Saints Alive!

February 2012

2012-02-18T12:48:00.000-08:00

New Mission Statement

Last week our Mission Committee discussed a draft of a new mission statement for All Saints:

The mission of All Saints Episcopal Church in Beech Island is: to grow Christian disciples through reverent worship, spiritual friendship, and prayerful stewardship.

Our purpose is to grow deeper in faith and to become mature, accomplished disciples of our Lord Jesus Christ. Our worship services are conducted with attention to reverence, beauty and simplicity, through the Episcopal liturgy and music in our historic church building. We are family-sized, generous, caring, and welcoming to newcomers. We interpret stewardship in the broadest sense, not only in financial support of our church and ministry, but also in the intentional care and exercise of our natural resources, our land and buildings, and our personal gifts for ministry and service.

Please let Mission Committee members or Sr. Ellen Francis know if you have comments, suggestions, or questions.

Mission Committee meeting:

We also discussed the results of our Mutual Ministry survey, and identified areas for our immediate attention in 2012:

Evangelism and pastoral care

Inviting friends and neighbors to church
On-going ministry to parishioners
Reinstall historic sign in front of the church

Christian formation

Sunday morning Christian education
Stewardship: time, talent, financial

Outreach and service

Redcliffe Elementary school: food pantry, backpack program, volunteering

Buildings and landscaping

Repair and maintenance of the church

Worship and liturgy

Special liturgies: e.g., Stations of the Cross
Learning new hymns
Healing prayers

Question about “Special Liturgies”:

When we “voted” for areas of importance, a number of votes were cast for “special liturgies”, but we were not sure what that meant. Was it a vote in favor of Stations of the Cross, or for other kinds of special liturgies? If so, what might they be?

Benches donated by Caroline Williams:

The dedication plaques will arrive soon. We are discussing extending the path to the little grove of trees behind the church, and the benches would be placed in the shade of those trees.

Food pantry update:

Last week, Mary Thomoson and Sr. Ellen Francis went to talk with the administrators at Redcliffe Elementary School. We were warmly received by the guidance counselor and the assistant principal. They will write a letter to be mailed to all parents to tell them about the food pantry and the times that it will be open. The parents could bring a copy of the letter or one of our special cards when they come to the pantry.

It is possible that some families could benefit from the food pantry but don’t have transportation. In the letter, they will ask for these families to let them know, and volunteer parents may be called upon to help deliver the grocery bags to these families.

We also discussed starting a “backpack” program, which would provide food for children over the weekend. On Fridays, we would pack up small grocery bags, each with food items for one child for the weekend, and deliver them to the school before 2:00 pm. The school staff would discretely put these grocery bags in the children’s backpacks for them to take home.

We are very encouraged that this project is needed and that we will get the word out to those we would like to serve. They are grateful for our interest and volunteering and for the food pantry project.

Newsletter, January 2012

2012-01-29T18:40:00.001-08:00

Visit by Bishop Waldo

What a splendid celebration on January 8^th! We fulfilled all major landmarks for a visitation: we all renewed our baptismal vows; we celebrated baptism, confirmation, receptions, and reaffirmations, then he blessed our altar, and finally we celebrated our new and future ministry! The prayers included the following:

O God of unchangeable power and eternal light: Look favorably on your whole Church, that wonderful and sacred mystery; by the effectual working of your providence, carry out in tranquility the plan of salvation; let the whole world see and know that things which were cast down are being raised up, and things which had grown old are being made new, and that all things are being brought to their perfection by him through whom all things were made, your Son Jesus Christ our Lord; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

We have celebrated this new pastoral relationship in the great prayer of the Church. Ellen Francis, I commend to your love and care the people of All Saints Episcopal Church. My brothers and sisters in Christ, I commend to your love and care your Priest-in-Charge, colleague and friend, Ellen Francis.

Mission and Ministry:

The schedule for our food pantry has changed to the 2^nd and 4^th Friday of each month, from 1:00 to 2:00 pm. All are welcome to come and assist with the distribution of food. Volunteer dates at Redcliffe Elementary School in February will be posted on our calendar on our website, and printed copies of the calendar are also available in church.

If you would like to serve as a Lay Eucharistic Minister (LEM), reader, intercessor, or on the altar guild, please speak with Ellen Francis. We will schedule training and refresher classes soon.

Isaac Holmes, Soloist:

Isaac Holmes will be our soloist on Sunday, February 5^th, in celebration of Black History Month.

Mission Committee Notes:

Diane Brunson agreed to serve again as Bishop’s Warden, and Michael Brunson agreed to serve as Junior Warden. We thank them mightily for their faithfulness and service; we will do all we can to support them in the coming year.

