The Vicar's Corner

We're well into the second of our four-week journey through the holy season of Advent.  Two blue candles are ablaze, dispelling the darkness with warm and welcoming light.  The candles are reminders of the great virtues of Faith, Hope, Love and Peace and they represent the Light of the World, Jesus the Christ.

This weekend we shall light the rose candle, signifying the third week of Advent and celebrating Gaudete Sunday.  The word Gaudete, which comes from the ancient Latin, simply translated, means "rejoice."  It is a celebration recognized in our Episcopal Church, the Church of England, as well as the Roman Catholic, Orthodox, Lutheran and other mainline Protestant churches.  The fact so many Christians can agree on one thing is reason enough to celebrate!

Here at St. Nicholas we have much for which to rejoice.  Last weekend we had the pleasure of hosting Bishop Lee at our home.  He welcomed into the Church Jennifer Brundige and confirmed Jodie Lloyd.  These ladies celebrated these special church functions with the entire community which is how such events are to be celebrated...as a community.

Our reasons for thankfulness and rejoicing don't stop there, not in the least.  We have a new boiler that is blessedly providing us much needed heat in the worship space.  Come next summer, we can enjoy some cooler air, too.  The temperatures in Holy Innocents Hall are now better regulated and controlled.  The exterior of the church is freshly painted and is uniform in color all the way around.  Walk along Ridge Avenue and look at the church from there and gaze at how lovely our church now looks.  Soon, our west side windows will be graced with stained glass that we inherited from St. Bede's.  The south side windows will be repaired, too.  Also, protective shading with insulated screening will be installed, providing us shelter from the glare of the sun but also will help reduce our energy costs, too.  We are working on redoing the lighting system throughout the entire complex.  Again, high efficiency lights that will help keep our Com Ed bills manageable while providing less heat from the bulbs and more light.  In time we hope to install an outdoor, illuminated sign, too.  Anxiously we await these additions, these updates to our house of worship.  All these and other plans on the drawing board are all good reasons for celebration and rejoicing. 

As exciting as all these updates and renovations are, what is most wonderful is the growth of our church.  We welcome those who come to St. Nicholas in search of a church home, opening wide our doors and extending our unique brand of hospitality and warmth.  Some stay and make this place their home, too.  Others do not.  Nonetheless, we see the growth. There is an energy to this place.  There is some thing special happening here.  The Spirit is alive and well, thank you very much, and St. Nicholas rejoices in the grace and blessings that are made gift to us.

Let us continue to celebrate, to rejoice and to prepare ourselves...the Lord is near, let us truly be glad.

Amen.

-Manny

It's almost time...the great feast of the Nativity is almost upon us.  So, it's time we get the church ready.

On Sunday, December 21st after the 10am Liturgy, we invite everyone to stick around and help put up the rather large Angel Tree and all the decorations.  Bring along some snacks if you'd like.  All are welcome to share in the fun.

Dear Community of St. Nicholas.  I will be on vacation from December 9th until the 16th and again from Dec. 24th (after the 9pm Mass) until the 29th of December. 

If there is a Pastoral Emergency and a priest is needed, I ask you to please contact the Rev. Elizabeth Jameson, rector of St. Simon's Episcopal Church.  She will be covering all pastoral calls at St. Nicholas while I am away.  Rev. Elizabeth can be reached at: 847-295-2930.  St. Simon's Church is located at 717 W. Kirchhoff Road, Arlington Heights, IL 60005.

I will keep you all in my prayers and thoughts and certainly hope everyone has a wonderful holiday, free from any and all emergencies. 

Merry Christmas to one and all.

Blessings and love,

Manny

Each Christmas and Easter at St. Nicholas we invite the community to honor and remember our dearly departed loved ones with flowers.

We are nearing the joyful feast of the Nativity of Jesus.  If you like to provide funding for flowers to festoon the church, please know how grateful we are.

Place your donation in a specially marked envelope with your name, the name(s) of those you wish to remember and the amount of your offering.  You may place this in the collection basket at the weekend services or you can pass it on to Manny.

In advance, thank you one and all.  Let's make Christmas truly merry with beautiful flowers that give honor to our loved ones as well as praise and glory to the New Born King.

Prayer Requests

The Community of St. Nicholas is praying

 

To Bishop Lee for joining us at St. Nicholas and sharing the Good News of Christ.   

To Jennifer Brundige and Jodie Lloyd who continue their spiritual journey and welcomed us in their celebration of Reception into the Church and Confirmation.  Faith is a gift best shared.

To Thelma and Ray Malecek who supplied the delicious cake for Coffee Hour last weekend...sweet treats from such sweet people!

To Diane Gustafson who lead us in our venture of wreath making and graciously donated the proceeds of the night to St. Nicholas.  You are a most kind and caring person, Diane and an expert bow maker!  And, to Steve Raftery and Hal Stratton who organized this wonderful time and supplied the pizza and salad.   A millions thanks, guys. And, to Hank Mandziara and Jeff Westerheide who provided the beverages for the night of wreath making.  You guys rock. Last but not least, to all who came and had a grand time at our night of wreath making, all who helped make this a great time, all who helped clean up and put the Hall back in order...a good time, good food, good fun with great people.    

This Week at St. Nicholas

As a reminder, the full master calendar is always available online at this link.  Here is the schedule for the next week:

St. Nicholas Episcopal Church
1072 Ridge Avenue
Elk Grove Village, IL  60007
847-439-2067
www.StNicholasEpiscopal.org