PARISH NOTES 

Sunday 10 May 2020

Stoning of St. Stephen (c. 1435) by Paolo Uccello (1397–1475).
Fresco. Prato Cathedral, Prato, Italy.

THIS SUNDAY’S READINGS 

Fifth Sunday of Easter (Year A)
Acts 7:55-60
Psalm 31:1-6, 17-18
1 Peter 2:2-10
John 14:1-14

THIS SUNDAY’S MUSIC
(pre-recorded)

C. Hubert H. Parry (1848 – 1918)—Jerusalem

Thomas Tomkins (1572 – 1656)—Stephen being full of the Holy Ghost

Robert Parsons (1535 – 1571/72)—Ave Maria

Dieterich Buxtehude (1637 – 1707)—Prelude, Fugue, and Chaconne

A WORD OF WELCOME 

Welcome to Saint Stephen’s – S. Stephen’s Church is in the midst of Brown University and serves the communities of the East Side of Providence, North Providence, East Providence, and beyond. It is a parish of the Diocese of Rhode Island in the Episcopal Church in the worldwide Anglican Communion. The Anglo-Catholic tradition informs and shapes our life together. We are a diverse community uniting all sorts and conditions in the worship of Our Lord Jesus Christ and aim to offer up the best we have in liturgy, music, preaching, teaching, fellowship, and service.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

A Note About Easing Restrictions – Plans to progressively reopen the church are still in their early stages. We will keep you apprised of any new developments as they arise. Thank you for your patience!

Milestones – Please join us today, 9 May, in wishing parishioners Bruce and Sharon Lennihan a happy and blessed 50th Golden Wedding Anniversary! Cheers to the happy couple! 

A Prayer for Mother’s Day (10 May) – O God of Provision and Unconditional Love, On this day when we acknowledge the importance of motherhood among us, we first give thanks that you are a loving parent to us all. From your being all life was born, and in your bosom all creation is nurtured. You have formed us in your image as your children, and gathered us together as a brood under your wing. You have united us as kindred members of one human family, and we are grateful to be your offspring together. We celebrate your divine love, reflected in human expressions of motherhood.

We give you thanks for the mothers among us, and ask that you strengthen them in their daily tasks. Grant them wisdom in the lessons they teach, patience in the discipline they foster, and persistence in their promotion of decency and compassion, both by word and example. May they be given the honor and thanks they deserve but often do not receive.

We thank you for all motherly figures: grandmothers, aunts, sisters, wives, step-mothers, foster mothers, guardians, babysitters, teachers, health care providers, neighbors, friends, loved ones, and many others, who practice self-sacrifice and embody compassion to all who are privileged to be in their influence. Grant them vigor to carry on their work, and the satisfaction that the holy privilege of their task affords. Amen.

– excerpted from a prayer by The Rev. Magrey R. deVega

Virtual Offices and Masses – To access and view the LIVE (and archived) services, please visit the parish Facebook page here (you do not need a FB account to tune in). To access accompanying Daily Office and Low Mass readings and resources (as well as archived services), please visit the parish website sermon page here.

Virtual Coffee Hour – Please join us for our seventh Virtual Sunday Coffee Hour tomorrow, 10 May, at 11:30 am. To attend, please click here. If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to contact Junior Warden Alison Huff via call or text at 401-465-8029 or email at alisonhuff12@gmail.com, or me via call or text at 712-348-5848 or email at jacob_ihnen@alumni.brown.edu. Thank you!

Virtual Catechesis Class – Fr. Mead leads a Virtual Class, “Mead and Creed,” on Tuesdays at 5:30 pm this Eastertide continuing to the end of May. It features items of Doctrine, the Creeds, and the Prayer Book Catechism. The classes are within one hour in length. Special Note: Before this coming Tuesday, please take a look at this article he wrote for the Anglican Digest. To join in, please click here. Those who are interested can contact Alison Huff with any questions or difficulties in joining via call or text at 401-465-8029 or email at alisonhuff12@gmail.com.

Mead and Creed Recordings – If you would like access to audio recordings of “Mead and Creed” class sessions, please contact Alison Huff or Jacob Ihnen via email.

Vestry Meeting – The Vestry will virtually conduct its monthly meeting next Tuesday, 12 May, at 7 pm.

Monthly Commemoration of the Departed – whose year’s mind falls during May will be offered virtually this coming Saturday, 16 May, at 10 am (preceded by Morning Prayer at 9:30 am). If you have any names to add to those to be remembered, please let Nancy Gingrich know. This Mass is sponsored by the Guild of All Souls, St. Stephen Protomartyr Branch: all are welcome and invited to attend!