The benches donated by Caroline Williams have arrived and are in the parish hall, and we are ordering the dedication plaques. As a further part of this project, the Mission Committee approved a plan to extend the path on the left side of the church to the little grove of trees where the benches will be placed, and to level the ground for safe walking around the benches.

The Mission Committee approved a balanced budget for 2012. We will be able to make our full Diocesan pledge again this year, and have also budgeted just over 6% of our expenditures for outreach. If you have not yet made a pledge for 2012, please prayerfully consider doing so.

Newsletter, December 11, 2011

2011-12-12T10:26:00.000-08:00

The bishop is coming! Sunday January 8^th!!

The Rt. Rev. Andrew Waldo, Bishop of the Diocese of Upper South Carolina, will be making his Episcopal visitation with us on Sunday January 8^th, during the 10:30 a.m. service. We will have confirmations and receptions and reaffirmations; he will bless our new altar; we will also have a brief Celebration of New Ministry.

After the service he will likely want to talk with all of us about our ministry at All Saints, and he may ask those who have been confirmed or received or reaffirmed what this step means to you in your relationship to God in Jesus Christ. There will also be a reception in the parish hall. Please invite friends and family to join us on this joyful occasion!

Blessing of the All Saints Food Pantry:

O God, you fill the earth with your plenteousness and provide sustenance for all creatures; bless the food that we will gather in our pantry and bless the volunteers who will minister here, and may your blessing be with the guests we will welcome and serve, that they and their children may be strengthened in body and soul and that we may all give thanks for your bounty, through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.

Our food pantry has been open since November for the families of children at Redcliffe Elementary School.

Confirmation Classes:

Confirmation classes between now and Bishop Waldo’s visit will focus on the Confirmation service and preparation for confirmation, reception, and reaffirmation. We will continue Christian education classes after Bishop Waldo’s visit as follows:

The next classes and topics will be:

Sunday December 11: Preparation and review for the Confirmation service

Sunday January 15: The Book of Common Prayer and a daily practice of prayer

Sunday January 29: Reading the Bible and beginning of Bible study of the Gospel of Mark

In February, Christian education classes will continue with discussion of having a practice of daily prayer and we will start a Bible study series on the Gospel of Mark.

Advent Program on the “Second Wednesday”:

Sr. Ellen Stephen, OSH will present an Advent program on December 14^th at 6:00 pm. Please bring some refreshments to share.

Stewardship:

Please prayerfully consider how you might give of your time, talent, and financial support for ASEC in 2012. Pledge cards are available by the door of the church.

Landscape:

There is still more work to be done to complete our present plans for the landscaping on the church grounds. Please speak with Michael Brunson if you can help with labor or with financial support.

New ASEC Website:

Our website now has a spiffy new design, including a photo gallery, online calendar, sermon blog, “those who serve” schedule, and more features still to come. The address remains the same: http://www.allsaintsbeechisland.org.

New altar:

Our beautiful new altar was donated by Michael Brunson. We will ask Bishop Waldo to bless the altar during his visitation.

No Frills, More or Less Monthly Newsletter, November 2011

2011-11-19T08:05:00.000-08:00

Mission and Ministry:

Our food pantry is now open, and we welcomed our first guests on November 8th! The pantry will be open in November and December on the second and fourth Tuesdays from 1:00 to 2:00 pm. In December we will re-evaluate the time and day of the week to see what would be best for our guests and for our volunteers, and in January we may shift to the second and fourth Fridays of each month, from 1:00 to 2:00 pm. The pantry is open by referral for families who have children enrolled at Redcliffe Elementary School. If you are interested in volunteering in any capacity, please speak with Mary Thomoson.

New Altar:

A new altar has been installed in the church thanks to a generous gift from Michael Brunson. The style and design matches the other woodwork in the church, and it looks as though it was designed this way from the start. Photos will be posted on our website and in the next newsletter issue.

Confirmation Classes:

The next confirmation classes will be:

Sunday November 27: The Book of Common Prayer

Sunday December 11: Reading the Bible

Sunday January 15: What do Episcopalians believe?

Sunday January 29: Spiritual foundations

Sunday February 12: Ministry and mission

We still do not know when Bishop Waldo will be visiting us, but we have heard that it will probably be sometime in the spring of 2012. During his visitation, he will confirm and receive and reaffirm those in our confirmation class, and we will also ask him to bless our beautiful new altar.

Advent Program:

Sr. Ellen Stephen, OSH will present an Advent program for the “Second Wednesday” evening on December 14^th at 6:00 pm. Please bring some refreshments to share.

Stewardship:

Please prayerfully consider how you might give of your time, talent, and financial support for ASEC in 2012. Pledge cards are available by the door to the church. We will gather the cards on Advent I, November 27^th, or you may mail them to the church.

