St. Martin's Newsletter
   Weekly E-News July 8, 2016
Worship Schedule
(This schedule will begin again September 11)
Sunday  
   8:00am  Holy Eucharist
   8:45am  Bible Study 
   9:15am  Nursery
   9:30am  Holy Eucharist with choir
and sermon 
     10:45am   Christian Formation 
Tuesday-Friday
9am Morning Prayer in the Chapel
Wednesday
                                                              7am service with Holy Eucharist

(see box below for summer schedule) 



As we entered this time last year, I began to speak about our plans to participate in the RenewalWorks program in the coming fall. One year later it's gratifying to be able to point to the fruit of this experience, a fruit that is already enriching us and will clearly be the loadstar guiding us as we negotiate our way forward.
 
From our participation in RenewalWorks, three key priorities have emerged:
  1. Embedding the Bible in parish life
  2. Engaging our passion
  3. The heart of the leader
Last week in my epistle I explored what lies behind priority 3, the heart of the leader. This week explores priority 2-engaging our passion. Next week, I will talk about priority 1. This week I want to explore our second priority:
 
Engaging our passion represents a renewed focus on raising the energy levels of member engagement across all our ministry and program areas. Already we see:
  • Three new active and inspirational spirituality groups for women, men, and the under 30's meeting monthly
  • The Knitting Ministry - an expression of skill and love toward those encountering health crises
  • Expansion of the Lay Pastoral Care Team - visiting the sick and housebound with Holy Communion, forming a vital link for our members separated from participation in worship
  • The continued work of the Hospitality Ministry
  • The Property Committee's comprehensive survey of buildings and infrastructure needs and developing a work schedule for completion, e.g. the current refurbishment of the Kitchen, and also the church's interior repainting and plaster damage repair work in the fall.
  • The Thrifty Goose thrift shop and Cloak are models of collaborative ministry that recycles clothing and housewares to the public, and clothing and toiletries for the homeless, while at the same time producing a healthy income for the parish
  • The Advent gift program for Children in DCYF care and St Mary's Home for Children
  • The week-by-week dedication of the Choir, the Altar and Flower Guilds whose efforts elevate our worship
  • The renewal of our Newcomer Welcome Ministry
I believe our purpose at St Martin's is to reshape ourselves in order to welcome those who are not yet here. We are especially equipped to be a community where individual spiritual seekers, the spiritual but not religious of the research polls, can anchor their spiritual restlessness in community. An early Church Father, Tertullian, commented that one Christian is no Christian, meaning to be Christian is to be spiritual within community. Here the rich and ancient faith story of Christianity informs and empowers our engagement with the very real issues we face in this part of the 21st century.
 
The bottom line for St Martin's is that we need to grow in order to thrive. This is not just growth for growth sake, it's growth to sustain and further equip us to become better fit for the purpose God has for us. Engaging our passion is about becoming a more magnetic community, making full use of our human and imaginative resources to attract others to us.
 
Among us, the spirit of welcome and open hospitality should inform all that we do. Furthermore, we are an every member ministry community. This means welcome and hospitality are for each of us core concerns. An attitudinal mind shift is required, so that welcome and hospitality cease to be aspects of community life that can be safely assumed to be someone else's responsibility.
 
If you are not away, I look forward to seeing in you in Church this Sunday.
Mark+
Summer Schedule 

JULY 3rd through SEPTEMBER 4th:

9:15am Nursery 
ONE SERVICE of Holy Eucharist Rite II at 9:30am 
Office Hours  M-F  9am to 12noon

NO: 
Morning Prayer on Tuesday, Thursday, or Friday 
Gander meetings 
News & Notes 
Christian Formation (starts again Sunday, September 18th) 
+
YES: 
Morning Prayer on Wednesdays at 9am 
+
Sundays, July 17th & August 21st 
Christian Formation - ' The Story ' 
10:45am
+
Our guest organist for the month of August  
will be Diana-Norton Jackson. 

