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February 25, 2014
The e-pistle
Your Weekly News Update from St. Stephen's
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In This Issue
Square Dance Time!
Invest 2
Lenten Series with Christ Church
Lenten Series with Christ Church
Gifford Lane Art Stroll
Youth Notes
Help Pack Food for Haiti
Art Show Slideshow
Event Calendar
Service Times
Find us on Facebook
 
To The People of St. Stephen's
Dear Friends,

Lent is meant to be a time of inward reflection, a time when we slow down to focus on our relationship with God through Jesus Christ and reflect on the ways we have strayed.

That may be what Lent is supposed to be about, but then I look at our calendar and it's just chock-full!  There are some major events coming up for the church and in a little over two weeks our school will be visited by the FCIS accreditation team.  This takes place every five years, and between now and March 15 you will see a flurry of activity as our campus is made even more beautiful for their visit.

So, on the one hand we have what Lent is supposed to be about, and on the other we have, well, reality.

The challenge becomes:  how do we do the work of Lent in the midst of all the busyness?  How do we strengthen our relationship with God, how do we reflect on ways we may have strayed?  What else beside the time-honored spiritual practice of giving something up or taking something on?

I invite you to consider attending our educational offerings:  the renewed Lenten series with Christ Church which begins next Wednesday, Invest 2 featuring guests from other faith traditions speaking about how reconciliation and peace-making are understood in their traditions, and a Lenten Quiet Morning on March 7 led by Fr Michael.

In Christ's love,

Pastor Willie Allen-Faiella

AIDS Ministry Square Dance
Good food, good fun, good deeds for the whole family



Save this Saturday, February 28, 5:30 to 9 pm, for your whole family.  It's our St. Stephen's AIDS Ministry Family Square Dance once again!  Come for the western-style hoedown dancing.  Come for the food (remember the chili?).  Come for the fellowship with other parishioners.  Come to benefit those affected by HIV/AIDS in our community.

We'll have a chuckwagon dinner, cash bar, professional caller, and a 50-50 raffle.  Free parking with advance ticket purchase.  All proceeds from ticket sales and raffle will go to support those affected by HIV/AIDS in our community.

You can buy tickets online at http://sseccg.org/support/purchase.  Adults are $25, youth 7 to 16 are $10, and children under 7 are FREE.  Show your tickets or online receipt to the parking attendant for free parking the night of the event.

Are you new to our annual square dances?  Click here to see a gallery of pictures from last year's square dance.  You'll want to bring your whole family!

 

Invest 2 for Adults
New series begins March 1, 9:30 am, in the Great Hall 



With our theme of "Reconciliation" this year, our Sunday morning Lenten series will feature guest speakers from different faith traditions.

Our first speaker in this series, on March 1,  will be Shaik Shafayat Mohamed who is the Spiritual Head and Principal of Darul Uloom Institute in Pembroke Pines.  Shaik Mohamed will address how the concept and practice of Reconciliation and Peace-making are understood in the Islamic tradition. Please join us!
 
Joint series with Christ Church RETURNS!
A Lenten program on forgiveness


Please join us for a Lenten program on forgiveness, based on Bishop Desmond and Rev. Mpho Tutu's book, "The Book of Forgiving."  This program will be a joint effort between Christ Church and St. Stephen's.

The program will be a series of discussions led by the clergy of Christ Church and St. Stephen's beginning on Wednesday evening, March 4, at 6:30 p.m. and continuing on Wednesday evenings throughout Lent.

St. Stephen's is hosting the first gathering on March 4th.  It is a potluck supper, so please bring a main dish or a side to share with our guests from Christ Church.

Lenten Quiet Morning, March 7
Led by Father Michael

holy lent
Amidst all the busy-ness and claims on our attention and time, take a few hours to slow down and reflect.

Father Michael will lead us in time of quiet contemplation, Saturday, March 7, from 9 to noon in the Parish Center.  Please plan to attend - you will find yourself spiritually refreshed.