Digital Spring Cleaning – I am in the process of tidying up our digital databases. If you think we might not have your most up-to-date contact information, please contact me with the correct information via email at jacob_ihnen@alumni.brown.edu. More generally, please send your birthdays and wedding anniversaries in as well! We would love to commemorate them, but do not have as many on file as we would like. Thank you! – Jacob Ihnen

Exterior Architectural Lighting – If you drive by S. Stephen’s in the evening, you will now find it illuminated by lovely exterior architectural lighting. This lighting was given to the parish by an anonymous donor to the Glory of God and in loving memory of Fr. Alan Maynard, assisting priest at S. Stephen’s for many years. May he rest in peace. (d. 7 September 2006)

Concerning Pledges and the Sunday Offering – A key worry in this time of physical distancing is that our inability to gather as a church damages our income. We have heard nothing from the public health authorities about the risks of virus transmission through the mail, so feel free to mail your check to the church. Alternatively, it is quite straightforward to give online by clicking here to visit S. Stephen’s online giving page, where you can use the payment portal week by week or set up a recurring direct deposit program with your bank. We are grateful for your generous response to our appeal for pledges in this transition year. Now the challenge is for us to receive and collect these pledges. We don’t know how long this period of physical distancing will have to last. If you are experiencing financial difficulties which hurt your ability to keep a pledge you made before this crisis of the coronavirus, please do not hesitate to let us know. You may contact Father Mead at 917-592-5947 or email him at andrewcraigmead1@gmail.com. Thank you for your love of S. Stephen’s.

FOR YOUR PRAYERS 

Prayers have been requested for: Virginia, Richard, Beverly, Patti, Maxcine, Ethel, Chipper, Donna, Carl, Kade, Sherri, Norman, John, Shannah, Terri, Lynne, Gus, Harrington, Joan, Robyn, Sandy, John, Dylan, Phebe, Jack, Hunter, Bruce, Richard, Ann, Sandy, Nancy, Antonio, Emma, Olivia, Raphael, Kiersten, Katie, Beverly, Tom, Gail, Deborah, Bryan, Angela, Bobby, Susan, Beverly, Empy, Elizabeth, Carlos, Rhoda, William, Crystal, Roger, Christopher, Beth, Sarah, Diana, Ruby, and Lola.

(Belated) Birthday this week: Karen Vorbeck Williams (Saturday 5/9).

The faithful departed: Year’s Mind: Bertha Isabelle Hughes (10 May 1992), Estelle “Peg” Duncanson (10 May 2006), Agnes Charette (12 May 1984), Edward Brown Williams, Jr. (12 May 1991), and Lois Alene Eckhardt Decker (14 May 2013). Recently Departed: Beth Dancause and Geraldine Millham.

Anglican and Diocesan Cycles of Prayer – In the Anglican Cycle of Prayer, we are asked to pray for the Anglican Church of Kenya: The Most Rev’d Jackson Ole Sapit, Primate and Archbishop of All Kenya; in the Diocesan Cycle of Prayer, for the people and clergy of Church Beyond the Walls.

THIS WEEK AT S. STEPHEN’S 

PARISH PROGRAMS, EVENTS & MEETINGS

Tuesday 12 May
“Mead and Creed”  5:30 pm

Vestry Meeting  7 pm

LITURGICAL CALENDAR & SERVICE SCHEDULE

* ALL IN-PERSON SUNDAY AND WEEKDAY SERVICES CANCELLED
* ALL SERVICES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE IN ACCORDANCE WITH FEDERAL AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT RESTRICTIONS

Sunday 10 May
THE FIFTH SUNDAY OF EASTER (W)
Virtual Low Mass  10 am

Daily Office Lectionary: Easter V, Year Two
Daily Mass Lectionary: Easter V, Year A

Monday 11 May
NO SERVICES (Rest day for clergy and staff)

Tuesday 12 May
Tuesday of Easter V (W)
Virtual Noonday Prayer  12 noon
Virtual Low Mass  12:10 pm

Wednesday 13 May
Wednesday of Easter V (W)
Virtual Evening Prayer  5:30 pm
Virtual Low Mass  6 pm

Thursday 14 May
Thursday of Easter V (W)
Virtual Noonday Prayer  12 noon
Virtual Low Mass  12:10 pm

Friday 15 May
Friday of Easter V (W)

Virtual Noonday Prayer  12 noon
Virtual Low Mass  12:10 pm

Saturday 16 May
Saturday of Easter V (W)
Virtual Morning Prayer  9:30 am
Virtual Low Mass with Commemoration of May Departed  10 am

Sunday 17 May
THE SIXTH SUNDAY OF EASTER (W)
Virtual Low Mass  10 am

NEXT SUNDAY'S READINGS (17 May)

Sixth Sunday of Easter (Year A)
Acts 17:22-31
Psalm 66:7-18
1 Peter 3:13-22 

John 14:15-21