THE EPISTLE:

December 12, 2024

Silver Saints Presents: Mary Poppins TODAY, December 12 at 1 p.m.

Please join us for our thirty sixth Silver Saints Matinee Movie in the St. Thomas Parish Hall on Thursday, December 12 at 1:00 PM. You voted for a classic movie for December 2024, Mary Poppins, and we will show it for your pleasure as a step back in time. This movie has inspired all of us through the years. Please come visit with us as we watch it again. Good feelings guaranteed.



The Silver Saints Movie Matinee lets us gather for fun and fellowship, with no agenda except to entertain us and to offer social time for our Parish and neighborhood visitors. We offer beverages and snacks, and we will even pick you up and return you to your abode. We offer comfortable seating and have a comfort break half way through the movie. If you need a ride please call Jack Stokes at 256-881-4748 or the church office 24 hours prior to showtime. We hope to see you there.

MNO TONIGHT, December 12, 6:30 pm in the Parish Hall

Mom's Night Out is a special ministry that is dedicated to women who have children at home ages 0-18. The monthly Mom's Group is a time to come together as mothers with young children to support one another, share in the love and laughter, and help each other through the challenges and struggles that motherhood brings. Being a mom is not always easy, so one night a month we come together to ask the good Lord for patience and strength and to lean on one another in this shared experience. Please bring a mom friend! Contact Audrey Cain at audreysherkin@gmail.com for more info

The Rosary in Advent

TOMORROW,

Dec. 13th

The Rosary will be offered every Friday during Advent, through December 20th, at 12:05pm in the Nave.

Each prayer session lasts around half an hour and includes the reading of each scripture passage for the five decades of either the Joyful, Sorrowful, Glorious, or Luminous Mysteries of the Holy Rosary. During Advent, we will follow the scripture readings for the 5 Joyful Mysteries, read by Fr. Donavan from the King James Version of the Bible. If you’ve never prayed the Rosary before, we always have Rosary beads available, as well as written directions to help you fully participate in this meaningful, scriptural, and contemplative prayer practice.

Advent Reflections every Saturday through December 21st

The DOK would like to invite the parish to join the Daughters in an Advent reflection time the next 2 Saturdays mornings. We will meet for coffee at 8:30 am and have reflection time from 9-10 in Conference Room 1. Reflections will focus on the meaning of the Advent wreath and candles.

Dec 14 Barbara Meyer and Ruth Erwin leading

Dec 21 Mother Katie leading



Take a brief break from the busyness of the season for a little quiet time!

Blessed Are You Among Women:  An Advent Bible Study with Mary, the Mother of God

Join Fr. Donavan and Mtr. Katie this Advent season for a Bible Study and discussion based on the most important saint of Christian faith, the Blessed Virgin Mary. Together, we will follow the stories of Mary in the Bible, from the appearance of the Angel Gabriel and her joyful singing of the Magnificat, all the way through to the struggles she faced during her Son’s life and death on the Cross and her place as the Mother of the Church after his Resurrection. Don’t miss this special Advent series on Blessed Mary, led by Fr. Donavan and Mtr. Katie at 9:30am in the Parish Hall!  

A Special St. Thomas Night Celebration, Sunday,

December 22nd!

Save the date-- Sunday, December 22-- to celebrate the Feast of our Patron Saint, St. Thomas the Apostle! 

We will begin this year with our 5pm Sunday Evening Holy Eucharist, observing the prayers and readings for the Feast of St. Thomas, which falls every year on December 21st. Then, following our worship service, we will move from the Nave into the Parish Hall at 6pm for a new St. Thomas Night Dinner Theater, followed by a carol sing-along. Come have dinner, see this year's rendition of Eek! The Musical!, and get in the holiday spirit with a dessert of cookies, hot cocoa, and carols!

In order to guarantee your seat and meal, we ask that you pick up tickets by Wednesday, December 18. If you need to reserve your seat and cannot get tickets this Sunday, the 15th, please call the church office at 256-880-0247 or email our Children's Ministry Coordinator HERE. Please note that those participating in the program do not need a ticket as they will have dinner before the show.  

"A-Thomasing" is a British custom of going door-to-door to beg for alms or food for the winter on St. Thomas' feast day. In the same spirit of helping those in need, we are collecting non-perishable goods as optional admission to St. Thomas Night Dinner Theater.

Make sure you have St. Thomas Night, Sunday, December 22nd, on your calendar, and go ahead and pick up your tickets to our St. Thomas Night Dinner Theater THIS SUNDAY!

Young Adults Ornament Making Party with Mtr. Katie:

Tuesday, December 17th!

Calling all young adults ages 18-39: join Mtr Katie in the Parish Hall next Tuesday, December 17, at 6:30 pm for an Advent ornament making party — get ready for biblically accurate angels and lots of googley eyes. Be not afraid!!!

If you have not yet filled out & turned in your pledge card for 2025, please consider doing so before December 31st. Every pledge counts and is important, and we want to include every pledge in our 2025 Budget Report at the Annual Meeting on Sunday, January 12th. Thank you!

