St. Cuthbert Anglican Church

"Growing, Knowing & Sharing God's Love"

St. Cuthbert's, here is your weekly focus on things that are

happening in the parish. Read and stay connected.

Sunday, December 14, 2025

Advent 3 - Joy (Gaudete Sunday)

8:00am - Said Holy Communion BCP

10:00am - Choral Eucharist BAS*

*Available via live Zoom: Click Here To Join This Sunday's Service

*With Sunday School & Supervised Nursery

Thursday, December 11, 2025

The Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary

10:00am - Said Holy Communion BAS

Future Events Focus

Advent Book Study

Advent of the Saviour by Cindy Bunch.

Rev. Monte will be leading the study after the Thursday 10am Service, starting, December 4. We have done Chapter 1 to date, please read on Chapter 2, 3, and 4 in preparation for our December 11 meeting in the Narthex after the 10am service. Bring your book with your answers to questions filled in to get us going faster in the discussions.

Christmas & New Year Updates

Stage Set-up: Friday, December 12 at 6:30 pm. Help set up the stage for the Sunday School Children Christmas Pageant. Barb Buxton: 604-5596-0369

Youth Group: Friday, December 12 after stage set up, Christmas Craft. Rainoa Lonogan: youthleader@stcuthbert.ca

Sunday School Children Dress Rehearsal & Christmas Party: Saturday, December 13 at 9:30. All children are welcome for the party at 12:30. Volunteers needed to help children into costumes and to help make lunch. Valerie Reimer: 604-588-1067

Sunday School Christmas Pageant: Sunday, December 14 during the 10:00 am Service.

Love Baskets: The Christmas season is upon us and though it is such a joyful time for most of us, however for those who are grieving the loss of a loved one this past year, it is not such a joyful time. The Love baskets are a simple reminder to them that they are not alone and are remembered. Your generous donations of individually wrapped items such as: cookies, candies, teas, hot chocolate, ciders, jam, etc. help us fill these baskets with love. Please no perishable items. Monetary donations can be made through your envelopes and specify Love Baskets. Donations need to be in Sunday, December 14. Contact Suzanne Hains: 604-585-9515

Festival of Lessons & Carols: Sunday, December 21 during the 10:00 am Service

Christmas Eve Services on Wednesday, December 24

5:00 pm – Children & Family Service

7:00 pm – Candlelight Eucharist with Youth Choir

11:00 pm – Candlelight Eucharist with Adult Choir

Christmas Day Service, Thursday, December 25

10:30 am – Eucharist Service

NO THURSDAY SERVICE

January 1, 2026

2025 TAX RECEIPTS: ALL envelope donations must be in to the Church by December 28 to be included in the 2025 year.  No receipt will be issued after December 31.

ALL Expenses/Receipts: must be into the Church office no later than, Wednesday, December 31. Any questions please contact Yolanda Lumase: 604-594-8822 or email: ylumase@stcuthbert.ca

ANNUAL REPORTS: If you are in charge of a group within the church you are expected to submit an annual report typed and ready for printing no later than January 18, 2026, email your report to: bfortin@stcuthbert.ca

SAVE THE DATES: for the AGING WITH GRACE SEMINAR which will be run for 6 weeks on Thursdays in 2026 after our Thursday mid-week service thus:

1.   January 8, 2026 – Gerotranscendence

2.   January 15, 2026 – Intentional Christian Grandparenting

3.  January 22, 2026 – Alzheimer, Dementia, Parkinson’s, Hearing & Eyesight Losses

4.  January 29, 2026 – Knowing When It’s Time To Downsize and the Resources

5.   February 5, 2026 – Palliative Care & Last Rites

6.   February 12, 2026 - Legacy Planning & Terminal Costs

There will be 6 professional speakers in these 6 fields that will present material on the topics and then avail themselves to answer questions. Look out for promotional flier coming out soon.

St Cuthbert's Recycles

New Initiative

If you have usable furniture, toys, and equipment to recycle. This is the platform. Please get in touch with Rev. Monte - revmonte@stcuthbert.ca

Monthly Luncheon

Monday, January 12 at 12:00 noon.

St. Cuthbert Hall. Cost $6.00/person.

All welcome!

Jan Wilmot: 604-584-0710

Pastoral Musings

An Advent Reflection

It’s one thing to preach during Advent. It is another to live Advent. When I preached last Sunday, at the 8am and 10am services I forgot to repeat a story for the 10am congregation that I had used at the 8am. I asked Monte if I might share that story in the pastoral musings for this week as I think it is a helpful story about waiting. So here it is… though a little longer than that it would have been on Sunday.

