On September 25 we launched the 2011 Stewardship Campaign.  This year's theme is "The Time is Now.  The Needs are Great." 

Many thanks to Susan Peacock for her talk, available via You tube below:

110925 Stewardship Speaker.mov

The Every Member Canvass program is the cornerstone of our annual Stewardship Campaign.  Each member of the Parish is visited by an ambassador.  These meetings are an opportunity to share what makes St. Thomas important and valuable in your lives.  Parishioners are then invited to pray about the role of the Church in their lives.  Following the meeting a pledge card is mailed with an invitation for members to prayerfully make a commitment for 2012.  This year we have automated the process with a major upgrade to the Parish database.  This will make the tracking of calls, pledge mailings and responses much easier. 

This year the Stewardship Ambassador team is made up exclusively of clergy and Vestry members.  This approach gives each parishioner the opportunity to meet with a member of the Parish leadership.

In the next 2 weeks please expect a call or email from your Ambassador to set up a mutually convenient time to meet or to talk.  Please be patient!  Each Vestry member has 15 to 20 calls to make.  If you haven't heard from anybody, please contact the office.

Thank you for supporting St. Thomas and for your ongoing gifts of time, talent and treasure.

The 2011 Stewardship prayer:

Lord God of Hosts, Source of all gifts we, Thy people, rejoice in the fullness of Thy generosity.  We thank thee for those whose lives are visible signs of Thy love and blessing to others.  Give us the courage to do the same. Make us good stewards of all we have received and will receive, generously sharing our time, talents and treasure to build thy kingdom of love and justice. We ask this through Jesus Christ Our Lord, In whom we begin and end all things.
Amen.

Saint Francis of Assisi (Giovanni Francesco di Bernardone; 1181/1182 - October 3, 1226) was a Catholic deacon and preacher. He also was the founder of the Order of Friars Minor, more commonly known as the Franciscans.
 
He is known as the patron saint of animals, the environment and one of the two patrons of Italy (with Catherine of Siena).
 
Many of the stories that surround the life of St. Francis deal with his love for animals. Perhaps the most famous incident that illustrates the Saint's humility towards nature is recounted in the "Fioretti" ("Little Flowers"), a collection of legends and folklore that sprang up after the Saint's death. It is said that, one day, while Francis was traveling with some companions, they happened upon a place in the road where birds filled the trees on either side. Francis told his companions to "wait for me while I go to preach to my sisters the birds". The birds surrounded him, drawn by the power of his voice, and not one of them flew away. Francis spoke to them:
 
My sister birds, you owe much to God, and you must always and in everyplace give praise to Him; for He has given you freedom to wing through the sky and He has clothed you... you neither sow nor reap, and God feeds you and gives you rivers and fountains for your thirst, and mountains and valleys for shelter, and tall trees for your nests. And although you neither know how to spin or weave, God dresses you and your children, for the Creator loves you greatly and He blesses you abundantly. Therefore... always seek to praise God.  

Francis's attitude towards the natural world, while poetically expressed, was Christian. He believed that the world was created good and beautiful by God but suffers a need for redemption because of the primordial sin of man. He preached to man and beast the universal ability and duty of all creatures to praise God (a common theme in the Psalms) and the duty of men to protect and enjoy nature as both the stewards of God's creation and as creatures ourselves.

Legend has it that St. Francis on his deathbed thanked his donkey for carrying and helping him throughout his life, and his donkey wept.  

Adapted from www.wikipedia.org

Fr. Ian Elliott Davies

Sermon

Fr. Ian Elliott Davies

Deacon

The Rev. Walter S. Johnson

Work on Phase II of the Acoustics Project is now complete.  Thank you for your patience.  A photo gallery is coming next week.  (The last part of the project, new gutters, will be installed in the next week or so.  We had hoped to save the prior gutters, but weren't able to.)

Please join us in celebration and blessing of those special creatures that are members of our families.

Join us on October 2 to celebrate the Feast of Saint Francis of Assisi ("Flea Sunday") before, during and after the 10:30 High Mass. The usual blessing ceremony will happen during the Mass but this year the children of St. Thomas will assist before and after the Mass to love and care for our pets. Our kids will have water, treats and love to share with our beloved pets.

Attention all St. Thomas parents: Please join us at 10:15 outside the entrance to Church to set up water bowls and snacks. Please be prepared to help after Mass as well. We would also appreciate if you could bring snacks for cats and dogs as well as disposable bowls we can fill with water in the kitchen. Please contact David Seck A.S.A.P at davidseck6@gmail.com  if you can bring supplies and your children to assist with this important event.