St. Bede's E-News

We hope that this weekly offering will keep you up-to-date

on the latest information from the parish

and from around the Diocese of Atlanta and wider Church. 

Our e-newsletters are now being archived on our website.

You can go to www.stbedes.org  

and look under the "Connect With Us" tab

at the top of the home page to find past newsletters.

Please send your submissions ready to go into the newsletter

by Wednesday morning. Text and images should be attached to an

email to the Parish Administrator.



Laura's email address is lpittman@stbedes.org

There's a lot going on at St. Bede's!

Looking for an activity?

Sunday, May 3, 2026

The Fifth Sunday of Easter

Worship in English at 10 am

Worship in Spanish at 1:30 pm

We will also be streaming our worship live

on

St. Bede's YouTube Channel

If you would like to preview the scripture lessons and hymns for the upcoming Sunday, you can find Sunday's bulletin uploaded to the parish website each week on Thursday afternoon. From the home page of the website, scroll down to the colorful "Worship" icon, and click on that. Then scroll to the bottom of the "Worship" page and you will see where the bulletins for Sunday have been posted under "Downloads".

Theological Reflections on Images of Christ

For centuries the arts have produced images of Jesus (both the man and the Christ). Because there is no image or record of how Jesus actually looked during his lifetime, all portrayals of him are subject to the artists’ beliefs and creativity. What are the artists saying about him? How have those images changed over the centuries? We will look at the fascinating variety of these images and talk about what they are saying, especially to us today.

This class will be led by Robin Schreiber.



Join us on Sunday at ~11:30 am in Room M110.

All are welcome!

Sunday, May 3: BOWLING WITH BEDE'S - This Sunday we are going bowling! We'll meet after 10 am worship (at around 11:15) so we can leave as soon as worship is over. We'll be back by about 2. We are asking everyone who can to bring $10. Join us. Bring a friend. And expect to have FUN!

Children's Formation

for Children Age 3 - Grade 5

Changes to Children’s Formation beginning this

Easter Season

Beginning Sunday, March 12, we will have one children’s formation time between the 10 am and 1:30 pm worship services, to align with the formation time for adults and youth. We gather the kids during the fellowship time, around 11:45 am in the Commons, and then move to classroom M-102 in the Mission Wing. This formation time focuses on learning about the stories of the People of God and growing in understanding about what we do in church worship. The curriculum used is primarily Godly Play combined with lessons from other resources.

All 3 year olds through 5th graders are welcome to join us. Older children are welcome as helpers and younger children may join with a parent, grandparent, or other caregiver. Both classes are taught in English.

We need additional teachers/helpers for this age group. Please contact Molly Graves at mgraves@stbedes.org to volunteer or for more information about our children’s faith formation program.

Prayer Vigil for Extra-Ordinary Times

The prayer vigil will be on hiatus during the season of Easter, and will resume during the season of Pentecost.

Contact Becca Love at rachelrebeccalove@gmail.com with any questions.

Mark Your Calendars for

Vacation Bible School

June 15-19

6 - 8 pm

Our wonderful intergenerational VBS returns this summer!

We are in need of volunteers to help out during the week. If you are able to volunteer, please contact

Junior Abraham at jrabraham1953@gmail.com

Judah Sali at judahs26@gmail.com

If you have general questions, please contact Molly Graves at mgraves@stbedes.org.

Calling all 2026 Graduates!

We will be honoring all of our graduates and want to make sure that you are included. Please email Laura Pittman and let us know from what institution or program you are graduating and what your plans are for the future (further study, career plans, etc.) This can be a graduation from any kind of school or study program. We will list all our grads here in the E-News in the upcoming weeks.

lpittman@stbedes.org

“ART FROM THE HEART GALLERY”

OPENING RECEPTION

Our third AFTH Gallery show opened on Saturday, April 18! It was well attended and many of those present came to our earlier Opening Receptions and some commented that they enjoyed these events and were looking forward to them. We also heard from many that they found St. Bede’s to be a warm and welcoming place. That is music to our ears.

Speaking of music – many thanks to John Whitt for his beautiful piano performance. It added elegance to the gathering! We are so lucky to have him in our midst.

As you can tell by the number of “red dots” adorning the information cards, we sold quite a few of the pieces. Most of the artists included in the show were in attendance on Saturday, and many commented that they were impressed by the show and by the level of ability of the participating artists. Spend a few minutes reading the information cards on the walls next to the art. It is fascinating to read the artists’ thoughts about the theme and how that theme influenced their work.

And of course, we heard many compliments on the food! Thanks to everyone who spent their precious time preparing those offerings, and to those who plated them, served them, and kept them coming during the event. We are very grateful to those of you who set up and cleaned up and to those of you who came to the event. We could not have these gatherings without you.