Please click here for Participants list for Sunday, July 10th.   
READINGS THIS WEEK

 
Amos 7:7-17 (OT)
Colossians 1:1-14 (NT)
Luke 10:25-37 (Gospel)
 Click here for this Sunday's readings.
     THIS SUNDAY
9:15am  Nursery   
+
9:30am Holy Eucharist Rite II 
+
Healing Prayers during Communion
( this and every Sunday)
 +  
Gluten Free Hosts available at the altar rail. 
MORNING PRAYER
    
Morning Prayer is said in the Chapel of the Church at 9am on Tuesday through Friday each week. All are welcome!
               Mark+
Biblebox
(Weekly Bible Study) 
Luke 10:25-37
To dig a little behind the Gospel text for this Sunday, take a look at this week's  Working Preacher in preparation for discussion at our weekly Sunday Bible study at 8:30am in the Church Office this week.
FYI

Applications are now available for grants from St. Martin's Outreach Committee. 

Grant amounts generally range from $250-$1000.  The deadline is September 1st. 
If you are interested in applying, please contact the church office.
 
Imagine a Life In Which You Can Say:
Yes! to God; Yes! to Your Neighbor; and Yes! to Your Self
Yes! A workshop series by the  
Commission on Ministry
Beginning on Sept. 21, 2016

The Commission on Ministry will again offer the Yes! curriculum beginning on September, 21, 2016. The 7 session course will be facilitated by our Archdeacon, The Venerable Janice Grinnell and will be held at St. Columba's Chapel in Middletown, RI.

This program is in direct response to lay people who are seeking ways to discern and understand their God given purpose. The dates and times are as follow:

Session 1
September 21, 2016 from 7-9 p.m.

Session 2
September 28, 2016 from 7-9 p.m.

Session 3
Evenings of Discovery
October 5, 2016 from 6:30-9:30 p.m.
Session 4
October 19, 2016 from 6:30-9:30 p.m.

Session 5
October 26, 2016 from 7-9 p.m.

Session 6
November 2, 2016 from 7-9 p.m.

Session 7
(last)
November 9, 2016 from 7-9 p.m.
 
 
What is Yes!?
 
Yes! was developed to help you create that life God is calling you to live.
Rather than egotistically creating your own life, Yes! uses appreciative inquiry and conversation to help you awaken to the life-giving purpose that is already within you.

Yes! is based on several assumptions:
  • We are made for a purpose
  • We have been fully equipped with gifts and talents to fulfill that purpose
  • We most closely manifest our purpose when we are at our best, being and doing those things that flow from the core of our being and bring deep satisfaction
Life and the abundant life that Jesus' promised comes from what we deeply and profoundly say yes to, for it is in what we say Yes! to that we manifest our God given purpose.

Cost:
$100 (includes cost of materials)
Limited scholarships available. To learn more, please contact Canon Betsy Fornal, Episcopal Diocese of Rhode Island, at 401-274-4500, ext. 225 or email betsy@episcopalri.org.
 
[Correction to step #4 below...please take note]

St. Martin's joins the Amazon Smile Program!
St. Martin's has registered with Amazon's charitable giving program which is called Amazon Smile. Under Amazon Smile, ½ of 1% of all your purchases go a to a charity of your choice. Parishioners can now designate St. Martin's to receive ½ of 1% of their Amazon purchases.  
Here is how to participate:
  1. Go to smile.amazon.com
  2. Enroll in program by giving your email address and your regular Amazon password
  3. The next page will welcome you to the program and show a default charity such as the Audubon Society. Next to the default charity name will be a small arrow asking if you want to change the charity. Click on the arrow.
  4. Type in St. Martins Parish (exactly) in the box and our name will come up. Click select.
  5. After this, when purchasing from Amazon you must go through smile.amazon.com for you purchases to qualify.
  6. Price, service and selection is exactly the same as on the 'normal' Amazon web site. Subscribers to Amazon Prime can use the Smile program.
If you have any questions please contact the office. (And thank you!!)