Edition #12 December 2015

We are creating a Prayer Weaving which can be found on the loom in the guild hall. Everyone in the congregation is invited to help create this simple yet powerful visual. Each strip may feature the names of people we are each praying for or may represent a prayer we have prayed while weaving. Your strips can be woven into the weaving without regard for skill symmetry or color coordination. (If you are unableto do theactual weaving of your prayer strips, you may write your prayer on a strip of cloth (provided) andsomeone else will weave it in for you.)

If you are unable to verbalize a prayer yourself, we are providing some suggestions for you.

As you weave and say your prayer, and touch the strands that represent the prayers of others, your touch will "re-pray" the previous prayers.

Personal prayer is as individual and unique as the person. Each person must develop an authentic and appropriate way of responding to the living God, that is, a way of expressing his or her uniqueness to a very specific, particular, and unique manifestation of God’s love and presence.

Our Prayer Weaving will be a beautiful expression of our often tangled and plain-spoken prayers, and it will perfectly symbolize the connected but individual thoughts and feelings of believers talking with our God.

Our completed creation will be hung in the parish hall.

"Humankind has not woven the web of life. We are but one thread within it. Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves. All things are bound together. All things connect."Chief Seattle

Submitted by Paula Gillman

Shared Ministry Report

November 22, 2015

Joint Vestry and Shared Ministry Team Meeting

At the beginning of the meeting, it was announced that 3 additional parishioners had completed the Safe Church training. At this time, all who were required to have the instruction have completed it.

With regard to the MAP process, there was some discussion about aligning with Elder Circle to provide, as a church, support to the various programs they provide. This will be explored further.

Rev. Paula Gillman also presented the idea of sponsoring some kind of support for local Veterans. This will also be explored further.

There has not yet been a decision as to the distribution of the money from the pasty sale. Rev. Paula Gillman is facilitating that discussion.

It had been determined at the last meeting, that Kim Heise (who is in training for the Diaconate) would meet with the team members who were not priests and Fr. Ken would meet with the priests for the remainder of the meeting.

Kim was available by phone, and she facilitated the discussion with Marianne, Jill, Mike, and Carla. Kim reviewed her plans for having prayer stations from Advent to Epiphany. She has asked team members to “listen” to the parish to see if it is well accepted. She also asked that all “listen” to the parish to see what their needs and talents are. This will be her focus during her training. There may, at some stage, be a survey (in the newsletter) for parishioners to complete.

A discussion was held about the previous meeting with Canon Karen Olson and her suggestion that we look at Mission, Ministry, and Management as the way we begin to define the parish. With regards to that, the plan for the next meeting is to review the Total Ministry Oversight chart, and continue work on the job descriptions.

If anyone has questions or concerns to be brought to the team, please feel free to contact me.

Rev. Jill Schubert

Team Coordinator

Prayer List

Molly Vergin, Gary Adams, Atrius, Chloe, Anita, Jan, Tim, Dick Myers, Betsey Eldridge, Keegan,

Jessica Blake, Ron, Ken, Rev. Denny, Irena, Pam Riehle, Wendy, Elizabeth, Cassi T., Jeremy

Johnson, Andrea Herme, Roxanne Hill, Roni Erickson, and Kenji Davunt.

Vestry Minutes

(No Vestry Meeting Held in November)

December Birthdays
and Anniversaries

December

3 – Roberta Liila
4 – Nathan Huntley
6 – Jennifer Kent, Jamie Morlan
9 – David DeLung
15 – Robert & Arlene Kantos (A)
17 – Nancy Block
19 – Bette Ostgarden, Mike Burke
21 – Elizabeth Huntley
22 – Georgia Finke
30 – Erik Aunan
/ Server Schedule for December
Date / Lector #1 / Lector #2
Dec. 6 / Georgi Larson / Paul Miltich
Dec. 13 / Marianne Morlan / Brenda Dowling
Dec. 20 / Janelle Erickson / Patti Silvis
Dec. 27 / Kim Heise / Elizabeth Gillman
Date / Usher/
Greeter / Coffee Servers
Dec. 6 / Roger McCabe / Georgi Larson
Dec. 13 / Don Gillman / Brenda Dowling
Dec. 20 / Bruce Humrickhouse / Janelle Erickson
Dec. 27 / Larke Huntley / Kim Heise
Date / Altar Guild
Dec. 6 / Paula Gillman
Dec. 13 / Patti Silvis
Dec. 20 / Emmy Humrickhouse
Dec. 27 / Georgi Larson

ALTAR FLOWERS AND POINSETTIAS

If you would like to contribute Christmas flowers to beautify the church, please fill out the request found in the pew and put it in the offering or leave it in the office. Checks can be

made out toSt. Clare’s Altar Guild.

ThankYou!!

Thank you to Don and Paula Gillman and Stan Ringold who collected boughs with

Les and Sally (Rommel) Javner to decorate the church for Advent. Thank you to

tooto altar guild members, Paula Gillman, EmmyHumrickhouse, Georgi Larson,

Jill Schubert, and Patti Silvis for making the Advent wreaths and preparing the sanctuary.

ADVENT PRAYER STATIONS:

As you may know, Kim Heise is in the Training and Formation Process with the Episcopal Church in Minnesota for the Diaconate. As part of her call to “bring the church to the world”, she is doing a great

thing for us at Christ Church.

The season of Advent holds great meaning for Kim and she is sharing her passion through a Prayer Project for the season of Advent through the end of the Christmas season on January 4. Each Sunday Kim will be setting up a station in the Parish Hall where you can stop by and consider the material she has provided for the week. There may be material you can take home with you, or an activity, or just an opportunity to take a few minutes to stop and reflect on the Advent season of waiting and wondering. I encourage you to take a few minutes each Sunday, or during the week if you come to the church, and participate in this project.