We talk about the waiting time of Advent, a time to slow down and reflect on the coming of the One whom we call Lord, the Messiah, the Christ, Emmanuel, God with Us. The meaning and expectations of Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love are also a part of our reflections. Ironically, this season of reflection becomes one of frantic busyness for many of us. Patience can run thin when we are caught up with the feeling that there is so much to get done. We want to cross everything off our long lists of activities to complete before Christmas Day.

I have to admit that, as a priest of the church, over the years, Advent has often been much the same kind of busyness for me. Parishioners to see, special services of Lessons and Carols, pageants to help plan and bring together, and of course, too many mince pies to eat at gatherings. It is all a lot of fun, and I hope that it is fun for all of us, but for me, it has often had that sense of checking off everything on my list not only for my family but for church as well.

When I was in Labrador, Advent had a different way of unfolding. In December, the weather was often low clouds with rain and freezing rain. The snow could be slow in coming. The daily round trip flight, Monday to Friday, from Goose Bay to St. Anthony might only come 2 or 3 days during those weeks. With no roads at the time, there was no mail, no perishable foods, no gifts from the Eaton’s or Sears Catalogue, and no travel out, even for medical emergencies or appointments. Travel was very limited. The ice that was beginning to form was too thin to take a snowmobile on and the salt water of the bay was too slushy to easily get a boat through. Even if the ice was ‘just’ thick enough to look for a place to cross the bay or if some of the ponds seemed to have enough ice, the trails through the woods did not have enough snow. Stumps and fallen trees would hinder any progress. Trying to travel to another community that way would mean damaging your snowmobile and you would be stuck. There were no cell phones to call for help.

Advent then, truly was a time of waiting. It was reflective and prayerful for many. For others, the wait was more about being safe to travel around. Advent was a time that I did a lot of home visiting with prayers in the homes of people as we at the kitchen table with a cup of tea or in the quiet of the night close to the wood stove with firelight dancing around the living room. I spent seven Advents reflecting on that season, perhaps more that I have since that time. Advent was a time of remaining in place until after Christmas Day. 

A few days before Christmas, tired of waiting, a few adventurous young men would get on their skidoos head up the bay along the shore and turn into the woods. They would go in a bit then put on their snow shoes and tramp down the snow for 50 or 100 meters get back to the skidoo and move it forward. They would repeat this until they met up with a few others coming from the next community. It was well planned and they were the heroes of the day. Many people wanted to travel on Christmas Day, and this made it possible. They knew what to do and what not to do to stay safe enough and it brought a lot of joy to many people.

As I was only able to get to three communities for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and St. Stephen’s Day (Boxing Day), I was very glad that Christmas was a season of 12 days. The other communities were patient to wait for the Christmas Eucharist and I would manage to travel in the last few days of December and conclude the parish trip by January 5^th or 6^th.

One Advent was exceptional. A man had died in a community about 100 km away. The rule was he had to be taken to St. Anthony for an autopsy. It happened that the weather was good for a plane to come in and I was able to get to the community. The hope was that the body would be returned the next day and we would proceed with the funeral. But the freezing rain set in and it was eight days before plane could bring him back. This was truly a time of waiting. It was painful for the family and the whole community. But it was a prayerful time and a special time for teaching about how we wait in Advent, how we prepare our hearts for the coming of the Lord, how we live in hope, seek peace within ourselves and amongst others, and how to grow deeper in love and come to a point of joyful expectation, even in times of grief. I was not sure I would get home for Christmas, but I did. I think this was the most powerful Advent season I have ever experienced because I had had the time to reflect so deeply. There was nothing else I had to do. There was nothing else I could do. There was nothing else I wanted to do but live day by day through that season.

I invite us all, in all our busyness to take time each day and reflect on our faith in God, who loves us, seeks us, and invites us to find the hope, peace, love, and joy of Advent. We all have our lists but is there really anything else needed on our list as we prepare to celebrate the birth of Jesus and await his return?

May the blessings of Advent continue for you and those around you.

Rev. Stephen/Steve

2026 Stewardship Drive Update

Here is where we stand as of 10 December 2025. Thank you all who brought back their 2026 Pledge Forms. As it stands, we will be able to support 78.1% of the projected 2026 Envelope Giving from pledged planned giving. We are ONLY $70k shy of our projected mark for 2026.

~ KEEP BRINGING BACK THOSE PLEDGE FORMS ~

Click here for the 2025 Budget For Comparison to what 2026 will look like.

Our Mission Statement

“To seek and encourage growth as a Christ–Centred community, empowered by the Holy Spirit, to know God and to make God known

in word and deed.”

Community ~ Connection ~ Communication ~ Continuity ~ Compassion