Welcoming All into God's Peace Together
|
|
The Eighteenth Sunday after Pentecost
NO Worship Service at Grace
This Sunday, September 26, 2021
See below for worship opportunities
|
|
Grace Episcopal Church
5958 Main Street, Trumbull CT 06611
Office Phone
203-268-2809
email:
office@gracetrumbull.org or click button
|
|
|
The Rev. Louise Kalemkerian,
Priest-in-Charge at Grace
Contact Rev. Louise via the Grace Office
|
|
The Grace Church Prayerline
Grace Church is happy to pray for you. You can submit your prayer request on line by clicking the button below or mail it to our church office at
Grace Church, 5958 Main Street, Trumbull CT 06611
|
|
Greetings!
Gospel:
Mark 9:38-50
John said to him, ‘Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us.’
But Jesus said, ‘Do not stop him; for no one who does a deed of power in my name will be able soon afterwards to speak evil of me. Whoever is not against us is for us. For truly I tell you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you bear the name of Christ will by no means lose the reward.
‘If any of you put a stumbling-block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone were hung around your neck and you were thrown into the sea. If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life maimed than to have two hands and to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire. And if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame than to have two feet and to be thrown into hell. And if your eye causes you to stumble, tear it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and to be thrown into hell, where their worm never dies, and the fire is never quenched.
‘For everyone will be salted with fire. Salt is good; but if salt has lost its saltiness, how can you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.’
|
|
Collect for The Seventeenth Sunday After Pentecost
O God, you declare your almighty power chiefly in showing mercy and pity: Grant us the fullness of your grace, that we, running to obtain your promises, may become partakers of your heavenly treasure; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
|
|
Sermons and Reflections
The following sermon is the sermon for this coming Sunday, September 26th, The Eighteenth Sunday After Pentecost. It is written by The Rev. Charles Hoffacker. The readings for this Sunday may be found by clicking on the "Readings" blue button above.
Risks We Can Take, Pentecost 18 (B) – September 26, 2021
The theme of God’s people struggling to survive in a sophisticated, alien culture appears throughout the Bible, especially in the Old Testament. This theme is central to the Book of Esther, which supplies today’s first reading.
Today is the only Sunday in our three-year cycle of readings when we hear from this book. Thus, I draw your attention now to a key verse in Esther, even though it is not part of the passage we just heard.
The verse I have in mind comes from the fourth chapter. Mordecai, a Jew living in the Persian capital of Susa, is addressing his kinswoman Esther, who has become queen. He sends this message to her: “Who knows? Perhaps you have come to royal dignity for just such a time as this.”
“Who knows? Perhaps you have come to royal dignity for just such a time as this.” I offer this verse for your consideration, not simply because it is a key to the story of Esther, but because it is a key to the story of each of us and to the story of every one of the people of God.
The Book of Esther is brief, only ten chapters, and is lively, engaging, even comic literature. Read it for yourself, and you will delight in its twists and turns. Very briefly the plot is this:
Mordecai, a Jew at the court of King Ahasuerus, exposes a plot to kill the king but is left unrewarded. The king must choose a new queen, and Mordecai arranges to have his young kinswoman Esther selected. She becomes the king’s favorite. Esther learns of a plot to destroy all the Jews in the empire. It is the work of Haman, the prime minister, who bears a genocidal grudge against Mordecai.
One night, the king, who consistently appears passive and dimwitted, remembers that he has done nothing to honor Mordecai for saving his life. He asks Haman what should be done for the man the king wishes to honor. Haman, who is supremely self-centered, assumes that the king wishes to honor him. So, he proposes lavish compensation but is deeply humiliated when Mordecai receives the honors.
Meanwhile, Esther reveals to the king that Haman has already issued a decree in the king’s name for the slaughter of the Jews. Haman pleads for his life with Queen Esther, falling down on her couch. The enraged king assumes that Haman is attacking his queen. So, he orders Haman hanged on the outrageously huge scaffold that Haman had prepared for Mordecai.
Esther then obtains a royal decree, allowing the Jews to defend themselves. They do so, and Mordecai and Esther proclaim that day as a great festival for their people. This story serves as the basis for the Jewish feast of Purim, where the defeat of Haman is often presented as a play amid a joyous carnival atmosphere.
