Titus 2:11-14
Luke 2:8-20
Readings for Sunday (Christmas 1):
1 Samuel 2:18-20, 26
Psalm 148
Colossians 3:12-17
Luke 2:41-52
Our next in-person services will start on Nov 28th to begin the season of Advent. An 8 am BCP service and a 10:30 am BAS service will be held. The guidelines outlined in the Archbishop’s letter will be followed including communion bread distributed by the priest and persons taking the communion back to their pews where the mask can be removed and the communion consumed. Attendance will be limited to 1/3 of fire code capacity, masks are mandatory, distancing by 2 m, frequent hand sanitizing is recommended, prayer books and hymn books will be available and congregational and choir singing is permitted with mask and distance requirements. All persons planning to attend are requested to notify St Andrews (standrw1@telus.net) so capacity is not exceeded. Persons are requested to sign in and sanitize prior to entering the church. Come and meet our interim minister Rev. John Chuol.
SUNDAY Service on Zoom: 10:30am!
The service is a livestream of our in-person service. Unfortunately it is not interactive, but you will be able to see and hear the service as it happens.
Join us at 10:30 am via Zoom. (Meeting ID: 859 3582 4614; Password: 1611).
*** Please note: This code remains the same each Sunday.
Or use the secure link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85935824614?pwd=RWt1bGFOL1J2azNtUnlDT1NDbWttdz09
For information on how to use Zoom or for the local phone number to call in click here.
Christmas Services will be as follows:
Christmas Eve, Friday, December 24:
7:00 pm Festive Eucharist
First Sunday after Christmas, Sunday December 26
8:00am BCP Holy Communion
10:30am BAS Holy Eucharist
Christmas Eve & Christmas 1
Announcements
Office Hours:
If you do enter the building, please ensure you wear a mask, sanitize your hands and sign in.
Before you come by St. Andrew’s, for any reason, please self-monitor for possible symptoms of Covid-19 by reviewing this document.
There is a visitor sign-in log at the front table that we ask you sign upon entry, once you have sanitized.
Christmas Office Hours
The church office will be closed for Christmas holidays from December 24 to January 3. Mail and phone messages will be checked regularly. For pastoral emergencies please call Rev. John at 403-690-1527.
Interim Priest for St. Andrew’s
Please take a moment to read the attached letter from Archbishop Greg Kerr-Wilson (click here) regarding the appointment of an interim priest to St. Andrew’s. This Sunday we welcome The Rev. John Chuol, our new Interim, to our Sunday zoom service to share in worship with us!
2022 Offertory Envelopes are available to anyone who needs them. Please contact John MacKinnon if you want to use them in 2022. Some have already been distributed and the rest will be made available as needed. Many parishioners have switched to on-line monthly donations (PAD) or made use of the Canada Helps website to support St. Andrew’s.
Parking update: We are grateful that the management of the Foothills Professional Building (at the corner of 16th Ave & 29 St.) have agreed to allow free parking for St. Andrew’s parishioners on Sunday mornings, from 8:00am-12:00pm! It is roughly a 3 minute walk from their parking lot, through the condo complex and break in the alley fence to St. Andrew’s. Please park in unmarked stalls only. If walking this distance is not difficult for you, please use this parking option and leave our parking lot for those with limited mobility, visitors and newcomers.
Church Financials
As of November financials, St. Andrew’s is looking to end the year 2021 with a slight deficit. Please consider a small extra contribution for your-end to carry us through to 2022. And remember that all contributions need to be in by year-end (Dec. 31st) to qualify for 2021 tax receipts. Thank you.
Financial Audit
We are looking for a parishioner who could review St. Andrew’s 2021 year-end financials, as Tom Greaves can no longer do this since he is now a warden. Please contact Dave Thomson (403-241-7990) if you are interested. Thanks.
Annual reports for 2021 are DUE Tues. January 18! Please submit the report for which you are responsible to Kate at standrw1@telus.net.
