The Bridge

March 10, 2023

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

Events and Announcements

Daylight Savings

Note that we spring forward one hour this week, Saturday at midnight.

Parish Hall Report

Thanks to Kevin Flegal for his hard work on the situation in the parish hall. We have heard from insurance. They will now be testing and will cover any asbestos abatement in the section of the hall which flooded. The parish hall will be closed until repairs can be made. In the meantime, please keep St. John’s and the parish hall in your prayers.

LENTEN SERIES

What: Lenten Series - Glittering Vices: A New Look at the Seven Deadly Sins and Their Remedies by Rebecca Konyndyk

When: Wednesdays, March 15, 22, 29

Time: 5:30 - 6:30 Meal

6:30 - 7:00 Service

7:00 - 8:00 Book Study

Where: Meal - Narthex

Service and Book Study - Sanctuary

How: St. John's Lenten Series will focus on studying the book Glittering Vices: A New Look at the Seven Deadly Sins and Their Remedies by Rebecca Konyndyk de Young. This book is available on Kindle and on Audible and in the Austin Library. We invite all of you to join us for an interesting conversation. Please call Mother Minerva if you are unable to find a copy of the book.

Join via the Zoom App:

Meeting ID: 885 4740 0808

Passcode: 571626

Or join via phone: dial 346 248 7799 and enter the following information when prompted:

Meeting ID: 885 4740 0808

Passcode: 571626

Wednesday Lenten Series

LENTEN BOOKS

We have Lenten books in the Narthex that you can take home to read on your own or with your family. These books are available in English and Spanish. Share with your family, friends, and neighbors.

Monthly Family Afternoon

2nd Sunday of every month. Our next Family Event will be this Sunday, March 12 at 2:15 p.m. The goal is to have family friendly events once a month which will range from educational activities to fun activities. This event will allow us to get to know each other better and for our kids to have a good time.

Legislative Action Day

March 21st

REGISTER NOW!!!

Central Texas Interfaith & Texas IAF

Tuesday March 21st

10:00 am - 3:00pm

Legislative Action Day - At the Texas Capitol

Join Central Texas Interfaith and the Texas IAF Network Organizations in person on Tuesday March 21st from 10:00 am - 3:00 pm.

Hundreds of leaders from the Texas IAF Network will unite to advance key issues that affect our families throughout the state such as workforce development, education funding, gun safety, healthcare access and Chapter 313. The day will include training sessions on the issues, and we will break up into groups to meet with our representatives and senators to discuss the issues on our statewide agenda.

1x1 Conversations,

March 26, 2023

Get to know your congregation - St. John's will have another day of one-on-one relational meetings.

Join us at St. John's - we'll pair you up for an opportunity to get to know one another better, build and strengthen relationships and find ways to act together to build a stronger church community.

Sunday, March 26th:

9:45 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.

Noon - 1:00 p.m.

Our Community

174th Diocesan Council Wrap Up

The 174th Diocesan Council was a tremendous opportunity for fellowship, worship, and handling the annual business of the Diocese of Texas, with well over 900 registered and in attendance. This year's meeting was historic in more ways than one. It was our first opportunity to fully gather in the COVID-19 endemic setting, not to mention to unite as one with our North Region family. It was symbolic, it was emotional, and we celebrated the full spectrum of that collective energy, together - as family. It was a joyous occasion and a blessing to our diocese.

Click Here for More Info

Farmshare Austin

Sunday, from

11 a.m.-1 p.m.

Come shop for fresh, delicious, and affordable fruits and vegetables, local eggs and honey, and a variety of pantry staples!

The market accepts cash, credit, debit, SNAP, and Double Up Food Bucks.

Coffee and Fellowship

The Narthex is open for coffee and fellowship after each Sunday service!

Thanks to our volunteers who make the coffee, set it up, and clean up after.

Let's also be good stewards of our land and recycle! There will be signs in the Narthex with items that are recyclable.