New Books of Common Prayer for 2025

St. Thomas recently ordered thirty new Books of Common Prayer and will have them in the pews on January 5, 2025! Our goal is to reduce the length of the bulletins by returning to the use of the red Book of Common Prayer during worship at the beginning of next year. This will reduce the amount of paper, the staff's time, and printing expenses. The church has also made a commitment to the Creation Care Committee to reduce paper and electricity costs and by doing so, be better stewards with our budget and our environment. To offset the expenses of the new books, we are inviting anyone would like to remember or give thanks of a loved one, to make a donation of $25 for a BCP. When you do so, include the name of you are giving the new Prayer Book in remembrance of or thanksgiving for, and we will include their name and yours in one of the new Prayer Books! If you would like to participate, please make your check out to St. Thomas and write "BCP Donation" in the memo line and include with the check a note with the information you'd like included. Thank you, and look for more information on bulletin changes at the beginning of next year!

Christmas Events for St. Thomas Youth and Children!

Sat. Dec. 21 - 10:30 am - St. Thomas Night Dress Rehearsal and Children's Christmas Party- We will have our annual Children's Christmas Party, including lunch, after St. Thomas Night practice.

Sun. Dec. 22- 6 pm- St. Thomas Night Dinner Theater- The children of St. Thomas will be part of this year's rendition of Eek! The Musical. Those participating in the program will have an earlier dinner in the Youth Room at 5:30 pm before putting on their costumes. Please let Ms. Laura Beth or Miss Kathy know if your family would like to participate.  

Adults are needed to assist with costuming and food on Saturday and Sunday. Please let our Children's Ministry Coordinator, Laura Beth, know if you are willing to help out by emailing her at children@stthomashuntsville.org.

Galaxy of Lights

St. Thomas Church Bus heading to "Galaxy of Lights" on December 27th!



Come see the the "Galaxy of Lights" at the Botanical Gardens in the comfort of the St. Thomas Church bus! The bus will be available for boarding at 5:30 at the Church front door on Thursday, December 27th. There is seating for 15 people. We request that those wishing to go call Jack Stokes to verify seats available. Travel time is 20 minutes from Church to entry line, ~45-60 minutes to entrance, 30 minutes to drive through and 20 minutes back to Church, approaching 2+ hours total. There will be no cost, thanks to Fr. Donavan's Christmas gift. Please come join us! Contact Jack Stokes by clicking HERE now to confirm your seat!

Looking for a gift to give to the church this Christmas? Make a Donation to our Clergy's Discretionary Accounts

Did you know that St. Thomas receives calls and stop-ins regularly from people in our local community seeking direct assistance for food, rent, and electric bills? It is the church's policy to never give out cash as assistance, but we can and often do call Huntsville Utilities to help with a portion of someone's utility bills, write checks to assist with rent, and give out gift cards to help with food and gas. And our clergy also are approached occasionally by people within our own parish family who need help.

All of this assistance primarily comes from our Clergy's Discretionary Accounts. Clergy Discretionary Accounts, as stated in the Constitution and Canons of the Episcopal Church, are set up to allow clergy to provide direct assistance for the poor and to support church and non-profit local, national, and international organizations seeking assistance for their charitable work and ministries.

Fr. Donavan, Mtr. Katie, and Dcn. Jeannie each have their own discretionary account for these specific reasons and those reasons only. If you'd like to help our clergy have funds to directly support the poor, the sick, those in specific need, and the work of the church in the world, please consider a donation this Advent-Christmas season (or anytime!) to the clergy's discretionary accounts. You can give a donation to one of our clergy's accounts specifically, or you can simply write your check and mark the check and/or envelope as a donation for "Clergy Discretionary Accounts" (make out all checks to St. Thomas) and your donation will be divided equally among St. Thomas' three clergy. Thank you!

Book Club - January's Read

Book Club

January 13

Lula Dean's Little Library of Banned Books

St. Thomas Book Club is hoping for a lighter read this month with Lula Dean's Little Library of Banned Books by Kirsten Miller. Join us on January 13 at 10 am in the St. Thomas Parlor. Call Elouisa Stokes at 256-604-8669 for more information.

Memorial Flowers for Christmas: Envelopes are in the Pews now!

Christmas flowers are a wonderful way to remember your loved ones. You’ll find Christmas offertory envelopes in the church pews to use for your own memorials or thanksgivings. Simply fill out an envelope and put it in the offering plate or drop it by the church office. We must have your names no later than Wednesday, December 18, in order for them to be included in the Christmas Eve service bulletins. We ask for a minimum donation of $30 to cover the costs of the Christmas arrangements and flowers.

Sunday "Come As You Are" Eucharist

"Come As You Are"

5pm Holy Eucharist

This Sunday, and every Sunday, we have our "Come As You Are" Holy Eucharist. Our 5pm parishioners find this Sunday evening worship service meets their needs or schedules better than our morning worship. The 5pm Holy Eucharist features joyful hymns from the Alleluia III hymnal, gospel music chosen by Sam Wright, and casual mini-sermons preached from the floor.

 If you have any questions about dinner, contact Carolyn Seaman by clicking HERE or Rebekah Callahan by clicking HERE.

Info on regular programs and rehearsals at St. Thomas are now just a click away!

Now you can find out the regularly scheduled Children and Youth Sunday School offerings by simply clicking the link below. You can also find both Adult and Treble Choir rehearsal times and times for Bell Choir rehearsals with just a simple click of the button below! Give it a try this week!

Advent Wreath Lighting for the Second Candle: The Carrier Family

Adorable Acolytes

December 11th Lessons and Carols

December 7th Christmas Party for Young Families!

December 5th Brass Band of Huntsville "Goodness & Light" Christmas Concert

Phone: 256.880.0247

Email: StThomas@stthomashuntsville.org