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Save the Dates
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"De-greening Party:"
Sunday, January 13,
after church
Brief Parish Meeting
and Vestry Meeting:
Sunday, January 20,
after church
Book Group:
Sunday, January 20,
6:00, at the Moodys'
Parish Annual Meeting:
Sunday, February 10, after church
Ash Wednesday:
February 13
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Happy New Year!
We look forward to another year of being Grace in the city--growing in our love of God and love of our neighbors.
To share this news with a friend, click the "forward email" link at the bottom of the page. See you Sunday! --Beth Reed, Priest-in-charge |
| Sunday, January 11, at Grace |
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Eucharist, refreshments, "De-greening" 
We celebrate the Eucharist at 10:00; it's the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord. During the service, we have the chance to renew our baptismal promises. Consider spending a few minutes reflecting on them before church on Sunday. For a copy of these promises, click here; on the left of the page, click "Holy Baptism."
After the Eucharist, we gather for refreshments and conversation, and to take down the Christmas decorations. There are many tasks, from taking down wreaths to putting away candles and ribbons. When all the greens are out of the building, we need to give the room a good sweeping to get the needles out. Please stay if at all possible!
On the table in the hall, offering envelopes are available for anyone who would like them.
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| Grace's Food Pantry | |  The need doesn't stop
Today the pantry served about sixty households in our neighborhood. Some people were here for the first time. Some were here for the first time in years. Some are neighbors who rely on us every month.
Today was a day we were able to say: "Todo el pan que quiere!" (All the bread you want!) The pantry gets donations of bread and baked goods from Weis Market at Cedar Crest and Hamilton, and this week the amount was especially large, so clients could have as much as they liked. Other weeks, we need to say something like "one bread and one dessert" (un solo pan y un postre).
Jack and Jean M pick up the bread from Weis every Friday morning, and Jeff R does this task on Thursdays. The pantry is grateful to Weis and to these volunteers. |
| Parish Leadership | |  There are vestry openings
There are openings on the vestry (the leadership board of the church). At this time, the vestry especially needs people who are skilled in planning and doing the work of communications (telling our story on the website, newsletter, Facebook, and other media) and in fund raising. We need generalists as well, people who can help lead our parish as we discern the next phases of our life together and the work before us in Allentown.
Please consider the church's needs and your gifts and abilities. Do you feel led to offer your name for consideration? If so, please let a vestry member or Beth Reed know. The vestry will consider prayerfully the names that come forward and propose a slate of candidates. We will hold a brief parish meeting on January 20 at the end of the service to elect new vestry members. According to the by-laws of the church, vestry members need to be confirmed Episcopalians, and they need to contribute financially to the parish. The vestry meets about once a month, usually on a Sunday after refreshments, and there is some work in between meetings. If you'd like more information about what serving on the vestry entails, please talk with any vestry member or Beth Reed. (The list of vestry members is published in the bulletin each week.) The photos shows vestry members Tony V, Joan R, and Ellen R in our usual meeting place, the conference room downstairs. |
| Grace's Book Group | |  We'll meet Sunday evening, Jan. 20,
and newcomers are welcome!
Grace's book group started as a summer reading group several years ago, and each summer it reads and discusses a book or two about theology, the Bible, ethics, or a related area. In the winter it gathers to read a play or two, just for fun.
The group has grown in numbers and recently adopted a year-round schedule. In November, we learned about the demographic shifts and current population in downtown Allentown; a few members read articles or books on those topics and shared what they learned with the rest. In December, we read and discussed The First Christmas by Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan. For Lent, we will read The Last Week by the same authors. The book is subtitled "What the Gospels Really Teach about Jesus' Last Week in Jerusalem."
Next week's gathering is comic relief: we will read Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest. We will have snacks and drinks as we take turns on the parts. Eighteen people have signed up already. If you'd like to participate, contact Mary Louise B or Kelly C (so Kelly can obtain a copy of the play from Inter Library Loan), or simply show up next Sunday, January 20, at the Moodys' house. We start at 6:00, and our custom is that the hosts provide beverages and all others bring a snack to share.
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