The show will be up until June 20th . Tell your friends and neighbors that they can come by and see the exhibit during the week when the Church is open, or email Lois Shingler to set up a time to come by. (lshinglerpc@gmail.com)

Bishop Wright has issued a a pastoral letter entitled: Immigration: Dignity, Solidarity, and Support. This letter calls on us all to view our current immigration crisis through the lens of faith and to seek dignity and compassion for all of God's beloved children.

Finding Healing

for Our Divided Country



Now meeting weekly

on Monday evenings on Zoom

from 6:30 to 8 pm.

In person every Thursday morning

9 to 10 am

at Mint Coffeehouse

3926 Lawrenceville Hwy in Tucker

A discussion group, grounded in prayer, for those who have questions, concerns, and emotions that feel too big, and need a safe place to process with others.

We will see what participants need from this group. Perhaps it will just be a place to express what you are feeling, or maybe some will want to know what action can be taken.

And we will pray together.

Some questions to consider:

How are you doing, and what are you feeling?

Where are you in terms of processing changing public policy?

How can we live the values of our faith

in the face of conflicting public policy?

Facilitators: Muriel Diguette and Molly Graves

Please contact Muriel Diguette at digfam@att.net

if you are interested in joining.

Community Engagement

On Thursday, April 23, 20 of us gathered to talk with state senators (the Rev'd) Kim Jackson and Josh McLaurin. Kim is running for reelection for her state senate seat and Josh is running for Lt. Governor. We are so fortunate to be able to meet directly with our state legislators, to ask questions, and to hear positions - especially concerning how matters of faith connect with matters of pubic policy . This is democracy in action!

Early voting runs through May 16 and the primary election is May 19. This is a chance for all voters to be heard and to participate in our democracy.



Help Needed With St. Bede’s Coffee Hospitality!

We are seeking volunteers to prepare and brew the coffee, clean up, and put away the cups each Sunday. Your Sunday of duty will be on a rotational basis, with the frequency depending on the number of volunteers.

Volunteers are asked to be at St. Bede’s by 9 – 9:15AM to get the coffee started, to lay out the creamer, the sugar, etc., and to prepare the cart of coffee mugs.

We typically prepare 2 pots of caffeinated and 1 pot of de-caffeinated coffee before 10 am worship. Depending on the number of parishioners at church, you might have to refresh the pots of coffee to accompany the refreshment/snacks after worship.

The remaining coffee is left for those arriving for 1:30 pm worship, and others will clean up afterwards.

If you are interested in this hospitality ministry,

please contact Tom Vail (tomvail50@gmail.com)

or Melody Murray (mlmurray2611@gmail.com).

Outreach Opportunities

Ongoing Soap Drive

Please place new wrapped bar soap in the basket labelled “Bar Soap and Toiletries” in the Connect Center outside the kitchen

May 11

NETWorks "Putting Out Hunger" Golf Tournament

June 7

Outreach Committee Meeting

11:30 am

Room C101

June 13

Gwinnett Pride 2026

Celebrate Pride on June 13 at

Thrasher Park in Norcross from Noon to 6:00 pm!

October 18

Prepare and serve lunch for Church of the Common Ground

Questions? 

See Anita Montelione or Karen Werner

On Saturday, April 18, a group of four members from St. Bede's had the privilege of visiting El Refugio and Stewart Detention Center in Lumpkin, Georgia. El Refugio is a sacred place of refuge that provides hospitality and support for families and friends of immigrants detained at Stewart, many of whom travel long distances to visit their loved ones.

Our group spent time with more than a dozen families at El Refugio throughout the day. We served lunch, helped provide information, and offered companionship. It was an honor to be entrusted with these difficult and heartbreaking stories, and to offer the small comfort of a listening ear or a cup of coffee.

Thanks to the generosity of the St. Bede's community, we were also able to deliver 117 gas cards—75 provided by Holy Trinity Parish and 42 by St. Bede's. Each visitor to El Refugio receives a gas card to help defray the cost of traveling to Stewart.

The visitor team continues to pray for these individuals and their families, whose stories we now carry with us. We invite the entire St. Bede's community to join us in these prayers. May justice and peace prevail.

-Sheila de la Cruz

A Request for Prayers

Since traveling to Cuba to attend the conference of the Episcopal Women of Cuba in 2019, I have kept in touch with two of the priests there. As you are aware, the people of Cuba have been experiencing hardships beyond belief in the last year or so. They are worried about their future. One of the priests, Padre Yordanis Acosta, wrote to me the following just before Easter:

"The situation in Cuba is getting more difficult every day. Our people are suffering, and this is very painful for all of us. The only thing left for us to do is to pray and try to provide what we can to the neediest--which is the majority of the people. I ask you to pray for us. We need prayers a lot. Only in Christ can we find the strength to continue. May God bless you."

