Corn Roast Summer Festival Saturday, August 17, 4-7 pm
Category: Announcements
Building Preservation Appeal
We are blessed to have a beautiful worship space at St. Mary’s, and preserving and maintaining our historic church building is an ongoing priority for your parish leaders. Recently we have had two unexpected expenses. Our furnace fan motor failed (during Holy Week) and we have two broken or failing windows to replace in the Narthex (entry area). These two projects resulted in $2,500 of unbudgeted costs to the parish. We hope you will join our parish leaders in contributing financially to offset these unexpected expenditures. Every gift—large or small—will help us preserve our beautiful church building for another 150 years. Please mark your gift as “Building Fund” so we can properly credit your donation. Thank you for your continuing support of St. Mary’s!
Pentecost Is Sunday, June 9th
Denmark Township Historical Society Social Event Sunday, February 10
Let’s talk about history! Join other history buffs to talk about Denmark Township. Do you have questions about Denmark Township History? DTHS can help. Bring objects or photos to share. This event will be held in the historic Basswood Grove Guild Hall of St. Mary’s Episcopal Church. Light refreshments will be served. Everyone is welcome at this free event.
Susan Horn Art Opening Oct. 11
Benedictine Spirituality Study on Second Saturdays Sept. – Dec.
It may seem odd that some of the best guidelines for achieving balance in our world today, where “stress” has become the norm, come from a Sixth Century Italian monk who at one point chose to live by himself in a cave. Yet through the centuries, millions have found the teachings of St. Benedict of Nursia and his Rule for monastic life key to their own spiritual wholeness.
The spirituality of St. Benedict has offered those who follow its path a way to faith-filled living through work, prayer, learning and living in community. This is not a spirituality that requires a departure from everyday life, but rather a way of being that embraces and becomes fully engaged in the holiness that permeates our daily existence and the call to follow Christ in all that we do.
When we live an integrated life, we express the true identity that God created for each of us. Our every encounter and activity revolve around our longing to be connected to God. St. Benedict’s wisdom can help us center ourselves in God even while we live day in and day out in a culture that may work against us. Moreover, it shows us how those who share our lives are part of the spiritual way.
Join us at 9:30 a.m. on the Second Saturdays of September through December 2018 as we explore how Benedict’s wisdom speaks to us today.
It’s ‘May Madness’ at St. Mary’s
Saturday, May 5: Spring Fling Dinner and Dance
Saturday, May 12: Second Saturday Study Group Resumes
Friday and Saturday, May 18 & 19: St. Mary’s Annual Rummage Sale
Sunday, May 20: The Day of Pentecost
Learn more about the May Madness Events at St. Mary’s!
150th Anniversary January 28, 2018
On Sunday, January 28th, St. Mary’s will celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Dedication of the Church by Bishop Henry Benjamin Whipple. Our liturgy that day will have the look, feel and sound of an 1868 Sunday service, with prayers and hymns from that era.
Following the 9:30 a.m. service of Holy Communion, we will gather for our Annual Meeting and election of Vestry members. A light lunch will be served following the meeting. (There will be no potluck until Sunday, February 4th.)
Almighty God, to whose glory we celebrate the dedication of this house of prayer: We give you thanks for the fellowship of those who have worshiped in this place, and we pray that all who seek you here may find you, and be filled with your joy and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
“Lord, Teach Us to Pray”
Like the apostles, we long to learn to pray as Jesus prayed: with faith, fire and fervency. Too often, however, we’re not sure how to begin, what to say, or even if our prayers will be heard and answered. This four-session discussion series will explore the four traditional forms of prayer: Praise, Petition, Intercession and Thanksgiving. We’ll learn that praying is a simple tool everyone has been given to enter into a conversation with God. We will discover the wealth of resources for prayer in the Book of Common Prayer and learn the basics for developing a rewarding prayer life with some down to earth tips from best-selling author and pastor Max Lucado.
Join us at 9:35 a.m. on the second Saturday of October, November, December and January to learn, share, explore and experience how a simple practice of prayer can enhance and enrich our conversation with God. There are no books to buy, no homework to do, and no attendance requirement; just a space to learn, grow and share.
A Litany for Peace
By Linda Friern and Tony Bartlett, in The Fire of Peace © 1992, Pax Christi
Let us pray that we may be set free from the chains of violence and war.
Jesus the Christ, by your cross and resurrection…deliver us
by your nonviolence and love…deliver us
by your witness to truth…deliver us
by your passion and death…deliver us
by your victory over the grave…deliver us
from the desire for power…deliver us
from the conspiracy of silence…deliver us
from the negation of life…deliver us
from the worship of weapons…deliver us
from the celebration of killing…deliver us
from the slaughter of the innocent…deliver us
from the nightmare of hunger…deliver us
from the politics of terror…deliver us
from a false peace…deliver us
from relying on weapons…deliver us
from the spiral of armaments…deliver us
from plundering the earth’s resources…deliver us
from the despair of this age…deliver us
from global suicide…deliver us
By the light of the Gospel…give us your peace.
by the good news for the poor…give us your peace.
by your healing and wounds…give us your peace.
by faith in your word…give us your peace.
by a hunger and thirst for justice…give us your peace.
by the coming of your reign…give us your peace.
by the outpouring of the Spirit…give us your peace.
by reconciliation of enemies…give us your peace.
by gentleness and nonviolence…give us your peace.
by the truth that sets us free…give us your peace.
by prophecy and witness…give us your peace.
by persecution because of your name…give us your peace.
by the power of your love…give us your peace.
Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world… have mercy on us.
Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world… have mercy on us.
Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world… grant us your peace.
Almighty God, kindle, we beseech you, in every heart the true love of peace, and guide with your wisdom those who take counsel for the nations of the earth, that in tranquility your dominion may increase till the earth is filled with the knowledge of your love; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.