So where, you may ask, does that key verse fit in, where Mordecai tells Esther, “Who knows? Perhaps you have come to royal dignity for just such as time as this”? Let me tell you.
Esther has just found out about Haman’s decree for genocide against the Jews and consequently the need for her to implore the king on behalf of her people. The tension in the story rises sharply when we learn that Esther, even though she is the queen, is still subject to a law that prohibits anyone from approaching the king without being summoned. Anyone who comes into the royal presence without permission is to be put to death.
Mordecai’s response to Esther amounts to a challenge. “Do not think that in the king’s palace you will escape any more than all the other Jews. For if you keep silence at such a time as this, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another quarter, but you and your father’s family will perish. Who knows? Perhaps you have come to royal dignity for just such a time as this.”
What we have here is an old story. Moreover, it cannot be understood as historically accurate. But the Book of Esther is sacred scripture. It is somehow the Word of the Lord to God’s people today. How is this?
The truth is, fantastic though it sounds, each one of us has come to royal dignity. Esther came to hers by marriage to King Ahasuerus of Persia. Each one of us came to our royal dignity through our Holy Baptism, by which we became God’s child and an inheritor of the kingdom of heaven. So, each of us can arrive at a moment, perhaps many moments, when we face some threatening decision that requires holy courage on our part, a decision that will make a world of difference not only to us but to people around us.
I have another story for you, far more recent than that of Esther and completely historical, but one that involves a woman who, like Esther, was called upon to exercise holy courage at a critical moment and thus save a vast number of lives. G. Scott Cady and Christopher L. Webber tell this story in their book, A Year with American Saints.
In 1909, Lillian Trasher broke off her engagement to a man she loved so that she could answer a call to serve as a missionary. She opened her Bible and came upon a verse mentioning Egypt. On that basis, she went there, settling in a village near the Nile.
Shortly after her arrival, she was summoned to the bedside of a dying mother who asked her to care for her malnourished baby. Lillian took the child home, but because of the baby’s incessant crying through twelve days and nights, her supervisor told her to take the child elsewhere. There was no other place. So, Lillian left with the baby. She managed to get just enough to live on by begging for food and clothes.
Over time, the scorn and ridicule of local people turned into admiration for her persistence and stamina. Gradually, support came from a variety of directions. Children kept arriving, too. By 1915, there were fifty children. By the time of her death in 1961, she counted herself blessed to look into the faces of twelve hundred children. The Lillian Trasher Orphanage continues. To date, it has cared for more than twenty thousand children.
It was to help that first baby and all the thousands of subsequent orphans to whom she devoted her life that Lillian Trasher had come to royal dignity as a child of God.
Each of us has our opportunities. They appear at home, at work, at church, in community service and public citizenship, and through every field of endeavor. Each of us has our opportunities. None of us is overlooked. Each moment of opportunity is lodged somehow in the thick fabric of our distinct lives, our unique sets of circumstances.
There are risks we can take. By the grace of God, we take them. These risks threaten us with death in one form or another – but they promise the world an unexpected resurrection.
The Rev. Charles Hoffacker lives in Greenbelt, Maryland with his wife Helena Mirtova. He is the author of A Matter of Life and Death: Preaching at Funerals from Cowley Publications. Many of his sermons appear on sermonwriter.com.
|
|
Transition and Worship Update
Worship Info for this Sunday in RED Below
The parishioners of Grace continue to investigate and consider options; the most likely and preferred (by Grace parishioners) option is merging with another parish in the area. During conversations with the various parishes, the idea of merger was enthusiastically entertained by the neighboring parishes. Grace has options to consider and, if merger is chosen and agreed to, the time frame will most likely be in 2022. This was further discussed at the Grace Annual Meeting on June 27, 2021.
From Fiona:
Hi all,
September 26th: The parish of Grace Church will visit Trinity Episcopal Church, in Trumbull for the 9/26 Sunday service. The service is at 9:00 a.m. and is held indoors, in-person, wearing masks as well as live on line via facebook. To access online go to the website and select the facebook option on the home page- trinitynichols.org . "Lemonade in the shade" is offered outdoors after the Sunday service.