Please add the people of Cuba to your list of prayers as well as Padre Yordanis Acosta, who ministers to 5 different congregations in Cuba. Muchas gracias!



Claudia Fedarko  

Early Bird Registration is now open for the NETWorks "PUTTing Out Hunger" Golf Tournament!

Election News

Did you know?

Monday, March 2, 2026, was the first day to request an absentee ballot. The last day to request an absentee ballot is Thursday, May 7, 2026. Absentee ballots for the May 19 primary will begin being mailed on April 20, 2026.

Each election, officials encourage voters to mail in their ballots well ahead of time or return ballots to drop boxes or directly to voting locations to ensure they are received on time. 

You can check your voter status and sample ballot at the link below.

Early voting begins Monday, April 27, 2026, and runs through Friday, May 15.

As we all watch the tragic events of violence escalate in Iran, Jerusalem, and Palestine, it is so important to keep the people of the Holy Land in our prayers.

Family Ministries Micropractice 

Join our households with

birth through elementary aged children

in this simple intentional practice

as we bring our learning from the lectionary

into our everyday lives.

You may wish to conclude this micro-practice with this prayer:



God of overflowing love,

You invite us to live with open hearts and open tables.

May we share what we have, ask for help when we need it,

and care for our neighbors—building a community where no one is left out.

Amen.



Invitation to Prayer Shawl Ministry



Prayer shawls are used to provide comfort, acknowledge joy or appreciation, say goodbye, or any other reason to share God’s love. They may be used in prayer, and the act of making them is prayer. Making them with friends is church.

Currently, a prayer shawl group meets one morning and one evening a month. You are invited to attend one or both meetings.

Monthly Prayer Shawl Meeting Times and Locations

First Monday Prayer Shawl Meeting: 10 -11:30 am in room M108.

Email Junior Abraham at jrabraham1953@gmail.com with questions.

Fourth Thursday Prayer Shawl Meeting: 6:30-8 pm in off site locations.

Email Cheryl and Fred Murphy at murphyfbfm@gmail.com with questions.

Note that you can participate at home on your own as well.

Wednesday Night Adult Bible Study

Join with others as we explore the Bible and have fun.

All are welcome.

6 – 8 pm

on the 2nd & 4th Wednesdays of each month

in the Commons Hallway Classroom

(across from the Julian of Norwich Center)

6:00 light supper

6:30 Bible Study

Contact Fred Murphy for more information.

Mostly Mysteries

Book Discussion Group

Next meeting in person:

Monday, May 18

at 1 pm in Room M108

Our April book selection

is

First Lie Wins

by Ashley Elston

You're invited to join members and friends of St. Bede's to discuss favorite mysteries and thrillers.

New Digital Assisted Listening System

for St. Bede's Nave

Thanks to a a generous grant, we have upgraded our Nave sound system with a new digital assisted listening server. This digital server will stream the Nave audio directly to your smartphone and, from there, it can be delivered through wired headphones, Bluetooth devices, or, if you have smart phone enabled hearing aids, the audio can be streamed directly into the hearing aids. Our hope is that this system can improve speech intelligibility for any who have a difficult time hearing or understanding the spoken word in the Nave.

The FIRST STEP to use the new system is download the "ListenWIFI" app onto your smartphone by clicking on one of the links below. The app is free and does not require any type of registration or password (thank goodness!). The app will not work until you are at St. Bede's and connected to our Wi-Fi network.

The SECOND STEP is to arrive at St. Bede's and connect to the new "St. Bede's - Guest" Wi-Fi network which is an open network that requires no password (thank goodness, again!). The system will not work if you connect to the old "stbedes" password protected network.

Please let us know if you need help connecting!

St. Bede's Prayer List

A note about our prayer list:

We have reorganized our prayer list and are trying to make it more manageable going forward. Names will remain on the prayer list for 3 weeks unless otherwise requested. If you have placed someone on the prayer list and you would now like that person removed, please notify the office. Please request removal only for names which you have placed on the list. We are always happy to request prayer for our parishioners and our extended community.

Please contact Laura Pittman in the church office to add or remove names from the prayer list.

