November 2010

christchurchguilford.org

A Month of Thanksgiving
November begins with us giving thanks for the fellowship of all the saints, leads us to a celebration of Christ as king of heaven and earth on the last Sunday of the churchs year (November 21), through our national Thanksgiving Day, to the first Sunday of a new church year on the First Sunday of Advent (November 28). As if thats not enough to keep us busy at Christ Church, November is the month when we look ahead to the next calendar year and provide the Vestry with an estimate of our financial support for our collective mission and ministry during 2011. We present these estimates -- sometimes called pledges -- on Commitment Sunday (also November 21). We will share in the fun of Halloween (All Hallows Eve) with Concertatos Halloween Howler (5:30 p.m., October 30), and will be playful and laugh at evil -- which is the one thing that evil cannot stand. Then on All Saints Day, Monday, November 1, there will be an opportunity to remember those we love who joined the Saints in Light in the last year. We will gather in the Chancel at 6 p.m. for a time of prayer and story-telling about dear ones who have died. This All Saints Day Recollection can help us claim our abiding fellowship with them -- an article of faith in the Creed we recite every Sunday. Their names -- and others you would like to include -- will be recalled in the prayers on All Saints Sunday, November 7. On that day, we get to sing the great hymns about our participation in the fellowship of all the saints, a fellowship that bridges time and space to gather us all, the living and the dead, into one great fellowship of love. Since Im the new kid on the block, there are a lot of things I still dont know: One question I have is, when do we celebrate our life together in the Body of Christ? Yes, of course we do that every time we gather; but just as Easter is the annual great celebration of the Resurrection, which we recall every Sunday, is there one great occasion when we celebrate our identity as Christ Church? Sunday, November 21, might be such an occasion. Although the Prayer Book calls it simply the 27th Sunday after Pentecost, the readings and Collect point to the name used in the Lutheran and Roman Catholic Churches: the Feast of Christ the King. What an appropriate day to celebrate who we are and our life together as we lift up our pledges -- our estimates of financial support -- for the mission and ministry of the parish in the coming year on Commitment Sunday.
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That same evening, at the Meeting House of the First Church (U.C.C.) in Madison, the wider community of faith in Guilford and Madison will gather for an Interfaith Thanksgiving Service at 5 p.m. Choir members from the various congregations will join together in song to lead the celebration. Prayers, meditations by youth and clergy, including Rabbi Claudio Kogon and your friendly neighborhood Rector, and an offering for the Guilford and Madison food banks will round out this community-wide event. Then on Thanksgiving Day, we will do something which I understand is new to Christ Church: Those of us who are in town will take a break from meal preparations to gather at 10 a.m. to sing the great Thanksgiving hymns and to offer the Great Thanksgiving of the Holy Eucharist. After the service, I will invite you to the Rectory for a bit of beverage and finger food appropriate to the day. As November draws to a close, the Church begins a New Year on the First Sunday of Advent, November 28, and a season of watching and waiting begins. While Sunday School and the Rite 13/J2A classes will not meet that day, there will be an intergenerational event following the 10 a.m. service. Watch for details about our Advent Wreath-Making Workshop! I look forward to sharing Novembers celebrations with you! In faith and hope, Harrison+

Childrens Nursery Update

The Children's Nursery is getting a fall cleaning and upgrade!
Please consider donating new or gently used toys and supplies to help make the nursery a more welcoming and engaging place for our youngest parishioners. The following items are needed:
Toys: Puzzles, coloring books, crayons, blocks, train sets, toys (no stuffed animals, please). Please note that toys should be geared towards 1-3 year-olds only. Supplies: Diaper wipes, disinfectant wipes, changing pad/cover, storage bins/baskets, Dustbuster Decor: Framed wall art, rug All items can be brought to the church office (see Pat) during the week or to the Sunday School office on Sunday mornings. If you have questions, please contact Lisa Ste. Marie. Thank you so much for your support!

Christ Church Outreach: Angels

Under the Balcony

In a new twist on a beloved institution, Christ Church's Angels Under the Balcony program is going in a slightly different direction this year.
We will be partnering with Guilford Social Services' "Giving Tree" program for needy Guilford families and helping to make Christmas special for our friends and neighbors right here in town. The program will work pretty much the same as always -- around Thanksgiving time the angels will begin to "fly," parishioners will select their angels and purchase requested gifts for adults and children, and then return the wrapped gifts to church in time for Christmas delivery. One change is that we will be adopting a smaller number of families, so the requests for gifts will not be quite so overwhelming. The program remains a lovely way for us to express our love and concern for our neighbors at a blessed time of the year. Stay tuned for more details!

