Hello faith family! Sunday, September 12, 2021 is the Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost. This Sunday, we welcome a guest priest – The Reverend Dr. Peter Van Horne. Fr. Howie returns next week.

Here is Sunday worship service information:

• 8:00 a.m. – Holy Eucharist, Rite I spoken, in-person with precautions and online on our YouTube channel (8:00 booklet)
• 10:30 a.m. – Holy Eucharist, Rite II with music, in-person with precautions and online on our YouTube channel (10:30 booklet)

Services are in-person with precautions and online on our YouTube channel. Please do not hesitate to contact the office or Fr. Howie with any questions or concerns about these options.

Other worship this week:

• Saturday, Sept. 11, 2021 at 6:30 p.m. – a Special Evening Compline followed by a dessert exchange and service project.
• Sundays from 10:30-11 a.m., Communion at the Curb is offered for those who have not received the Sacrament in-person during the service.  You do not need to sign up for this.  ALL are WELCOME!
• Sunday, Sept. 12, 2021 at 9:30 a.m. – Novel Theology will meet via Zoom to discuss “Beneath the Scarlet Sky” by Mark Sullivan. All are Welcome!
• Wednesday at noon: Intercessory Prayer with Holy Communion, live on our YouTube channel and in-person with precautions. Here is the accompanying booklet.
• Thursday at 7 p.m.: Compline Evening Prayer with Deacon Cecily, live via Zoom. Here is the accompanying booklet.
• Saturday, September 25, 2021 at 10 a.m. – Pat McCullough funeral in-person with precautions and Live on YouTube channel. Light refreshments to follow and see Sally Price if you would like to contribute.

The new Forward Day by Day booklets are available. Please feel free to stop into the lobby for a copy, or let me know if you’d like one mailed out to you!  There are plenty in both large and small print.

In this strange pandemic time, the church is aware that some of its members are struggling to make ends meet. If you are in this situation, please let the clergy know of your needs, pray for the church, and feel no guilt about your giving. But if you are able to give, options for giving include mailing a check to your church or online giving. See our Giving information.

If you have anything to add to the Parish calendar or the Carpenter’s Helper newsletter, please email the office at StThomassOffice@googlegroups.com.

To see all events or news, visit our website, check FaceBook, or check out the posted events on the board next to the name tag station. Recent Newsletters, Sermons, or Announcements are also available.

Regardless of whether we are together in-person or virtually, we are connected by the Holy Spirit:  Always together; never apart…maybe in distance, but never in heart.

I look forward to worshiping together on Sunday!

Kind Regards,
Cana Hartman, Parish Administrator
StThomassOffice@googlegroups.com or (302) 368-4644

Hello faith family! Sunday, September 5, 2021 is the Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost. Here is Sunday worship service information:

• 8:00 a.m. – Holy Eucharist, Rite I spoken, in-person with precautions and online on our YouTube channel (8:00 booklet)
• 10:30 a.m. – Holy Eucharist, Rite II with music, in-person with precautions and online on our YouTube channel (10:30 booklet)

The fall schedule begins THIS SUNDAY, September 5, 2021. The second Sunday service will begin at 10:30 a.m.  We will also welcome a guest priest – The Reverend Van Horne.  

Services will also be open to in-person worship with precautions. However, please do not feel pressure to return until you are ready; all services are available on our YouTube channel.  Please do not hesitate to contact the office or Fr. Howie with any questions or concerns about these options.

Other worship this week:

• Sundays from 10:30-11 a.m., Communion at the Curb is offered for those who have not received the Sacrament in-person during the service.  You do not need to sign up for this.  ALL are WELCOME!
• Wednesday at noon: Intercessory Prayer with Holy Communion, live on our YouTube channel and in-person with precautions. Here is the accompanying booklet.
• Thursday at 7 p.m.: Compline Evening Prayer with Deacon Cecily, live via Zoom. Here is the accompanying booklet.
• Saturday, Sept. 11, 2021 at 6:30 p.m. – a Special Evening Compline followed by a dessert exchange and service project
• Sunday, Sept. 12, 2021 at 9:30 a.m. – Novel Theology will meet via Zoom to discuss “Beneath the Scarlet Sky” by Mark Sullivan. All are Welcome!

The new Forward Day by Day booklets are available. Please feel free to stop into the lobby for a copy, or let me know if you’d like one mailed out to you!  There are plenty in both large and small print.

In this strange pandemic time, the church is aware that some of its members are struggling to make ends meet. If you are in this situation, please let the clergy know of your needs, pray for the church, and feel no guilt about your giving. But if you are able to give, options for giving include mailing a check to your church or online giving. See our Giving information.

