St. Andrew's Episcopal Church
May 22nd
The Sixth Sunday of Easter
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We worship this Sunday at 8 and 10 a.m. in church.
Our 10 a.m. service will be live-streamed.
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Settling into God through Community |
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Our Next Contemplative Service
Next Saturday: May 28th at 5 p.m.
"All shall be well"
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Sometimes, we simply need to rest. We need our bodies and souls to slow down. We need to take a deep breath and be reminded that God is as close to us as our inhale and exhale. We need to be still and know that God is God.
Sometimes it is helpful to be with others as we enter into this silence and quiet, for somehow, the Holy Spirit seems to hover over us all and collectively calm our hearts and souls. There is something soothing and strengthening about being with others as we intentionally care for our souls through a quiet contemplative experience.
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At this evening service, as we sit in the candlelight and allow the music to soothe our souls, we will celebrate the great mystic, Julian of Norwich, whose writings are generally considered one of the most remarkable documents of medieval religious experience. Her feast day is May 8th, so we'll celebrate her later in the month.
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Come to Our First "Cookie Church"
June 4th at 5 p.m.
In the garden or the church
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God and Gardens
just seem to go together--
because with both, there's inspiration, creativity, discovery,
and a desire to grow!
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We want our children to be engaged in our worship in real and meaningful ways. Always, they are welcome to participate in whatever way works for them. Always. And here's something we're trying --gathering our younger ones for a service just for them -- where they are the ones to set the table, say the prayers, sprinkle each other with holy water, dance and sing with the hymns, and present the sacrament to each other. We're planning to do this in the holy ground of our Grace Place Gardens, if the weather permits. If anyone would like to help with this service, please let Mother Barbara know.
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Our Shaped by Faith Project
Grace Place & Grace Gardens
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Our Big News:
The Bishop has blessed our gardens!
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We were so blessed that our bishop, Audrey Scanlan, was with us this past Sunday. Her presence, kindness, engagement, and joy at what God is doing here among us was very meaningful to us. She worshipped with us at the 10 a.m. service, and as part of that service, she blessed our gardens. It was a glorious day, filled with love, joy, exceptional music, soulful prayers, a gracious reception filled with amazing food, children planting marigolds and blowing bubbles to bless the sunflower seeds they just planted.
To watch the worship video, which includes the time of blessing, please visit our website.
And with the bishop's blessing and the rain and sun this week, our gardens are growing! We are so very thankful for each of you who is holding this project in your heart, for those who are willing and able to plant, weed, and harvest, and for the diocese for graciously allowing us to use this property to engage more deeply with our community.
Our Shaped by Faith Task Force is finalizing the grant application to the Diocese for funding for this amazing project. The project involves the gardens to produce food and flowers for cutting as well as the Grace Place Ministry Center, which will be a community resource providing free counseling services for all ages, a clothing bank, and a household goods pantry.
We will now delve into the thoughtful planning of a contemplative space to provide respite and rest for those around us as well as a children's garden.
Our hope is to bring wholeness to our neighborhood by providing for our neighbor's physical and spiritual needs. Come and be a part of this awesome thing God is doing through our hands and feet and open hearts!
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Our beautiful altar, showing forth the bounty of God's love and provision. |
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We thank Kathy Hettinga who organized this beautiful reception and all those who contributed delicious food. This was the first time since COVID that we have gathered in love and shared a meal -- what a glorious way to begin! |
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Here we are -- those of us we could gather waving hello to Laura Bonanni, who is enjoying her new home in Florida. We miss you Laura -- and you are always in our hearts. |
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Our Garden Consultant, Jessica Larkin, was with us for this glorious celebration and is here teaching the children how to plant and so much more, even how ants are pollinators like bees! |
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Bishop Scanlan and I were so very happy to have Ayden by our side, assisting in the leading of worship and bringing joy along the way. |
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If anyone else has photos of this glorious day, please send them to Mother Barbara so we can begin to build an amazing collection of our journey.
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Our Extra Big News:
I will be sharing our
Shaped by Faith Project
with our
Presiding Bishop
on June 10th!
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Our Engagement with the Presiding Bishop's Visit |
I have been asked by our bishop to make a presentation to the Presiding Bishop and others gathered during his visit here with us in the Diocese of Central PA regarding our Shaped by Faith project.
Two parishes in our diocese have been extended this honor.
It is a wonderful and exciting opportunity to share the call of God upon our hearts to bring wholeness to our neighborhood, by co-creating with God and our community the connections and resources to alleviate the adversity so many of our neighbors experience.
All the members of our Shaped by Faith team have been invited to attend this presentation which is marvelous. We will share our story through images and my words and then engage the congregation in imagining with us how the Spirit will continue to shape our passions -- and how others may be experiencing the call of God to collaborate with others to make a real difference in their neighborhood.
I will be making a video of the presentation which I will also share with all of you. It's always good to share the Good News of Christ within and among us.
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Come and worship with our
Presiding Bishop Michael Curry
on June 11th at 11:00 a.m.
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We have this amazing opportunity to worship with and hear Michael Curry preach here in our diocese. The worship service will be in Harrisburg at the Zembo Shrine Auditorium.
All are invited! So let's all go -- email Mother Barbara is you would like to carpool. this is a glorious opportunity to come together from across the diocese to enter into what promises to be a very meaningful celebration.
To register for the Worship Celebration on June 11, click here. .
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Our Bishop's Weekly Message |
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Dear Members of the Episcopal Church in Central PA,
On location in Virginia, as part of the next video in the, “Ask Me Anything” series, Bishop Scanlan addresses the question, "How do I manage loss and grief?" Watch below.
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This statement is so true -- it does seem as though the more we hand over to God, the more openness we have in our heart, the more we engage in the spiritual act of imagining God is in all things, all people, all encounters -- the more we see God's presence within, around, and among us.
Our Shaped by Faith project is about a community garden, but so much more! It is about forming sacred relationships with each other, our neighbors, and our earth. It is about bringing the fullness we feel deep within us to those who live around us. It is about listening, discerning, learning, and dreaming with others so we can be holy facilitators of God's goodness in this world.
All it takes is intention around handing it all over to God and allowing God to work within and through us. If anyone wishes to have further conversations with me about this holy act of surrender and how and where it may show up in your life, please let me know. It would be my privilege to sit with you and listen and assist in your discernment.
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All things bright and beautiful
(a really wonderful video
by Rain for Roots)
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St. Andrew's Episcopal Church |
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I totally love it that the children next door are enjoying our gardens, in all sorts of ways. |
It seems all children should have a dirt pile (aka garden) to run their trucks in! |
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St. Andrew's Episcopal Church
204 E. Burd Street, Shippensburg, PA 17257
717-532-8089
Mother Barbara
717-333-5590
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