New Sacred Ground classes return in mid-April.

Sacred Ground is a groundbreaking film-and-reading-based series focused on race and grounded in faith. Part of what makes it so rewarding and, frankly, life-changing are the small group meetings where members walk through America’s history while weaving in threads of their own family story, economic class, and political and regional history.
 
Please watch this video and hear directly from St. James’sers who have taken the course explain how powerful it was for them.

Click here to register for Sacred Ground.
Link to Casual Coffee Chat Zoom 
This week's eChimes features
  • Lenten Lessons
  • Faure Requiem
  • Holy Week at St. James's
  • Holy Peeps Contest
  • Youth Group in Action
  • Confirmation
  • Shrine Mont Summer Camps
  • Adult Formation
  • Ways to Connect
  • Remembering the Departed
Our online services are worth a second look.

If you haven’t worshipped online with us lately, you might not recognize it. More intimate. Easier to follow--and even sing along with. Better sound quality. And prayers and hymn lyrics right on the screen. It all adds up to an experience that’s more meaningful, more engaging and more enjoyable. Worship online at doers.org/live, Facebook or YouTube. See times and links above.
A weekly reflection during Lent from our clergy.

This week’s Lesson is from the Rev. Dr. John McCard.

I invite you, therefore, in the name of the church, to the observance of a holy Lent, by self-examination and repentance; by prayer, fasting, and self-denial; and by reading and meditating on God’s holy Word.
Book of Common Prayer, page 265


Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. Matthew 5:48 (NRSV)
 
Lent makes me nervous….(click here to read the rest)

Faure Requiem for the COVID-19 Pandemic, next Sunday from 5-6pm.
It’s been one year since we closed our church buildings because of COVID-19. It’s been a year where many of us (maybe most of us) have suffered from loss, loneliness and emotional pain. To mark this anniversary, the church will be holding the Faure Requiem next Sunday, March 14, from 5 to 6pm, presented by the St. James’s Choir and Orchestra.

Of his requiem, Faure said, "Everything I managed to entertain by way of religious illusion I put into my Requiem, which moreover is dominated from beginning to end by a very human feeling of faith in eternal rest."
The service will also include prayers written by St. James’s parishioners. If you would like to submit a prayer, please email it to Mary Brown at [email protected]

Click here to register in advance for this Zoom service.

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
Holy Week 2021 Service Schedule
Palm Sunday, March 28
10:00 am streamed service with follow-at-home resources

Monday through Wednesday
5:30 pm - Evening Prayer Service streamed each evening

Maundy Thursday, April 1
7:00 pm At-Home Service with agape meal and at-home resources
Good Friday, April 2
12 noon live-streamed service 

Easter Sunday. April 4
10:00 am streamed service
Children & Youth
Holy Peeps 2018 1
Holy Peeps!

It’s time once again for Holy PEEPS, when St. James’s children and youth create shoebox dioramas of a Bible Story or liturgical actions. This has been an extremely popular - and super fun - activity for years. And this year we’re making it more fun by asking you to post your diorama on the St. James’s Facebook and/or Instagram page (#holypeepstjamess). Parishioners will vote and prizes will be awarded for the most popular dioramas

Click here for all the Project/Contest Rules. Can’t wait to see what you create!
YOUTH GROUP: Putting our faith in action.
This Sunday’s Youth Group (grades 6-12) features a visit from parishioner Karen Stanley, president and CEO of CARITAS, a long-time agency partner of St. James’s. She’ll be discussing how CARITAS helps our most vulnerable neighbors break the cycles of homelessness and addiction to reclaim their dignity. For those of you who are looking for enriching volunteer opportunities, this is a great chance to learn how you can make a direct difference in someone’s life. 

We meet from 9:00-9:45 am Click here to join the ZOOM.
Confirmation confirms our commitment to keep doing.

Despite the challenges of COVID-19, St. James’s Confirmation program has not only survived, but thrived--all on Zoom. With 35 students, each accompanied by at least one parent, guided by one or more mentors, and led by five teachers, our online confirmation series connects more than 120 people. The five-part series covers a wide range of issues that teach the students about the Episcopal Church, our liturgy, and their own faith. Each student received a kit of materials to use at home during each of the five monthly sessions as they make their journey of faith. Kudos to all involved for making this essential program boldly move forward in spite of the pandemic.
Shrine Mont Camps open this summer.

Shrine Mont Camps will be offering both in-person and online camp experiences this Summer. Camp leaders have been hard at work for many months, consulting with medical professionals and other camp professionals across the country to design experiences that will be fun and safe for all. And, building on the success of last summer, Shrine Mont Camps will again offer Light in the Valley, an online camp where campers can make friends, play and worship together from home.
 
Registration will open March 23 but you can check out camp dates today. SMC is also asking camper families to provide feedback via this survey, which will help inform ongoing plans and preparations for the 2021 summer camps. (For more details, click here.)
Adult Formation
This coming Wednesday at 6:30 pm the 5-part series, Make Me An Instrument of Peace: A Guide to Civil Discourse, continues with part 3, called Values-Based Conversations. Created by the Episcopal Church, this powerful online course is facilitated at St. James’s by our own Rev. Hilary Streever. The Participant’s Guide will be emailed to all who register for our Wednesday Night Fellowship series.
 
While it’s best to complete the entire course, each part is discreet so you can join mid-course and still benefit from it.
 
Fellowship is 6-6:30 pm. Discussion is 6:30 - 7:30 pm

Please register for each session. Here’s the link to register for March 10th.
 
If you want to know more, click here. And you can also watch the Civil Discourse trailer.

Make Me an Instrument of Peace is ideal for anyone who wants to take dialog between polarized people or parties seriously.
Let's Connect


For us to Do even more, we need 1000 subscribers on You Tube. Just go to youtube.com, search for St. James’s Episcopal Church in Richmond, then click on the red Subscribe button.

Here are the ways to stay connected with everything happening at St. James’s. 

Share your Email
Your email is our most direct link to you. Make sure we have the best email for you. Or, if you haven’t shared your email, now’s a great time to do it.
Here’s the link. It will take less than 10 seconds. 
Subscribe to our YouTube Channel
All the videos we produce, including our Sunday services, sermons and announcements, are on our YouTube page. We currently have just over 800 subscribers. Our goal is 1000, which will give us the power to do more streaming of videos.
Just go to YouTube.com, search for St. James’s Episcopal Church in Richmond, then click on the red Subscribe button.
Follow us on Facebook and Instagram
When you follow us on Facebook and Instagram, you see pics and news you won’t see elsewhere. Remember, we’re SJEC1205 on Instagram and St. James’s Episcopal Church on Facebook.
Facebook & #sjec1205
Remembering the Departed
We commend the recently deceased to God’s love.
 
James Carl Ruehrmund, Sr. (died. 2/18/21)
 
Caroline Cameron Flippen (died. 2/13/21)
 
Marvin Pierce Rucker II (died. 2/13/21)
 

If you would like information on how to reach out to the loved ones of the deceased, please do not hesitate to contact the church offices.
Do you have our App?
You can always find the eChimes at doers.org/eChimes.
Make sure to check out the new updates on our App. On the App, You will find tools like giving, streaming, and the bulletins. It is highly recommended to use the app as an alternative to paper bulletins.
Shop on Amazon. Help St. James’s. 
Don’t forget to use Amazon Smile as a simple and painless way to give to St. James's. Just designate St. James’s as your designated charity on Amazon Smile and a percentage of your purchase support our church.