If you have anything to add to the Parish calendar or the Carpenter’s Helper newsletter, please email the office at StThomassOffice@googlegroups.com.

To see all events or news, visit our website, check FaceBook, or check out the posted events on the board next to the name tag station. Recent Newsletters, Sermons, or Announcements are also available.

Regardless of whether we are together in-person or virtually, we are connected by the Holy Spirit:  Always together; never apart…maybe in distance, but never in heart.

I look forward to worshiping together on Sunday!

Kind Regards,
Cana Hartman, Parish Administrator
StThomassOffice@googlegroups.com or (302) 368-4644

Hello faith family!  Sunday, August 29, 2021 is the Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost. Here is Sunday worship service information:

• 8:00 a.m. – Holy Eucharist, Rite I spoken, in-person with precautions and online on our YouTube channel (8:00 booklet)
• 9:30 a.m. – Holy Eucharist, Rite II with music, in-person with precautions and online on our YouTube channel (9:30 booklet)

Services will also be open to in-person worship with precautions. However, please do not feel pressure to return until you are ready; all services are available on our YouTube channel.  Please do not hesitate to contact the office or Fr. Howie with any questions or concerns about these options.

Other worship this week:

• NEXT SUNDAY, September 5, 2021 – the services will begin at 8 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.  We will also welcome a guest priest, Rev. Dr. Peter Van Horne.
• This is the last Sunday of the summer schedule:
  • 8:00 a.m. – Holy Eucharist, Rite I spoken, in-person with precautions and online at YouTube (8:00 booklet)
  • 9:30 a.m. – Holy Eucharist, Rite II with music, in-person with precautions and online at our YouTube channel (9:30 booklet)   
• Sundays from 10:30-11 a.m., Communion at the Curb is offered for those who have not received the Sacrament in-person during the service.  You do not need to sign up for this.  ALL are WELCOME!
• Wednesday at noon: Intercessory Prayer with Holy Communion, live on our YouTube channel and in-person with precautions. Here is the accompanying booklet.
• Thursday at 7 p.m.: Compline Evening Prayer with Deacon Cecily, live via Zoom. Here is the accompanying booklet.
• Saturday, Sept. 11, 2021 at 6:30 p.m. – a Special Evening Compline followed by a dessert exchange and service project

The new Forward Day by Day booklets are available. Please feel free to stop into the lobby for a copy, or let me know if you’d like one mailed out to you!  There are plenty in both large and small print.

In this strange pandemic time, the church is aware that some of its members are struggling to make ends meet. If you are in this situation, please let the clergy know of your needs, pray for the church, and feel no guilt about your giving. But if you are able to give, options for giving include mailing a check to your church or online giving. See our Giving information.

If you have anything to add to the Parish calendar or the Carpenter’s Helper newsletter, please email the office at StThomassOffice@googlegroups.com.

To see all events or news, visit our website, check FaceBook, or check out the posted events on the board next to the name tag station. Recent Newsletters, Sermons, or Announcements are also available.

Regardless of whether we are together in-person or virtually, we are connected by the Holy Spirit:  Always together; never apart…maybe in distance, but never in heart.

I look forward to worshiping together on Sunday!

Kind Regards,
Cana Hartman, Parish Administrator
StThomassOffice@googlegroups.com or (302) 368-4644

September 11, 2021 is an important day. It is a time to remember the events of that day 20 years ago and to pray for those we lost and their families. There will be a special Compline at 6:30 p.m. that Saturday. Please join us for a time of remembrance and prayer. ALL are Welcome!

Following Compline, we are holding a “Dessert and Do-Good” at 7 pm. Let’s get together to enjoy desserts and to put together the To-Go bags for the Empowerment Center. Please consider bringing some items to donate to this cause.  Here is a list of the requested items:

• Protein serving (pasta, stew, tuna or chicken soup) – flip top cans only
• Granola or cereal bar
• 8 – 16 oz. Juice box
• Peanut butter/cheese crackers
• Fruit serving, such as single serve peaches, mixed fruit, applesauce, raisins
• Dessert optional (single serve pudding, cookies)

Whatever your comfort level is for gathering, we hope you can find it here. Weather permitting, we will dessert in the Courtyard and then put together the Go-Bags in the Great Hall in assembly-line fashion. Everyone of every age is welcome to come. For those who are able, come with a dessert to share. Bring enough for four and use a disposable container so all the leftovers can be re-homed. Of course, we will follow the usual precautions for Covid.