Outreach at Christmas
Our tradition at Christmas has been to support Aventa, The Calgary Drop In and Rehab Centre, and St. Edmund’s. Since Covid has continued to stop us from physically being present at these venues, I hope we can continue to support them in the following ways. Both the DI and St. Edmund’s would gratefully receive a money donation for their Food Banks. For the Drop In Centre, a cheque with “for the DI kitchen” in the memo would ensure the money gets to Chef Cindy. For St. Edmunds, again in the memo line of the cheque “for the food bank” ensures the money goes for purchasing groceries. Aventa : Donation ideas for the women recovering at Aventa..shampoo, conditioner (unscented) hats, slippers, gloves, toiletries, sox, underwear, scarves, mitts, candies and chocolates, etc. There will be a basket in the Narthex for contributions. If you are not able to come to the church, but would like to donate, please call Carole Thomson (403-923-7990) who will pick up your Aventa gift. Blessings to All.
PWRDF
This month’s Anglican Journal includes the Fall 2021 PWRDF World of Gifts. PWRDF works with partners on the ground to ensure that the people themselves are able to direct support where it is most needed. One of PWRDF’s partner agencies is the Canadian Foodgrains Bank, rated one of the top one hundred charities by Charity Intelligence Canada (Click here for info.)
Of particular interest as we grapple with the recent discoveries and confront our role as Treaty People in the implementation of residential schools is a new initiative: Turn to page 4 of World of Gifts for information on PWRDF’s Indigenous Responsive Programs. You can also learn more at pwrdf.org/IndigenousGrants. You can order securely on-line at pwrdf.org/worldofgifts.
2022 Church Calendars
2022 Canadian Church Calendars are available for purchase for $5 each. Limited quantities! To get your copy contact Pat Kover or the office.
Discussion group: Indigenous Relations
Much has come to our consciousness recently regarding our historical relationship with indigenous peoples. We will continue our discussion on Wednesday, Jan. 19 @ 7:00pm for mutual support and to review actions steps. Having begun with the Anglican video about the Doctrine of Discovery , we continue to hold up the TRC and its recommendations. Please don’t hesitate to contact Sally Anne Guertin with any questions or concerns. Click here for the Zoom link (Mtg ID:893 7682 8532; Password: 1611).
Wrestling with the Truth of Colonization: With our hearts pierced by the news of the discovery of the remains of 215 children in an unmarked grave at Kamloops Residential School, calls for action towards truth and reconciliation are growing louder. Click here for information on what you might do in response.
St. Edmund’s Food Bank Appeal
We are once again appealing for help with stocking our Food Bank shelves. We currently find that we are running short on canned goods – especially canned meats (tuna, salmon, ham, etc), vegetables, soups, beans, etc. as well as cereals, snack foods for kids, and jams. The Food Bank is open Monday and Thursday mornings from 9:30 to 11:30 for dropping off donations, or you can call Marilyn (our Food Bank Coordinator) at 403-288-6330 to arrange a time for drop-off outside of those hours (please leave a message and she will call you back). If you would like more information about our Food Bank and how you can help, please email us. Thank you for your support!
SeniorConnect is an online training program for any community member to identify seniors at risk, determine who to contact for assistance and understand the referral process. It is free and available anytime. Click here to go to the website. The program is run by Calgary Seniors’ Resource Society.
Donations
We are most grateful for your continued donations. If you normally donate by cheque, you can send it by mail. Pre-authorized debit continues and you can join or make adjustments by contacting John MacKinnon (johnm9@telus.net). We also have an “account” with CanadaHelps you can access here.
Did You Know…?
We have copies of the personal devotions “Our Daily Bread” at the church for for September through to November. They can be picked up in the narthex if you’re at the church or we can drop one in the mail for you if you contact us!
Society of Saint John the Evangelist
Short reflections are published weekly. The latest is about “enlarging your perspective.” It can be found here.