Landscape:

New plantings have been added along the tree line at the back of our property and to the beds near the parish hall. The sprinkler system has been adjusted so that existing plants are being properly watered, and parishioners are also volunteering their time to keep plants watered by hand as needed.

ASEC Website:

A calendar of events is now available on the ASEC website! From the home page, http://www.allsaintsbeechisland.org, click on “Calendar”.

Mission Committee November Meeting:

The Mission Committee met on Wednesday November 16. We discussed:

The progress on our Mutual Ministry Plan, which is in draft form and will be distributed to everyone once the members of the Mission Committee have reviewed it.
Sr. Ellen Francis has drafted bylaws for All Saints. We reviewed the sections concerning the Annual Meeting and election of members of the Mission Committee and of delegates and alternates to Diocesan convention.
Diane presented a report on the work done on insulation of the church building and other maintenance matters, including new fire extinguishers for both buildings.
Outreach disbursements for 2011 will be discussed at the Mission Committee meeting in December. We have not yet spent all the money allocated for this year.
Each quarter we plan to make available to parishioners copies of our income and expenditures for the current year-to-date.
Mary Thomoson gave a report on the food pantry.
Caroline Williams made a donation to All Saints for two memorial benches, and Sr. Ellen Francis reported on her discussion with Caroline concerning the type of bench she had in mind. We are now narrowing down the choices and hope to purchase the benches soon.
There have been technical difficulties with the web hosting service that we are currently using, and we plan to switch to a different service. Also we will be removing the advertisements that are appearing in the online calendar.

Blessing of the Animals, Sunday October 9th, 2011

2011-10-15T11:04:00.000-07:00

Blessing of New Sign and New Banner on Easter Sunday

2011-04-26T07:39:00.000-07:00

The blessing of our beautiful new banner and new sign took place on Easter Sunday:

Send out your light and your truth, that they may lead me, and bring me to your holy hill and to your dwelling. (Psalm 43:3)

Officiant: Seek the Lord while he may be found;

People: Call upon him while he is near.

Let us pray.

O God, the sign of all that is holy, all that is true, all that is life; Bless this church sign and this church banner, that they may be beacons of hospitality and welcome to all who pass by and for all who enter All Saints Episcopal Church. May you always be our companion on the way; bless us on our departure and our returning, so that in both coming and going we may be sustained by your presence, and know that you are God, through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.

See below more photos of the blessing of banner and sign, our altar lovingly decorated with lilies and flowers from our gardens, and the flowered cross which graced our front lawn. Thank you to all who worked so hard to make this day so special!!!

OUR NEW SIGN, FULLY INSTALLED!

2011-03-20T17:10:00.000-07:00

Our new sign was installed this past week!! The original sign was destroyed in a tornado in 2009.

Today, Sunday March 20, also marked one year that The Rev. Ellen Francis, OSH has served at All Saints, first as supply priest and now as Priest-in-Charge.

Our beautiful new sign!

2011-03-17T16:02:00.000-07:00

Our beautiful new sign was installed on Wednesday this week. Many thanks to all the donors and all the hard workers who made this project such a success!

Local radio interview with Priest-in-Charge

2011-03-10T16:08:00.000-08:00

On Monday March 14, an interview with our Priest-in-Charge, Sr. Ellen Francis will be aired on local radio station 1550 AM, at 1:00 pm, and part two of this interview will, hopefully, be aired the following Monday, March 21, also at 1:00 pm.

The first interview includes discussion of the CSRA Peace Alliance, of which she is a founding member, and her peace delegations to Afghanistan and Iran. The plan for the second interview is to talk about a newly organized group, the Augusta Interfaith Fellowship.

Beginning of Lent

2011-03-06T11:53:00.000-08:00

Lent is usually a time for "giving up" something we enjoy, like chocolate, popcorn, movies, or some such. The abstinence of Lent is considered to be a practice of discipline, and a preparation for the celebration of Easter. We might also consider "taking on" a practice of additional patience and kindness. We might take on additional self-care of tired body and restless soul.

We wish you a blessed and prayerful season of Lent!

We invite you to join us for Shrove Tuesday pancakes on March 8th at 6:00 pm in our parish house, and on Wednesday March 9th at 6:00 pm for the traditional Ash Wednesday service with imposition of ashes and Holy Eucharist.

Last Sunday of Epiphany Season

2011-03-01T17:52:00.000-08:00

Join us next Sunday, March 6th, the last Sunday of Epiphany season, for worship at 10:30 am. Following the Holy Eucharist, we will have refreshments in the parish hall and make "Alleluia" banners to be hidden away until Easter.

We are eagerly awaiting delivery of a new sign for our front lawn. The previous sign was destroyed in a tornado two years ago.