Come for Compline only, but stay for dessert and do-good if you can.

If you have questions, need a ride, or want dessert suggestions (chocolate!), please contact Jill Jensen.

Hello faith family!  Sunday, August 22, 2021 is the Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost. Here is Sunday worship service information:

• 8:00 a.m. – Holy Eucharist, Rite I spoken, in-person with precautions and online on our YouTube channel (8:00 booklet)
• 9:30 a.m. – Holy Eucharist, Rite II with music, in-person with precautions and online on our YouTube channel (9:30 booklet)

Services will also be open to in-person worship with precautions. However, please do not feel pressure to return until you are ready; all services are available on our YouTube channel.  Please do not hesitate to contact the office or Fr. Howie with any questions or concerns about these options.

Other worship this week:

• Sundays from 10:30-11 a.m., Communion at the Curb will be offered for those who have not received the Sacrament in-person during the service.  You do not need to sign up for this.  ALL are WELCOME!
• Wednesday at noon: Intercessory Prayer with Holy Communion, live on our YouTube channel and in-person with precautions. Here is the accompanying booklet.
• Thursdays at 7 p.m.: Compline Evening Prayer with Deacon Cecily, live via Zoom. Here is the accompanying booklet.

The new Forward Day by Day booklets are available. Please feel free to stop into the lobby for a copy, or let me know if you’d like one mailed out to you!  There are plenty in both large and small print.

In this strange pandemic time, the church is aware that some of its members are struggling to make ends meet. If you are in this situation, please let the clergy know of your needs, pray for the church, and feel no guilt about your giving. But if you are able to give, options for giving include mailing a check to your church or online giving. See our Giving information.

If you have anything to add to the Parish calendar or the Carpenter’s Helper newsletter, please email the office at StThomassOffice@googlegroups.com.

To see all events or news, visit our website, check FaceBook, or check out the posted events on the board next to the name tag station. Recent Newsletters, Sermons, or Announcements are also available.

Regardless of whether we are together in-person or virtually, we are connected by the Holy Spirit:  Always together; never apart…maybe in distance, but never in heart.

I look forward to worshiping together on Sunday!

Kind Regards,
Cana Hartman, Parish Administrator
StThomassOffice@googlegroups.com or (302) 368-4644

Over the summer, we enjoyed two Sunday worship services: both in-person with precautions and live at our YouTube channel. That same format will continue this fall. However, the second service will be held at it’s traditional time of 10:30 a.m. instead of our summer time of 9:30 a.m. This allows time for adult education, novel theology and other programming between worship services.

The Rite II service will remain at 9:30 a.m. for the remainder of August 2021 with the 10:30 a.m. worship service beginning on September 5, 2021.

Hello faith family!  Sunday, August 8, 2021 is the Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost. Here is Sunday worship service information:

• 8:00 a.m. – Holy Eucharist, Rite I spoken, in-person with precautions and online on our YouTube channel (8:00 booklet)
• 9:30 a.m. – Holy Eucharist, Rite II with music, in-person with precautions and online on our YouTube channel (9:30 booklet)

We welcome a special guest preacher this week- it’s a young familiar face!  You won’t want to miss it.

Services will also be open to in-person worship with precautions. However, please do not feel pressure to return until you are ready; all services are available on our YouTube channel.  Please do not hesitate to contact the office or Fr. Howie with any questions or concerns about these options.

Other worship this week:

• Sundays from 10:30-11 a.m., Communion at the Curb will be offered for those who have not received the Sacrament in-person during the service.  You do not need to sign up for this.  ALL are WELCOME!
• Wednesday at noon: Intercessory Prayer with Holy Communion, live on our YouTube channel and in-person with precautions. Here is the accompanying booklet.
• Thursdays at 7 p.m.: Compline Evening Prayer with Deacon Cecily, live via Zoom. Here is the accompanying booklet.

See this week’s “Blessing” topic in the Praying Shapes Believing series that is included in the Worship Booklet.

The new Forward Day by Day booklets are available. Please feel free to stop into the lobby for a copy, or let me know if you’d like one mailed out to you!  There are plenty in both large and small print.

In this strange pandemic time, the church is aware that some of its members are struggling to make ends meet. If you are in this situation, please let the clergy know of your needs, pray for the church, and feel no guilt about your giving. But if you are able to give, options for giving include mailing a check to your church or online giving. See our Giving information.

If you have anything to add to the Parish calendar or the Carpenter’s Helper newsletter, please email the office at StThomassOffice@googlegroups.com.

