St. Peter's Mountain Lakes
 

KeyNews

October 29, 2026

 

This Sunday - All Saints' Day

Jesus began to speak, and taught them, saying:


"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God."

Matthew 5:1-9

8:00 AM - Holy Eucharist Rite I

Reading of our Parish Necrology for the Feast of All Saints


10:15 AM - Family Service - Holy Eucharist Rite II

Reading of our Parish Necrology for the Feast of All Saints

& The First Anthem of our new Children's Choir


5:30 to 7:00 PM - Youth Group in the Parish Hall

9o minutes of formation, fun & food

Remember to "Fall Back" One Hour this Sunday Morning

Daylight Saving Time ends on Sunday, November 1, 2026, at 2:00 a.m., when clocks "fall back" one hour to 1:00 a.m. local standard time.

2027 Stewardship Pledge Campaign Update - Week 1

Thank you to all who made their pledge commitments this past week. The Stewardship Committee, and the Vestry extend their gratitude to all who can make their pledge in November to help guide our work as we prepare for 2027.


Please be generous - a recent exhaustive survey of 1,500 Episcopal parishes around the nation by the Forward Movement - showed that one mark of a growing parish is Stewardship giving that funds the operating budget of the parish without reliance on deficit budgets, fundraising or an endowment. That is becoming a mark of St. Peter's and we wish for that to continue.


Thank you for your prompt attention to our parish's stewardship.

Parish Calendar of Events - November 2026 - June 2027


Please click the button below to download and print all the parish events for the remainder of the program year. If you are looking for dates for outreach or formation or fellowship it is all here.

Prayers for the Election


All are welcome to gather in Church for Evening Prayer on both Election Eve, November 2 and Election Day, November 3 at 7:00 to 7:30 pm.


We will pray the Evening Prayer of the Daily Office. Our prayers will be for ourselves, our communities and the nation that, in the days ahead, we will honor the truth, preserve the rule of law, and all the while respect the dignity inherent in all people.

Join in Denville Rotary's 3rd Annual End Hunger Event


The Rotary Club of Denville is holding an end Hunger food packaging event to provide nutritious meals for those in need in our area. 20,000 non-perishable rice & beans meals will be packaged in a well-organized, efficient, and fun process. The only thing needed is volunteers willing to give a few hours on a Friday evening and/or Saturday morning to make it happen.


The event is on Friday evening Nov. 6th (setup) and Saturday morning Nov. 7th (food packaging) in the gym at St. Mary's church on Rt. 46 in Denville.  It is a multi-generational activity -- young people, grownups, and anyone in between -- that leaves everyone satisfied with a good job well done. Many boxes of meals will go to food pantries in churches in our own diocese, so helping out will be an extension of St. Peter's Outreach. Additionally, recognizing a dire need, meals will go to families who gather to visit detainees at Delaney Hall in Newark.


For more information, contact Diane Grabowski (973-479-0577, dianemgrabowski@gmail.com). If all else fails, you are welcome to just show up. Many thanks.

A Thank you from our friends at Church World Services

Thank you to those who donated Halloween costumes and candy for CWS. Here is a note of thanks from Marina one of CSW's north Jersey case managers.


Dear Reverend Michael,


On behalf of all of us at Church World Service, I want to thank you and your wonderful parishioners - for the beautiful Halloween gifts of costumes and candies for our refugee families.

We are so grateful for your continued support. You have helped us before, and once again you have shown such incredible kindness and generosity to families from different countries who truly need to feel welcomed and cared for.


For our clients, your gifts mean so much more than costumes and treats. Each costume is happy, shining eyes of a child, their laughter, and their chance to be part of a real American celebration.


Thanks for your ongoing partnership!


With deepest gratitude and warm wishes,

 

Marina G Shtapura

Case Manager

Ukrainian School Impact

Church World Services

 

Diocesan News

 

Letter from Diocese of Newark Prison/Delaney Hall Ministry on needs at Delaney Hall

Delaney Hall Update - With Our Neighbors is Where We Stand


Dear friends,


It has now been over a year and a half that advocates from many faith traditions have been standing in solidarity with the families of detainees at Delaney Hall.


The Prison Ministry of the Diocese of Newark & the Delaney Hall Ministry ask your help in providing for the needs of 100+ families that visit their detained family member each weekend. Often the detainee is their family's bread-winner, throwing their family into deeper insecurity.


We are beginning to collect much needed items that can be dropped off (for now) at two drop-off locations:


  • St. James Episcopal Church, 581 Valley Road, Upper Montclair
  • St. Peter's Episcopal Church, 215 Boulevard, Mountain Lakes



We will make a monthly delivery on the 4th Saturday of the month - the same weekend that we hold our Diocesan Prayer Vigil on the 4th Sunday of the month at 3:00 pm.


Donations that are needed


Grocery store gift cards are still at the top of the list of needs. The best cards to give are Shoprite and Stop & Shop. The easiest denominations for us to deal with are $25 and $50. 


For the Hospitality Tent

Our greatest need is new blankets. The weather is turning colder particularly at night. Delaney Hall is very close to Newark Bay and the winds are constant.  Land's End has a sale on fleece stadium blankets for $9.58.


We are also in need of shoelaces. We give these out to our neighbors who are released. They are often released without their shoelaces.


We are also in need of snacks to serve at the tent. Any individually packaged cookies, chips, granola bars or crackers are welcome, so are apples and mandarins. With the cold weather we are also in need of instant hot chocolate packs and ramen noodles in cups. 

 

Shelf stable items are assembled into pantry bags for visitors and for people who were released. 

  • Beans (dried & canned)
  • Canned tuna fish
  • Rice
  • Pasta
  • Flour
  • Cornmeal
  • Honey
  • Dried Fruits & nuts
  • Broth
  • Peanut butter
  • Shelf stable milk & juice
  • Rolled oats & other grains
  • Sidewalk chalk
  • Jump ropes
  • Soccer & Basketballs (new please)
  • Toy cars
  • Dolls & action figures
  • Plush toys
  • Spinners, fidgets, stress balls, squishies
  • Stamps
  • Sanitary napkins
  • Individually packaged snacks (chips, granola bars, cookies, etc.)
  • Apples
  • Mandarins
  • Instant hot chocolate packs
  • Instant ramen in cups
  • Stadium blankets (new please)
  • Shoelaces
  • Rosaries*
  • Bibles in Spanish, French, Portuguese and Haitian Creole* 

*There are also individual requests for Qurans and other religious texts, and prayer beads and other religious items which we fulfill, but the need for Biles and rosaries is constant.


Finally, detainees who are able to show that they are in legal proceedings to regularize their immigration status are able to pay a bond for their release from detention. (We have met many such people, who should not have been detained in the first place)


Two organizations that are collecting funds to pay bonds for detainees at Delaney Hall are Soma Community Cares and Envision Freedom.


Thank you! You can learn more about our experiences at Delaney Hall and ways you can help at the Prison Ministry/Delaney Hall workshop at the Diocesan Convention.

 

973.334.4429 | parish.stpetersml@gmail.com | stpetersmountainlakes.org

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