Sunday School News

"I'm gonna sing, sing, sing ... I'm gonna shout, shout, shout ...I'm gonna sing, I'm gonna, shout! Praise the Lord!"
Our Sunday School children get to do all of those things when we meet for Children's Chapel at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday mornings. Open to all children attending Sunday School, we've been having fun with music while learning about God's word and teachings. Additionally, it's a wonderful time for children to build friendships and connections within the Christ Church family. The children will share some of their new songs with the congregation on November 7 in honor of All Saints Day. Have you seen the new mural in the 3rd and 4th grade classroom? Many thanks go to Linda Reich and Harold Mastalerz for their design and painting efforts. The classroom wall now features a large painted blackboard background with a beautiful green tree design. The entire room now feels warmer and more welcoming for the students, who will be able to embellish the tree according to the seasons and holidays. Please mark your calendars for a special event on Sunday, November 28. To celebrate the beginning of the Advent season, the congregation is invited to make Advent wreaths in the Parish Hall after the 10:00 a.m. service (there will be no Sunday School). Wreath forms and candles will be provided; however, we ask that you bring in greens and cuttings to decorate the wreaths. They can be brought in beginning on Sunday, Nov 21, and we will keep them in water for the following Sunday. Please see Lisa Ste. Marie if you have questions or need more information. Thank you!
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Harold Mastalerz painting the mural in a Sunday School Room.

OutreachBefore Thanksgiving:

Harvest In-Gathering
This year Christ Church will join Guilford Social Services, the VFW, the American Legion and Auxiliary, Guilford Rotary, Guilford Seniors, and Guilford Food Bank to provide Thanksgiving Food Baskets to folks in need. Donations of all types of fresh root vegetables -- potatoes, yams, squash, turnip, parsnips, and onions, as well as turkey stuffing and nonperishable canned goods such as peas and cranberry sauce, would be appreciated. We are asking that all items be brought in on SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 21, when we will have an opportunity to give thanks for our own bounty and pray for those who are currently without. We will then need volunteers to take our offerings to the VFW Hall following the service.

Outreach During Advent:

Mitten Tree

The Mitten Tree will return to Christ Church on the First Sunday of Advent, November 28.
Let's join in providing hats, mittens, gloves, and scarves to warm the heads and hands of those who need them. The Mitten Tree will remain up through December 19, when all items will be donated to the Guilford Food Bank for distribution. As we watch and wait for our Lord's appearing, let our prayers lead to service to gladden his heart.

Harvest Home-Gatherings
will provide an opportunity to become better acquainted with our still-new Rector, and, more importantly for Harrison, to become better acquainted with you. You will be invited to gather with Harrison and a few other fellow parishioners for coffee, lunch, tea, happy hour, supper or dessert during November. The gatherings will be hosted by volunteers in the Rectory or their own homes. (If you would like to volunteer to be a host yourself, please be in touch with Stewardship Chair, Bob Donahue at 203-453-2279.) We will visit, talk about our harvest of blessings at Christ Church and hopes for the future. Watch your mailbox for an invitation!
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New and Familiar Music

With All Saints Day, Thanksgiving, Christ the King Sunday, and the First Sunday of Advent all happening in one month, November turns out to be a diverse time in the Church Year. On the first Sunday of the month we will be celebrating All Saints Day. You can expect familiar hymns and an anthem from the adult choir which will help us reflect on and remember those who have gone on before us into eternal glory. On October 17th, the Choristers had a wonderful first performance at the 10 AM Eucharist. That performance marked the beginning of a tradition in which the Choristers will provide the offertory anthem once per month. If you missed the Choristers on October 17th, your next chance to be inspired by their singing is at the 10 AM Eucharist on November 21st, where they will share To the Glory of our King. This anthem offers joyful praise to Christ the Kinga perfect selection for Christ the King Sunday. The children are already excited to sing again in the service! Perhaps you have noticed some of the slight changes in the music at Christ Church since I joined the staff this past summer. One such change is the adult choir performing an anthem at both the Offertory and Communion. Because of this, the congregational hymn that was sung during the Offertory is now located at the end of Communion. I encourage you to take note of this change and invite you join in the singing of the communion hymn. The hymn number will be both printed in your bulletin and posted on the board at the front of the church. Another change was the introduction of a new Fraction Anthem, which occurs right after the bread is broken during Communion. The music for this response is found in the front of the 1982 Hymnal, number S-154. Dont worry about memorizing that number, as it will be printed in the bulletin every week. Eventually the Gloria, Sanctus, and Fraction Anthem music will change to match the seasons. The new fraction anthem that we have been singing is to help get us ready for learning other service music in the future. Finally, if you have favorite hymns from the 1982 Hymnal that you would like to see us sing in church, please let me know. I am slowly learning what hymns you as a congregation know and do not know. Any added direction in this task would be much appreciated. You may pass those favorites along to me via email (frankdodd1@gamil.com) or in person on a Sunday. Sincerely, Frank Dodd Organist/Choirmaster

