From the Vicar...
Some thoughts about "ordinary time"
As the church calendar flips over to June, we are at the start of what our Roman Catholic brothers and sisters call "ordinary time" - the long green season following Pentecost that stretches all the way until Advent. I've always liked the green seasons of the church. The "ordinariness" to which our friends refer is what I like about them. While holidays and special celebrations are nice occasionally, I've always been one of those folks who would generally rather stay at home with a predictable schedule and "do what I do." Call me a boring person, but I like the order and predictability providence allows in this "ordinary" time of the church year.
Over the years, experience has taught me that I am most likely to experience God in the mundane and routine things of life, rather than on the mountaintop. I have had one or two mountaintop experiences in the 62 years I've inhabited this planet, but they were unplanned and unexpected. God came in God's way and on God's schedule to demand my attention and to grant divine grace. There were times when I sought to force God's hand, or to orchestrate a wonderful and spiritual time with my Savior, but they almost always failed because I was so focused on myself and my desires instead of on the One who made me and reconciled me to himself. I would almost go so far as to say that the times when I have worked the hardest to summon God's presence, be it through wonderful liturgy, or special disciplines, or planned occasions of any sort, my feeble efforts were just attempts to cover for the reality that my selfishness had rendered me incapable of sensing God's presence in my life.
No, it is in the little things that God leads me to sense the Divine presence. It is in the ordinary times. It is in the small everyday chores and responsibilities of life that he most often enables me to know viscerally that God is with me. I suppose this if fitting. It is another proof that indeed the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, thus sanctifying and declaring good forever God's creation.
Bishop Berkeley of Cloyne in the Church of Ireland argued mightily in his day that God was more than some cosmic watchmaker who designed the world, wound it up, and left it to run. He was fond of saying that if God stopped thinking about us for an instant, we would cease to exist. I find it most comforting that when I am cleaning the kitchen floor, or writing sermons, or mowing grass, or visiting folks in our two congregations, God is there, actively thinking of me, and smiling on those mundane activities which generally characterize my life. It is good to be thought of, and to be loved; and it is good to walk with Christ. I pray that all of you, my friends and my brothers and sisters in Christ, might know this goodness every hour of every day of your lives.
Fr. Chip
Our Shared Ministry Cycle of Prayer
Each week, in both of our churches, we pray for one ministry we share and one or two households in each church. About once every six weeks, we will instead using the Shared Ministry Collect we prayed throughout the opening months of our Shared Ministry.
In our prayers the next two weeks, we give God thanks for...
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June 5
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The Treasurers, Tena Wolf & Robert Bischoff; Carolyn Matthews; Laurence Pappademus; David & Fran Plank
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June 12
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The Clerks, Suzanne George & Diana Jodoin; Betty McKinney; Wes & Anne Rowe
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Coffee Hour hosts wanted
Summer Coffee Hour needs hosts for June, July, and August at both churches. You can bring a simple snack of donuts and juice, or you can get creative and bring bagels, fruit, or whatever you choose. After coffee hour you clean up, and then you are done! You can sign up on the sheet near the coffee pot at either church. Peter Monte generally brews the coffee at Christ Church; Wes Rowe does the same at Trinity - so unless they let you know they can't be here, you generally won't have to worry about how to make the coffee.
Capital Campaign update for Christ Church
It has now been six months since the giving period for our Capital Campaign began on Advent Sunday. In that time, we have received gifts bringing our Capital Fund to just over $15,000.
There are three initiatives to report by way of capital projects:
- The first and simplest is a floor refinishing project that has not only brought new shine to our floors, but sealed them against any subsequent deterioration. The hallways, sacristies and one side of the Nave have been completed to date. The other side of the Nave, the offices and classroom remain to be done, as well as the parquet flooring in the sanctuary area.
- The second is the installation of an accessible restroom on the main level of the building. Preliminary planning is complete, but we have run into a "snag:" the originally-proposed location, where the Vicar's office now stands, is far enough from existing plumbing to require costly pumping. We are now exploring an alternative plan that would place the restroom in the north end of what is now the Marshall Room. The south end would then become a new Vicar's office; the present Vicar's office would become the bookkeeper's office; and the current office space would be refurbished into a new Marshall Room for receptions, coffee hour, etc. As this plan would involve installing a wall not envisioned in the original plan, the cost may be higher than originally announced, but...
- The third element, a retrofitting of our lighting to replace all incandescent lights and older-generation fluorescent bulbs with light-emitting diode (LED) lamps, not only came in well under the cost we estimated, but is eligible for a 50% matching grant from Eversource, bringing our cost down to the $4,500 range (we had estimated $8,000 for our share of this). We are hoping this savings will allow us to complete the second project above despite the higher cost. By the way, we were originally told we would not be able to get the Eversource grant this year, but now have learned that we can - so we are putting in for it while the funding is locked in.
We are grateful for all who have faithfully contributed to our Capital Campaign, and thank you for remaining current in your commitments. Your current pledge envelopes run through the end of Year One (end of November); envelopes for Year Two will be in your mailboxes at church as Advent Sunday 2016 approaches.
Your Capital Campaign team:
Fr. Chip Robinson, Vicar; Suzanne George, Advance Gifts chair; Peter Monte, Contact Team; Craig Davis, Property chair; Katie Towler, Information Team; Melanie Harden, Response Team
One-hour gardeners and garden help wanted
Do you enjoy being outdoors? We would love to have your help maintaining the Memorial Garden at Christ Church and flower beds next to both churches. There's no sign-up sheet involved - just stop by whenever you can.
Here are some of the tasks that you could do when you come to help:
- Weed the Memorial Garden and trim bushes
- Weed the flower beds around the church buildings (both churches)
- Weed and maintain the flower bed by the signs: at the church's entrance for Christ Church; in the midst of the lawn at Trinity
- Remove the spent daffodil foliage
- Tend to the daylilies and iris along the Christ Church walkway
- Cut dead limbs off ornamental trees
- Trim bushes and shrubs
- Water flowers
Thank you for helping keep our Memorial Garden and flower beds beautiful this summer!
Explore your Medicare options
A free public information night at Hobbs House
Mark your calendars for this free workshop to help you understand the basics of Medicare and discover options available to you. The workshop will cover Social Security and Medicare, Medicare Parts A, B and D, supplements, deductibles and coinsurance, how to apply and much more!
Join us on Monday, June 27 at 7 p.m. in Hobbs House's Hall for an informative session about your personal Medicare options with Tom Hutton, a trained representative from the Brownell Insurance Co.
