DIY Retreat Day 3

by Denise Flanagan
Welcome to the third day of our retreat. If you’d like to read this on the web and see the music, meditation, and stories that have been shared, click here!
Scripture of the Day
The passage for the day is Matthew 7:28-8:4, in which Jesus heals a man with leprosy. In one of our Godly Play stories, in which it says that Jesus’ work “was to come close to people, especially the people no one else wanted to come close to.” Jesus came close to people who were cast out of the community, left alone, and how he did so is a mystery. We can come close to people these days in different sorts of ways, maybe through the internet or a phone call. We can do the same work as Jesus by helping people feel loved.
Today, we can pray our scripture by saying, “Come close to me, Jesus, even when I feel alone.” We can pray this prayer any time, night or day.
I Wonder Why
You’ll notice that with Godly Play stories, we always ask questions at the end.
“I wonder, what your favorite part is?”
“I wonder, is there a most important part?
“I wonder, where are you in this story?”
“I wonder, is there any part we can leave out and still have all the story we need?”
Have you ever wondered why we wonder so much? Our wondering is part of how we engage with the stories, entering them with our imaginations. We can discover new things by wondering like this.
Wondering can be an important part of how anyone can engage with the stories in the Bible. Our imaginations can be a way we meet God. Whether you’re a kid, a youth, or an adult, you can wonder about these stories and discover new things. Try it out sometimes!
Scavenger Hunt
Don’t forget to take pictures for the scavenger hunt.
We hope your weekend is going well. Keep up with the scavenger hunt! It’ll be time to share your pictures before you know it!

DIY Retreat Day 2

by Denise Flanagan
Welcome to the second day of our retreat. If you’d like to read this on the web and see the music, meditation, and poetry that have been shared, click here!
Scripture of the Day
The scripture of the day is Matthew 7:22-27, where Jesus tells a story of a wise person who builds their house on a steady foundation. The wise person knows that for the house to be strong, the foundation needs to be strong too. To build without a solid foundation is dangerous because the storms will knock it down. To those who build on a solid foundation, Jesus gives the words of comfort, “I know you. You followed me, and you shared my love with people around you. No matter what storms arise, I know you and am with you.”
Like yesterday’s scripture, we can pray our scripture. We can pray, “Be with me through the storm.” No matter what arises, even a prayer as short as this can help us get through.
Godly Play stories
The Godly Play stories we share here are part of a series called “Knowing Jesus in a New Way.” After the sad events of Holy Week, the disciples discovered that they were coming to know Jesus in a new way. In today’s Godly Play story, the disciples hear Jesus saying, “Go and share my love with others.” Check it out here!
All-church Scavenger Hunt
Part of our retreat will be a scavenger hunt! Everyone is invited to participate, kids and adults alike. Over the next few days, take pictures of things on this list and share them with Andrew (details below). As you take pictures, make sure you social distance and wear your mask when you are around people. Send in all of the pictures this weekend (or at least by Pentecost, May 31). We’ll put the pictures together and share them!
  1. Something shiny
  2. A cool car
  3. A flower you really like
  4. A picture of St. Mary’s or another church building
  5. A reflection of your family in a mirror or water
  6. A bird
  7. Someone making a silly face
  8. A close picture of a leaf
Bonus: Picture of a Bible character. Maybe it’s of Mary or Moses or John the Baptist. How do you think they look? What do you think they would be doing?
How do you submit them? Email them to Andrew. You don’t have to do all of them. Just have some fun taking pictures for everyone to enjoy!
I’m excited to hear about all the fun you have on the scavenger hunt. In the meantime, we continue this journey together. Until tomorrow!
In peace,
Andrew, Kirsten, and Ann

DIY Retreat Day 1: “I am with you always”

by Denise Flanagan
Welcome to the St. Mary’s DIY retreat. This retreat is set up so that you can choose which parts you’d like to join. We will have daily prayer, Godly Play stories, meditations, and music. We hope that you find something you can take with you as you go.
Everything we share will be up on the website each day so that you can return to it when you need it. Today, you’ll see some music on there for you to enjoy. Find it all HERE.
Our scripture for the day is Matthew 28:16-20, a passage often called the Great Commission. In this scripture, Jesus offers the disciples, and us, words of comfort. He says, “I am with you always, even until the end of the age.” Jesus had died, but the disciples now discovered that they were coming to know Jesus in a new way. They thought they had lost him, but now he was with them again, just as he is with us.
As you go about your day, think about the scripture of the day. You can even turn it into a prayer whenever you would like. Just saying the words “Jesus be with me” can be a comfort when we feel alone. Try it out!
Starting off our retreat will be Vespers tonight at 7:00 p.m. on Zoom. (Sign up for email updates HERE is you wish to participate.)
It will be wonderful to take this journey with you over the next few days. Don’t forget, you can always return to these scriptures and prayers whenever you need them. Take care, and we hope to see you soon!
In peace,
Andrew, Kirsten, and Ann

Music at this Sunday’s Online Service

by Denise Flanagan

All are welcome to join our Sunday 10am service online! To join, please sign up for email updates that will include the login credentials.

This Sunday’s prelude, The Call sung by Nathan Hylan, is one of the Five Mystical Songs written for solo baritone by English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958). The text is a poem by George Herbert (1593-1633), the Welsh-born poet and Anglican priest. The opening phrase, “Come, my way, my truth, my life,” is a reference to John 14:6, where Jesus says, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.” These words are found in the Gospel reading this Sunday and in the Prayer of the Day.

David Haas (b. 1957) is a contemporary American composer of liturgical music. He set the opening words of this Sunday’s Gospel text from John 14, “Do not let your hearts be troubled.” We will hear an original arrangement of Haas’ hymn by Melanie Donnelly, alto and Eric Ritter, guitar.

