PARISH NOTES Sunday, October 25th

 

PARISH NOTES

Sunday 25 October 2020

 

James Tissot (1836–1902): The Pharisees Question Jesus (painted between 1886 and 1894). Gouache over graphite on gray wove paper. Brooklyn Museum 

 

THIS SUNDAY’S MUSIC

Pastorale, Darius Milhaud (1892-1974)

Petite Messe Pastorale (1934), Henri Sauguet (1901-1989)

Aria: Quia fecit mihi magna, BWV 243, J.S. Bach (1685-1750)

Fanfare, Paul Dukas (1865-1935)

 

A WORD OF WELCOME

Welcome to Saint Stephen’s – If you are new or visiting today, please know that we are so glad that you are here, and that you are welcome in this community of faith. S. Stephen’s is an Episcopal parish in the Diocese of Rhode Island and is part of the worldwide Anglican Communion. Located in the midst of Brown University, it serves the communities of Providence and beyond. S. Stephen’s has stood within the Anglo-Catholic tradition since its founding, and so the Mass or the Eucharist is at the center of our common life, with ancient and timeless ceremonial used to draw attention to the Living God in our very midst. We strive to be a diverse community and come from many various backgrounds, while
united in One Body through our Lord Jesus Christ.

While we continue to gather again, this privilege brings with it some protocols to keep us all safe. A summary of the safety protocols may be found here.

A WORD Of STEWARDSHIP FROM OUR JUNIOR WARDEN

From Alison Huff - When I first started coming to S. Stephens, my plan was to sit quietly with my family in the pew and politely observe the lovely Sunday morning performance every week. But a wrench was immediately thrown into my plans – a huge wrench named Ed Hooks. Ed was, like the church itself, somewhat imposing on the exterior and a sanctuary of faith and hope on the interior. Ed welcomed us as if we had been expected – as if we already belonged. I hadn’t known that I was looking for S. Stephen’s, but there was no mistake, no question that my family had arrived at the right place. This right place was built and sustained for generations so that I could belong. Every time I pledge my support, it is with the hope that my contribution will allow others to come here and already belong.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Nominations Committee & Requests for Nominations – A Nominations Committee has been formed consisting of the following members: Alison Huff, Bobby Rose, Joy D’Ambra, Karl Benziger, and Ernie Drew. The committee is now accepting nominations for elections to be held at the Annual Meeting in January for open Vestry and Convention Delegate positions. Please speak to anyone on the committee if you have nominations or suggestions.

All Saints and All Souls – Next Sunday, November 1st, is All Saints’ Day, one of the Major Feasts of the Church Year, in which we will give thanks for the great cloud of witnesses which surround us as we make our own journey through this life.

The following day, Monday, November 2nd is All Souls’ Day, which we will observe with Sung Requiem Mass in the Lady Chapel at 6:00 PM. This is a day to pray for all our beloved dead and to remember them. We will read out the Necrology, and if there are any names you would like to have added, please pass them on to the Church Office or to Fr. Benjamin (in writing or via phone or email – office@sstephens.necoxmail.com). With the loss of so many to COVID-19 in the past several months, this seems an especially fitting observation to keep this year.

New Schedule for Zoom Calls – Virtual Coffee Hours will be held at 11:30 on the first and third Sundays of the month going forward, and on the fifth Sunday when one occurs. Please click here to join.

On second Sundays of the month, there will be a 9:00 Zoom “Children’s Sermon” and check-in with Fr. Benjamin open to school-age children and their parents, available here.

Interested in Serving at Mass? – We are currently in need of a few more people to add to the rota of altar servers at Sunday and weekday masses. This Sunday, October 25, we are holding a training session following the 10:00 Mass, and there is currently room for one or two more people to join. Sandwiches will be served between the end of Mass and the beginning of the roughly hour-long training session. Please consider joining us.

What is Anglo-Catholicism? – Have you always wondered why we do that one thing? Or why we do ___________ ? How can Episcopalians call themselves Catholics? There are probably lots of questions you might have had at some point. Before developing a forum in which we explore some of these questions, Fr. Benjamin would like to hear from YOU the things that you are curious about. Please email any questions you have to rector@sstephens.necoxmail.com, and in the coming months, we will find a time to explore them together via Zoom gatherings. 