Laura Pittman

lpittman@stbedes.org



In our St. Bede’s community, prayer has recently been requested for:

Terry Cannon

Raz Schreiber

Prayer has been requested on a more long-term basis for:

Susan Cáceres

Jim Helms

Martha Robert

Claude Oakley

Miriam Needham

Claiborne Jones

Margie Klein

Michele Heller

Lynn Williams

Jim Handsfield

Barbie Olsen

Dixie Snider

David Boyd

Debhani Hernandez

Al and Regina Studwell                      

Sarah Jane and Jim Ohl

Mary Rodriguez

Helen Abraham

Cameron Maddox  

Aree Bancroft

Nancy Waring

Frances Bowen

Ann Foote

Sue Ellen Lampros

Prayer has also been requested for these in our wider community:

Larry Wilson, friend of Larry Bing

Carlos Ramirez Vargas, friend of Claudia Fedarko

Zoe Bushart, granddaughter of Doris and Jim Bushart

Lawrence Pinson, father of Laura Sellers

Jeremy and Aila Craig, family of Helen Loeb

James Smythe, great nephew of Molly Graves

Larry Sullivan, friend of Joan Greer

John Borden, friend of Joan Greer

Kayt Hoch, daughter-in-law of Martha and David West

Reagan Koski, friend of Beth Cannon

Bill Edgar, father of Beth Cannon

Carol Guthrie, sister of Ann Foote

Andy Matia, friend of Ann Foote

Mary Robert, sister of Martha Robert

Wright Coleman, son of Jennie Couture

Fay Key, friend of the St. Bede's community 

Eleanor Pearlman, granddaughter of Gwen Heaton          

Anne Jones, sister of Claiborne Jones

We pray for those who have died:

Delores O’Neil, friend of Tom and Loretta Vail

Nancy Bunker Ward, mother of Nancy Ward

We give thanks for those serving our country in the military:

Josh Bowers

Jonathan

We give thanks for those celebrating birthdays this week

5/2 Robin Brown-Haithco

5/3 Drew Spires

5/3 Mae Marshall

5/8 Katie Doolittle

To stay up to date

on activities throughout the Diocese of Atlanta,

sign up for Connecting, the Diocesan E-newsletter.

You can also sign up to receive For Faith,

which is the weekly meditation

from Bishop Rob Wright

sent by email on Fridays.

Bishop Wright's Weekly Podcast

Did you know that Bishop Rob Wright has a weekly podcast? You can take a spiritual "deep dive" each week with Bishop Wright and his special guests and grow deeper in faith and understanding as you listen and learn.

Explore For People, Bishop Wright's Podcast, Here

St. Mary and St. Martha Episcopal Church in Buford

invites all to:

St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Newnan

invites all to:

St. Matthew's Episcopal Church in Snellville

invites all to:

Applications open for Episcopal Church 2026–2027 educational scholarships



Applications are being accepted for a variety of educational scholarships from The Episcopal Church for the 2026–2027 academic year. The deadline to apply online is Friday, May 15. All applicants must be Episcopalians.

This year the following scholarships are available:

• Ten $10,000 scholarships for applicants of African descent studying for ministry in The Episcopal Church.
• Eight $5,000 scholarships for applicants of Indigenous descent.
• Four $5,000 scholarships for applicants of Asian and Pacific Island descent studying theology.
• Seven $5,000 scholarships for applicants of Hispanic descent studying at an accredited Episcopal seminary.

Fully completed applications will receive priority. Scholarship funds will be given to the schools designated by the applicants.

Abren solicitudes para becas educativas de la Iglesia Episcopal 2026–2027

Se están aceptando solicitudes para una variedad de becas educativas de la Iglesia Episcopal que se otorgarán para el año académico 2026–2027. La fecha límite para solicitar en línea es el viernes 15 de mayo. Todos los solicitantes deben ser episcopales.

Este año están disponibles las siguientes becas:

• Diez becas de $10,000 para solicitantes de ascendencia africana que estudien para el ministerio en la Iglesia Episcopal.
• Ocho becas de $5,000 para solicitantes de ascendencia indígena.
• Cuatro becas de $5,000 para solicitantes de ascendencia asiática y de las islas del Pacífico que estudien teología.
• Siete becas de $5,000 para solicitantes de ascendencia hispana que estudien en un seminario episcopal acreditado.

Las solicitudes completamente llenas tendrán prioridad. Los fondos de las becas se destinarán a las escuelas que designen las personas solicitantes.

Calling All Parents and Grandparents: Is there a child in your home or community who would benefit from getting out into nature, building community, encountering God, and learning about themselves?

Camp Kanuga has been a trusted and transformative summer camp program for 95 years, with Episcopal roots, accredited by the ACA, and open to rising 2nd- through 10th-graders. Located in Hendersonville, NC and operating between June 4th and August 3rd, it’s a place where kids gather and experience belonging, grow in their faith, and have a lot of fun.

The Camp Kanuga team would love to hear from you and talk more about how it may be a good fit for your family. Visit CampKanuga.org to connect and learn more.

Pathways

the magazine of the Diocese of Atlanta

The new Pathways is now available online! Through original photography, articles, and interviews, Pathways shares inspiring stories from Middle and North Georgia — examples of spiritual growth.

Read Pathways Here