To see all events or news, visit our website, check FaceBook, or check out the posted events on the board next to the name tag station. Recent Newsletters, Sermons, or Announcements are also available.

Regardless of whether we are together in-person or virtually, we are connected by the Holy Spirit:  Always together; never apart…maybe in distance, but never in heart.

I look forward to worshiping together on Sunday!

Kind Regards,
Cana Hartman, Parish Administrator
StThomassOffice@googlegroups.com or (302) 368-4644

Fr. Howie is writing a series of “Praying Shapes Believing” articles that appear in our weekly Sunday worship bulletins. Whether it is your first time, or your thousandth, reading, reciting, and praying the traditional Rite II worship from the Book of Common Prayer, it is worthwhile to ask why. We will examine some of our prayers and collects to help us find more meaning and connection in the ritual. See all topics in the Praying Shapes Believing series.

Blessing

The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God, and of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord; and the blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, be upon you, and remain with you always. Amen.

What is it?

As the liturgy ends, the priest (or the Bishop when present) pronounces God’s blessing over the congregation.    

Why do we do it?

As the people leave worship, they are made aware that God’s blessing goes with them. This is always the case, but taking this message with them especially as they return to the cares and duties of the world reinforces the awareness of God’s presence in every moment of our lives.

What it says about God

God goes with us into every sorrow and joy.

God’s blessing is given freely to all, even to those who can’t or won’t ask for it.

Messages for how we live

Blessing may not prevent trouble, but it can transform how we perceive it.

Awareness of our blessedness is the beginning of a holy life.

For more – Read Matthew 5:3-12.  Which categories have you been in?  Did they feel “blessed?”

Hello faith family!  Sunday, August 1, 2021 is the Tenth Sunday after Pentecost. Here is Sunday worship service information:

• 8:00 a.m. – Holy Eucharist, Rite I spoken, in-person with precautions and online on our YouTube channel (8:00 booklet)
• 9:30 a.m. – Holy Eucharist, Rite II with music, in-person with precautions and online on our YouTube channel (9:30 booklet)

Services will also be open to in-person worship with precautions.  However, please do not feel pressure to return until you are ready; all services are available on our YouTube channel.  Please do not hesitate to contact the office or Fr. Howie with any questions or concerns about these options.

Other worship this week:

• Sundays from 10:30-11 a.m., Communion at the Curb will be offered for those who have not received the Sacrament in-person during the service.  You do not need to sign up for this.  ALL are WELCOME!
• Wednesday at noon: Intercessory Prayer with Holy Communion suspended on July 28 and August 4, 2021. This service resumes on August 11, 2021.
• Thursdays at 7 p.m.: Compline Evening Prayer with Deacon Cecily, live via Zoom. Here is the accompanying booklet.

See this week’s “Post-Communion Prayer” topic in the Praying Shapes Believing series that is included in the Worship Booklet.

The new Forward Day by Day booklets are available. Please feel free to stop into the lobby for a copy, or let me know if you’d like one mailed out to you!  There are plenty in both large and small print.

In this strange pandemic time, the church is aware that some of its members are struggling to make ends meet. If you are in this situation, please let the clergy know of your needs, pray for the church, and feel no guilt about your giving. But if you are able to give, options for giving include mailing a check to your church or online giving. See our Giving information.

If you have anything to add to the Parish calendar or the Carpenter’s Helper newsletter, please email the office at StThomassOffice@googlegroups.com.

To see all events or news, visit our website, check FaceBook, or check out the posted events on the board next to the name tag station. Recent Newsletters, Sermons, or Announcements are also available.

Regardless of whether we are together in-person or virtually, we are connected by the Holy Spirit:  Always together; never apart…maybe in distance, but never in heart.

I look forward to worshiping together on Sunday!

Kind Regards,
Cana Hartman, Parish Administrator
StThomassOffice@googlegroups.com or (302) 368-4644

This is a reminder that there is no LIVE intercessory prayer service on Wednesday, July 28, 2021, nor is there one next week on August 4, 2021. This service will resume on Wednesday, August 11, 2021.

For these weeks, please do pray over our parish prayer list. To view any of the past intercessory prayer services, please St. Thomas’s YouTube channel.  Do you have a favorite?

Here is an interesting article on intercessory prayer titled “Intercessory Prayer and the Butterfly Effect”, by Maria L. Evans, a surgical pathologist from Kirksville, MO, who writes about the obscurities of life, medicine, faith, and the Episcopal Church on her blog, Kirkepiscatoid

Kind Regards,
Cana Hartman, Parish Administrator
StThomassOffice@googlegroups.com or (302) 368-4644