as we negotiate the holiday season.

There is a reciprocal relationship between stress and impatience. High stress levels can lead to being more impatient—with ourselves and others. Likewise, being impatient can lead to higher stress levels, which can, in turn, drain our energy.

In [the] Living Compass resources, we often talk about how our faith acts as our compass in life. When we make our faith our compass in all areas of wellness, we will experience the peace that God intends for us. During this time of year, there are many other “compasses” competing to guide our decisions. The pull of our consumer culture can have a strong influence on us, as can the pull of our families, friends, and others. Other people’s ideas of how we “should” be celebrating Christmas often differ from our own, and if we are not mindful, we may find our levels of stress and impatience growing."

"Strength and Patience"

Living Compass, December 2, 2021

Worship at St. John's

Sunday Services

9:00 am Holy Communion Rite I (in person)

10:30 am Holy Communion Rite II (in person and Zoom)

1:00 pm Santa Eucaristía, Rito II (en persona)

To participate in our virtual Sunday services, you do not need to have a Zoom account or download Zoom. Simply click the link to join.

You may also join the service by telephone -

dial (346) 248-7799 and enter the meeting ID when prompted.

Meeting ID: 879 9502 6837

Zoom link for Holy Eucharist Rite II

The video recording of the 10:30 a.m. English service will be posted on the St. John's Facebook page, YouTube, and the St. John's website later in the day. Additionally, recordings of the English and Spanish sermons will be available. Links to the recordings will be posted on our website (www.austinstjohns.org).

Virtual Coffee and Fellowship

Our virtual coffee "hour" provides a time to greet those who do not feel comfortable attending in person. Stay on Zoom when the service ends or click on this button to say hello:

Coffee and Fellowship

Coffee Hour and fellowship has resumed in the Parish Hall! There is a sign up sheet next to the coffee maker - let us know when you want to make coffee!

St. John's Notices and Activities

Let your friends know about St. John's

A simple thing we all can do each week to help our friends see if St. John's might be a good place to support their spiritual exploration is to like and share our Sunday Service Zoom link and video recordings on our St. John's Facebook page. There is also lots of good information on the St. John's website. If you have any questions about sharing your experience with others, please contact Mthr. Minerva or 512.912.7913.

If you notice an empty space at St. John's which was previously filled by someone you saw and visited with regularly, please reach out to them and invite them to return to St. John's! You can also let Mthr. Minerva know about them; she will be happy to connect with those who have not yet returned to our services and other activities.

Christian Formation at St. John's

Cornerstone Literary Circle

Beginning January 5, 2022 - Wednesdays, 5:30 pm - Zoom

NEW!

Many participants in the recent Sacred Ground class were interested in continuing their learning though a book study group. Cornerstone Literary Circle was developed to facilitate this book reading and discussion of other’s perspectives.

Cornerstone will meet weekly on Wednesdays from 5:30pm-6:30pm on Zoom and is open to anyone who is interested. The first meeting will be January 5^th.

Our first book will be Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates. A paperback version of the book is available on Amazon and at Bookpeople.

Please contact Laurie Williams if you are interested and watch for news in the Bridge and the Tuesday Christian Formation email as January 5^th gets closer.

Wednesday Evening Bible Study - Zoom

Wednesdays at 7:00pm

Our Advent series, Commitment to Hope, will continue on December 15.

The link to join the class is here:

Wednesday Evening Bible Study

Thursday Morning Bible Study - Hybrid

Thursdays at 10:00 a.m. - Hybrid

To participate in person, join us at 9:55am in the Parish Hall. To participate virtually, enter Zoom meeting number 821 5253 7149 in the Zoom app or click this button to enter the waiting room for the meeting:

Thursday Morning Bible Study

If you want more information, please contact Elaine Jackson .

(please refer to our website www.austinstjohns.org or to the Christian Formation email sent every Tuesday for more information and links)

Wednesday Morning Grounds Crew

There are projects to be done all year, and your participation would be very welcome! We start about 8:00 a.m. and finish about noon.

Labyrinth Report: What are those flags?

Back in February, another casualty of the big winter storm was our Labyrinth. Several of the limestone blocks outlining the path froze and then shattered. Each of the orange flags you might have noticed sticking up along the path marked blocks that had to be replaced. We started with 60+ flags, but thanks to the hard work of the grounds committee, we were able to either glue back together or totally replace many of the blocks. Currently, about 18 blocks still need to be replaced. We should be finished by the new year.

If you have questions about this ministry, please contact Hal Hughes.

Labyrinth Community Garden

We are officially in the homestretch! Our 30-day campaign ends soon on December 15^th. If you haven't donated yet, this is the perfect time to support us. Every donation, no matter how small, helps us inch closer to our goal. Thanks for your support.

Your support TODAY can help us have our best garden season ever next year.

You can learn more about our work and support us here:

https://donate.seedmoney.org/6371/labyrinth-community-garden

Thanks very much for helping our campaign reach its goal!

Our goal is to raise $1200 this year so we can build more beds. Please direct your questions to Hal Hughes or Patty Arnold.

Labyrinth Community Garden Pantry Plots

One of the plots in the Labyrinth Community Garden is called the “pantry plot.” Here, we grow food for the Vincentian Family Center food pantry. Recently, we were able to harvest the first of the fall/winter greens which were planted two months ago. We filled ten grocery bags (22 pounds) with Bok Choy, Mustard, Chinese Cabbage, Tatsoi, and Komatsuna. That half of the bed will be replanted tomorrow. The other half of the bed has three kinds of broccoli which will be harvested towards the end of January.

If you are interested in obtaining a bed for you and your family, please contact Patty Arnold.

COVID-19 Related Information

click on the image to access the Austin Public Health website

Caring for Each Other

For Prayer and Pastoral Care

If you find that your situation is causing financial, spiritual, or emotional difficulties, or if you are in need of food, do not hesitate to call Deacon Victoria (512-297-5953) or email Mthr. Minerva (RevMinerva@austinstjohns.org).

We are a church family; when a family member needs assistance we want to try and help that member.

Our Gathering Policy

St. John’s requires masks at all indoor worship services. Masks are optional at all other events on the St. John's campus. Based on the CDC guidelines, all persons who are not fully vaccinated are encouraged to wear masks while indoors.

St. John's gathering policy continues to be updated as conditions change relative to the COVID pandemic. St. John's holds the health and safety of our community as a top priority.

Your understanding and cooperation are very much appreciated.

CLICK HERE TO DONATE TO ST. JOHNS;THANK YOU!

Please visit our website (Austin St. John's)

for other ways to make a donation.

Please send mail to the church post office box

St. John’s Episcopal Church

P. O. Box 81493

Austin, TX 78708-1493

Stories and Photos for The Bridge

You are invited to send photos and stories about yourself, your family, and our parish for inclusion in The Bridge. As we come back together, let's share our experiences! Please send your ideas, stories, and photos to Fay Jones, (newsletter editor) by 12:00 pm on Wednesdays.

Running event announcements two weeks prior to the date is recommended.