Kim put on a wonderful open house the afternoon of Sunday, November 29 at church. She did a fabulous job of transforming our Parish Hall into a warm, contemplative place to begin to consider our Advent medita-tions. She provided written materials for daily prayer, and she asked us to consider how different seasonal scents invoke memories. She asked us to consider the gifts of faith, hope, love, and joy and discern which gift we were longing for this season and which gift we might see ourselves offering to another in our life. There was an opportunity to journal about some gentle questions and there were designs that could be colored with bright pencils as we listened to soothing seasonal music. And lots of candles providing the

light of the season! Additionally, we kicked off our Community Prayer Frame in the parish hall – an eclectic weaving of ribbons, yarn, and cloth strips that will eventually, over the next few months, turn into a holy, colorful work of art, representing the prayer concerns of our community. Please participate in weaving your prayers with a colorful ribbon. It will be great fun to see this prayer frame develop. And Kim, sharing her gift of loving hospitality, provided a soup supper for those who attended.

If you couldn’t make it to the open house, you missed a great event. Thank you so much to Kim for her efforts and enthusiasm.

Respectfully submitted by Sally Cummings

Sunday / Monday / Tuesday / Wednesday / Thursday / Friday / Saturday
December 2015
1 / 2
Eucharist Service
River Grand
11 AM
Al-Anon Mtg.
Noon / 3 / 4 / 5
6 / 7 / 8 / 9
Morning Prayer
River Grand
11 AM
Al-Anon Mtg.
Noon / 10 / 11 / 12
13
Vestry
Meeting
After
10 AM
Service / 14 / 15
Community
Café
3-5 PM or
5-7 PM / 16
Morning Prayer
River Grand
11 AM
Al-Anon Mtg.
Noon / 17 / 18 / 19
20
Lessons &
Carols
Service
10 AM / 21 / 22 / 23
Morning Prayer
River Grand
11 AM
Al-Anon Mtg.
Noon / 24
Christmas
Eve
Services
4 PM
9 PM / 25
No Service / 26
27
Shared
Ministry
Team Meeting
Following
10 AM
Service / 28 / 29 / 30 / 31
New Year’s Eve

The Bishop’s Blog December 2,2015

Dear Friends,
The big, bold sign proclaimed, "Peace on Earth and Goodwill to All,” and underneath it was an entire wall of televisions filled with a variety of images of violence taking place in one form or another. Some of the images were of terrorist attacks, some of mass shootings, and others were individuals screaming at each other.
Our world feels incredibly, increasingly violent. And the fact is, the place the vast majority of us will experience an absence of peace is with another person. Statistically, most people will not be a victim of a terrorist attack, a mass shooting, or all out war. However, with a family member, a neighbor, a coworker, or even online, all of us are very susceptible to being attacked by one another.
We should be ever-vigilant, for we never know when a terrorist, an imbalanced individual with a gun or another weapon, may decide to attack the place in which we find ourselves. The other more likely scenario calls for much deeper reflection. What are the words and actions I am taking toward others? Are they in fact, in the end, meant to be an attack?
As we enter into this season of Advent, I am reminded of these words from the prophet Isaiah:
"For a child has been born for us,
a son given to us;
authority rests upon his shoulders;
and he is named
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Is 9:6)
In this season when we are watching and waiting, how are we preparing for the Prince of Peace?
"So he came and proclaimed peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near; for through him both of us have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone.” (Eph 2:17-20)
Those of us who have chosen to follow in the Way of Jesus are called to bring peace to those who are far off - all those who are suffering from violence in our world and to those who are near - our family, friends, neighbors, coworkers, and the strangers we encounter.
May we hold fast to the words we hear in our Prayer for Peace in the Book of Common Prayer:
Eternal God, in whose perfect kingdom no sword is drawn but the sword of righteousness, no strength known but the strength of love: So mightily spread abroad your Spirit, that all peoples may be gathered under the banner of the Prince of Peace, as children of one Father; to whom be dominion and glory, now and for ever. Amen.
May the God of hope fill us with all joy and peace inbelieving through the power of the Holy Spirit.Amen.(Rom 15:13)
Blessings,
+Brian

A Christmas Prayer
by Robert Louis Stevenson
Loving Father, Help us remember the birth of Jesus,
that we may share in the song of the angels, the gladness

of the shepherds, and worship of the wise men.

Close the door of hate and open the door of love all over

the world.
Let kindness come with every gift and good desires with

every greeting.
Deliver us from evil by the blessing which Christ brings,

and teach us to be merry with clear hearts.

May the Christmas morning make us happy to be thy children,

and Christmas evening bring us to our beds with grateful

thoughts, forgiving and forgiven, for Jesus' sake.
Amen.

Christ EpiscopalChurch

520 North Pokegama Avenue

Grand Rapids, MN 55744

Phone: 218-326-6279

Web Site: christepiscopalchurchgrmn.org

Email:

book

Christmas Services

Advent Lessons & Carols Service - Sun., Dec. 20th, 10 a.m.

Christmas Eve Services:

Holy Eucharist (Family Oriented) – Thurs., Dec. 24th, 4 p.m.

Festal Eucharist – Thurs., Dec. 24th, 9 p.m.,

with music byMaria Annoni and Kathleen Nuccio

**No Service Christmas Day

Church Office Hours:

Mon., Wed., Thurs., Fri. 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.

(Kelly is off on Tues.)

Church Phone Number: 326-6279