This joyful Eastertide (Hymn 192) is a text by George Woodward (1848-1934), an English parish priest who wrote and translated a large number of hymns. His words are paired with a Dutch tune that was originally a 17th-century popular song. This pattern occurs often in hymn writing, where new words are set to a familiar tune to make it easier to sing. Although we may not be feeling especially joyful during this year’s Eastertide, this hymn brings a message of the hope that is ours through faith in the “Lord of all life.”

Coming Online Events

by Denise Flanagan

St. Mary’s held an online Trivia Night this past Saturday!

Here is a list of upcoming online get togethers, outside of our regular Sunday worship together. To join, please sign up for email updates that will include the login credentials.

Tuesday, May 5 at 2:30 p.m.: Children’s Storytime: Live from the Rectory  (NEW time)! Past stories include “If Jesus Came to My House, “Snowmen at Work,” “The Night You Were Born” (a beautifully illustrated interpretation of Psalm 139), “Hunches of Bunches” by the indomitable Dr. Seuss, “Runaway Bunny” by Margaret Wise Brown, “The Tale of Three Trees,” “Snowmen All Year,” and more. Publishers have relaxed guidelines around some copyrighted material, but they do not want it to stay up indefinitely, so storytimes are deleted after three weeks. Share with your kids, grandkids, or neighbors!

Vespers every other Thursday in Eastertide! Save Thursday, May 14 and Thursday, May 28 at 7:00 p.m. for evening prayer on Zoom in Easter.

May Easter Sundays from 11:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. COVID-19 Spiritual Survival Kit! What can we do to take care of ourselves and others right now? How can we do God’s work in the world and rely on God to help us survive — spiritually, physically, and emotionally? We will watch a video together from a respected instructor who will offer suggestions to help us navigate this period of time with care (May 10), connection (May 17), and rest (May 24). This course is ideal for anyone who wants to discuss skills and coping mechanisms that can be applied now.

Week of May 3, 2020

by Denise Flanagan

[Photo courtesy of Ella C.]

For login credentials for all our online activities, please subscribe to email updates.

Saturday, May 2 from 7:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. St. Mary’s Zoom Trivia Night!

Sunday, May 3

  • 10 a.m. Worship: Morning Prayer, Rite II
  • 10:45 a.m.-11:15 a.m. Godly Play for Children Ages 3 – Grade 3
  • 11:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. COVID-19 Spiritual Survival Kit
  • 11:20 a.m.-12:00 p.m. Youth Group 4th Grade and Up

Moving to ZOOM Platform for Online Services and Events

by Denise Flanagan

While we are still in social distancing because of COVID, we will continue to offer Sunday worship, Christian education, and weekday Vesper service through the ZOOM platform. ZOOM gives us more interactivity and flexibility than the Facebook Live and other services we looked at. HOWEVER do be safe, all of our Zoom services will require a password to participate.

If you are not already on the church mailing list, please sign up here for email updates . This will not only keep you up to date, but have the meeting and password information needed to participate in online worship.

 

Schedule for Holy Week, Starting Sunday April 5, 2020

by Denise Flanagan
The Sunday of the Passion: Palm Sunday, April 5
Please see your email for information for Youth services.

10:00 a.m. Worship: Click here to join in worship at 10 a.m.! We will be streaming Palm Sunday. Here (Palm Sunday Bulletin) is the bulletin if you wish to view it on another device or print it beforehand. The bulletin will also be projected this week.

If you miss it live, the recording of the live stream and an audio clip will be shared so that you might pray and listen at your convenience.

We have been strongly discouraged from handing out palms… that’s okay! Bring in greenery! Print out a palm and color it!

NEW Virtual Coffee Hour! About 10 minutes after the service ends this Sunday, around 11 a.m., come “see” and chat with the people and friends of St. Mary’s! Click here to join in on Zoom! BYOC (Bring Your Own Coffee/Tea/Water/Whatever)!

Monday, April 6
Holy Week Coloring Packets! Enjoy the following packets have coloring pages, age appropriate information, and family discussion prompts about the most important weeks in the Christian year.

Tuesday, April 7 at 5:30 p.m.: Children’s Storytime: Live from the Rectory
Click here to join live or to watch the recording at your convenience of Ann reading “Runaway Bunny” by Margaret Wise Brown and “Robo-sauce,” written by Adam Rubin and illustrated by Daniel Salmieri (the last book by the dynamic DLT duo!) at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday! After clicking on the link, click “videos.” Here’s an earlier recording of Ann reading “Unicorn Thinks He’s Pretty Great” by Bob Shea and “Dragons Love Tacos 2″ by Adam Rubin and illustrated by Daniel Salmieri. Watch soon! Publishers have relaxed the normal guidelines around most copyrighted material, but they do not want it to stay up indefinitely. Share with your kids or grandkids!

 

Thursday, April 9: Maundy Thursday at 7:00 p.m.
Click here to join Maundy Thursday via Zoom at 7 p.m. We will sing Taize music, hear the traditional Maundy Thursday readings, pray, and consider the last night of Jesus’ earthly life.

 

Friday, April 10: Good Friday at Noon
Click here to join our youth-led Good Friday service via Zoom at noon! Readings! Skits! Stop motion! Come see how our youth have interpreted the many faces of Jesus.

 

Sunday, April 12: The Feast of the Resurrection! Easter!!
We are already working to pre-record an Easter service so that you might observe at home at whatever time works for you and/or your family. There will also be a virtual coffee hour on Easter to give you a chance to connect to your friends at St. Mary’s, too!

 

We will also share ways to participate in diocesan Holy Week services if anyone wants or needs something other than what we are offering.
Take good care.
Sincerely,
Ann