Also available at Trinity is an outdoor service on Saturday, September 25th, at 5:00 p.m. This is a great option for anyone who can not make the Sunday Service. Look forward to seeing you at Trinity.
Sunday, October 3rd
There will be an 11:00 a.m. service
at Grace with The Rev. Louise Kalemkerian.
The service will be indoors, masks required.
Following the service there will be a Parish meeting
in the undercroft to discuss feedback from our church visitations
and make some decisions on next steps.
Hope everyone can make it! See you there.
Please remember to send your pledges to the Grace Church office. You can drop it in the office mail slot any time, mail it, or use pay pal. While we may not be attending services each week at Grace, the work of supporting Grace church continues. We need to keep our staff (Mother Louise; Parish Administrator, and Sexton) paid and the building operating for the many AA groups and the daycare school, for scheduled memorial services, and for us to worship at Grace. Thank you for your faithfulness. God Bless.
Peace be with you all,
Fiona Varker
Senior Warden
|
|
To Parishioners and Friends of Grace
Stewardship in 2021
Please mail your pledges and contributions to Grace Church, 5958 Main Street, Trumbull, CT 06611. Non-pledge contributions are gratefully accepted and you may also request envelopes if you want to send a periodic contribution but not pledge.
If you prefer to pay via PayPal, the link is on the Grace Website. Additional donations to Grace may also be made via the Grace Website or by check.
Your pledges and contributions are being processed, recorded and deposited and are much appreciated. The bills still roll in and Grace needs to stay current with our salaries and services!
Thank you.
|
|
Grace is the Cereal Church
Cereal and other food items are needed for the Bridgeport Food Pantries. If you want to bring milk for donation, please look for the no refrigeration required, shelf stable milk in the supermarket juice/beverage aisle or the coffee aisle. Either shelf stable almond milk or dairy milk is appreciated.
During the current period of some in-person worship and "Church in Deployment" (Sundays with no worship services at Grace), please continue to drop off your contributions and they will be delivered to the Food Pantries. Thank you!
|
|
TRINITY EPISCOPAL CHURCH FOOD DRIVES
Trinity Episcopal Church holds a monthly food drive collection on the first Friday of every month. Below is the schedule for the next few months. Please contribute as you are able.
ALL FOOD DONATED GOES TO LOCAL FOOD PANTRIES IN BRIDGEPORT, STRATFORD, & TRUMBULL
SAVE THE DATES FOR TRINITY'S FIRST FRIDAY FOOD DRIVES:
OCTOBER 1
NOVEMBER 5
DECEMBER 3
|
|
The Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., is the seat of the presiding bishop of The Episcopal Church. Photo: Episcopal News Service
|
|
National Cathedral commissions racial-justice themed windows to replace Confederate iconography
BY DAVID PAULSEN Posted 9/23/2021
[Episcopal News Service] Washington National Cathedral has commissioned a racial justice-themed replacement for its stained glass depicting two Confederate generals, windows that were removed four years ago amid a national reckoning with the white supremacist legacy of Civil War-era symbols.
The exhibit of more than 175 post-Civil War objects and 300 photos opens Sept. 24. Among the objects, the window is scheduled to be on display at the museum through next August.
“We sincerely hope that an honest examination of the painful legacy represented in these windows will help all Americans forge a clearer understanding of our past,” National Cathedral Dean Randy Hollerith said in a Sept. 22 news release. “Looking to our future, we are committed to working to help unite this country around a shared identity of inclusion, equality and true justice for all.”
On Sept. 23, Washington National Cathedral also revealed what will take the Confederate windows’ place. The cathedral commissioned new stained glass windows designed by Chicago-based artist Kerry James Marshall, known for his everyday depictions of African American life and culture. The stone next to the windows will be inscribed with a newly commissioned work by poet Elizabeth Alexander, whose work explores history, and race and gender politics.
To read the rest of the story and more articles from ENS, click the blue button below.
|
|
Local News From Area Towns - The Patch
|
|
Lamont Calls For Special CT Legislative Session To Extend Powers. Gov. Ned Lamont's emergency powers, issued in response to COVID-19, are set to expire on Sept. 30. He would like lawmakers to extend them.