September Vestry Meeting Highlights

At its meeting on September 8 in the Rectory living room, the Vestry: Began with the Devotions for the Early Evening and time to share prayer concerns; Received July and August Treasurers reports -- which changed from insufficient cash to meet obligations in July to just enough to meet obligations in August, thanks to an unexpected special gift;
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 Heard that the Rectory Renovation/New Rector Arrival Fund had received $11,600 to date, with pledges still coming in, against a $20,000 goal; Approved the basics of a Letter of Agreement and Position Description for the Sunday School Director; Discussed the need for group work on communications, stewardship, parish fair planning, newcomer hospitality, and outreach; Began a review of a proposed process for receiving gifts offered to the parish;

October Vestry Meeting Highlights

At its meeting on Wednesday, October 13, in the Rectory living room, the Vestry: Began with the Devotions for the Early Evening and shared prayer concerns; Heard an encouraging report from the Treasurer -- although pledge payments are lagging the budget by about $15,000, the Parish can meet its current obligations, and learned of an unrestricted $5,000 special gift. Outstanding commitments include the Rectors moving expenses, installing doors to enclose his office, and plumbing and electrical connections on the second floor; Approved an authorization letter for a two-year financial audit; Heard reports about continuing negotiations for an oil supplier for this heating season, and with Town authorities regarding a handrail for the Rectorys front steps; Heard a report from the Rector about his and the Sunday School Directors participation in a Safe Church training day offered by the Diocese. Then the Rector shared the Dioceses Policies for the Protection of Children and Youth, including the requirement that parishes develop their own policies and post them prominently; after discussion, Harrison and Lisa Ste. Marie were asked to prepare a draft parish policy to the November Vestry meeting; Continued to discuss a draft for a Parish Gift Policy designed to encourage both restricted and unrestricted gifts of cash, securities, real estate, life insurance, and tangible items of value by establishing a process for receiving them and committing them to the purpose(s) designated by the donor, if any, and a process for considering gifts offered for the enhancement of worship, or which will require maintenance; after several amendments were made to the draft, it will return to the Vestry for further consideration in November; Learned that an ad hoc committee of Kay Claiborn, Jean Valentine, and Cindy Smith were developing a proposal and funding for an appropriate aumbry or tabernacle to house the reserved Sacrament and blessed oils in the vicinity of the sanctuary lamp, a.k.a. Presence Light; they will bring the proposal to a future Vestry meeting for consideration; Decided to move its November meeting to Tuesday, November 16, to avoid a conflict with the Diocesan Clergy Retreat; and, Reflected on the relocation of the baptismal font to inside the Chancel rail; the consensus was that this location safely secured the venerable font while making the baptisms highly visible to the congregation.
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Christ Episcopal Church P O Box 574 Guilford, CT 06437

Non-Profit Organization U.S. Postage PAID Guilford, CT 06437 Permit Number 1

Change Service Requested

GLAD TIDINGS

November, 2010

Christ Episcopal Church 11 Park Street Guilford, Connecticut

Glad Tidings

Youth Movie Night

Students in grades 6-9!
Please join us as our youth movie nights return on Sunday, November 7 & 21, from 5:30 - 8 p.m.. At the Rectory. Dinner & popcorn will be served!

The Rev. Harrison West Rector harrisoncec@snet.net 203-453-2279 Edward Seibert Senior Warden seiberte@ix.netcom.com 203-458-6516 Pat Wakefield Parish Administrator cecsec@snet.net 203-453-2279 Diane Barker Managing Editor RunSlo@aol.com 203-457-9484

Ofce Angels Needed

The church office will be closed Monday, November 15, through Wednesday, November 24, and volunteers are sought to answer phones and greet people while Pat is away. In addition, there are other opportunities throughout the year to assist the church staff. Please call Pat Wakefield if you are able to help out (203-453-2279). Thank you. CHURCH OFFICES CLOSED FOR THANKSGIVING - NOV. 25 & 26

Thanksgiving Services
11/21, 5 p.m., First Church (U.C.C.), Madison 11/25, 10 a.m., Christ Church, Guilford