Worship at St. John's

Our Sunday morning worship and education schedule:

8:30 a.m. - The Holy Eucharist Rite I (English)
9:45 a.m. - Adult Christian Formation Class
11:00 a.m. - The Holy Eucharist Rite II (English)
1:00 p.m. - La Santa Eucaristía Rito Dos (Spanish)

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.

Zoom link for 11:00 a.m. service

Meeting ID: 879 9502 6837 No passcode is required

Visit the Website for the Bulletin

You may also join the service by telephone - dial (346) 248-7799 and enter the meeting ID when prompted. Meeting ID: 879 9502 6837

The video recording of the 11:00 a.m. 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).

Christian Formation

Sunday Morning Christian Formation

9:45 a.m. - Sunday

In person in the church (nave)

This Sunday, March 5th , Fr David Beer will present the last class of a four week series:

Origins and Growth of the Bible

We will consider the origins and growth of the Bible in English. We'll start with the very early versions and consider the work and sacrifices that went into them and how one translation built on a previous one. We'll look at the King James Bible and then go on to recent versions (but not all 400 of them). Finally we'll examine the best versions available to a reader today and discuss how personal taste may enter into our choice.

Please contact Mother Minerva for more information.

Cornerstone Literary Circle -

Wednesday at 5:30 p.m.

Cornerstone Literary Circle is returning with a gripping new work by Javier Zamora entitled Solito. The New York Times reviewed this book in September and October this year. The Times said, “Zamora writes in such a way that you never forget that this harrowing journey is being experienced by a child … In telling this story from a child’s perspective, describing his surroundings with plainness, presenting his survival without bluster, he reveals the true horrors of migration.”

If you would like to join us for this book discussion, please contact Laurie Williams.

Zoom Link to Cornerstone Literary Circle

Meeting ID: 865 2855 1870

Passcode 446185

Wednesday Night Bible Study

This class is postponed until after Lent. You are invited to join us for the Wednesday Lenten Series instead. (See above.)

Thursday Morning Bible Study

10:00 a.m. - Thursday

Thursday Morning Bible Study continues in our hybrid format at 10:00 a.m., via Zoom and in the narthex. We begin meeting the women of the New Testament and will hear what these women have to say to us. We will find many of them more familiar than the Old Testament women were, and look for both similar and very different themes.

Meeting ID: 821 5253 7149

No passcode is required

Zoom Link to Thursday Morning Bible Study

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

Ministries

Wednesday Morning Grounds Crew

For more information about this ministry, please contact Kevin Flegal.

Labyrinth Community Garden

To learn about how our Labyrinth Community Garden serves the community, or for information about obtaining a bed in the Garden for you and your family, please contact the Parish Office.

Card Ministry

St. John’s Episcopal Church is starting a new card ministry that will involve sending handwritten cards to our members who are suffering illness and/or bereavement.

Please let Henry Welles, Sandra Ward or Christi Crow know if you have a need or if you know of someone who does. Thank you.

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 email Mother Minerva.

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

Click on the link below for Prayer for Ukraine.

Prayers for Ukraine

Donations

Please visit our website (austinstjohns.org) 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

If you are having problems with the online donation system, please contact the treasurer at Treasurer@austinstjohns.org and someone will help you resolve the problem.

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

Fill out a pledge card here!

Gathering Policy

Masks are optional on the St. John's campus. The CDC guidelines highly recommend that all persons who are not fully vaccinated wear masks while indoors. Thank you for your cooperation in these efforts to keep our St. John’s community safe and healthy.

Austin-Travis County's COVID-19 Community Level is currently low.

For more information: Austin Public Health

Submit to the Bridge

You are invited to send pictures and articles to the Bridge! Please note the deadline: Noon, Wednesday preceding the Friday of publication.

Send to lshirah@hotmail.com with "For the Bridge" in the subject line. Be sure to note the date of the issue in which you want to publish the information or article.