Advent greetings, Dear Ones!
The Season of Hope
Last Sunday (11/26), our sermon reminded us that every person is a reflection of Christ – what a fabulous affirmation!
This Sunday (12/03), marks the beginning of Advent. The first candle in our Advent wreath will be lit – that which symbolizes hope. Sometimes called the Prophecy candle, this reminds us of the foretelling of the birth of Christ by the Old Testament prophets, and of all the promises God gave us which would be fulfilled in the birth of Jesus.
To mark this liturgical season, we will celebrate using Rite I during our Sunday Eucharistic services.
Way of Love in Advent – Week 1
The Way of Love is a program which emphasises setting aside time each day to focus on living a Jesus-centered life. The seven practices of the Way of Love are
- Turn – pause, listen, and choose to follow Jesus
- Learn – reflect on scripture each day
- Pray – dwell intentionally with God each day
- Worship – gather in community weekly to thank, praise, and dwell with God
- Bless – share faith, and unselfishly give and serve
- Go – cross boundaries, listen deeply, and live like Jesus
- Rest – receive the gift of God’s grace, peace, and restoration
The Way of Love invites us to a rule of life that leads to incarnating Divine Love in the world, so it is appropriate to initiate a journey on the Way of Love during Advent, the season we slow down to get ready to welcome Jesus, God incarnate, anew. Now, and through December 24, multiple opportunities to participate in the Way of Love series will be offered. Ron Parker will post daily thoughts on Facebook and Instagram; both he and Shelby Mancell will collaborate to post a devotional video on Wednesday of each week; and, together, we will journey through the first two chapters of the Gospel of Luke in these weekly newsletters (so stay tuned).
This week, you are all invited to focus on The Annunciation: Saying “Yes” to the journey (Luke 1:26-38). You are encouraged to read and reflect on this passage of scripture daily. Mary’s “yes” to her encounter with the angel is a model for our own yes to the Way of Love. We, too, are called to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Saying “yes” to the Way of Love, to Jesus, is one of the most countercultural things we can do today. It is just as countercultural as Mary’s “yes” more than two thousand years ago to birth the infant Jesus. Saying “yes” to our own call to the Way of Love is scary. It may be just as frightening as Mary’s. We may not know the implications of saying yes just as surely as Mary did not know. We can never be fully prepared for the magnificent journey with Jesus. It is sure to transform our lives. Like Mary, we are called to say “yes” to this impossibility made possible.
• Where have you heard the invitation to say yes to birthing good news in the world?
• When has such an invitation perplexed or frightened you?
• How can each of the practices be seen as an invitation to say “yes” to the journey?
Prayer for the Week: Holy One, who makes the impossible possible, open my ears to hear you calling me to birth new life into the world. Grant me, through the power of the Spirit, the courage of Mary to respond with “yes” so that your Word may dwell in my heart; through your son Jesus Christ, to whom with you and the same Spirit be honor and glory, now and forever. Amen.
Faithful Innovation
How do we discover God’s mission in the world beyond our congregations? What is God calling us into? Where might we meet Lydia along the way? Faithful Innovation is a program designed to help congregations (especially small ones) discover new ways in which they might begin to move out into their communities.
Next Saturday, December 9, members of our congregation will meet with The Rev. Canon Steve Carlson, Canon for Congregational Vitality, in the Parish Hall from 10am – 2pm for the first of three Faithful Innovation training sessions. Subsequent meetings will take place at various locations on the following dates: Saturday, January 27, 2024, and Saturday, April 27, 2024.
Anyone interested in participating in this collaboration is welcome to join us. Lunch will be provided.
Sunday School
On Sundays at 8:30am, Fr. Bill is leading us in a discussion of the book, The Practice of Prayer, by Margaret Guenther. Last week, we learned about several different forms of prayer (some quite ancient), and practiced Ignation Prayer together. Anyone interested in learning new (and old) ways of improving your prayer life is welcome to attend.
