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Dear Friends,
The eggs have been cracked, the chocolate has been eaten, and the baskets have been put away for next year.
But guess what? Easter is not over! Easter is not just one day, but a whole season -- it began with the first "Alleluia" during the Great Vigil of Easter and concludes with the day of Pentecost fifty days later. The season of Easter marks the time when the resurrected Christ was with his disciples before he ascended into heaven and then sent the Holy Spirit to continue being with them -- with us -- up to and including this very day.
During the season of Easter, the Paschal Candle continues to burn, signifying the Light of Christ with us. We do not say the General Confession during this time and our fraction anthem invokes Jesus to "be known to us in the breaking of the bread" as he was with his followers in Emmaus.
No, Easter is not just one day. In fact, it's not just a season of fifty days. It is the way we live our lives knowing that, as the hymn in the Lift Every Voice and Sing hymnal reminds us, "because he lives, I can face tomorrow."
Alleluia! The Lord is Risen!
In Christ's love,
Pastor Willie Allen-Faiella
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Thanks for the Outdoor Mass last Sunday! Good turnout, beautiful weather, lovely service!
We had a near-perfect day at the beach last Sunday. Thanks to all who brought and cooked food, and to those who carted the table, altar cloths, and all the accoutrements needed for an outdoor Eucharist to Bill Baggs State Park and back again. Special thanks also to Pastor Jorge, who played the guitar - the music was a wonderful addition to this annual event!
To see more pictures, click here.
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Invest 2 resumes Sunday
Pastor Jorge to lead
Invest 2 will resume on April 19 when Pastor Jorge Sayago-Gonzalez, SSEDS Chaplain (shown at left with Pr Willie), will begin leading a five-week series entitled "Embracing an Alternative Orthodoxy." This video and discussion series is based on Franciscan Monk Richard Rohr's study of the legacy of St Francis.
This class will meet in the Parish Center. Come see the beautiful new large screen TV in action!
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Please check your quarterly statement First Quarter Pledge Statements
Quarterly statements were sent out to our members last week from our parish office. Please check to be sure yours is correct. If you have any questions about your statement, please call the parish office at 305-448-2601. Thank you!
Statements were sent to those who have submitted pledge cards for 2015. If you have not submitted a pledge card it's not too late; they are available at the back of the church.
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Pop Cart returns to St. Stephen's
Daphne Robins to donate a portion of proceeds
The Pop Cart will be here this Sunday after the 10:30 service with their all natural ice pops. Some of the flavors include Orange Cream, Blue Blackberry Crush, Coffee Buzz, Strawberry Lemonade, and Mango Tango. A portion of the proceeds benefit this summer's Mission Trip to the Dominican Republic. Bring your coolers and stock up!
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ECW to meet Sunday See a short film about a historic church The ECW will meet next Sunday, April 19, in the Parish Center after the 10:30 am Mass. Kitty Morgan will show a short film about a historic church in the quaint village of Miserden, England. This church, named after St.Andrew, has a number of medieval features and artworks, including several alabaster sculptures, carved and painted with life-like detail.
Throughout the church are colorful paintings and stained glass windows depicting Biblical scenes. Two windows (see photo) show Christ holding a young lamb, above the words "I am the Good Shepherd" (an appropriate image, in anticipation of Good Shepherd Sunday, which is the following week) . This church is ideally situated among rolling hills and green pastures filled with grazing flocks of sheep.
In keeping with the shepherd theme, music for the film is "Agnus Dei" from a Mass by Palestrina. All are invited and lunch will be served. Please come!
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Matthew 25 offering on April 19
To benefit our mission trip to the Dominican Republic
This Sunday's Matthew 25:40 plate offering will go to benefit our June, 2015 mission trip to the D.R. You may use the "St. Stephen's Mission Trip" envelopes in the pews or simply write a check to St. Stephen's and note "mission trip" on the memo line.
Your contribution will help us to offer scholarships to pledging St. Stephen's members who have volunteered to be on the traveling mission team. We will also use the funds to help purchase the Vacation Bible School supplies and construction materials our mission team will be supplying for the small, rural Episcopal church where we will be serving.
Please be generous.
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This Sunday we will honor the church and school children who have completed their Early Communion classes.
Daisy and John Holcombe are organizing a Spring Cook-off Event for our youth group and their friends on Saturday, April 25, from 5 to 8 pm in the Great Hall. The "Challenge Menu" is now being determined. If you have questions, please email [email protected].
Heifer International Lenten Collection - A Reminder This is the last call for children to bring in their Lenten Collection boxes. Our donation to Heifer International will be sent soon, so please remember to return your coins to St. Stephen's as soon as possible. Thanks!
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Join the Grove AIDS walk Saturday morning, April 25
Plymouth Church is holding the annual Grove AIDS walk on Saturday April 25th. All are invited to walk with a group from St. Stephen's and Plymouth (the Grove Churches group) on that Saturday morning.
