Dear Friends,

We are in the midst of a great launch of fall programming, and now you just need to choose between all the great offerings! Thank you to all who made last weekend such a joy, with the return of the choir and the Parish Potluck so much fun and delicious. This Sunday, our Youth Group launches on Sunday afternoon at 5pm in the Parish House. Vespers in the Church at 5pm will bring beautiful contemplative prayer practices to bring more mindfulness of those addictions that impact our world and each of us and invite gratitude for our own recovery and the hope for new freedom and recovery for others whom we know and love. In the morning, at 9:30am, Women’s Bible Study starts to meet again once a month in the Library, while in the Forum Room, our short series on the Book of Common Prayer continues, with Father Bud joining Randall Zachman to share some of the riches and resources of the Prayer Book for our lives.

Can we all move just two rows forward?

Clergy have been wondering for a while how to tell the congregation how lonely we sometimes feel at services when, unintentionally, people are sitting so far back! If we all moved two rows forward, then our singing will sound even better; our sense of community will be deepened; and how we look (and feel!) for everyone on livestream will be a joy for them, as well as your clergy, choir, and servers! We are asking ushers to encourage people to sit further forward; we will rope off a few pews at the back of church to make their job easier.

This Sunday in worship

We also now move from our summer preaching series on Romans back to our traditional focus on the entirety of the Sunday lectionary readings, particularly the Gospel. This Sunday, we are given a powerful story from Jesus about what God's mercy looks like in the most practical of terms.  Like so many things in life, and in our life of faith, accepting something conceptually is often very different from truly embracing it in our hearts and in our daily lives. We all long for God's mercy, forgiveness and compassion. But how does God's mercy square with our human concepts of "fairness" or "justice"?   As so many witnesses to the Gospel in the scriptures say, "come and see!"

Yours in Christ,

David, Stacey & Glenn

Saturday, September 19 | 8:30 - 10:30 AM

Upper Room Men's Group

In the Parish House

Forum Room

UNDER PENALTY OF LAW THIS TAG IS NOT TO BE REMOVED EXCEPT BY THE CONSUMER

The Fear of Removing the Mattress Tag: What does it say about us?" How many of us remember being afraid to remove one of these tags, and when did you finally learn consumers were actually allowed to remove them? And what other warnings or "rules" from childhood turned out to be misunderstood?

Many times, we have experienced irrational fears, not because they were logical but because they were deeply ingrained.

Join us for breakfast, fellowship and a lighthearted discussion that will lead us into deeper themes about fear, authority and the lives we live by, whether as children or adult men.

Breakfast menu: Western-style scrambled eggs, sausage gravy & biscuits, bacon, potato cakes, coffee and juice.

Looking forward to another great session with "the dudes of Saint James." Have questions? Click here to email Chuck Smith.

Sunday, September 20 | 9:30 AM

Women's Bible Study

In the Parish House Library

Women's Bible Study is back! Join us on the third Sunday of each month in the parish house library at 9:30 AM. Kristy Clark will lead this month as we study the lectionary reading, Matthew 20:1-16.

The format is simple: come as you are, bring your Bible, and we will read and discuss God's gracious benefits to us and to all. Have questions? Click here to email Kristy Clark.

Sunday, September 20 | 9:30 AM

Forum with Randall Zachman and

Fr. Bud Hartley

In the Parish House

Forum Room

Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury and a major figure in developing the Book of Common Prayer, saw this work as restoring an early church discipline: the daily reading of Scripture in a prayerful, methodical way.

Cranmer developed a lectionary for the daily office that went through the entire Psalter every month, the New Testament three times a year, and most of the Old Testament every year. In this way, both clergy and laity could be strengthened in their knowledge of God, and inflamed with love and piety.

Join Randall and Fr. Bud Hartley this Sunday as we examine the development of Morning and Evening Prayer from Thomas Cranmer's time to our own. We will have several Books of Common Prayer available to reference, but please feel free to bring your own from home. Available in person and via Zoom. Click here for the Zoom link.

Sunday, September 20 | 5:00 PM

Addiction & Recovery Service

In the Sanctuary

On Sunday, September 20, we will hold our annual Addiction and Recovery Service as part of Recovery Month at our 5:00 PM Vespers gathering. This service is open to anyone whose life has been touched by addiction — those in recovery, those still struggling and the family members, friends and loved ones who walk alongside them. Addiction carries a particular kind of pain — one that is often carried in silence, and one that ripples outward to touch everyone who loves the person affected.

In this service, we hold that pain honestly and without judgment, naming it before God as a community that refuses to look away. And in the same breath, we give thanks for the healing and hope that recovery makes possible: the daily courage it takes, the grace that sustains it, and the deep truth that no one walks this road alone.

Come as you are, bring whomever you carry in your heart and join us for an evening of honesty, compassion and hope.

Sunday, September 20 | 5:00 - 6:30 PM

Youth Group School Year Kickoff!

In the parish house forum room

Youth Group is back, and we’re kicking off the year with pizza, silly trivia, and a little preparation for the school year ahead!

We’ll enjoy dinner together, test our knowledge with ridiculous, fun trivia games and then create our own school day care packages filled with things to help us power through those long days of learning.

Come hungry, bring a friend, and get ready to laugh, create, and start the new Youth Group year together. All 6th – 12th graders are welcome! Please click here to register.

Tuesdays, September 22 & 29

5:30 - 6:45 PM

The Practice of Recovery

Yoga, the twelve steps, and a path for everyone to explore healing and renewal

in our daily lives

Tuesdays in September 22 & 29 | 5:30 - 6:45 PM

Urban Well Yoga Studio, lower level of the Parish House located at 119 North Duke Street.

Led by Sarah Shelton, Urban Well Yoga Studio Coordinator, and The Reverend Stacey Carpenter, Associate Rector at Saint James.