Rich Kirby, Patch Staff Posted Wed, Sep 22, 2021 at 4:51 pm ET
Updated Thu, Sep 23, 2021 at 8:45 am ET
CONNECTICUT — Gov. Ned Lamont has called upon the Connecticut General Assembly to meet in a special session to extend his emergency powers, issued in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Lamont is specifically asking lawmakers to continue 12 orders, through Feb. 15, 2022.
Most notable on the list is the order that allows commissioners of Education and Early Childhood, in consultation with the commissioner of Public Health, to extend rules related to mandatory masking and social distancing in schools.
Also extended would be the mandate requiring unvaccinated persons to wear a mask when indoors, and all state employees, as well as school and health care workers, to be vaccinated.
|
|
Trumbull Coronavirus Vaccination Rate Improves Slowly
Here is how Trumbull compares to Connecticut for coronavirus vaccinations.
TRUMBULL, CT — The rate of coronavirus vaccination in Trumbull, as well as across the state and the country, has slowed.
In Trumbull, 25,514 residents have been fully vaccinated as of Sept. 15 which is about 71.52 percent of the total population, according to the Connecticut Department of Public Health. Those who have begun their vaccine series but not yet completed it number 27,085 residents, or 75.93 percent of the population.
In Connecticut, 322,752 people have been partially vaccinated and 2,411,037 people have been completely inoculated against COVID-19, as of Sept. 17. That means 76.5 percent of the state population has received at least one shot, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
|
|
Local News From the Trumbull/Monroe/Easton/Redding Daily Voice
|
|
CVS To Hire 25,000 Ahead Of Flu Season In Nationwide One-Day Virtual Event
CVS will recruit the candidates for clinical and retail jobs during a national career event on Friday, Sept. 24, the company said in an announcement on Monday, Sept. 20.
CVS Health announced plans to hire another 25,000 employees ahead of flu season.
CVS will recruit candidates for clinical and retail jobs during an online, one-day national career event on Friday, Sept. 24, the company said in an announcement on Monday, Sept. 20.
The new positions will help CVS respond to community needs during flu season and continue to respond to the demand for COVID-19 vaccines and testing, the company said.
To read the rest of the article click the blue button below.
|
|
COVID-19: Positive Infection Rate, Hospitalizations Down In CT; Latest Breakdown By County
The positive COVID-19 infection rate in Connecticut is on the decline as more patients being treated for the virus are being discharged from hospitals across the state.
In Connecticut, the positive daily infection rate dipped down to 2.15 percent of those tested on Tuesday, Sept. 21, after it approached 3 percent the previous day, according to the latest update from the state Department of Health.
In total, 22,743 COVID-19 tests were administered in Connecticut on Sept. 21, resulting in 490 newly confirmed cases of the virus.
Twenty-five more COVID-19 patients were discharged from Connecticut hospitals, leaving 269 still being treated for the virus statewide. Of those, 200 - 74.3 percent - are unvaccinated. Late last week, more than 325 patients were still being treated for COVID-19.
The Delta variant of COVID-19 continues to be the dominant strain in Connecticut, now accounting for more than 95 percent of all new infections, officials noted.
Connecticut continues to be among the quickest in administering the COVID-19 vaccine, with nearly 2.5 million residents receiving at least one shot, while more than 2.3 million have completed the vaccination process, according to the latest data released by the state.
A breakdown of which populations have received the most vaccines, by age group in the latest update:
- 65+: 97 percent
- 55-64: 89 percent;
- 45-54: 80 percent;
- 35-44: 79 percent;
- 25-34: 71 percent;
- 18-24: 67 percent;
- 16-17: 77 percent;
- 12-15: 67 percent.