Gifford Lane Art Stroll on Sunday!
Support these generous AIDS Ministry donors

Stop by Gifford Lane for the yearly trip down memory lane from right after church to 5 pm this Sunday. Visit friends, eat, drink the world famous cucumber punch, dance to the music of the Solar Dogs, and of course buy art from more than 60 local artist showing their work on the shady old world street.  As a special note:  Parishioners John Holcombe and Eric Wagner will be performing with the Solar Dogs during this event.

Gifford Lane runs between 32nd ave ( McDonald Street) and Matilda Street and Oak Avenue and Day Street.

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Children's Lenten Offering.  Prayer, fasting, and alms-giving are three of the traditional disciplines of the Lenten season.  Prayer and fasting are inward, personal practices, but alms-giving looks outward, encouraging Christians to share what we have with those who have not. 

This year the children of St. Stephen's Church and their families are collecting funds to participate in Heifer International.  Since 1944 Heifer has helped more than 18.5 million families in more than 125 countries move toward greater self-reliance through the gift of livestock and training in environmentally sound agriculture.  The impact of each initial gift is multiplied as recipients agree to pass on the gift by giving one or more of their animal's offspring, or the equivalent, to another in need. 

Heifer works with Episcopal Relief and Development and many other Christian, Jewish, and Muslim outreach agencies.  Last Sunday, the first Sunday in Lent, St. Stephen's children were given a Heifer ark and asked to collect coins throughout Lent.  Children who attend Children's Chapel on Sunday mornings (10:30 am in the parish center) will learn more about the animals in God's creation and how animals provide income and food for families. 

Please encourage your child or teen to participate in this Lenten project.  The filled arks should be returned to St. Stephen's on Easter Sunday, April 5, 2015.


Help us pack food for Haiti on March 14th
A joint effort of the churches and schools of the South Dade Deanery

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Last year, many of us helped pack over 35,000 bags of food which were distributed by the Episcopal school in Bondeau, Haiti.  This year, St. Stephen's is hosting this wonderful outreach event inside the church.

We need 25 to 100 volunteers from both our church and school community.  We also need to raise $1,200 to contribute to the purchase of the food supplies.

There are two shifts:  10 to noon (registration begins at 9) and noon to 2.

If you would like to be part of this event or can donate funds, please contact Pastor Willie or Kristin Fonseca.

Note:  There will be a special offering for Haiti on March 8, Matthew 25:40 Sunday.

To recognize and thank our Art Show volunteers
For a successful 2015 Art Show! 



Thank you all!  Please click here to see the Thank-you Volunteer Slideshow.

Upcoming Events
Don't Forget These Dates     

 

reminder


Saturday, February 28 -
St. Stephen's AIDS Ministry Family Square Dance at 5:30 in the Great Hall

Sunday, March 1 - Invest 2 at 9:30 am in the Great Hall

- Gifford Lane Art Stroll all afternoon

Sunday, March 1 - Invest 2 series featuring speakers from different faith traditions begins at 9:30 am.

Wednesday, March 4 - Lenten potluck series with Christ Church at 6:30, here at St. Stephen's

Saturday, March 7 - Quiet Morning, Parish Center 9 am to noon

Saturday, March 14 - Packing meals for Haiti, 9 am to 2 pm

Sunday, March 15 - ECW Meeting in the Parish Center after the 10:30 am Mass

March 21 - St. Patrick's Day Party at 5:30 in the Parish Center 
 

At St. Stephen's All Are Welcome 

 
Sundays 
Said Mass at 8 am
Sung Mass with choir at 10:30 am,
with child care for children under three
and Children's Chapel for children seven and under
1st & 3rd Sundays
@Our Table, a dinner church 
 at 5:30 pm (child care available)
Parish Center
 

Office hours are Monday through Friday, 9 to 5.