Join us for this three-week series exploring recovery, healing, and embodied practice in everyday life. This series is rooted in the wisdom of the 12 Steps, something that the co-founders of Alcoholics Anonymous believed everyone could benefit from.

Recovery is not limited to one experience or one path. Many of us are recovering from something—alcohol or substance use, codependency, grief, stress, burnout, perfectionism, anxiety, illness, major life transitions, old patterns, or the places where we have felt disconnected from ourselves, others, our bodies, or a sense of meaning. Please register for planning purposes. Click here for more information and registration.

Thursday, September 24, 7:00 PM

The Mercy Seminar with Prof. Randall Zachman, Fr. David Peck

With Prof. Randall Zachman, hosted by Fr. David

Entirely via Zoom

Term 3 focuses on Christian understandings of resurrection and eternal life, beginning with the hope of future resurrection life in Paul's letters and the expectation of eternal life now in the Gospel of John. We will follow the development of these themes in Christian and Spiritualist traditions, including Emanuel Swedenborg's provocative visions of the soul's journey after death.

Classes meet on six consecutive Thursday evenings via Zoom from 7:00 to 8:30 PM EST. Each term stands alone, but when taken together, offers a layered understanding as our knowledge of the issues increases. All sessions are recorded and available to participants for viewing at any time. Click here to learn more and register for Term 3.

Sunday, September 27 | 9:00 AM

Saint James Voices

Calling all Singers!



Led by Kate Umble Smucker, the ensemble is open to anyone ages nine and above, with no experience required. The group will rehearse at 9:00 AM and then sing at the 10:30 AM service.

If you'd like your music in advance, click here to email Kate.

Saturday, October 3 | 5:00 PM

Saturday Night Mass

Instruments of Peace:

Standing in the

Space Between

For the Feast of Saint Francis, we will gather to reflect on scripture, prayers, and music that focus on being instruments of peace. The Mass will feature local singer-songwriter Liz Fulmer on acoustic guitar, performing original faith-based songs and cover tunes, including Sarah McLachlan's "Prayer of Saint Francis.

This Mass will lead into a 5-week Contemplative Citizenship series that gives people contemplative tools as they enter the midterm election season.

Available in person and via livestream. Click here to view via livestream.

Sunday, October 11 | 11:45 AM

Revolutionary Text Lecture and Brunch

Parish House Forum Room



Join Professor Randall Zachman to explore the thinking behind George Washington’s 1790 letter to the Jewish congregation in Newport, Rhode Island, in which he wrote that the new nation gives no sanction to bigotry nor assistance to persecution. Today, the letter is considered a stepping stone for the First Amendment that would come the following year.

Registration is required for catering with a suggested donation of $25 for adults. Registration deadline: October 5^th.

Click here to register.

Tuesday, October 13 | 7:00 PM

Fall Contemplative Citizenship Series Begins

Lord, make me an

instrument of your peace

Tuesdays, Oct 13 – Nov 10

 7:00 – 8:00 PM, In person and via Zoom

This Fall, our worship and teaching will be guided by a single line from the Prayer of Saint Francis: “Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.” We will begin this initiative at our Saturday Night Mass on October 3, with local musician and pastor Liz Fulmer leading music that inspires us to embody God’s peace in our lives.

On Tuesday, October 13, we will start a 5-week Fall Contemplative Citizenship series in which we will reflect on various lines from the prayer, exploring what it means to embody this prayer in both our personal lives and in our civic responsibilities, especially during this election season when our country feels divided and stressed. Click here for more info and to register for the Zoom link.

Sunday, October 18 | 1:00 - 3:00 PM

Lancaster CROP Hunger Walk

Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church

The Crop Walk is a mission-driven event where funds raised help feed those most vulnerable in our community, as well as support programs addressing food insecurity worldwide. Whether one takes part in the physical walk, helps raise money, or simply donates, you are making a tremendous impact for the greater good. The event is held rain or shine. Free to walk, but donations/pledges are welcome.

To learn more and join the St. James Team via the CROP Walk's website, Click Here .

If you need assistance with signing up, Bradden Weaver will also be on hand in the narthex each Sunday after the 8:30 and 10:30 masses from September 27 - October 11.

On October 18, registration for the Walk begins at 1:00 pm at Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church is located at 64 Hershey Ave, Lancaster, PA. Following a brief program to welcome participants, the Walk begins at 2:00 pm.

Mark Your Calendar

September 19, 8:30 - 10:30 AM | Upper Room Men's Group

September 20, 9:30 AM | Women's Bible Study resumes

September 20, 5 - 6:30 PM | Youth Group

September 22, 5:30 - 6:45 PM | The Practice of Recovery

September 24, 7:00 PM | Term 3 of the

Mercy Seminar begins

September 27, 9:00 AM | Saint James Voices

September 29, 5:30 - 6:45 PM | The Practice of Recovery

October 3, 5:00 PM | Saturday Night Mass, Instruments of Peace: Standing in the Space Between with Liz Fulmer

October 10, 10:00 - 11:30 AM | Women's Gathering

October 11, 11:45 AM | Revolutionary Text & Brunch

October 12 | Saint James Offices closed

October 13, 7:00 PM | Contemplative Citizenship

series begins

October 17, 8:30 - 10:30 AM | Upper Room Men's Group

October 18, 9:30 AM | Women's Bible Study

October 18, 1:00 PM | 2026 CROP Hunger Walk

October 20, 7:00 PM | Contemplative Citizenship

October 21 | Fall Habitat for Humanity Build begins

October 21, 3:00 PM | Holy Eucharist at Willow Valley

October 25, 9:00 AM | Saint James Voices

October 25, 11:45 AM | Fall Harvest Festival

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