The latest breakdown of confirmed and probable COVID-19 cases in Connecticut, by county, according to the state Department of Health on Wednesday, Sept. 22:
- Fairfield: 109,346 (11,591 per 100,000 residents);
- New Haven: 101,655 (11,893);
- Hartford: 94,331 (10,579);
- New London: 25,922 (9,774);
- Litchfield: 16,299 (9,038);
- Middlesex: 14,289 (8,797);
- Windham: 12,219 (10,463);
- Tolland: 10,809 (7,172).
|
|
AA Meetings at Grace
For Information click blue button below
AA groups have resumed meetings at Grace. Instead of meeting in the Lewis Hall Meeting Room for now, groups are meeting in the larger Undercroft Parish Hall. For now this space allows for socially distanced meetings. The space was cleaned and AA will provide cleaning going forward. One restroom will be used by AA and the other will be closed during meetings. For details on available meetings, and restarting meeting, please go to grace-eye-opener.org or click the button.
|
|
C.A.R.E.S and Confident Health
The C.A.R.E.S. Group Joins Forces with Confidant Health
The C.A.R.E.S. Group is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing education, support, resources, and hope for families, friends, and anyone with a loved one affected by mental health and substance use disorders.
To expand our reach and increase access to resources needed by the individuals and communities we serve, C.A.R.E.S. has aligned with Confidant Health, a virtual clinic specializing in substance use and mental health.
Mondays from 7pm-9pm EST.
|
|
C.A.R.E.S.
VIRTUAL HOPE & SUPPORT GROUP
MONDAYS
7:00 - 9:00 PM
* All meetings are free of charge
Please contact us using the info below for assistance of any kind.
855-406-0246
|
|
|
To make a contribution to the CCGB Virtual Food Drive, click the blue button below.
|
|
St. Pauly's Clothing shed at
GRACE EPISCOPAL CHURCH
is open!
The clothing donation shed at Grace Episcopal Church, 5958 Main Street, Trumbull, CT, is open to the public.
If you are not familiar with the clothing donation shed, it’s designed to give community members a uniquely clean, convenient, and well-cared-for option to donate their used clothing to. St. Pauly Textile Inc., the company that has provided the shed, partners with businesses and various organizations to distribute donated items both here in the U.S. and worldwide, where they are ultimately re-worn by people who need them. Grace Church funding for donated clothing, and additionally has the option to use donations to serve community needs.
With over 1,300 clothing drop-off sheds in place, St. Pauly Textile Inc. collects over 90,000 pounds of clothing every day and estimates that this clothing ends up in 44 different countries (including the U.S.) yearly. In 2019, the company was able to help keep over 20 million articles of clothing out of landfills, which clothed an estimated 2.5 million people worldwide. The company was founded in 1996 and is an A+ rated member of the Better Business Bureau.
Accepted items: clothing, shoes, belts, purses, blankets, sheets, curtains, pillowcases, and stuffed animals. NO FURNITURE OF ANY SIZE. NO TOYS. NO CARRIAGES. NO CAR SEATS. NO CRIBS. NO APPLIANCES. NO GLASS ITEMS. DONATION MUST FIT INTO THE SLOT IN THE FRONT OF THE SHED. DO NOT LEAVE ANY ITEMS OUTSIDE THE SHED.
|
|
A word from the brothers of the Society of Saint John the Evangelist
Brother, Give Us A Word
Choosing to serve others in need bears two kinds of fruit. First, we can remind those we serve of the truth of God’s Kingdom, helping them make the choice to accept God’s invitation. Second, by serving others we help ourselves forget ourselves, making it more likely that we become like humble children again, and so more likely to surrender to God’s will in our willingness.
-Br. Nicholas Bartoli, Society of Saint John the Evangelist
For more information on the Society of Saint John the Evangelist, please visit their web site at: http://ssje.org/ or click the button below.
SSJE is a monastic community of The Episcopal Church & The Anglican Church of Canada
Brother, Give Us A Word is a daily devotion
The Society of Saint John the Evangelist is an independent, 501(c) (3) non-profit tax exempt U.S. corporation.
© 2015 The Society of Saint John the Evangelist, All Rights Reserved
|
|
The Episcopal Church in Connecticut
Participating in God's Mission
|
|
Episcopal Migration Ministries & Emergency Response: A message from our Presiding Bishop Michael B. Curry
As you well know, Episcopal Migration Ministries is one of the most direct and tangible ways that we embrace the invitation to become a Church that looks and acts like Jesus, by reaching out our hands in love to the dispossessed, displaced, exiled, and marginalized. For over four decades, in times of war, genocide, political persecution and upheaval, EMM has enabled the Church at all levels to welcome and care for God’s beloved children, supporting them on their journey as new Americans, our neighbors.