December 24 Marks the Fourth Sunday of Advent and Christmas Eve
Did you know that Advent IV and Christmas Eve only fall on the same day approximately every six years? In fact, depending on how leap years affect the calendar, this may happen as infrequently as every 11 years. This year marks one of these rare occasions; so on Sunday, December 24, we will forego our regularly scheduled morning service and have only one service in the evening – at 5:30pm – to celebrate the blending of these two special occasions.
International Student Ministry
Canon Betsy, Rev. Nancy, and Barry Clark (RSU’s International Student Coordinator) are working together to establish a new ministry on the RSU campus. It will involve volunteers from St. Paul’s who are willing to befriend students from other countries. The implementation of this ministry will be fairly simple. Volunteers will
- meet students face-to-face to exchange contact information
- call or text students to check in once a week
- get together once a month for an off-campus activity
- be required to complete the free and easy Safe Church (formerly Safeguarding God’s People) training
If you are interested in being a volunteer for this exciting ministry opportunity, contact Rev. Nancy.
Fr. Bill Announces Retirement
How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace ~ Romans 10:15
Our own Father Bill Martin has announced that he will be retiring soon; so please join us as we celebrate his service to St. Paul’s! The Rev. Canon Betsy Randall will be with us for this momentous occasion which will take place on Sunday, January 7, 2024, at 9:30am. We will, of course, cap off the event with a wonderful meal after the service. Please make plans to attend so we can show Fr. Bill and Carole how much we love and appreciate them. What a blessing it has been to have had them with us; they will be missed!
Let Us Pray
- Lift up all those traveling throughout the holiday season
- Pray for the victims of the war in Ukraine
- Remember the victims of the war in Gaza
- Pray for our congregation as we explore our dreams and discern where God is leading us next.
- For the needs of the members, family, and friends of our congregation, specifically Nancy S/ Velma/ Jim/ Judy/ Ani/ Aaron Blum/ Robert/ Jim Walker/ Lloyd/ Patricia/ Marie/ Russell/ Virginia/ Barbara/ Grace/ Lauren/ Cindy/ Anne & her family/ Sarah/ Matthew & Rushda/ Christoph & Jenn/ Teddy & family/ Linda, Ken, & their family/ Amy, Bill, & their family/ Stephen/ John/ Tom Patterson/ Jan/ Tom/ Bob & family/ Jean/ Al/ Carol W/ Mark/ Caroline & Rudy/ Bicky & Spencer/ Brian/ Pat/ Mark H/ Mike/ Chris
If you have prayer requests you’d like to add to the Newsletter, email them to Clergy@stpaulsclaremore.org or reply to this email.
Save the Dates
- Sunday, December 3 – First Sunday of Advent: Hope
- Saturday, December 9 @ 10:00am – Faithful Innovation (Parish Hall)
- Sunday, December 17 – Decorate for Christmas Eve service
- Sunday, December 24 @ 5:30pm – Advent IV/Christmas Eve Service (no AM service)
- Sunday, January 7, 2024 – 1st Sunday after Epiphany, and Fr. Bill’s retirement celebration
- Saturday, January 27, 2024 @ 10am – Faithful Innovation (location TBA)
- Tuesday, February 13, 2024 – Shrove Tuesday
- Wednesday, February 14, 2024 – Ash Wednesday
- Sunday, February 18, 2024 – 1st Sunday of Lent
- Sunday, March 10, 2024 – The Rev. Canon Steve Carlson will be celebrating with us
- March 24-30, 2024 – Holy Week
- Sunday, March 31, 2024 – Easter
- Saturday, April 27, 2024 @ 10am – Faithful Innovation (location TBA)
St. Paul’s Online
Check us out! Like us! Share us! Follow us!
Find us on Facebook at St Paul’s Episcopal Church | Facebook
Follow us on Instagram at St Paul’s Episcopal Church Claremore (@stpaulsclaremore) • Instagram photos and videos