Stewardship Season – We have entered our month of stewardship, which began October 11 and will conclude on November 15. Most of you have received letters in the mail from Fr. Benjamin and Sharon Lloyd Clark. During this time, we ask you to consider your commitment for the coming year so that we can plan our budget and programming accordingly. You can mail your pledge card back to the church office, leave it in the offering plate at the back of the church on Sunday, or pledge online (sstephens.org/donate). Thank you for all the many ways in which you are already supporting S. Stephen’s.

A Note from Our New Staff Member, Andrew Jonathan Welch – I am excited to begin serving as your inaugural Communications and Administrative Assistant! While I am currently commencing my duties virtually, I will become a steady presence in the front office of the church following my mid-November move to the Providence area to reunite with my partner Cynthia, who is a surgical medicine resident at Rhode Island Hospital.

While my primary professional focus is music performance and education, I bring to St. Stephen’s over fifteen years of experience working with clergy and congregants in five different denominations in a variety of roles, with a special focus on building lasting, productive, relationships. I am an avid believer in the power of effective communication to foster change, and I am excited to work alongside Father Benjamin in ministry for the church.

Outside of my professional duties, I am an avid runner and cyclist who is beyond excited about my upcoming fifteen-minute bike commute to St. Stephen’s. I’m also a part-time movie buff, autodidactic German student, and hold a great passion for all things culinary, including my current pet project of cooking my way through Yotam Ottolenghi’s Plenty More.

  

FOR YOUR PRAYERS

Prayers have been requested for: Charles, Sandra, Lola, Ruby, Norman, Vinnie, Louise, Diana, Sarah, Harrington, Joan, Phebe, Hunter, Jay, Conrad, Ann, Beverly, Tom, Angela, Bobby, Beverly, Rhoda, Crystal, and Christopher.

The faithful departed:  Year’s Mind: Clifton Milner Fidler (28 October 1983), Heather A. Morgan (31 October 1997).

Anglican and Diocesan Cycles of Prayer: In the Anglican Cycle of Prayer, we are asked to pray for the Church in Wales, The Most Rev. John Davies, Archbishop of Wales & Bishop of Swansea & Brecon; in the Diocesan Cycle of Prayer, for our upcoming Diocesan Convention, for those to be elected or appointed, and for the many ministries we will celebrate.

THIS WEEK AT S. STEPHEN’S

 

PARISH PROGRAMS, EVENTS & MEETINGS

Sunday 25 October
EMBR Campus Evening Prayer & Eucharist 5:30

 

EXTRA-PAROCHIAL EVENTS HOSTED AT S. STEPHEN’S

Saturday 31 October
Epiphany Soup Kitchen (Meal Pickup Only)  2:30-4 pm

LITURGICAL CALENDAR & SERVICE SCHEDULE

* REGATHERING HAS RESUMED FOR IN-PERSON SERVICES ON SUNDAYS (80 PEOPLE TOTAL) AND WEEKDAYS (14 PEOPLE TOTAL)

* ALL ATTENDEES MUST ADHERE TO WRITTEN AND VERBAL PROTOCOLS TO ATTEND

Sunday 25 October
TWENTY-FIRST SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST (G)

Crispin and Crispinian, Martyrs at Rome, c. 287

Morning Prayer & Low Mass 8 am
Sung Mass 10 am
Zoom Coffee Hour 11:30 am
EMBR Campus Eucharist 5:30 pm

Daily Office and Mass Lectionary: Proper 25, Year Two

Monday 26 October
Alfred the Great, King of the West Saxons, Scholar, 899 (W)
Cedd, Abbot, Bishop of the East Saxons, 664

Evening Prayer  5:30 pm
Low Mass  6 pm

Tuesday 27 October
FERIA (G)

Noonday Prayer  12 noon
Low Mass  12:10 pm

Wednesday 28 October
SAINT SIMON AND SAINT JUDE (R)

Evening Prayer  5:30 pm
Low Mass  6 pm

Thursday 29 October
James Hannington, Bishop, and Companions, Martyrs, 1885 (R)

Noonday Prayer  12 noon
Low Mass  12:10 pm

Friday 30 October
FERIA (G)

Noonday Prayer  12 noon
Low Mass  12:10 pm

Saturday 31 October

FERIA (G)

Morning Prayer  9:30 am
Low Mass  10 am

Sunday 1 November
ALL SAINTS’ DAY (W)

Morning Prayer & Low Mass  8 am
Sung Mass  10 am
EMBR Campus Eucharist  5:30 pm

Monday 2 November
ALL SOULS’ DAY (Commemoration of All Faithful Departed) (B)

Sung Requiem Mass  6 pm