The Bridge

October 21, 2022

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

Meeting ID: 879 9502 6837

Zoom link for 11:00 a.m. service

Click here for the Online Bulletin

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 mariaangie@austinstjohns.org with "For the Bridge" in the subject line. Be sure to note the date of the issue in which you want to publish.

Events and Announcements

Stewardship Campaign 2022

Stewardship Testimonial by Kevin Flegal

Yes I am a 'traveler' on an ancient journey, a stewardship journey.

On this journey we must decide how, when and in what ways we will share our Gods given gifts and talents with those around us as we make a commitment to our ‘Church Home’.

Why do we come? It might have been family needs, friends or something totally different. We were drawn to a church, St John’s Church by a ‘light’ we saw as believers seeking a Christ-Centered foundation for ourselves and our family.

My personal journey brought my family and I here over 30 years ago. Looking for a home among like-minded people, to raise our growing family in. A place to belong in addition to and in conjunction with the home we were building for our family.

As we give our time, talent and tithe we continue to build onto our ‘Church Home’ for ourselves and our Church-family. But we also add to the story of discipleship, fellowship and stewardship that has grown larger over time immemorial. We are a part of that ‘bigger story’ and an integral portion of the ‘light’.

Remember too that we are just the caretakers who keep our ‘Church Home’ a viable and living place for present and hopefully future seekers finding their way with faith in the 'Word of God' to add their opportunities and family as well as to our ‘Church Home’.

We add our gifts of our time, our talent and our tithe to the ‘light’ that now attracts many others here to join us.

Daughters of the King Installation

October 23rd

St. John’s Woman at the Well Chapter of the Daughters of the King will install four new members on Sunday, October 23^rd at the 11am and 1pm services. If you are interested in learning more about the Daughters of the King contact Lisa Shirah-Hiers.

St. John’s Talent Show

October 23rd

St. John’s will hold our annual talent show on Sunday, October 23^rd at 6pm in the church sanctuary and Via zoom

Performances are not limited to music! We welcome art, drama, you name it!

Come share your talents and bring ice cream to share afterwards!

Contact Phillip for any Inquiries

Zoom Link for the Talent Show

Do you have Student Debt? Apply for Student Loan Debt Relief

The recent announcement from the Biden Administration to forgive up to $10,000 for student borrowers with an individual income under $125,000 or a household income of under $250,000 and an additional $10,000 for borrowers who received a Pell Grant while in college also included updates to the PSLF.

CLICK HERE TO APPLY!

HJAN Voting Challenge

The Health and Justice Advocacy Network (HJAN) invites you to participate in the HJAN voting challenge for the upcoming Mid Term Election!

The challenge is to see how many people your church can get to the polls by election day November 8!

•Then, take a picture of your “I Voted” sticker. (OR a picture of your vote by mail ballot).

•Email the picture to tissie.elliott@gmail.com or text it to 512-940-9244.

•We will tally our number of voters and submit the number to HJAN.

It’s a CONTEST and there are THREE ways to win:

•Greatest number of voters in a parish.

•Highest percentage of voters in a parish.

•Most creative and encouraging voting outreach video as decided by a panel of EDOT Celebrity Judges.

The PRIZE?

BLUE BELL ICE CREAM

Save the Dates

St. James invites our community to

FIELD TRIP TO THE MAST FAMILY FARM

Saturday, October 29, 11:30 am - 2:30 pm

Meet up with us on Saturday, October 29, for a visit to Sarah and Greg Mast's farm. We will carpool out to the Elgin area 12324 Morrow Ln Elgin, TX 78621, so RSVP to Rev. Eileen.

The plan is to do lunch and some "gentle farmwork."

Please know that Mast Family Farm is a rustic working farm. There is no electricity (and consequently no AC, refrigeration, kitchen, or heat), and we only have a composting toilet. The ground can be rocky and uneven. As an organic farm we strive to increase biodiversity, including bugs, ants, thorny bushes, spiders, and bees. Please wear sturdy, closed-toed shoes, bring sun screen, a hat, a reusable water bottle, and bug protection if you need it. You may find that long pants and long sleeves are more comfortable to do farm work in, even if it's warm. ?

Christian Education Offering Sundays Oct 23- Dec 4

WALK THROUGH THE OLD AND NEW TESTAMENTS with Fr David Beer

During our classes we will briefly look at every book in the Old and New Testaments. We’ll consider the origins of these books and the purposes of their authors. We’ll look at how the Bible is arranged and the kinds of literatures it contains. Also, we will enumerate the major themes of the books and how these are meaningful to us today as Christians. Be sure to bring your Bible (any translation) to class.

Central Texas Interfaith and St. John's Episcopal Church urges you to vote in the coming election. Early voting begins next week on Monday October 24th and will go until Friday November 4^th. The last day to vote is Tuesday November 8^th. You can find the location of an early-voting site near you at https://www.votetexas.gov/. Please consider getting all the eligible voters in your family to vote. Remember: your vote is your voice.

Our Community

Farmshare Austin

Sunday, from 11am-1pm.

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 Parish Hall 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.

If you would like to bring snacks, you are invited to do so.

Worship at St. John's

Our Sunday morning worship and education schedule:

8:30am - The Holy Eucharist Rite I (English)
9:45am - Adult Christian Formation Class
11:00am - The Holy Eucharist Rite II (English)
1:00pm - 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

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

WALK THROUGH THE OLD AND NEW TESTAMENTS with Fr David Beer

Each hybrid session will occur from 9:45 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.

Meeting ID: 840 2173 3267

Passcode: 295084

Zoom Link to Sunday Morning Christian Ed

Cornerstone Literary Circle -

Wednesday at 5:30 p.m.

Ann and Glenda are hosting the next book. It comes in 3 formats.

Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century

Paperback, Kindle, Audiobook – June 30, 2020 by Alice Wong

Our hosts have provided a syllabus for this. So if you have not been part of Cornerstone before, but would like to join us as Ann Foxworth and Glenda Born host the reading, please contact Laurie Williams so that she can send the syllabus to you.

Zoom Link to Cornerstone Literary Circle

Meeting ID: 865 2855 1870

Passcode 446185

Wednesday Night Bible Study - 7:00 p.m.

We will study the lectionary readings for the upcoming Sunday:

The class meets via Zoom:

Zoom Link to Wednesday Night Class

Meeting ID: 886 3246 7047

Passcode: 980365

Thursday Morning Bible Study

We will continue meeting in person and via Zoom on Thursday, at 10:00am.

For more information, please contact Elaine Jackson .

Link to Thursday Morning Bible Study

Meeting ID: 821 5253 7149

No passcode is required

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 Patty Arnold.

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.

Recently we asked for donations of cards for Henry Welles to send bereavement or get well card to parish members.

Please let Henry, 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 links below for Prayers for Uvalde and the 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!

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