Anyone wanting to make a contribution to the AIDS Walk will have an opportunity to do so this Sunday after church. |
Benefiting Care Resource and Food for Life
For over 20 years St. Stephen's Church has participated in the annual Miami AIDS Walk. Although we will not do the Grove Mini-Walk this year, the Grove Churches team is registered for the main walk on Sunday, April 26 on Miami Beach, and people can join the team and/or make donations online at www.aidswalkmiami.org/grovechurches. Use the code GC when registering for the team in order to waive the $25 registration fee. Please join the team and collect pledges, whether or not you actually walk on Sunday April 26. Donations can also be made by check payable to CareResource and sent to the church office.
CareResource and Food For Life food bank are dedicated to providing crucial support services, primary medical care, clinical drug trials, counseling, education and nutritious food for people living with HIV/AIDS. Through the support of contributors like you, 86% of each dollar raised goes directly to programs and services free of charge to more than 18,000 men, women and children living with HIV/AIDS in Dade and Broward counties. Your donation is fully tax-deductible, so please make your donation now before you forget.
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Please remember others when you shop Church-School food drives support pantries
Starting on Sunday, May 3rd and continuing every first Sunday, we will be collecting canned goods for the Coconut Grove Food Pantry. The collected items will be brought to the altar to be blessed.
This food pantry is a USDA inspected and approved food pantry and assists those in our community in need. The pantry is based at Christ Church Episcopal, and every Friday morning at 9 recipients may register and receive a bag of groceries. There is usually a protein such as frozen chicken and other items like bags of rice, beans, canned goods, fruit juice and other sundries depending on the ebb and flow of donations from other community churches and establishments.
Please remember when you are doing your grocery shopping to throw a couple of cans into your cart for those less fortunate. Items like canned tuna, Vienna sausages, Spam, cereal, rice, beans, canned vegetables or fruit, anything healthy and non-perishable are welcome. |
Countdown to Sabbatical
A weekly article about our sabbatical
Yugoslavia was a unique country, a federation of six different republics with populations of Serbs, Croats, Bosnians, Macedonians, Slovenes, and ethnic Albanians and Hungarians. There were three major religions: Eastern Orthodox Christianity, Roman Catholicism, and Islam. It was the only country successfully to overcome the Nazi occupation during World War II by national resistance from within with very little outside assistance. The Yugoslavs were also successfully able to stand up to Stalin after the war and, though communist, never became part of the USSR's sphere of influence.
All of this was held together by the country's leader, Josip Broz "Tito," whose motto was "Brotherhood and Unity." After his death in 1980 the country degenerated into ethnic and religious rivalries that culminated in the devastating wars of the 1990s.
In 2012 the BBC produced an excellent six-part documentary, "The Death of Yugoslavia," about the causes and effects of those wars. It can be viewed here.
While this may seem like history from an obscure part of the world, it is an important history. The dynamics of ethnic/religious hatred, lust for power, and territoriality shaped most of the major conflicts of the 20th century and continue to shape the conflicts happening today. As Christians our major task is to seek the truth and strive for reconciliation in our personal lives as well as in the world around us.
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Wertheim Organ Showcase this Sunday! Featuring Dr. W. Dan Hardin
Our own Organist and Choir Director, Dr W. Dan Hardin will play the 74-rank Schantz organ in the Herbert and Nicole Wertheim Performing Arts Center in appreciation of Dr. Wertheim's gift of the Sydell Ida Wertheim organ to the FIU School of Music in 1999. The program showcases the works of Peter Eben, C�sar Franck, J. S. Bach and Louis Vierne, plus a new work by Wake Forest University composer-in-residence, Dan Locklair. According to those in the know, Dr. Dan puts on a fine concert! Be sure not to miss it. April 19, 2015 - 4:00 pm
Herbert and Nicole Wertheim Performing Arts Center Concert Hall
10910 SW 17 Street, Miami, Florida 33199 (MMC) Tickets: $5-10 at the door Contact the WPAC Box Office at [email protected] or 305-348-0496 More information at http://cartanews.fiu.edu/events/wertheim-organ-showcase/ |
New Bishop to be ordained May 9 Your prayers and presence are requested
The Diocese of Southeast Florida will ordain and consecrate the Very Reverend Peter Eaton as Bishop Coadjutor on Saturday, May 9, at Trinity Cathedral in downtown Miami.
We will have an opportunity to meet our Bishop Coadjutor-Elect Peter and his wife Kate at a gathering on April 28 at 7 pm at St. Matthew the Apostle Episcopal Church. St. Matthew's is located at 7410 Sunset Drive, Miami. Click here for a map.
If you would like to contribute to a gift for the Bishop Coadjutor elect, please click here.
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Upcoming Events Don't Forget These Dates
Sunday, April 19 - Invest 2 with Pastor Jorge in the Parish Center at 9:30 am (see article above)
- ECW to meet in the Parish Center after the 10:30 am Mass
- Wertheim Organ Showcase featuring Dr. Dan Hardin (see article above)
Saturday, April 25 - Spring Cook-off event for our youth group and their friends from 5 to 8 in the Great Hall.
Sunday, April 26 - AIDS Walk Miami (see article above)
May 2 - Volunteer Appreciation Party
Sunday, May 3 - ECW to meet in the Parish Center after the 10:30 am Mass
May 9 - Consecration of Peter Eaton as Bishop Coadjutor at Trinity Cathedral at noon.
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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.
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