At this moment in history, we face an unprecedented humanitarian crisis, an emergency relocation of our Afghan allies. Like the other eight official resettlement agencies of the United States, Episcopal Migration Ministries and its network of 11 local affiliates face critical challenges. In normal times, refugee resettlement is a process that is lengthy and planned well in advance. This current crisis instead meets the definition of a disaster: a sudden event that has overwhelmed the resources of the resettlement community to respond, requiring external and additional support.
The Most Rev. Michael B. Curry
Presiding Bishop and Primate
How you can help:
-
Prayer. Refugee resettlement ministry includes professional staff, but also tens of thousands of volunteers, congregations, and community partners and stakeholders, who all come together to welcome and support our new neighbors. Click here for a prayer list.
-
Volunteer support. To address the severe staffing shortages in the face of this crisis, EMM is in need of volunteer support, particularly those with experience in volunteer coordination, project management, and community organizing. experience If you are interested, please fill out this interest form.
-
Financial support. In partnership with The Episcopal Church’s Office of Development, EMM has created the Neighbors Welcome: Afghan Allies Fund, recognizing that considerable funding is needed to support the housing, medical, legal, and other basic needs of the Afghan families we will welcome. Give online, by texting "EMMALLIES" to 41444, or via phone at 212.716.6002.
-
IRIS. As one of EMM's 11 local affiliates, Connecticut's Integrated Refugee & Immigrant Services (IRIS) is also in need of support. Learn how you can help online.
|
|
Join our ECCT Region Missionaries, Rev. Rachel Thomas, Dylan Mello, and Maggie Breen) for the first in a series of hour-long conversation around "The Way of Love."
The first session will feature and introduction to "The Way of Love" (Worship, Pray, Learn, Rest, Turn, Go, Bless) and how we will be walking it together over the next several months.
|
|
237th Annual Convention of the
Episcopal Church in Connecticut
Saturday, October 23
Annual Convention Moves Online
Saturday, Oct. 23 from 9 a.m.–3 p.m.
After much prayer, research, thought, and discussion, your Convention Planning Team has made the difficult decision to move our Annual Convention to an online format this year due to COVID-19 Delta variant surges. Given the rigors of the past year and a half and the fatigue many in our community are experiencing with online events, we are condensing the schedule to one day, Saturday, October 23, focusing on the essentials.
All Convention attendees must register online using the Eventbrite link. Parish offices can register a group and make a single payment or individuals can register and pay on their own. At registration, attendees will be presented with their choice of lunch options for Saturday.
REGISTER (click blue button below):
|
|
ECCT Stories Blog
New ECCT Stories Blog Post: Reflections on the 20th Anniversary of 9/11
Written by the Rev. Stephanie Johnson, Rector at St. Paul’s, Riverside
Twenty years ago as part of my church group, I volunteered at St. Paul’s Chapel at Ground Zero. Many people asked me what I did there, so a few weeks after I wrote this reflection. I hadn’t thought about this in years. However, this past Monday as I was cleaning out files, I found a copy which had been published in my hometown paper for the 2001 Christmas column. I suppose this was a sign that it was meant to be shared again. Read more.
If you would like to contribute a story, reflection, poem, art, etc. to the ECCT Stories blog, please send an email to storytelling@episcopalct.org to be considered. Please keep it to under 600 words (in a Word Doc preferred) and any photos/images you'd like included.
|
|
Camp Washington - Life changing events for adults and children
|
|
For Information on Camp Washington, See ECCT website for details or www.campwashington.org.
Camp Washington
(860) 567- 9623
|
|
Fri, Oct 8, 2021 4:00 PM EST
Writer's Workshop
Camp Washington - Camp and Retreat Center, Lakeside/Morris
Join me Davyne Verstandig in writing in a gloried autumn setting on 300 acres while examining “quest i on,” of WHAT I NEED.
This journey is more quest than question as you discover “my mind is in the ink.” There you will find one thing you need.
For Reservations, click the blue button
|
|
|
|
|
|
|